I actually enjoyed the yoga retreat more than I expected, but it couldn’t tame my adventurous spirit. So, day 5 of the yoga retreat, I climbed a volcano, Mount Batur.

Breakfast Stop

Ubud is full of tourist agents trying to sell you day trips. I hunted around the main drag to get an idea of prices; getting quoted between 300k and 350k rupiahs for the Mount Batur sunrise trek. I ended up paying 325k, to a guy with a little family-owned business, tucked away in a back street. After seeing his glasses lens were cracked, I didn’t have the heart to barter.

I might have saved myself a whopping $2, but I think he needed it more than me!!!

He spoke in broken English, so there was a lot of confusion over when the trek started. In the end, it was easier to settle on a 2am start, today!

Shouldn’t I be in Bed and Not Climbing Volcanoes?

Whenever I have an early start, I sleep really badly, worried I am going to sleep late. So, after 4 hours of tossing and turning, I left the comfort of my bed, at the ungodly hour of 1:40am.  I dressed quickly in the bathroom and headed out to the road to be picked up.

Torch Train

Outside, the yoga retreat’s security guard was fast asleep with his radio blasting. Whilst I waited, it was good to have some noise, breaking the deadly silence of night. I was apprehensive whether my lift was going to turn up after all the confusion with the days, but not long after 2am a minibus came to pick me up and I squeezed into a seat made more for a 5-year-old than an adult.

Dusk

As the bus picked up other sunrise trekkers, the next hour was spent dozing and wishing that the German couple in front of me would just shut up, so I could get some more sleep. Around 3am we went to a hotel for a breakfast of banana pancakes. Personally, I would have rathered an extra half hour of zzzzzzs. As you might have gathered I am not much of a morning person.  After another hour of driving, I reached the start of the trek.

Sun Awakening

I was surprised at the number of walkers, there must have been over a hundred people. Where did all these people come from? I was put into a group of 5 and introduced to our guide, I-U (well that’s how it is pronounced, but not quite sure on the spelling). I-U was a twenty-something girl; it was good to see girl power in a predominantly Muslim country. We were all given a torch and a breakfast pack, and then we were off.

The Sun was Red, Honestly!!!

The initial pace was pretty fast along a road. I have recently done The Bloody Long Walk, so I was glad to currently have a reasonable level of fitness; otherwise, I think I might have struggled to keep up. After 1/2 an hour, we got to the start of Mount Batur. Now it was up all the way.

Team Mount Batu

Looking ahead was a huge train of torches, snaking up the mountain. Thankfully, the pace slowed down due to the climb getting harder. The way-ahead was a very, very steep up; the path consisting of small pieces of volcanic rock, which rolled under my walking boots, trying hard to slip me up. Some sections were a scramble, having to climb over ancient magma. At the bigger boulders, the trekking train came to stop, giving me the chance to get my breath back.

Look Careful You May See the Mountain Letting Off Steam

Just as the sky was lightening, we reached the crater rim. Some trekkers were finding a good spot to enjoy the sunrise, whilst others were climbing to the highest point and walking around the rim. I was keen to continue, but a young French Canadian had been struggling with the steep climb and so, disappointingly we didn’t ascend any further and found somewhere to sit.

See it is Steaming!!!

However, the sunrise didn’t disappoint. The morning sky and sun was a glorious red. None of my photos I took captured the colour, so my piccies don’t give the gorgeous red sunrise any justice.

Mount Batu Steaming

Some a#$%hole spoilt the tranquillity of the moment by flying a humming drone overhead. There were a lot of disgruntled trekkers complaining about having the flying contraption spoiling their sunrise photos. An Aussie guy made us all laugh suggesting next time it flies near us to give it the finger.

Heading Down

After the sun had fully risen we had a short walk to look at the volcano’s centre. Mount Batur hasn’t erupted since 1963, but it still lets off a little steam. Our guide took us to a spot where we could put our hands in the volcano’s warm steam, which I thought was pretty cool.

Ancient Volcano Crater with Lava from 1963 Eruption

Then, it was time to head back down the slopes of Mount Batur.

Down and down and down.

Surprisingly, it seemed longer going down than it was going up. The volcano’s slope tried hard to wipe me out, but I managed to make it to the tarmac road without landing on my bum. After another half hour of walking, we reached our minibus and headed homeward bound, back to Ubud.

Lava Fields

Climbing volcanoes is certainly a great way to get your heart pumping in the morning.  And, how many people can say they have put their hands in the steam of an active volcano before breakfast?

Mount Batu Shot Taken Quickly from Mini-bus

It is very easy to buy the sunrise Mount Batur trekking tour from the numerous travel agents in Bali. It costs between 300-350k rupiahs ($27-$32 AUD, £15-£18). At certain times you can also climb Mount Agung, a much higher volcano, but currently due to it threatening to erupt the tour isn’t running.