when you have the dawning realisation that bali has become too claustrophobic and you are in urgent need of a little trip, east java has a few precious geological gems
The first step to an awesome Java adventure is getting to Java in the first place. Thankfully, this just might actually be the easiest leg of a modest journey.
The beginning of our trip is marked by an early morning arrival at the central bus station known as Terminal Ubung. A little windowed booth in the middle of the station is staffed by uniformed employees who can direct passengers to one of the many buses loitering in the station. If that’s too difficult, there are plenty of men hustling the bus station ready to direct you to a bus in order to graft a little commission from a bus driver.
The bus route to Gilimanuk takes a breezy three and a half hours along a road that hugs most of Bali’s South-West coast. Before you know it, you’re at the Gilimanuk bus station, which is conveniently next door to the ferry port. A short walk, a mere Rp. 33,000, and a ten-minute wait later you’re on a vessel that creeps over treacherous currents of the Bali Strait to your next waypoint, Banyuwangi.
Despite Banyuwangi’s rich history as the last Hindu kingdom in Java and a territory of Bali, there’s really not much to gawk at. The roads are lined with concrete mosques and other residential and industrial structures, with intermittent scatterings of agriculture. Evidence of the large Hindu community that inhabits this city is scarce. The best thing to do is check in at a hotel and knock back some cold bottles of Bintang at a pool in preparation for the first big item on the East Java itinerary: Ijen.
The Ijen volcano complex is made up of a group of stratovolcanoes within a large caldera. The high plain contains 17 individual peaks consisting of active and extinct volcanoes. The largest of these is Mount Merapi, which, confusingly enough, shares the same name as two other volcanoes in Indonesia. But the real jewel of this plethora of geological activity is the Ijen crater itself. Within the wall of this vast crater lays the world’s largest highly acidic lake that stretches an entire kilometre from bank to bank.
The actual trek to the crater lake starts at about 3am when you jump into a hired car. The drive itself is about an hour and a half long (over some road that can easily be described as off-road) and takes you to the base of the volcano. From there it’s a moderately easy two-hour trek along a wide beaten path to the rim of the crater.
Once atop the rim, all exhaustion from the hike is delayed by a brilliant display of an epically giant bowl filled with liquid jade surrounded by rocky mountains.
Breathtaking views and geological wonders aside, Ijen also offers an industrial curiosity only seen where labour and life is relatively cheap. Men act as human mules to haul up to 100-kilogram loads of sulphur up to the rim from the bottom of the crater then several kilometres down. The miners use a stick of bamboo with two baskets attached which leaves a permanent groove of bone and muscle on their backs. They work in plumes of noxious sulphur without any respiratory protection and consequently have eyes red with irritation.
Once descended into the crater, everything is barren rock and life ceases to exist in such a hostile environment. Walking down into the crater takes care and patience – the path is steep and a moment of carelessness can easily lead to a fatal fall. If it weren’t for the respirator I packed, I most likely would have had to retreat from the sulphuric plumes of gas that turn away most hikers.
At the bottom, pipes spew both smoke and molten sulphur as if they were directly plugged into a fiery hell churning below your feet.
After an epic mountain adventure, it’s sometimes best to detach yourself by seeking completely different geography. I did this by eating at the beach in Blimbingsari where a collection of little warungs serve fresh grilled fish much like they do in Jimbaran.
With my protein level replenished thanks to some tasty fish, it was time to rehabilitate a worn out body by pre-emptively drinking more beer in the hotel pool as a precursor to a train ride to Malang early next morning.
As the crack of dawn descends upon me, morning prayers from nearby mosques welcome the morning silence. The single class train from Banyuwangi to Malang (and everywhere in between) leaves the station at 5:30am. Tickets are cheaper than dirt and the empty train looks like it’s going to be a comfortable journey with an entire booth to myself.
After about four stops, I couldn’t be more wrong. The train quickly swells with people and I’m instantly crammed in like a poor little sardine – for eight hours.
Vendors stroll up and down the train, trying to sell you everything from tofu to newspapers to lighters. Smokers fill the passenger cars with pungent streams of kretek smoke, and only small windows open to bring much anticipated fresh air at the whim of wind gusts. It soon becomes apparent that the best way to cope in that train is to hang out the constantly open doors with the cool breeze flowing as Javanese landscape whizzes by.
As the Malang station approaches, a Herculean feeling of relief flows through my entire body. Finally off that train, I hop on a becak (bicycle rickshaw) to a hotel to wash off my train-marinated body. The rickshaw struggles along and I instantly fear for the cardiac health of my very senior becak driver.
Malang is a collection of typical Indonesian cityscape, military installations, and Dutch colonial-era buildings. The cool temperature makes it instantly obvious why the Dutch flocked to Malang and their contributions can be seen everywhere. Colonial lampposts, bridges, and homes give the city a very distinct flavour. All places of interest can be toured on becak, which gives an almost austere feeling of modern colonialism.
Mount Bromo is a short two and a half hour drive by car from Malang. It is but one of the 21 peaks of Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park. The Tengger caldera itself is a remnant of a giant volcano where five younger volcanoes have sprouted up in a sea of sand. South of the Tengger complex lies mount Semeru, the tallest mountain in Java and in a state of near-constant eruption.
Mount Pananjakan is usually the first place to go when visiting the park. The touristy vantage point is easily accessible by car and only requires a mere ten-minute walk before you are able to overlook the entire Tengger Volcano Complex.
After Pananjakan, it’s a short drive to the sand sea (laut pasir) located within a cliff-enclosed bowl. The sand sea is flat and desolate: other then sparse grassy patches and the occasional shrub, it is completely featureless. It is essentially a black sand desert in the middle of jungle.
As the vehicle begins to approach the temple, which sits next to the entrance to Bromo, a gathering of cars appears in the distance. Suddenly you find yourself surrounded by a small swarm of horsemen eager to show off their skills. Upon arriving at the car park, the horse guides approach you and offer rides on their horses to the base of the concrete staircase that leads to the peak. You pass a large Hindu temple and plenty of horses on the way and it almost seems surreal, as if you’re passing by some alien temple on the moon with a bunch of colourful cowboys riding around you.
The cement stairway that leads to the top of the volcano rim looks misleadingly easy; but it is 250 steps of strenuous stairs that torture the thighs. At the peak, drink sellers are ready to quench your thirst amidst clouds of sulphur radiating from a large breach at the centre of the crater. Up there, you’re at the mercy of the wind, and when it’s being disagreeable, expect to experience the acrid taste of sulphur burning down your olfactory organs.
When the wind finally relents and blows in your favour, Bromo treats you to massive views of the surrounding caldera edge and the young peaks of juvenile volcanoes.
The view is surreal, as if you’re looking at a postcard. It’s both breathtaking and overwhelmingly condescending, which is not necessarily a bad thing in this case.
When you’ve taken in all the epic scenery possible for the average human being, Surabaya is a civilised three-hour drive away. Being the second largest city in Indonesia, Surabaya is a vast urban sprawl that serves as an important port and commercial centre. The city also has multiple daily flights back to Bali, so I end my little journey where I started.
what to bring
- Good hiking shoes with decent tread
- Warm jacket and clothes
- Respirator with gas cartridges for acid gases (available at Ace Hardware)
where to stay
- Mirah Hotel
Jl Yos Sudarso, no. 28 Tanjung, Klatak, Banyuwangi
T: 0333 420 600
E: info@mirrahhotel.com - Hotel Helios
Jl. Pattimura, no. 37, Malang
T: 0341 362741
“Within the wall of this vast crater lays the world’s largest highly acidic lake that stretches an entire kilometre from bank to bank.”-
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