Sensational Sulawesi
VCPS Journal (June 2015) Vol 116 pp 6 - 17

Once again with our local orchid guide, we explored several locations along the side of the main road that leads east out of Rantepao. The area was still in the highlands at around 1150-1200m and there we found Nepenthes maxima plants again that were the more typical robust form found in cultivation and a few plants of Nepenthes glabrata with bright red flecking. More orchids were seen in flower along the side of the road growing on embankments such as Appendicula laxifolia, Dendrobium durum, Dendrobium lancifolium, a Podochilus species and the stunning Corybas picta .

After lunch we looked at our local orchid guides private collection which had over 20 species of native orchids from Sulawesi in flower which included Vandopsis lissochiloides, Phalaenopsis amboinensis, P. venosa, P. celebensis, Bulbophyllum laxiflorum, B. brevibrach, B. veldkampiil, Thecostele alata, Dendrobium macrophyllum, Coelogyne celebensis and Bulbophyllum echinolabium.

We then headed south of Rantepao to visit a local Toraja traditional village that still lived in and built the unique ancestral Tongkonan houses with boat-shaped roofs and their burial caves nearby before driving to Palopo to stay the night there.