Getting here:
The mangrove forest is located on the eastern beach side of Telok Assam, just a few minutes walking from the Park Headquarters.

Description:
Not all mangrove forests in Bako National Park are easily accessible. Mangrove forests, often being looked down as being dirty, muddy and infested with creepy crawlies, are now regarded to be vital to the complex coastal ecosystem. With the astonishing natural calamity of the recent Boxing Day tsunami that took the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in Asia, scientists and naturalists alike have re-emphasised the importance of mangrove ecosystem as the buffer zone in the coastal area to absorb some energy from the oncoming tsunami. Prior to the sad disaster, mangrove ecosystem was mostly known as pit stops for transmigrating birds as well as the mangrove trees commonly used in the lucrative construction industry.

By hooks and crooks, mangrove forests are hardly accessible to the public unless proper boardwalks with raised platforms some feet above the muddy soil are erected. A mangrove tree itself is very unique, to say the least. It is common to see aerial roots jutting out from the mangrove trunk as if to anchor the tree on the weak mud floor. These roots actually function more than just for stability. Their main function, in fact, is to breathe air! This is just one of the many astounding facts that make the mangrove trees so special. In fact, it is often said that "mangrove trees grow where no trees have grown before", which is indeed very true, considering how most plants will die with the amount of salt water that a mangrove tree has to tolerate.

Learning how mangrove trees breed is even more interesting. If you ever get to walk close to the mud floor, or even on sandy beaches like Telok Assam, just be on the look out for elongated green stalks with sharp pointed edge at one end. They are not tree stalks or branches, but actually are the seedlings of the mangrove trees (especially of the Avicenna species)! These seeds were probably released by the mangrove trees some hundreds of yards away and washed ashore at different places by the sea tides until they find a suitable place to germinate. A closer inspection of the seedlings will also reveal several adaptations to ensure their survival, such as waxy thick coating to repel salt water, an ability to float, and microscopic perforations for oxygen storage. The sharper end of the seeds can also pierce through the mud floor which eventually becomes a root base of the new trees.

If you are at the national park throughout the day, most likely you will be able to see the mangrove forest during both low and high tides. At low tides, creatures like mudskippers and hermit crabs can easily be spotted. During my visit, the exposed mud flat was also a popular playing ground for proboscis monkeys and Bornean bearded pigs foraging for afternoon meals. In fact, the presence of a bearded pig caused quite a commotion among the non-aggressive proboscis monkeys. Tourists watched in glee when it happened. To me, it was probably something worthy of a National Geographic documentary. At high tides, parts of the mangrove trees are submerged under salt water which may look awkward to most visitors. Nonetheless, the daily flood of sea water does nothing to the towering mangrove trees with the natural adaptive characteristics that they possess.

It was here that I was almost attacked by a group of long-tailed macaques. Just as I thought their visit on the boardwalk was of peaceful intention, they started shouting at our group of tourists. Yes, these macaques are ferocious, with piercing sharp teeth and equally lethal claws. I managed to avoid further confrontation by jumping on the mud floor and got to a safe distance, but the rest of the tourists were not so lucky. They were actually being blocked by the macaques, threatening to pounce on anybody trying to get past them. The drama ended after about 15-20 minutes after the macaques finally gave in, but not before the tourists were ready with wooden sticks to poke in self defense, just in case. Actually, I have not heard of any injuries caused by the macaques but I did not dare to ask a park ranger about any unpublished stories with regards to those belligerent monkeys.