|
Online Assistance :
 |
|
|
|
| |
Lombok Hot News about Lombok and Mount
Rinjani Volcano
|
| |
Mt. Rinjani, Where the Community
Manage the Treks
Other peaks nearby are Mt. Baru, Mt Sangkareang, Mt.
Buang, Mt Kondo and Mt Manuk. These mountains
separated to each others by wide valleys and deep
gullies with steep rock slopes. There is a lake
called Segara Anak (2,008 m) on the valley Wes of
Mt. Rinjani. The water smells of sulfur with
temperature varies from place to place, from cold to
warm and hot. An active volcano (Mt. Baru) is
growing in the lake.
Gunung Rinjani National Park lies within a major
bio-geographical transition zone (Wallcaeae), where
the flora and fauna of South East Asia meets that of
Australasia. The National Park, one of over 40
throughout Indonesia, was established in 1997. For
the people of Lombok, Sasak and Balinese alike, Mt.
Rinjani is revered as a sacred place and abode of
deities. The crater lake is a pilgrimage destination
for tens of thousand each year. Pilgrims place
offering in the water and bathe away ailments in the
hot springs.
For visitors, the three-day Rinjani trek route from
Senaru to the crater rim, down to the Crater Lake
then on to Sembalun Lawang, is considered one of the
best treks in South East Asia. Trekkers that are
more adventurous aim for the summit, it best reached
from Sembalun Lawang returning after four days to
Senaru. To assist with conservation and ensure that
communities on the boundary of the National Park
benefit from tourism revenues, the Rinjani Trek is
managed by a partnership of National Park officials,
the public and private sectors of the Lombok tourism
industry and community representatives. Community
run cooperatives coordinate the Trek at the Rinjani
Trek Center (RTC) in Senaru and the Rinjani
Information Center (RIC) in Sembalun Lawang. Each
has roster system for guides and porters, village
tour activities and handicraft sales.
Revenue from tourism activities and entry fees is
used for conservation, raining, management and
assisting the National Park with maintenance of the
Rinjani Trek, thus ensuring sustainability.
Overseeing and supporting these activities is the
Rinjani Trek Management Board, combining the
authority of the central government (National Park)
and local government (tourism office), with the
voices of Lombok tourisms private sector, and the
boundary communities. This institutional model is
unique in Indonesia and considered an example for
practical implementation of the ideals of
ecotourism.
Where to Stay
You can spend a night at the cheap hotels around
Sembalun and Senaru area with varied price and
facilities. It's also possible to stay in private
houses.
Dining Guide
Before start trekking, hiking or climbing, be sure
that you already eat, or you can bring some food and
drink from your places of stay.
Moving Around
*
If you want to go to the top, it might be better to
go directly to Sembalun Lawang and start walking
from there.
*
If you just want to go to the crater rim and into
the crater, then you can start from Senaru.
Other Things to See or Do
Beside the mountain itself, other things for you to
do or see is:
*
Caves
One of the three famous caves (Goa Susu, Goa Payung,
dan Goa Manik), Susu Cave is a good place for self
reflection and is often used as a place to meditate.
*
Healing Hot Springs
Aiq Kalak means hot water and it is used to cure
various deseases. One of the hot springs is named
Pangkereman Jembangan which is meant a place for
dipping. The water which spurts out of the spring is
very hot. People also use the hot spring to make
medicine from coconut cream. After dipping a bottle
of coconut cream in the hot spring if the liquid
becomes clear oily it can be used as medicinal oil.
Then the medicinal oil is used for good things and
is called Siu Satus Tunggal or in Bayan language Siu
Satunggal which means that it can be used to cure a
thousand kinds of desease.
*
Segara Anak Lake
Segara Anak Lake is so wide it appears like the sea
with its blue water. The name Segara Anak means
child of the sea. Segara Anak Lake holds various
mysteries and invisible power.
*
Local Strawberry
This plant grows along the route to Mt. Rinjani. It
has thorns like the rose and the fruit is red like
strawberry. It has a sweet and slightly sour taste
and is good to eat when trekkers are hungry and
thirsty.
*
Eternal Flower or Edelweis
The plant or the flowers should not be taken because
it grows in the park and in the mysterious world of
the spirit kingdom. In the past, someone who wanted
this flower must be brave enough to fight and gamble
his soul. That is why the flower is called Sandar
Nyawa. The flower has never wilted and is as old as
the mysterious spirits.
