On 25 November, 2017, Gunung Agung, the
3000+m volcano dominating Bali’s skyline, erupted. For three days the island’s
only airport was closed, stranding all visitors to Bali, and injecting the real
fear of a major catastrophic eruption into everyone on the island. Anyone with
any sense left Bali by any means possible. The last major eruption, in 1963,
killed over 1,500 people. The obvious choice, therefore, for our Christmas holiday
in 3 weeks time, was a cycling trip to Bali J
So why would we willingly fly to an island
in the Pacific with a rumbling deadly volcano that is overdue to blow its top?
The answer is simply because my dear wife Amy, is a planner (and a very
rigorous one), and we had booked and paid for our flights and most of our
accommodation, several months prior to the eruptions in November. There was no
plan-B. So, on the day of our flight (16 Dec), we assessed the situation: the
smoke had cleared and the airport was open. Decision: Houston, we are GO! Worse-case
scenario we get covered in ash along the way (well, actually we could die, but
whatever…details).
Erring on the side of caution (safety
first!), our volcanic-eruption safety gear included: bike helmet (for flying
rock and hunks of lava falling from the sky), rain jacket (falling ash and boiling
mud slides), and paper dust masks (air-borne particles and toxic emissions). So
hey, no problaimo. We are covered!
So, cycling Bali. Indeed the slackest, most
luxurious, and decadent bike trip one can imagine. If you are imaging a bit of
easy ocean-view cycling, days by the pool intermingled with snorkelling, and
sunset cocktails on the beach…that’s pretty much bang on! The real kicker is
that we had about 2.5 weeks to cover the 400-km loop around Bali. By cycle-touring
standards, if we went any slower, we would be hiking.
The
route
Bali – Island of the Gods – is an island
about 150 kms long by 60 kms wide, meaning it’s big enough to have things like
roads, hotels, restaurants, and a booming tourism industry. But it’s small
enough that it is entirely feasible to see it all on a bicycle. It’s the combination
of good infrastructure, that is well distributed throughout the island, which
makes it a perfect cycle-touring destination. An average cycling day of 50 kms on mostly
flat and good pavement (very laidback by cycling standards), offers up a wide
variety of accom options.
Our (OK, Amy’s) accom preferences included:
beachside pool (infinity preferred) with good lounge chairs, ensuite outdoor
bathroom/shower, and patio deck for sunset cocktails (with the obvious standard
double-room with A-C, breakfast included), all for 40 to 60 bucks (CAN $) a
night. Believe it or not, Bali is full of these places.
Like many volcanic-origin islands, Bali is
more or less circular/elliptical in nature, and has a “ring-road” that pretty
much follows the coastline right around the entire perimeter, and inherently circumnavigates
all the volcanoes that are in the middle of the island. The added bonus is relatively
good pavement for its entire length. So the obvious plan, therefore, was to do
the loop around Bali, with the exception of the far southern portion, which to
anyone who knows Bali, is where all the people are, and 99% of the drunken teenage
Aussies go (Denpasar/Kuta + area = avoid at all costs, unless , of course, you
fall into the drunken-teenage-Aussie category).
Our go-to landing spot in Bali has become
Sanur – on the fringe of the chaos and only 20 mins from the airport. It’s busy
with shops and restaurants (great restaurants!), but is on the beach, and makes
for a good base that is close to the airport. The final route therefore was a 419-kms
loop starting and finishing in Sanur (see map).
Eight stops in all. Longest day: 58 kms.
Shortest day: 40 kms. Number of pools: 11 (some places have multiple pools!).
The Story,
The Highlights, The Drama
As always, it was surreal to be back on the
bikes. There really is no better way to travel. Self-sufficient and mobile!
Love it. Being in Bali was the sugar on top. Although, the cherry on top was
the virtual absence of tourists, despite peak Christmas season. Kind of like
having your own private resort everywhere you go. We were appalled one day when
another couple jumped into our pool! The reason for no tourists of course, was
the recent volcano eruptions, resulting in 80% cancellations (my estimate).
Silly bules. Funny, our first indication that we were going to have Bali to
ourselves was an empty plane!
