The beauty of Similajau National Park is undisputable. Its coastline, a chain of golden sandy beaches, punctuated by small rocky head lands and jungle streams, and bordered by dense green forest is a great getaway from the bustling city life. Just 45 minutes from Bintulu, the national park was gazetted in 1978, and covers 7,064 hectares of virgin coastal forest, starting from Sungai Likau in the south to Similajau River in the north. Spanning 30 kilometres, it is abundant in flora and fauna and offers you a wonderful experience exploring miles and miles of empty beach.

The terrestrial fauna of the park boasts 24 recorded species of mammals, such as gibbons, long-tailed macaques, gibbons, banded langurs, shrews, mouse deer, barking deer, squirrels, wild boar, porcupine, civet cats and saltwater crocodile. One odd creature that is commonly seen at Similajau’s beaches is the horseshoe crab, known locally as the Belangkas. This prehistoric-looking animal is not a true crab, but a modern day descendant of the trilobites that populated the seas 400 million years ago. They are often seen in pairs on the beach or in the shallows of the sea.

The Park has also recorded 230 species of birds, which include hornbills and migratory water birds like Storms Stork. If you're lucky, you might be able to see dolphins out amongst the waves. Occasionally, green turtles come ashore to lay their eggs while dolphins in small groups are often spotted as well.

So check out Similajau National Park and smile all the way.

For more information, visit www.sarawakforestry.com/htm/snp-np-siminajau.html