*
The Peak of Rinjani
The people of Lombok believe that the peak of Mt.
Rinjani is where Dewi Anjani, the queen spirit and
ruler of Mt. Rinjani lives. To the south-east from
the peak in a sea of dust called Segara Muncar is
the invisible palace of the queen Dewi Anjani and
her followers.
*
Mount Baru Jari
Gunung Baru is the name of the new volcano which
emerged in the center of Segara Anak Lake. People
believe that Gunung Baru is the navel of Mt.
Rinjani. That is why if Gunung Baru erupted it will
not harm the people of Lombok unless the eruption is
from the peak of Mt. Rinjani.
Souvenir Tips
On Lombok there is more crafts than art. The main
crafts of Lombok are practical items made for
everyday use, but showing great skills and finish,
traditional techniques and natural, locals
materials. You can take Lombok pottery and
limestone, traditional hand weaving, wooden mask,
boxes, primitive carvings also Lombok pearls as part
of your souvenirs.
Travel Tips
*
The climb is not to be taken lightly ! You
definitely need good hiking boots. Once you arrive
at 2700 m (crater rim) it tends to get cold and
windy, so you need warm clothes. Don't go there
during the rainy season since paths will be
slippery.
*
It's better to have your own sleeping bags. But, if
you don't have one, they can be hired.
*
Tents can be rented.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Contributor, Lombok Indonesia Mount Rinjani
Volcano 3726
It was 5.30 a.m., and bitterly cold. A broad saffron
stain was spilling into the milky-gray sky over
Sumbawa, and the green of the Sembalum valley was
forming from the gloom.
The wind of the night had dropped to nothing, and
despite the chill the sweat was dripping from the
tip of my nose. Glancing back, I could see the
flashlights of the other trekkers flickering along
the ridge.
To my left a fearsome void opened in a sheer drop to
the crater lake, and to the right the plummeting
sweep of the volcano's north wall ran down towards a
pale sea. Ahead of me, rough and imposing, was the
summit of Gunung Rinjani. But I still had a hellish
climb to get there.
Rinjani volcano towers over the beautiful island of
Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara province. Rising from
the sparkling rice terraces to a dizzying height of
3,726 meters, it is the second-highest volcanic peak
in Indonesia.
Only Gunung Kerinci in Sumatra is higher, at 3805
metres. Unlike the smooth cones of Bali and Java,
Rinjani is more a massif than a single peak: the
huge crater is some six kilometres across, and
shelters a deep lake.
The whole of the Rinjani area was gazetted as a
national park in 1997, and the mountain is one of
the most prized trekking destinations in Southeast
Asia.
Preparing for the assualt
We had arrived at Lombok's well-served Mataram
Airport two days earlier, and spent the first night
in Sengiggi on the west coast. Tourist development
on Lombok is low-key, though the island has many of
the attractions of its illustrious western neighbor,
Bali: stunning rural landscapes, beautiful golden
sand beaches, a fascinating traditional culture, and
of course, Rinjani.
Sengiggi is the only major resort on Lombok with a
full range of hotels and services. Kuta on the south
coast -- far removed from its famous Balinese
namesake -- is the other resort, although it is
still unspoilt, with the atmosphere of a fishing
village.
All travel agents and most hotels and guesthouses in
Sengiggi can organize Rinjani treks at short notice.
Prices are negotiable depending on the size of the
group, and after a couple of hours comparing and
negotiating from operator to operator we were all
set.
The next morning after a dawn ride from Sengiggi up
into the cool of the hills we had set out from the
highland village of Sembalum Lawang, cupped in an
ancient crater and famous for its garlic and onions.
Our party was a motley crew of Surabaya-based
English teachers and others, and we were soon strung
out along the path from the village. A warm wind was
blowing through the yellow grass, the smudged
outline of the summit rising in the distance.
We had hired porters to carry our bags and camping
equipment. They were spectacularly tough Sasak men
from the villages around the volcano, with a
lifetime of work on the high slopes behind them.
They carried their loads delicately balanced on
stout bamboo poles over their shoulders, and made
their way up slippery scree slopes in rubber
sandals.
Oldest and toughest of these was Pak Mohammad, a
wiry, cheery man who smoked kretek cigarettes
continuously. Our guide was a cheerful young man
called Dipan. He was from the village of Senaru
where we would finish the trek, and he had grown up
in the shadow of Gunung Rinjani.
