The western tip of Java is a place where roads give up and the forest takes over. Ujung Kulon, the peninsula that pokes into the Sunda Strait, is a national park protecting the last wild population of the Javan rhinoceros, one of the rarest large mammals on Earth, along with banteng cattle, wild pigs, gibbons, langurs and a great diversity of birds. UNESCO listed it in 1991. Honje, on the mainland side, is a nature reserve of lowland rainforest, a green mass of tall trees, palms and tangled vines, where the air is thick, warm and loud with insects.
The coast here carries the scars of the region's volcanic history. In 1883 the eruption of Krakatoa, which lies just offshore, sent a tsunami surging across the strait, killing tens of thousands of people and sweeping through the lowlands of what is now the park. In December 2018, a collapse on the flank of its offspring, Anak Krakatau, triggered another tsunami that struck the coast of Banten without warning. The forest has since recovered, and the area feels both wild and fragile.
Getting here by motorcycle means riding the coastal roads of Banten, from towns such as Labuan toward Sumur, through villages, rice fields and coconut groves. The road surface can be uneven, with potholes and washouts after heavy rain, and traffic is a mix of motorbikes, minibuses and trucks. The weather is hot and humid, with a rainy season from roughly November to March. Check the conditions with local people before you set out, and carry plenty of water. There are no towns listed close to this point, so fuel is a practical concern: fill up in the last substantial town, and carry spare if you can, because roadside bottles of petrol are available but of variable quality.
Access to the park itself is controlled, with permits and guides required, and the rhinos are shy, so you will almost certainly not see one. The reward is in the forest and the sea, the sounds of birds at dawn and the sight of the coast from a boat. It is a remote, quiet and slightly mysterious place, and the effort of getting there is part of its character.