024.Pulau Bintan 05.Kelong (Indonesia)

2023-10-29

The purpose for visiting Pulau Bintan (Bintan Island) was to see Kelong. Start was one picture I found on the internet. I had interested in it. So I looked for the precise information. I could hardly get it except that the photo was shot on Pulau Bintan. Based on that information, I visited here. Anxiety about whether I could find it was groundless fear. Once I got to the east coast, I could find one easily.

See a Kelong which is floating on the sea in the morning.

What is Kelong?

It was a facility that anchored offshore and harvested fish. In the past, it had wide distribution from the Malay Peninsula to the Indonesian coast.

A framework on the float is built with wood cut down from a nearby forest. Most have 3 spans, and some have about 5 spans. In the middle of the framework is a plank deck, and a small hut thatched with palm leaves is put in the center of the deck. Fishing nets are hung from the framework around the four sides to use as a fish tank. It is a simple structure that fishermen built to spend about two weeks for fishing.

I imagined that its humorous feature like a caterpillar moved on the sea. But it had no driving device, and a boat towed it.

Fishermen go to Kelong by boat, fish for five days, then return to land with their harvest and repeat the same work. They fish at night, using lights to attract fish and catch them. Viewed from the beach, fishing fires were dotting the horizon in the night.

During the day, they rest under a small roof of the hut. It is enough for only 2 or 3 people to accommodate, the height is not so high that their head collide with the roof, and the surrounding deck is a few steps away. Waiting for the night in this small space for five days would generate frustration? Perhaps that idea is urbanized. For them, living with the minimum space necessary for work must be a natural style that has continued since long ago.

During the full moon, it is difficult for them to catch fish due to the bright light. In the rainy season, the fishes dive deep underwater since rainwater dilutes the sea water, therefore they can not catch many fishes. Those story show their rhythm of living with respect to the law of nature without relying on machines or bottom trawling. Kelong was a device that reflected the natural relationship that humans and nature have maintained for a long time.

Early in the morning, Kelong had returned to the port. Middlemen appeared and bought the harvest with the basket.

A fisherman gave me some freshly caught anchovies and small squid. Not only those were fresh but also modestly salted. Delicious! I asked him for another helping again and again.