When we left our anchorage this morning, amid local fishermen in their little fishing boats which they controlled from the front of their vessel using some sort of rope rigged up to control both the engine and the steering, we rounded the bend into the reach up to Tanjung Manis.
Within a short time the usual vegetation of mangroves and nipah palms disappeared to be replaced by timber yards, timber mills and woodchip mills.
Barges and lighters were being loaded with timber and dressed timber and ships anchored in the river were being loaded from the lighters.As we passed Tanjung Manis the amount of timber lining the shores decreased but as we progressed upstream there were still plenty of yards with timber piled up ready for removal. In some parts timber was lying along the banks where it seemed it had been chained and rafted down from further upstream to end up waiting for transport somewhere else. We knew the rainforests were being cleared but it was incredible to see the amount of timber being moved in just this short stretch of river.
