Rinjani, the summit

I knew when I woke at 2 am that I had to try summiting, even though Sophia had decided not to. We set off at 2:40 am the way lit only by our head torches and the faint light of the stars. After a short flat section, the route wind, very steep uphill, and the ground surface was like a sand dune, making the first 400 m climb, tough and slow.

The next section was easier moving along a gently inclined Ridge for another hour covering for more distance, but only climbing 300 m.

The last section was mentally and physically incredibly difficult. The peak Richard seem to slowly grow over the last hour loomed over us, seeming so close, but so far. The Dutch couple who I had joined, and I battled our way uphill on the loose rocks and sand at 50% incline, sliding back one pace for every two we took upwards. The last 500 m of elevation took another hour and took every bit of mental and physical strength. We had to summit just as the sky was starting to light up with the colours of sunrise. Despite the growing to get there, the summit (3761m asl) was absolutely worth it and I was rewarded with a view of the volcano in the crater next to the lake, and a stunning panorama of Lombok and its neighbouring islands of Bali and West Nusa Tenggara.

After 40 minutes of admiring the sunrise, taking photos and avoiding stepping on the dead monkey that had somehow reach the summit, we began our descent. The street bits were easier this time as we slid down the loose surface with the easiest scent of the Long ridge burning our legs on the way down as we tried our best not to slip over. Arriving back to ours later yet again slept for another 40 minutes to be woken up by porters for a banana pancake breakfast.Read more