Waterfalls, Ricefields and a Breathtaking Sunrise
Since the first time we, my closely knit group of friends, started hanging out, we've always wanted to go tour around Bali. Unfortunately, as assignments soon began piling up and our days were endlessly filled with classes and meetings, we never really got around to it. Every time we had time to spare, something always came up and we had to cancel our plans over and over again. Finally, this christmas, the stars aligned in our favor and we went on our first camping trip to Kintamani.
DAY 1: Tegalalang and Tukad Cepung
We had planned our trip about a week prior. We researched camping spots around Bali and decided on the infamous sunrise spot in Desa Pinggan, Kintamani. There were 11 of us, 4 girls and 7 boys and a heck of a lot of equipments; 2 tents, 8 sleeping bags, 7 sleeping mats and a shit ton of backpacks. We left Jimbaran at 7.30 A.M and directly headed to the rental place to pick up our camping equipments. By 8.30 A.M, we were all packed and finally began our long trip to our first destination, Beji Guwang Hidden Canyon. It took us about an hour to get there. We all got off our motorcycles and marched enthusiastically to buy our tickets, already struck by the video of the canyon they had playing above the front desk. "How much?" I asked with a huge grin on my face, I had already rolled up my pants at this point ready to get knee-deep wet in water. "140.000 rupiah each." My heart sunk. There was no way we were paying 140.000, none of us were carrying that much money, or even had that much money to be quite honest since we were college students at the end of the month after all. We rolled our pants back down and went back to the parking lot to discuss what to do next.
"So? I know we are not about to pay 140.000 to get in. I say we head on to our next destination right away."
"Why don't we go straight to the camp site?"
"No dude, we'll get there too early and we won't have anything to do."
"Okaayy how about this. Why don't we grab a bite to eat and head to tegal alang ricefield? It's not far from here and pretty damn scenic"
We all looked at one another and finally nodded in agreement, already feeling somewhat defeated. We got back on our motorcycles and said goodbye to the ridiculously overpriced hidden canyon.
After being stuck in traffic for about 45 minutes, we finally reached Tegalalang. In all honesty, I thought tegal alang was just a corny tourist spectacle on the side of the road, I didn't expect a legitimate, immersive trekking experience. We pretty much busted our calves, thighs and whatever legs we had left but it was absolutely worth it. It was warm and lush and green, the kind of paddy fields I used to see in my storybooks when I was younger. It made me forget about the heavy backpack straining my shoulders or the million beads of sweat trickling down every square inch of my body. It was simply euphoric.
After our breathtakingly exhausting trek through Tegalalang, we took a quick break to rehydrate and catch our breaths before heading to our next destination: Tukad Cepung Waterfall. It didn't take us long to get there, about one very scenic hour away. When we arrived at Tukad Cepung, we all changed into our swim suits, ready to get absolutely wet. We left our backpacks at the nearby kiosks and made our way to the ticket counter. "How far away is it from here?" I regretted asking the question as soon as I saw two tourists heading back from the waterfall, faces completely red and their clothes drenched in what I presume was sweat considering the stench coming off of them. The ticket lady simply smiled and said, "Not that far, you'll make it."
It.was.far. I mean at least to me it was. Loads of stairs. Loads of road. Loads of sweat. But yet again, the challenging route proved worthy when we saw the mesmerizing gallons of water cascading down the mouth of a humongous cave. It was exactly like the instagram pictures! Fortunately, it was't especially crowded that day so it honestly felt like we had the entire cave to ourselves. We took lots of pictures and videos and most importantly got super wet. Had it not been for our friend who kindly scolded us to hurry up if we want to reach our campsite before nightfall. We took one last, long look at the waterfall before finally bidding farewell.
When we reached our campsite in Kintamani, it was a couple minutes past sunset. We had to quickly build our tents before it gets too dark to see. Unfortunately, none of us were familiar with the tent we rented. It was a very large 6 person tent as opposed to the 2-person tents we were used to building. We spent a solid hour and a half arguing and scurrying here and there before we finally had our two tents up and ready. When we finally settled in, we lit our campfire and made the classic camping dinner, instant cup noodles and hot tea. We sang and laughed and kept each other warm all night by the side of Pinggan village, anxiously awaiting for the infamous Kintamani sunrise to wake us up.
