The Fun of Playing Water on Sundak Beach in Gunung Kidul
Sundak Beach in Gunung Kidul – Sundak Beach is located in Pule Gundes village, Sidoharjo, Tepus, Gunung Kidul district. Sundak is close to other beaches such as Kukup Beach, Krakal Beach, Drini Beach, and Baron Beach.
This beach has its own uniqueness compared to other beaches in Yogyakarta. Initially, Sundak Beach named Wedibedah (the split sand) originated from this natural phenomenon.
When rainy season came, there was much water from the land flowing to the sea. Consequently, the land of the beach split to make a river-look from.
In 1976, the name of this beach changed. The name of Wedibedah changed into Sundak as an abbreviation of Asu (Javanese language for a dog) and Landak (Javanese language for sea urchin).
The name Sundak is taken from the quarrel between a dog and the sea urchin. In an afternoon, the dog belonging to a local resident named Arjasangku was running about the seaside and entered the cave where it met a sea urchin. Being starving, the dog tried to prey on the sea urchin.
Then, the fighting was happened and finally the dog successes in eating half of the sea urchin body. Arjasangku saw half of the sea urchin body was still in the dog’s mouth.
Since then, the name Wedibedah changed into Sundak as an abbreviation of Asu (Javanese language for the dog) and Landak (Javanese language for sea urchin).
Furthermore, Arjasangku was astonished that his dog was soaking wet after getting out of the cave. Accidentally, besides finding a half body of sea urchin, he also found a spring.
The news of the discovery of this spring immediately spread because the local people around Sundak have been living in dryness.
In addition to offering its silent historical witnesses, Sundak Beach also presents a special panorama of natural conditions. The coral cliffs on the East and West side of the beach are good for background photos.
The white sand stretch also adds to the beauty of the beach. Besides that, there is a small corals stretch in the seashore that covered by moss, and it feels soft on the feet. There also a Warong that peddles a number of menus such as grilled fish, rice with vegetable and chicken noodles.
The entrance ticket to Sundak Beach is IDR 2.000,-/each person, parking IDR 2,000 (motorcycle) and IDR 3,000 (car). Besides that to reach this beach, you can take public transport (bus) from Giwangan bus station. After arriving at Wonosari market, take another bus toward Krakal and Kukup Beach. You will arrive at Sundak Beach in about 40 minutes or an hour.
Further more, the local people are very careful about the cleanliness of this beach. Besides it has a water spring, Sundak Beach also gives income from the tourist visits. For the local people surrounding the beach who have experiences dryness until now, Sundak is an oasis.