Hidden in the Clouds

After getting a quick nap in I threw on my hiking gear and waited in the hostel for my guide to arrive. We were given some jam pastries and water to get our energy levels up as well as head lamps for the trek.

We started off around 3.30am and luckily the hostel was already a bit up from the base of the mountain but it was still nearly a two hour hike in the dark to get to the peak for the sunrise viewing point. My guide was really friendly and pointed out some wildlife on the trek like shed snakeskin and spiders which was cool. The hike was quite steep and it was a good workout for my calves and quads! Unfortunately the top was streaked in on and off clouds so while it wasn't as crisp a morning as the Mount Bromo sunrise, it was still amazing to watch the hazy sunrise with clouds pouring out of the crater behind us, rolling down the mountain.

Given it was cloudy my guide brought me around the rim of the whole crater to where monkeys gather at the end. On the way we stopped at steam jets for a photoshoot. When a raw flame is exposed and blown towards the escaping gasses, extra steam bursts up from the small crevices and you are shrouded in your own miniature cloud.

It remained cloudy at the top and eventually cleared up to bright sunshine once we got a bit further down the mountain. We jogged back down some of the steeper parts thanks to the adrenaline from the sunrise. I crashed for a bit back at the hostel before checking out and heading to Toya Devaysa for the day to soak up the last of the natural hot spring pools.

Then I text Putu again to organise my two hour ride to Uluwatu for the last leg of the Bali trip.Read more