Glad to have you back on the Australian Dream blog. I know it’s been pretty dead on here lately, but I have a special story to tell, so I’m bringing it back to life for the occasion.
For those who don’t know, I just returned from a trip around Indonesia with my Mom. Indo is about 3 hours from Perth ($400 return ticket Perth-Bali) which is why its popular vacation destination for Aussies.
The whole trip was fantastic, but the highlight was undoubtedly hiking up the Rinjani Volcano, the second highest summit in Indonesia (3700m). It’s no Everest, but believe me it’s still pretty high!
While the soreness in my legs has subsided, I still hold vivid memories of the adventure, and today I want to share some of those with you. Here we go.
As I’ve written here before, I don't like to travel in the same way as most people do. I dislike anything "touristy", for me to fully enjoy something there has to be a bit of challenge to it. Laying on a beach is nice, but it's not memorable. Climbing a mountain is.
We started out our adventure on an early morning in Sembalou, a small town on the island of Lombok. We met with our fellow trekker, a Dutch guy named Rinsan. Also there was our Indonesian guide, Aman, and our 2 porters.
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| Looking at the Rinjani from our meeting point |
We received the customary briefing to explain our itinerary for the 3 days/2 nights trek, and then it was time for some trekking!
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| Heading into the clouds |
I’m assuming most of you haven't yet had the opportunity to go on such a trek, so I’ll briefly explain how it generally goes.
The days start early, around 6:30am. We each carry our own backpack containing our personal items (snacks, clothes, books). Meanwhile the porters have the much more challenging task of carrying the water, food, and tents. At the start of the journey, their load can weigh up to 50kg.
Considering these guys weigh only about 60-65kg, it’s absolutely incredible the speed and agility with which they can climb while keeping a perfect balance. Oh, and they're all heavy smokers. Go figure...
The days start early, around 6:30am. We each carry our own backpack containing our personal items (snacks, clothes, books). Meanwhile the porters have the much more challenging task of carrying the water, food, and tents. At the start of the journey, their load can weigh up to 50kg.
Considering these guys weigh only about 60-65kg, it’s absolutely incredible the speed and agility with which they can climb while keeping a perfect balance. Oh, and they're all heavy smokers. Go figure...
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| Trying out the porters' "device"... Imagine climbing a huge mountain with this! |
The first day of the trek was definitely the hardest, with a steady climb over a period of about 6 hours.
The first 3 hours were relatively easy, and we were all chit-chatting away, soaking up the atmosphere.
After stopping for lunch, it was time for the challenging part of the day. Properly warmed-up from the morning session, I put on a Gareth Emery podcast, and decided to turn on the jets.
I started passing everyone ahead of me (there were other groups trekking up), including the porters, who gave me incredulous looks. I doubt they were accustomed to having Westerners pass them on this highly steep part of the climb.
Not too say that it was easy though. I was actually working so hard that at some point, there was a constant stream of sweat coming down the lid of my hat... As if someone had left a water tap open! I didn’t care though, I was in the zone and loving every minute of it.
After 3 hours of that, I finally reached the top of that part of the mountain. An epic Armin van Buuren song blaring in my headphones, endorphins rushing through my veins, I was astonished by the view that lay before me, and behind me.
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| Looking ahead at the lake in the crater |
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| Looking back towards the valley |
I stood there for a few minutes, basking in the moment. Massive grin on my face. Yet another prime example that the best moments are those that come from challenging ourselves, from pushing past our comfort zone.
I got back en route, and a few minutes later I arrived to campsite for the night. A truly special place to spend a night.
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| Camping up in the clouds |
My mom arrived a bit later, and we enjoyed the scenery together while our porters were setting up the tents and preparing the food. Admittedly, that type of service is greatly appreciated after such a grueling day. We rested for a bit, then ate an Indonesian noodle dish around the campfire.
After the meal, something really odd happened. I got up, and felt this sharp pain in my knee. Uh oh. I still don't understand what happened, but here I was about 2500m from the ground, barely able to walk. Not good.
I popped some anti-inflammatory meds, and went to bed. We were set to get up at 2am to climb up to the summit in time for sunrise, so I had to hope for some sort of miracle in the next 6 hours.
2am came around, I got up and... the pain was still there. I had to accept that I wasn't going to be able to get to the summit. Fortunately, everyone was coming back to camp for breakfast after sunrise, so I could just wait for them here... Well by waiting, I mean go back to bed and sleep some more :P
Eventually, everyone came back down, exhausted but thrilled on the sights they had seen. I couldn't help but be a bit sad of having missed out... But I had more to worry about. My knee still hurt like hell, and we were about to begin a 3h hour descent into the crater to go swim in the lake.
As you probably know, going downhill is very demanding on the knee joints, so I knew I was in for a ride. Over the first hour of descent, the pain got worse and worse.... Until I realized something. If I walked without bending my knee past a certain point, the pain was reduced by about 95%. And so began my new walking style, which was must ressembled the "gangsta limp"!
