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What is Rinjani?
It is the peak of a volcanic island in Lombok, and the 3rd highest Indonesian mountain.
Is it nice?
It has been described to be one of the most panoramic views in SEA. Expect lush tropical rainforest, and highland shrubbery, then volcanic soil amidst clouds. Look at a very large crater lake containing an active volcano, exotic flora and fauna, such as the black ebony leaf monkey, wild pigs, long tailed grey macaque monkeys, orchids and edelweiss.
There is a lot to see, and Rinjani is unique because it spans a great range of altitudes and hence vegetation, and has volcanic origins, which alters the nature of the soil.
Oh no. Will the volcano explode when I'm there? I heard volcanoes are life-threatening. I'm scared.
Gunung Baru is an active volcano within the Segara Anak lake of the Rinjani crater. We will be passing by the lake and looking at Gunung Baru, but we will not be climbing the active volcano. It's safe and relatively well-travelled (but not overly so :) )
What are we going to do?
Day 1: flight to lombok. 2h drive. stay in Pondok Indah Hotel.
Day 2: transfer to Rinjani Information Centre RIC. RIC staff briefing on route details, local culture, sights, rubbish management, safety protocol.The trek starts from Sembalum Lawang, with a gentle ascent up green pasture used for grazing. We will rest after 3h, at 1300m at Pos 1 Pemantauan. The next resting spot after that will be Pos 2 Pemantauan 1500m with a great view of the summit at 3726m. We'll trek a few more hours to Pos 3 Pemantauan 1800m
After this, the gradient will be steeper and we'll be trekking amongst pine-like casuarina species known as cemara. Here, we might spot wild pigs and long tailed grey macaque monkeys.
We will set up camp at the Plawangan II Sembalun crater rim 2639m
Day 3: We will wake up early at 3am in order to catch the sunrise at the summit :) We will trek a bit more strenuously along volcanic soil for 3h to the peak at 3726m, to reach the summit at 6am. At the summit we can look across the Wallace line to Bali, Mt Agung and Sumbawa. We can also feel very good about ourselves.
Then we will trek down a ridge lined by edelweiss to a well-deserved brunch at the crater rim base camp. Then we will descend to Lake Segara Anak (2000m) within the Rinjani crater. Gunung Baru is an active volcano island in lake Segara Anak, last exploding dramatically in 1994.
It will take 2 hours to reach Segara Anak where we'll set up camp.
Day 4: R+R at the crater lake. You can swim, explore the caves and hot springs that are reputed to be beneficial to your health.
We'll leave in the afternoon. We'll climb 2.5hours to reach Plawangan I Senaru Crater Rim (2461m). There, we will relax, watch the sunset, explore the area and view the lake from another perspective. (It's a very big lake)
Day 5: After breakfast we'll make a long but scenic journey down to Senaru village (601m), through thick tropical rainforest filled with flora and fauna, notably butterflies, orchids and hopefully the rare black ebony leaf monkey (lutung). There will also be: the Batu Penyesalan stone, and a vaguely human-esque banyan tree.
There will be rest stops along the way, and with village stories and local legends recounted by the guides :)
We'll reach the Rinjani Trek Centre at the Senaru road head in 7h, where there will be transport taking us back to Pondok Indah hotel.
Day 6: At 8am we'll set out to explore the Singang Gile waterfall, and the Tiu Kelep waterfall. Then we'll visit a Sasak village, where we'll get to experience more traditional culture, and interact with the locals.
After lunch, we'll return to the Lombok airport.
We'll reach Singapore in the evening.
Okay I'm sold! How do I make it happen?
We'll be off to Rinjani from 21-26 June 2010.
$600 for NUS students and $625 for non-NUS students.
This will cover:
Return air tickets, Singapore airport tax
Transport costs
Singapore travel insurance with AXA
2 nights at the Pondok Indah Hotel
Mountain guide
Porters
Tents
Sleeping bag and mat
All meals except last day at airport
Cooking gear
National Park fees Rp 150 000 per person
This does not cover: Lombok airport tax, airport porters
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