Worth all the effort
The first day's walking was easy to begin with, the
route bending over the rolling grasslands with the
coastal plain hazy to the north. By late afternoon,
however, we were struggling up a steep and winding
path through sparse pine trees toward the ridge.
The air cooled as we left the sultry tropics far
behind. The great Rinjani peak towered over us and
the hills beyond Sembalum were dark.
We reached the ridge just before sunset. We watched
as the light faded behind the black line of the far
ridge, across the shining Segara Anak crater lake,
then we made our way to the first campsite.
It was a cold and windy spot, at the foot of the
steep rise towards the summit, but the views down to
the lake on one side, back towards the coast on the
other were spectacular.
A couple of other trekking groups were camped out
already, all planning to make the final climb to the
summit in the early hours of the morning. We ate a
hurried dinner of mie goreng (fried noodles),
rustled up by the porters, then clambered into our
tents.
It was bitterly cold when we stumbled into the
darkness at 2.30 am. The plan was to reach the
summit for a spectacular sunrise, and those of us
foolhardy enough to try set out up the steep,
slippery path after a cup of lukewarm, sweet tea.
I quickly pushed my way to the head of the group and
was soon walking peacefully alone along the high
ridge. Empty blackness opened to my right, and to my
left the lights of the distant coastal villages
glittered in the dark. Up above dozens of shooting
stars streaked out of a clear sky.
The final climb to the summit was desperately hard.
The path became loose gravel, rising at a steep
angle, and the effects of the high altitude soon
became apparent as I gasped for breath.
But it was all worth it when I reached the top in
time to watch the sun creeping up above the
flat-topped outline of Gunung Tambora on Sumbawa.
All of Lombok from the fish-hook of the port at
Labuan Lombok, to the low stains of the Gili Islands
was visible, and in the west the cone of Bali's
Gunung Agung loomed from the low cloud.
It was shockingly cold, but the elation of reaching
the summit kept me warm as the other trekkers
started to arrive.
As we rested in the brightening sunlight Dipan told
me that local villagers believe that the mountain
holds the key to eternal life. But to seek the
secret is dangerous, and people have been turned to
stone for trying.
Back at the campsite we ate a breakfast of banana
pancakes, then started the descent to the lakeside.
Rewarding descent Segara Anak Lake (""Child of the
Sea"" in Sasak language) is sacred to the people of
Lombok. For the ethnically Balinese Hindus the
waters are the Home of the Gods, and for the Sasaks
too, some of who still cling to pre-Islamic beliefs,
the waters are home to powerful spirits.
There are crude alters at the water's edge,
scattered with Balinese sesajen offerings, and
during the annual Pakelem festival pilgrims make
their way up from the villages to cast gold
offerings into the lake.
Rinjani is still active, and rising from the lake is
Gunung Baru (""New Mountain""), a volcano within a
volcano that emerged from the waters in 1942, and
erupted as recently as 1997.
While the porters prepared lunch we took advantage
of this geothermal activity by washing away our
aches and pains in the steaming hot springs that
bubble from the rocks below the crater rim.
The afternoon saw us trekking uphill once more,
following a beetling path along the northwest crater
wall. The jagged dagger of the summit was fringed
with cloud now, and the wind was singing in the
trees.
But we were all elated when we reached the top of
the ridge in the golden light of evening. From here
it was downhill all the way to the beaches.
The second campsite was a warmer spot than the
first, sheltered by the ridge and not far from the
start of the dense forest that cloaks the lower
slopes. We made our way into this forest the
following morning, a welcome change from the barren
landscape higher up.
The shaded humidity was a return to the tropics, and
the canopy and undergrowth bustled with life. Grey
macaque monkeys eyed us suspiciously from the
branches, and rustling in the distance suggested the
wild deer and forest pigs that live in Rinjani
National Park.
Once we caught a glimpse of a pair of elusive ebony
leaf monkeys, fleeing through the treetops.
We reached the trailhead village of Senaru at
midday, weary and footsore. The Park office is
located at Senaru, and there are a several simple
guesthouses and restaurants. The area is also
scattered with villages of rattan and bamboo where
Sasak traditions are maintained.
But for us, tired and dirty, it was time to relax.
After fond farewells to Dipan and the porters we
were on the road again, heading for the white-sand
beaches and crystal-clear waters of the Gili Islands
where we could ease away the aches and blisters, and
look back at the dark outline of Gunung Rinjani,
looming to the east, with some satisfaction.
