Blogs from Rinjani, Lombok, Indonesia, Asia

"What have I got myself into", those are the first thoughts when the alarm goes off at 2.30am. In half an hour the car will be there for a three hour drive to the bottom of mount Rinjani, a 2.700 meter high volcano. I am not ready for this, but the question is will I ever be? At 3.00am sharp the car arrives which surprisingly enough looks quite comfortable. As I crawl in the back my headphones come out and the best I can hope for is some extra sleep. Unfortunately my thoughts decide not to give me a break of thinking about how though this hike is going to be and the coming two hours feel like forever. When my head decides I am ready for some sleep, the car pulls over and the driver ... read more

Als morgens um 03.30 Uhr unser Wecker klingelt fühlen wir uns beide wie gerädert. Die ganze Nacht hatte es unfassbar gestürmt, gewittert und wie aus Eimern geregnet und in unserem kleinen Schilfdachbungalow war es dadurch so laut dass wir kaum schlafen konnten. Dazu kam die Sorge, wie wohl unsere Wandertour auf den Mount Rinjani bei einem solchen Wetter ausfallen würde und ob sie überhaupt stattfinden kann. Wir haben zwar extra ganz Kuta auf den Kopf gestellt um noch zwei ansehnliche Regencapes zu finden, aber bei einem richtigen Unwetter macht das ganze trotzdem wenig Spaß. Nachdem ich um viertel nach vier mal den Fahrer geweckt habe, der uns eigentlich um 4 Uhr abholen sollte, fährt man und in etwa zweieinhalb halsbrecherischen Stunden nach Senaru, einem kleinen Dorf im Norden von Lombok und Ausgangspunkt unserer Wanderung. Dort der ... read more

One thing I really wanted to do on this trip to Lombok was to climb Mt Rinjani. I first saw Mt Rinjani in 2012 from the summit of Mt Agung in Bali, it was peeking out of the clouds and from then on it was on my list. Rinjani is the second highest volcanic peak in Indonesia at 3726m and has a 6 km x 8.5 km caldera. Segara Anak, the crater lake partially fills the caldera with a small volcano (Gunung Barujari) contained inside that again. Other interesting scientific facts can be read on the link below. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Rinjani So....having booked the flights without really doing any homework I found out that the Rinjani National Park is closed in March due to the wet season. Damn.... However, after reading through as many trip reports/reviews that I ... read more

Sometimes you know when you are getting yourself into a mess. Trust me, I have gotten myself into jams so many times (and more often than not, knowingly) but the ones that hurt the most are the times when you envision yourself to be the ass kicker only to walk away hobbled and broken. Enter Mt. Ranjani. Yes, I had heard the stories of the freezing summits and bone-chilling nights. I had heard about the scrambley talus slopes that make even the best footwear a rather desperate but yet redundant expense. I had heard that at 3700 meters, that many, if not the majority of those who started would turn back, never reaching its summit. And I heard about the days of leg pain that would be a complimentary gift of the mountain lasting for days ... read more

After being in Ubud for 10 days, I finally decide enough is enough, it's time to move on. I must admit I've gotten pretty comfortable in Darta's homestay, eating at the local Warung every night with the same bunch of people. I don't know if it's recovery from being ill or the fact that the last few weeks have mainly been spent with family & friends, but I seem to have lost my appetite for exploring right now and it's felt good just to be in one place, particularly one I feel so at home in! But I can't stay here forever, and I had wanted to climb the monstrous Mount Rinjani since day one of getting to Indonesia, in fact it was the main reason I decided to not take my flight to Vietnam last ... read more