Journey to the island of Lombok
Only about 2.5 hours by speedboat from Bali, Lombok possesses natural beauty that is no less than its "neighbor". In particular, Mount Rinjani National Park with dozens of trekking routes passing through all kinds of terrain: forests, grasslands, lakes, waterfalls, craters... is the place that attracts the most adventurous tourists .
Located in the north of Lombok island, Rinjani is 3,726m high above sea level and is the second highest volcano in the country of thousands of islands. In addition to the trekking journey to conquer the majestic Mount Rinjani, Segara Anak Lake located on top of the volcano is also one of the most beautiful destinations in Indonesia. Therefore, there are not many tourists here, especially during the peak season from July to September, with hundreds of people visiting every day.
However, in Vietnam, Lombok is a new destination compared to Bali or Java. Currently, very few Vietnamese tourists know about Rinjani volcano and have ever trekked here. Those who are passionate about exploration must mainly research and contact landtour in Lombok on their own. The cost of the Rinjani mountain climbing tour is about 4 - 6 million VND, depending on conditions and travel time can be from 2 to 4 days.
The beginning of July is also when Lombok enters its most beautiful days, the rainy season gives way to beautiful, dry, sunny weather, cool mornings and nights. I took the Hanoi - Bali flight first and then traveled from Bali to Lombok by speedboat. Bali welcomed me on a rainy and gloomy day with news of heavy rain and lightning in Mataram - the capital of Lombok. But after nearly 3 hours by train the next day, Lombok appeared before our eyes with clear blue sky and bright sunshine.
A group of friends from Ho Chi Minh City going on the same mountain climbing trip chose to fly connecting Ho Chi Minh City - Bali - Lombok because there is no direct flight. We arranged to meet in Mataram so that the tour operator could take us to Senaru to stay one night and then start climbing early the next morning.
Climb to the top in the dawn light
After breakfast, the group traveled by pickup truck to Sembalun village at an altitude of 1,156m, completed registration procedures to enter the National Park and then began 3 days of conquering Rinjani. Asian and European trekking groups mixed together with a large number of porters (porters) carrying tents up the mountain made the first morning atmosphere very bustling and cheerful.
The climbing path is quite gentle, winding through green forests with many wildflowers and vast grassy hills. Occasionally we crossed small bridges spanning deep mountain trenches covered with plants, or the remains of old lava flows revealing strange black dust and dirt.
Pos 2 (second rest stop) at an altitude of 1,500m is the lunch stop for tourist groups. From here to the campsite takes about 3 hours, the hot sun made us slow down even more. Finally, at 4:00 p.m., we arrived at the campsite, dropped our backpacks and found a place to sit and watch the sunset. The last light of the day turns a brilliant orange-pink color, the deep blue Segara Anak Lake is quiet below, surrounded by a sea of white clouds floating in a romantic way.
The camping site is located in a narrow area of land like a "saddle" with steep mountain slopes on both sides. The first night we slept at an altitude of 2,639m, we wore warm clothes and lay in a tent with sleeping bags, still huddled together, feeling the cold seep into every breath because it was only 5 degrees Celsius outside and the wind was whistling constantly.
The second day was especially tiring as we had to start at 2:00 a.m. to reach Rinjani peak to "hunt" the sunrise. At this time, the group groped their way through the dark night with headlamps along with hundreds of other tourists, looking from afar at the group of climbers like a group of fireflies moving slowly.
It's only 1km from the camp to the top but it takes 3-4 hours to complete due to the steep terrain, volcanic rock, dust and quicksand that makes it impossible to go quickly. The tour guide reminded, "For every 2 steps you take, you will be pushed back 1 step." Indeed, this is the most tiring and dangerous journey I have ever taken. Every step was heavy and dragging, on both sides were deep abysses, in front was a high, slippery slope and the wind was still howling and cold. Many tired tourists stopped to rest midway, even lying down to take a nap right at the edge of the path.
Reaching the summit just as dawn appeared on the horizon, the natural scenery at the foot of Mount Rinjani and Lake Segara Anak in the middle of the crater gradually appeared beautiful. Everyone seemed to shake off their fatigue, their eyes filled with excitement because they had conquered the most difficult journey. We quietly watched the sunrise for a while then the mountain top gradually became crowded with people.
Coming back down to clean up the tent and have breakfast, the group continued to lower altitude in the direction of Segara Anak Lake. Having to wake up early and walk more, plus the steep slope made my legs tired, I walked slower and slower because I was tired. At 6:00 p.m., we stopped for dinner and set up a tent in a more sheltered forest. That night we were able to admire the beautiful starry sky and clearly see the shimmering Milky Way.
The last day we woke up at 5am to go down the mountain. The most outstanding scenery is the towering mountain slopes and the Penimbungan waterfall flowing like a white silk strip in the middle of the green forest. Unfortunately, the more I walked, the more painful it became, so I could only focus on moving without fully enjoying the beautiful scenery along the road. We arrived at Torean village at 11:00 a.m., saying goodbye to our tour guide and the cheerful Lombok travelers to get to the port in time for the train back to Bali. Rinjani, towering among the clouds and sky, is behind me, but I can never forget what the mountain has challenged over the past 3 days.
