YBDXC yb land dx club: Lighthouses of Indonesia: Kalimantan (Borneo)

http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/idri.htm

Lighthouses of Indonesia: Kalimantan (Borneo)

Indonesia has been independent since 1945, after having been the Dutch East Indies for more than 350 years. It is a huge country, stretching along both sides of the Equator for more than 46 degrees of longitude (roughly 5100 km or 3200 miles). Comprised of some 17,000 islands (more than 6000 inhabited islands), it has hundreds of major aids to navigation. Unfortunately, we have no idea how many of these aids can be considered lighthouses. Information about them is scarce, and photos are even scarcer. Official light lists contain dozens of entries for "framework towers" and "white beacons," providing little guidance for the lighthouse fan.
Borneo, known as Kalimantan in Indonesia, is the world's third largest island. Most of the island is Indonesian, but the northern portion also includes the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah and the independent sultanate of Brunei.
The Indonesian word for a lighthouse is mercusuar. The phrase menara suar, which includes the Arabic word menara, is sometimes used instead.
Aids to navigation in Indonesia are operated and maintained by the Indonesian Directorate of Marine Navigation (Indomarinav).
ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volumes F and K of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.

Pulau Sambit Light, Celebes Sea
photo copyright Christian Redinger; used by permission

General Sources KITLV Beeldbank: Historic photos from the collection of the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies.

Celebes Sea (Northeast Coast) Lighthouses

Northern Kalimantan Timur Lighthouses
Pulau Sambit (Karana Muaras, Muaras Reef) (2): Date unknown (station established 1911). Active; focal plane 43 m (141 ft); white flash every 5 s. 30 m (98 ft) (?) square skeletal tower with lantern and gallery. Tower painted white, lantern and gallery red. Christian Redinger's photo is at the top of this page, but the island is only a blur in Google's satellite view. From the photo, it's apparent that the listed focal plane is too high or else the tower height is too low. Pulau Sambit is a small island in the Celebes Sea about 80 km (50 mi) northeast of Sepinang. The light guides ships approaching the Makassar Strait on the east side of Borneo. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS IDO-032; Admiralty F2022; NGA 24784.

Makassar Strait (East Coast) Lighthouses

Central Kalimantan Timur Lighthouses
Tanjung Mangkalihat: Date unknown (station established 1910). Active; focal plane 42 m (138 ft); white flash every 5 s. 33 m (108 ft) iron skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available; Google has a distant satellite view of the location. This lighthouse stands on the easternmost point of Borneo and marks the northern entrance to the Makassar Strait. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-043; Admiralty F2024.5; NGA 24788.
Pulau Miang Besar: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 51 m (167 ft); white flash every 6 s. "White lighthouse," according to NGA. No photo available; Google has a distant satellite view of the location. This light marks the entrance to the harbor of Sangkulirang. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-223; Admiralty F2024.65; NGA 24792.5.
Pulau Ambungi: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 33 m (108 ft); quick-flashing white light. 30 m (98 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and the island is only a blur in Google's satellite view. Located on an island in Makassar Strait about 130 km (80 mi) southeast of Balikpapan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-190; Admiralty K1488; NGA 24946.
Kepulauan Balabalagan (Balabalagan Islands): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 40 m (131 ft); three white flashes every 20 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and the island is only a blur in Google's satellite view. Located on the southeasternmost of a small group of islands in the middle of the Makassar Strait about 175 km (110 mi) southeast of Balikpapan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-177; Admiralty K1486; NGA 24944.

Java Sea (South Coast) Lighthouses

Kalimantan Selatan (South Kalimantan) Lighthouses

Kalimantan Tengah (Central Kalimantan) Lighthouses
Tanjung Bandaran: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 15 m (49 ft); white flash every 4 s. 15 m (49 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google has only a distant satellite view of the location. Located at the end of a spit on the west side of the entrance to the bay of Setriruk. Site status unknown. Admiralty K1411.6; NGA 25032.
Tanjung Siamok: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); two quick white flashes every 5 s. 15 m (49 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google has only a very distant satellite view of the cape. Located on a cape about 25 km (15 mi) southeast of Segintong. Site status unknown. Admiralty K1411.4; NGA 25036.
Tanjung Putung (Tanjung Puting): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 31 m (102 ft); three white flashes every 14 s. Approx. 28 m (92 ft) tapered square skeletal tower with gallery, painted white. Done Husen has a photo, but Google has only a very distant satellite view of the cape. Tanjung Putung is a prominent cape about 55 km (35 mi) southwest of Segintong. Site status unknown. Admiralty K1411.2; NGA 25040.

Karimata Strait (Southwest Coast) Lighthouses

Kalimantan Barat (West Kalimantan) Lighthouses
Pulau Bawal (Tanjung Rotan): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 67 m (220 ft); three white flashes every 12 s. NGA has no description, but a tall tower is likely at this location. No photo available; Google has a very distant satellite view of the cape. Pulau Bawal is an island about 10 km (6 mi) northwest of Tanjung Simbar, the southwestern corner of Borneo. Site status unknown. Admiralty K1410; NGA 25050.
Gosong Mampango (Discovery East Bank) (2): Date unknown (station established 1903). Active; focal plane 13 m (43 ft); white flash every 5 s. 20 m (66 ft) skeletal tower, painted with red and white horizontal bands. No photo of the current light is available, but KITLV has a 1909 photo of the original Dutch lighthouse. Located on a dangerous reef far out in the northwestern corner of the Java Sea, about 200 km (125 mi) southwest of the southwestern corner of Kalimantan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-132; Admiralty K1034; NGA 25052.
Pulau Serutu: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 175 m (574 ft); three quick white flashes every 10 s. 25 m (82 ft) iron skeletal tower, painted white. No current photo available, and Google has only a distant satellite view of the location. KITLV has a 1910 photo of the Dutch lighthouse, which might survive. This is major light with a range of 36 nautical miles (67 km, 42 mi). Pulau Serutu anchors the southwest end of the Karimata Archipelago, which extends into the Karimata Strait separating Kalimantan from Sumatra. The light is an important landmark for ships sailing between Singapore and Jakarta. Located on the highest point of the island. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-181; Admiralty K1406; NGA 25060.
Pulau Layah Kecil: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 72 m (236 ft); two white flashes every 15 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google has only a distant satellite view of the island. This lighthouse is in Sukadana Bay, a broad embayment on the southwest coast of Kalimantan. Located on a small island about 80 km (50 mi) west of Tanjung Baikbudi. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-213; Admiralty K1407.5; NGA 25064.1.
Pulau Lemukutan (Lemoekoetan): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 314 m (1030 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 19 m (59 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and the tower has not been found in Google's satellite view. Pulau Lemoekoetan is a mountainous island about 18 km (12 mi) off the westernmost point of Kalimantan. Located on the highest point of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-214; Admiralty F1885; NGA 25084.
[Tanjung Datu]: 1988 (station establishment date unknown). Active (?); focal plane 171 m (561 ft); white flash every 15 s. 10 m (33 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. This lighthouse marks the border between Indonesia and Sarawak. Malaysia lists an 8 m (26 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower, and a photo shows that both lighthouses are present. A chain link fence separates the skeletal tower in Indonesia from the concrete lighthouse in Malaysia! We do not know if both lights are active. Located on a promontory at the tip of the Datu Peninsula about 50 km (30 mi) northwest of Sematan, Malaysia. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1894; NGA 23872.