Mount Ijen – Blue Fire Crater

Jean Maldonado — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 21:36:52 +0000

When looking online, the cheapest tour to hike to the Mount Ijen Crater was around 120 USD¹. We decided to book tours once we arrived at Kuta since it’s usually cheaper to buy once your there. We found a 1-day private tour that cost 1,500,000 IDR² which was around 105 USD at the time of writing. Our driver picked us up from the hotel at around 6 PM and we headed to Gilmanuk Harbor on the western tip of Bali. The drive took around 5 hours making a stop at some stalls on the highway about halfway through. Once we reach the harbor, the driver becomes our guide and buys our tickets for a ferry to Ketapang. We took the 11.30 PM ferry and it takes about 1 hour 30 minutes to cross the Bali strait. At Ketapang harbor, our driver/guide then takes us to the Jeep that’s waiting for us with another driver and Ijen guide. Note that the clocks have gone back 1 hour so it’s still around midnight when we arrive. It’s then about a 1-hour 30-minute drive to the base camp at Bumi Perkemahan Paltuding. In these early hours, it’s pitch black and freezing cold outside. We take refuge in a cafe to get a hot drink and some food before beginning our hike.

At around 1.45 AM we set out with some flashlights to climb Mount Ijen. It’s a dirt trail and starts with a gradual initial ascent which gets steeper. We took a couple of breaks and took these opportunities to look up at the starlit sky which was a wonderful sight. After about 40 minutes, we reach a refuge for a 10-minute break. There are some benches to rest on and you can buy some drinks/snacks at a stall. We then continue for another 25 minutes to the top of the crater. Once at the top, our guide shows us how to put on our gas masks to protect us from the sulfur clouds. It’s then about a 30-minute walk down the crater. The trail here becomes gravel/sandy and is much steeper so it can be quite slippery if you’re wearing trainers. Pay attention and give way to the miners climbing up the crater since they can be carrying around 80 KG on their shoulders. Once at the bottom of the crater, the sulfur smell is quite strong even with the gas masks on. You can see the miners at work here and they also have a stall selling carved sulfur rocks as souvenirs. It is here where you can see the famous blue fire burning down the side of the crater. We got down there at 3.40 AM and there was already quite a big crowd. It’s an amazing sight and it hides behind sulfur clouds which makes it tricky to get a picture that captures its beauty. We stayed for about 15 minutes before heading to the top of the mountain for sunrise.

We started to see some light at around 4.30 AM and we got to our sunrise spot at about 4.50 AM. It’s still quite cold and there are some stone structures to take refuge in while waiting for the sun to come up. One of the guides got a little bonfire going in one of them and people gathered around to warm up. As the sun comes up, it’s a beautiful sight but a bit of an awkward spot as there’s a massive mountain that stands in the way of the sunrise. We stayed until around 5.20 AM and then started our journey back down.

On the way down, we made several stops to take pictures of the lake but it was very cloudy from the gases. However, the view of the surrounding landscape is breathtaking as you can see mountain peaks above a seabed of clouds. We made a stop at a restroom which you can find at the rim of the crater before making the descent. Then, we began our descent at around 6 AM, making a couple stops for pictures of the landscape we had not seen on the way up in the darkness. Along the way, we saw miners offering to take people in their carts. The way down was much quicker and we got back to the car park at around 7 AM.

After getting changed, we get back in the jeep to head out on the 1-hour 30-minute drive back to the Ketapang Harbor. We took the 9 AM ferry back to Gilmanuk harbor. With the 1-hour time difference, we reached the harbor at 11.30 AM and then set out on our 5-hour drive back to Kuta. We made a stop for lunch at a highway buffet-style restaurant which was probably the most authentic Balinese meal I had. We got back to our hotel at around 5 PM and went to get some sleep to rest from the exhausting but unforgettable experience.

Snowdonia National Park – Snowdon Peak

Jean Maldonado — Sun, 14 Jul 2019 20:52:00 +0000

From our Airbnb³ in Machynlleth, it was a 1 hour and 30-minute drive to Pen-y-Pass car park which has some trails to Snowdon. We got there at around 8.20 AM but the car park was already full, so we drove another five minutes and found a parking spot off the highway. From here, it was about a 45-minute walk up to the car park where the trails start from. We saw a bus go past when we were parking the car, but they don’t come often since we didn’t see one go by whilst walking. Once at the car park, we decided to go on the Pyg Track since it was the shortest one. The trail was quite busy this weekend since there was a race happening to get to the top of Snowdon. The trail is easy to follow and starts with a gradual ascent. About 30 minutes into the hike, we came across the lakes. The trail at this point is mostly a stone path that’s easy to walk on. The next 40 minutes walking along the lakes, the trail becomes more of a dirt path that can be muddy if it has rained. There are some large rocks at some places that you have to climb over, but nothing too difficult.

When we reached the last lake, the path became a steeper climb and more tiring. We climbed up for about 20 minutes and took some rest. We sat down on some rocks enjoying the view of the valley and lakes we had gone past. We then continued another 20 minutes climbing over the clouds. We reached the ridge from where you can continue to some of the Snowdon peaks. The steam train also passes through here and we saw it go past. Since it was cloudy, we couldn’t see any of the landscape from here and decided to head back down. The way back took us 2 and a half hours rather than the 3 hours it took us to head up. At the car park, we had some food at the cafe before taking a bus back down to where we parked the car.

Mount – Maldo Travels

Mount Ijen – Blue Fire Crater

Snowdonia National Park – Snowdon Peak