Gede Pangrango

Gede Pangrango National Park, together with four others, was established under a declaration made by the Minister of Agriculture on  March 6,1980. These first five park had the distinction of launching Indonesia's National Park Program

The Park, covering 15,196 Ha, envolved from several already existing conservation areas. Cibodas Nature Reserve (240 Ha), gazetted in 1889, was the oldest reserve in Indonesia and in 1925 was extended to 1,040 Ha, Cimungkat Nature Reserve (56 Ha) gazetted ini 1919, Situgunung Recreational Park (120 Ha) gazetted in 1975, and Mount Gede Pangrango Nature Reserve (14,000 Ha) gazetted in 1978.

The park is situated between longitudes 106^o51' - 107^o02' east, and latitude 6^o41' - 6^o51' south. Administratively, it is shared between the Regencies of Bogor, Cianjur and Sukabumi.

Gede Pangrango is one of the wettest part of Java with a mean annual rainfall between 3.000 and 4.000 mm and with, even in the four dries consecutive months of the year, still more than 40 rainy days. The wettest season in from October to May, coinciding with the Northwest monsoon, with more than 200 mm of rain every month and over 400 mm per month between December and March (the park is usually closed during this period). 

The best time for visiting this park is during the driest months (June - September), when average monthly rainfall drops below 100 mm. Annual average temperature varies from about 18^o C, in Cibodas to less than 10^o C at the top of Pangrango Mount while the relative humidity varies between 80% and 90%.

The Gede Pangrango area has been the centre of much research over the last two centuries, so establishing its worldwide reputation. Sir Thomas Raffles organized the building of a path on the south-eastern slopes in 1811, although the earliest recorded climb of Mount Gede was by C.G.C Reinwardt in 1819. 

Other explorations were conducted by F.W. Junghuhn (1839 - 1861), J.E. Teysman (1839), A.R. Wallace (1861), S.H. Koorders (1890), M. Treub (1891) and W.M. Van Leeuen (1911). C.G.G.J. Van Steenis (1920 - 1952) collected and studied here in preparation for his now famous book "The Mountain Flora of Java", published in 1972.

Today, many Indonesian and foreign scientist carry on the tradition and as a result these mountains are one of the most well researched tropical forest system in the world. Even so, in such a set of complex ecosystem, exact relationships between the myriad of species will keep biologist intrigued for many decades to come. Climate, topography and vegetation all interact.

The park is within easy reach by road from Jakarta and Bandung, and the main entrance at Cibodas is situated about 120 km, or about 2.5 hours by car from Jakarta, and 85 km or about 2 hours by car from Bandung. It is also accessible from Cipanas and Pacet through Gunung Putri, just east of Cibodas, and from Sukabumi through Selabintana from the south at about 60 km or 1.5 hours by car from Bogor. 

Another entrance is Situgunung, which can be reached through Cisaat, just west of Sukabumi. From these entrances, except from Situgunung, there are trails to the summits of Gunung Gede and Pangrango.

Gunung Gede Pangrango are a part of the great belt of volcanoes which extends in an arch through Sumatera, Java and the Lesser Sundas. These volcanoes were formed during the Quarternary period between 3 million years ago and the present time. 

Pangrango and Gede are thus comparative new mountain geologically, though the former is the older of the two, no longer displaying any sign of volcano activity, while Gede is still semi active with a well defined crater within which gases escape from fumaroles. Gunung Gede (2,958 m) and Pangrango (3,019 m) are connected by a high saddle at about 2,500 m. Slopes are very step and are incised by valleys forming steep-sided ridges between them radiating out toward the flat plains of Bogor, Cianjur and Sukabumi.

Declared by Minister of Forestry No. 174/Kpts-II/2003, July 10, 2003.