DAY 2: Kintamani Sunrise and Home Sweet Home
At around 5 AM, all our alarms went off meaning its time to take our sleeping bags outside and wait for sunrise. Unsurprisingly, none of us woke up at 5. Half of us managed to groggily get up at 6, the other half slept through the sunrise. Fortunately, I was one of the lucky halves who managed to witness Kintamani's dreamlike morning. The sun creeped slowly behind Mount Batur, shedding light onto the foggy village below. The sky was a gradation of orange and pink and the clearest blue I have ever seen. The sunrise, however, was fleeting in its beauty. We sipped our remaining cup of tea as the last drop of sunlight spilled over Batur and woke the others up to get ready to go home. Once all our stuff was on the motorcycle and all that remained were the tents, we posed for pictures (which turned out amazing by the way) and headed home.
Hopefully that won't be the last trip we had together. I sincerely hope it becomes a tradition from here on out, regardless of how old and wrinkly we'll get.
To another year of fun-filled spontaneous joy. Oh, and here's a few pictures to remember it all.
After our breathtakingly exhausting trek through Tegalalang, we took a quick break to rehydrate and catch our breaths before heading to our next destination: Tukad Cepung Waterfall. It didn't take us long to get there, about one very scenic hour away. When we arrived at Tukad Cepung, we all changed into our swim suits, ready to get absolutely wet. We left our backpacks at the nearby kiosks and made our way to the ticket counter. "How far away is it from here?" I regretted asking the question as soon as I saw two tourists heading back from the waterfall, faces completely red and their clothes drenched in what I presume was sweat considering the stench coming off of them. The ticket lady simply smiled and said, "Not that far, you'll make it."
It.was.far. I mean at least to me it was. Loads of stairs. Loads of road. Loads of sweat. But yet again, the challenging route proved worthy when we saw the mesmerizing gallons of water cascading down the mouth of a humongous cave. It was exactly like the instagram pictures! Fortunately, it was't especially crowded that day so it honestly felt like we had the entire cave to ourselves. We took lots of pictures and videos and most importantly got super wet. Had it not been for our friend who kindly scolded us to hurry up if we want to reach our campsite before nightfall. We took one last, long look at the waterfall before finally bidding farewell.
When we reached our campsite in Kintamani, it was a couple minutes past sunset. We had to quickly build our tents before it gets too dark to see. Unfortunately, none of us were familiar with the tent we rented. It was a very large 6 person tent as opposed to the 2-person tents we were used to building. We spent a solid hour and a half arguing and scurrying here and there before we finally had our two tents up and ready. When we finally settled in, we lit our campfire and made the classic camping dinner, instant cup noodles and hot tea. We sang and laughed and kept each other warm all night by the side of Pinggan village, anxiously awaiting for the infamous Kintamani sunrise to wake us up.
DAY 2: Kintamani Sunrise and Home Sweet Home
At around 5 AM, all our alarms went off meaning its time to take our sleeping bags outside and wait for sunrise. Unsurprisingly, none of us woke up at 5. Half of us managed to groggily get up at 6, the other half slept through the sunrise. Fortunately, I was one of the lucky halves who managed to witness Kintamani's dreamlike morning. The sun creeped slowly behind Mount Batur, shedding light onto the foggy village below. The sky was a gradation of orange and pink and the clearest blue I have ever seen. The sunrise, however, was fleeting in its beauty. We sipped our remaining cup of tea as the last drop of sunlight spilled over Batur and woke the others up to get ready to go home. Once all our stuff was on the motorcycle and all that remained were the tents, we posed for pictures (which turned out amazing by the way) and headed home.
Hopefully that won't be the last trip we had together. I sincerely hope it becomes a tradition from here on out, regardless of how old and wrinkly we'll get.
To another year of fun-filled spontaneous joy. Oh, and here's a few pictures to remember it all.
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| Desa Pinggan, Kintamani |
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| Tegalalang Rice Field |
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