Travel Tips
Getting there Mataram is well-served with flights to
major Indonesian cities as well as smaller towns in
Nusa Tenggara. There are regular connections with
Jakarta, Denpasar and Surabaya.
Silk Air offers international flights from Singapore
three times a week. The port of Lembar is linked to
Padangbai on by Bali by regular ferries. The journey
takes 3-4 hours.
Pre-paid taxis are available from the airport to
anywhere on the island. The center of Mataram city
is nearby, as is Sengiggi. Car hire is available in
Sengiggi.
Accommodation
There is accommodation available in Mataram, but
most visitors choose to stay in Sengiggi where there
are options for all budgets from the basic, friendly
Sonya Homestay to the luxurious Sengiggi Beach
Hotel.
There are several simple guesthouses in Senaru --
try the Segara Anak Homestay -- and a few in
Sembalum Lawang.
Arranging a trek
Rinjani treks are easy to arrange through hotels and
travel agents in Sengiggi. Expect to pay Rp
2,000,000 per person for an all-inclusive, three-day
trek depending on the size of your group.
It is possible to arrange treks more cheaply if you
make your way to Senaru independently.
When to go
Lombok is worth a visit at any time of year, but
trekking is at its best in the dry season. Not only
are the views likely to be obscured during the
rains, but the slopes of the volcano are prone to
flash floods, and the narrow paths can be tortuously
slippery.
Climbing Rinjani in the rainy season is inadvisable
and may be prohibited.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mount Rinjani summit elevation 3726 m
Rinjani is located in a caldera 2.4 km by 4.8 km in
size.
There are two active centres located in the eastern
part of caldera - Barujari and Rombongan cones.
Segara Anak Lake is situated inside the caldera.
2009 Activity
An increase in seismic activity was reported at
Rinjani volcano in Indonesia on 2nd May 2009. There
were three explosion earthquakes, and a white plume
was emitted 1000 m above the eruption point. The
alert level at the volcano was raised from Normal
(Level I) to Waspada (Level II). The summit was
closed to climbers. Residents were warned of
possible lahars.
2004 Eruption
Hikers were banned from climbing Mount Rinjani in
October 2004 after the volcano after renewed
volcanic activity. The volcano is a popular
destination for mountain climbers from all over the
world. Despite the warning for the hikers, it was
not necessary to evacuate villagers living near the
volcano. Between 1-5 October eruptions ejected ash
columns 800 m above the summit.
1994 Eruption
On 3rd June 1994, Barujari cone erupted and sent ash
500 m high. Between 3rd and 10th June, up to 172
explosions were be heard each day from Sembalun
Lawang volcano observatory, located 15 km NE of the
volcano. On 3rd November 1994, a cold lahar from the
summit area of Rinjani Volcano traveled down the
Kokok Jenggak River. Thirty people from the village
of Aikmel who were collecting water from the river
were kille
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Mount Rinjani Closed As Eruptions Intensify
Volcanologists at Mount Rinjani in Lombok, West Nusa
Tenggara Province closed the mountain as eruptions
intensify since Monday (27/4). On Sunday, repeated
explosion heard since 5.50 AM local time (4:50
Jakarta time), but activities escalating since
Saturday (2/5) afternoon.
Mining and Energy office of West Nusa Tenggara
Province reported a crater began to form at the
eastern slope of the mountain. Heryadi Rahmad from
the mining and energy office said the eruptions had
not caused terrible impacts “but a small crater
began to form” in the eastern part of the
mountainous area at Mount Baru Jari.
Head of Center for Volcanology and Geological
Disaster Mitigation, Surono told Tempo on Saturday
(2/5) volcanic ash and smoke eruption heave reached
to about 8.000 meters.
A team of geology, topography, and geodesy from the
mining and energy office and geo-tourism, have
started to observe the mountain since Monday (27/4)
this week. Seismograph has been relocated from
Sembalun (1.156 meters above sea level), known as
one of the entry points for hikers to a higher point
at Plawangan (2.641 meters).
The volcano is the second highest mountain in
Indonesia at 3.726 meters above sea level, one of
the most popular ecotourism sites in the country een
among foreign tourists. The eruption is the latest
major one recorded in five years. The last huge
eruption was in 1994.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Last posting on 08-06-2009
Mount Rinjani Volcano 3726 m is Open , trekker is
Possible climbing until Crater Rim Only |
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
| |
|
|
