BIAK NUMFOR – Indonesia is an area that is very rich in interesting and fascinating natural resources, one of the areas of natural wealth is in Biak Numfor, Papua, namely Samares Blue Lake, this lake is known as a Blue Lake with very clear lake water, with the clarity of this water can see the trees and mountain branches at the bottom of the lake which is clearly visible from above, the water in this lake is slightly salty and also very cool.
This lake was previously called Wopersnondi, but many people know it as Samares Blue Lake. Wopersnondi itself comes from the Biak language which is a combination of Woofer which means jump and Snon which means man, in other words the name means people who jump, the name is said to come from many men in the surrounding villages who often dive.
Samares Blue Lake takes about an hour from the city of Biak, Papua which can be reached by private vehicles such as motorbikes or cars and there is no public transportation at this location, so the road access to this location has been paved, but the road to Blue Lake has an uphill and downhill road.
When walking through this area surrounded by forests that can make us feel cold and that the humid air can cause moss to grow on the surface of the asphalt on each road that will be used to get to the location of the Samares Blue Lake has been well maintained so that the vehicle is safe when passing, and the attraction that the Samares Blue Lake has, namely:
- Located in the middle of the forest, one of the destinations that must be explored is Samares Village located in East Biak District, Biak Numfor Regency, Papua, this village is famous for its beach tourism, besides the beach we can also visit Samares Blue lake which is located in the middle of the forest which is equipped with very clear blue water and looks photogenic.
- The beauty of Clear Water, we will be amazed by the beauty of the clear water of the lake which has a depth of about fourteen meters, the water in this lake is brackish so it certainly tastes salty and be careful when swimming in Samares Blue lake because it is close to the beach and if you want to jump down there are many tree roots and branches, from large to small.
- Can be used for bathing, Samares Blue Lake is about 1-1.5 hours drive from Biak city center, upon arrival at Septik village we have to climb the stairs built by the local government for easy access to the lake and follow the road dotted with tall trees and sometimes there are lounge chairs on the hiking trail for tourists.
- Close to Other Destinations, besides being able to enjoy the natural beauty of Biak through Samares Blue Lake, we can also spend time by coming to visit other natural tourist destinations, one of the tours that can be visited is Samares Beach which is not so far from Blue Lake and the estimated distance that needs to be traveled is about Five minutes from Blue Lake.
- Supporting the Village, initially the Blue Samares lake was only used by local residents to pump clean water, the site became a tourist destination in 2015 with the support of the Biak Numfor Protected Forest Management Unit (KPHL) and after that many people said that the lake in Biak had enormous natural tourism potential. Head of the Biak Numfor Protected Forest Management Unit Meilanny Margareth explained that this management needs to support the community while still preserving nature, tourist attractions allow residents to meet financial needs from the creation of natural tourist destinations and eliminate the need to sell timber from protected forests. Some residents who know the existence of the lake are busy coming and visitor interest reached its peak in 2017 after public works built a road that no longer had to be passed by visitors, the responsibility for managing this tourist destination lies with the residents of Sepse Village who are closest to the tourist location of this Lake. The community finally formed the Samares Blue Lake ecotourism group, which consists of 30 villagers. Sepse Village is very blessed as the lake generates around IDR 2 to 15 million per month, depending on the influx of visitors, a village with 150 households is finally able to build and prosper.
- The Lestari cycle, when tourists began to be crowded with forest destruction activities slowly disappeared, residents have begun to realize that the Blue Samares Lake has a positive impact on the life of their village and have issued mutually agreed rules for logging, according to the rules residents involved in logging activities will be fined Rp 500,000.
Samares Blue Lake has been well managed and maintained, when arriving in this area visitors only need to climb a few steps and walk along the path to get to the location and for the operating hours applied to this tourist destination area has not been clearly written, but if you want to come to visit this Blue lake, you can come in the morning so you can feel this natural tour freely and satisfied.
