My guides and I left our river base in Borneo’s Tanjung Puting NationalPark at 4:00 a.m. Three hours later, by motorboat, we arrived at a remote jungle destination far from the tourist trail. It was a visually intoxicating journey—half Apocalypse Now and half Tarzan. My guides then spoke to local rangers about where a certain large male orangutan had been recently sighted. Everyone wanted to help us.
By 8:45 a.m., we landed in an area reconfigured by fires and deforestation. It was otherworldly and unique, but bereft of my principal goal—the orangutan. Fortunately, my local friends knew the calling noises, and sure enough withinan hour an enormous male came into view—but no more than just into view. He was clearly scared of humans, and right now who could blame him—we have destroyed his home for corporate greed. There was no picture. Eight hours in a boat the size of a phone booth looked like it would end with nothing.
The thing is, orangutans are so smart. Let me repeat: so smart. It’s humbling, because we humans clearly aren’t that intelligent. We got back into our tiny boat defeated, but everything changed in one minute. The orangutan felt emboldened by our evacuation and approached us. We cut our engines, and I had my moment. The backdrop of dead or burnt trees was a poignant canvas on which to paint a picture that speaks a thousand words.
Orangutans are just like us—around 97 percent similar, some say. But they are so much more magnificent than us. Look at this orange person’s face! I will never forget that Sunday morning in Borneo. We have to show this in colour. It is what it is and I am damn proud.
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