Nusa Penida, T-Rex Beach

Taking a scooter taxi each with our bags from Seminyak to the south pier, we took a short boat ride to Nusa Penida, a small island off Bali. My taxi scooter rider was quick however Jess’ was not. Since we asked them to keep together, this evidently wound up my driver and his many attempts at speeding the other guy up failed. We did arrive together mind you. As usual the boat was delayed so we arrived a little later than planned and walked to our accommodation. We booked a bungalow, more in keeping with the type of typical accommodation on the island as hotels have not yet arrived. After checking in we we had a good chat with the owner and rented a scooter to explore. Nusa Penida is mostly known for its beach scenery so we rode to the west side to visit a few hot spots. The island has very few roads so whilst getting from one place to another may first look straightforward on a map, the route is not.

The roads are very narrow, bumpy, twisted and lined with either sea views or jungle like vegetation, most commonly banana trees. A car driving towards you can only leave a scooter less than a meter between itself and the edge of the road, requiring some extra some cautious riding.

First stop - crystal bay. We parked up walked to the beach and were immediately taken aback by the view. The sand was smooth although the waves were not. Facing towards the setting sun just off the sand was a small island with a hole eroded through it. Of course we had to take a dip.

At depth just off Crystal bay is a popular area to spot the giant Mola Mola or ocean sunfish that can weight up to 2000 kg. Luckily for us, the best time to see them is August to September and given we can now scuba dive, let’s just say we will be back soon.

After taking in the sun we packed up and rode to what is possibly Nusa Penida’s most famous spot, Kelingking Beach also known as T-Rex beach. We didn’t quite get all the way down to the beach as 1) it takes an hour to walk down and it was already getting late and 2) Jess unfortunately started to feel unwell. Instead we walked down a little way to take in the view and watch the sunset. This really was an amazing place so I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.Baca selengkapnya