We eventually arrived to the lake were set to have lunch. While the guide was preparing some food, I opted to go in for a dip. It was quite special because that lake was formed after one the old chimneys of the volcano erupted, and then collapsed on itself, thus creating a crater. Over time, it was filled with water and created a lake.
Up next, it was time to head towards the hot springs located nearby. It wasn't very far, but what a cool place that was.
Imagine, all in one spot, 1 beautiful water, 3 hot springs baths, some monkeys playing around, and a view on the surroundings. Doesn't get much better does it? Actually it does... I chatted up a cute German girl while relaxing in the hot spring ;)
After all this frolicking, it was time to get my gangsta limp back on and start climbing back to the other side of the crater. It was a good 3 hour climb but we all felt refreshed from the swim so it was no problem at all. We got up there and planted the tent in one of the coolest spots ever.
While everyone was relaxing before dinner, I still felt a bit disappointed that I had missed out on the first part of the day, the climb to the summit. I still had energy and felt kinda restless. So I did what I do when I feel that way.... I worked out :) As you can imagine, I got a few funny looks but I didn't care!
After a restful night sleep, it was time for the 3rd and final day of our adventure, the descent back to civilization. We had a bit of a surprise when we started walking and saw a group of about 50 soldiers run past us. Intrigued, we asked our guide what going on and he found out that the Indonesian army was having a training mission here that day. I thought it was going to be an uneventful day, but that was certainly spicing things up a little!
Everything was going nicely and I was actually getting a bit bored when, about 5km from the end when, we heard a strange noise coming from the distance. Unsure what it was, we looked towards our guide. All he said was: "Rain, big rain". 12 seconds later, a proper tropical downpour started.
As is always case with this kind of rain, it sucks for the first minute, and then it becomes funny. We were soaked... and still stoked! With a torrent of water streaming down the hill, soldiers running past us, it certainly felt like a proper adventure! Perfect way to end the trek.
So here you have it, the story of that time I trekked a volcano in Indonesia. I do hope you enjoyed it, and hopefully I'll have another good adventure story for you in the next few weeks! Ciao!
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| Not a luxurious dining experience, but very cool nonetheless! |
I popped some anti-inflammatory meds, and went to bed. We were set to get up at 2am to climb up to the summit in time for sunrise, so I had to hope for some sort of miracle in the next 6 hours.
2am came around, I got up and... the pain was still there. I had to accept that I wasn't going to be able to get to the summit. Fortunately, everyone was coming back to camp for breakfast after sunrise, so I could just wait for them here... Well by waiting, I mean go back to bed and sleep some more :P
Eventually, everyone came back down, exhausted but thrilled on the sights they had seen. I couldn't help but be a bit sad of having missed out... But I had more to worry about. My knee still hurt like hell, and we were about to begin a 3h hour descent into the crater to go swim in the lake.
As you probably know, going downhill is very demanding on the knee joints, so I knew I was in for a ride. Over the first hour of descent, the pain got worse and worse.... Until I realized something. If I walked without bending my knee past a certain point, the pain was reduced by about 95%. And so began my new walking style, which was must ressembled the "gangsta limp"!
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| Stoked to have found a solution to my knee problem!! |
Up next, it was time to head towards the hot springs located nearby. It wasn't very far, but what a cool place that was.
Imagine, all in one spot, 1 beautiful water, 3 hot springs baths, some monkeys playing around, and a view on the surroundings. Doesn't get much better does it? Actually it does... I chatted up a cute German girl while relaxing in the hot spring ;)
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| Most relaxing spot ever |
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| Checking out the little monkeys! |
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| "Tent with a view" |
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| Enjoying some quality Mom & Son time in front of the volcano |
While everyone was relaxing before dinner, I still felt a bit disappointed that I had missed out on the first part of the day, the climb to the summit. I still had energy and felt kinda restless. So I did what I do when I feel that way.... I worked out :) As you can imagine, I got a few funny looks but I didn't care!
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| Push-ups at 2700m altitude, felt great! |
After a restful night sleep, it was time for the 3rd and final day of our adventure, the descent back to civilization. We had a bit of a surprise when we started walking and saw a group of about 50 soldiers run past us. Intrigued, we asked our guide what going on and he found out that the Indonesian army was having a training mission here that day. I thought it was going to be an uneventful day, but that was certainly spicing things up a little!
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| Chilling at a rest area with the Indonesian army |
As is always case with this kind of rain, it sucks for the first minute, and then it becomes funny. We were soaked... and still stoked! With a torrent of water streaming down the hill, soldiers running past us, it certainly felt like a proper adventure! Perfect way to end the trek.
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| The climbing crew, soaked, exhausted, but above all... happy :) |
So here you have it, the story of that time I trekked a volcano in Indonesia. I do hope you enjoyed it, and hopefully I'll have another good adventure story for you in the next few weeks! Ciao!
Nice climb!
ReplyDeleteEpic picture of you swimming in the crater!