Ah, where to start. Highlights of the trip
are many; cons, can’t think of any. By far our favourite area was northern
Bali. As mentioned, 99% of tourists go to southern Bali, leaving the north relatively
undeveloped and congestion-free. Cycling along the northern route was fantastic
and really made for wonderful days of ocean-view cycling. That first beer upon
arrival at our accom was just that much sweeter. The most spectacular day –
albeit the most hilly/challenging day – was the coastal route around the
eastern cape, near an area called “Amed”. Spectacular vistas around every
corner. Never sweated more in a 4-hr period in our lives though J
Speaking of Amed, and a few other places,
great snorkelling right off the beach was fantastic. We (OK, me) were packing
all our snorkelling gear, so having a coral reef at our disposal was primo. Gotta
love waking up to the sun, strapping on the fins, and going for a morning
snorkel before breakfast. Ahh the tropics…could get used to that sched! And, we
saw our second turtle! Still amazed at how many different species of fish there
seem to be. Seems like every reef has its own colour scheme. Biodiversity eh.
Nice.
Another highlight was a boxing-day
diversion to climb another gunung (volcano). Not the one that is erupting (now
that would be stupid!), but rather Gunung Batur – Bali’s “other” gunung. In classic
Indo style, we arranged a 2-am pickup so we could auspiciously time our summit
arrival with sun rise. As it turned out, it was cloudy, so no “sunrise” for us.
So ya, I think we are both officially done with this “sunrise summit” thing.
It’s definitely a thing here. For some insane reason, the standard gunung routine
is to hike up to the top in the dark, so as to be there for the second coming
of Christ, AKA “sunrise”, as the sun, in all its glory, makes its debut on the
horizon.
Ok, wait. Sunrise is a daily occurrence,
not something uniquely life-altering. Hiking/climbing up mountains in the dark
sucks. And finally, at 2 or 3 am, you can’t tell what the weather is going to
be for the day. So, if the weather does actually suck, it is infinitely worse
simply because it’s dark, and you are p***ed-off that you are awake at 2 am,
and standing in the rain, in the dark, on some ridiculous mountain. OK, nuff
said. Next time we hike in the light of day! (but it was still cool to climb
Gunung Batar! J)
Reading books….remember that? One of the
truly great things about trips like this, is getting back to books. Amy read
her standard quota of 10 or so books, and I actually read a book cover to
cover! So nice. In fact, we both read “Krakatoa: the day the world exploded” by
Simon Winchester. Ironically (and perhaps a bit morbidly), it’s the story of
the largest volcanic explosion (or detonation of any kind) in recorded history,
which occurred, you guessed it, right here in Indonesia! (36,000+ died in that
one, but again, we’re not bothering with details!). It’s a fascinating account
of not only the eruption and aftermath, but a wide-ranging story of Indonesia
itself. Highly recommended reading for anyone travelling in Indonesia (unless
you have a fear of erupting volcanoes, in which case: do not read this book while in
Indonesia J).
Speaking of erupting volcanoes, our loop
around Bali meant we inherently got close and personal to Gunung Agung (the
erupting one) from all angles. At one point, in Amed, our accom was 14 kms from
Agung, and in full view. We could hear its heart beat. Being so close, so present, really gives you
an appreciation for the power and awe Indonesians have for volcanoes. Without a
doubt, if it were to blow big, where we were would be a very very bad place to
be, to say the least. Is it any wonder Agung is considered the centre of the universe
in Balinese culture?And finally, the people of Bali, a true highlight of anyone’s trip to the island of the gods. Stylishly dressed in traditional wraps, placing their offerings to the spirits, and always a smile on their face, it would be a rare moment to meet a Balinese you didn’t think was among one of the nicest people you have ever met.
All in all, fantastic trip. Amy was almost
in tears over coming back to Bogor. As mentioned a while back in an early post,
Bali creeps into your blood. Not immediate converts (we weren’t that big on
Bali on our first trip), we have definitely warmed up to it. It’s in our blood
now. Hmmm, now how to get that job posting in Bali….we’ll get back to you on
that! J
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