Brandon Sun - PRINT EDITION
LEI ANNE SHARRATT Enlarge Image
Gunung Semeru in the distance.
Hey all...
The town of Sukopura in East Java, just below the Mount Bromo crater. (LEI ANNE SHARRATT)
Here's a travel tip for you. The next time you're in East Java take the time to climb an active volcano for sunrise.
We hopped a train for the three hour trip to Probolinggo and from there we took a jeep up towards the town of Sukapura. Our eventual destination was the volcano of Mount Bromo. Before dark we had time to walk around the town, which turned out to be quite photogenic. The streets stretched out along the spine of the mountain and the layout looked like a mining camp or the Old Campground streets at Clear Lake. The locals farm as much of the mountain slope as is humanly possible. The crops tend to be coffee, potatoes and guest houses, beneath a canopy of rubber trees.
We eventually landed a room at a place called Yoschi’s. The hotel is perched near the top of a mountain with incredible vistas. The trip advisor reviews for Yoschi's are horrendous, usually a GOOD sign. The vibe of the place was something akin to a Wyoming mountain town hug 'n slug tavern, dark and slippery. That night through the rattan thin walls I could hear my neighbours' stomach digesting a meal of greasy nasi goreng.
We were waking up at 3:15am to begin our hike to the volcano viewpoint, so we already knew that sleep would only be a vague concept.
The drill is that you take a jeep part way and then walk the rest of the way to a lookout point. Local guys with ponies will try to give you a lift if you're too tired to finish the climb, though at the end it's all stone stairs and mud. The sunrise was magical with a clear view of the lunaresque volcanic crater slowly coming to light. It was like the dawn of creation with a howling wind substituting for a cheesey synth pad soundtrack.
Mount Bromo is one of three volcanoes rising from the guts of the massive crater. Java's highest and most active volcano, Gunung Semeru, towers in the distance and every five minutes a billow of smoke rises through a Pepto Bismol dawn. At 2500 metres the air is a little thin, but that doesn't stop locals from selling cigarettes to oxygen starved tourists.
After sunrise we hiked across the crater floor to the Bromo cone and climbed to the top for a view into the beast. For safety's sake there was a knee high guard rail at the edge of the area, but you were free to walk the entire rim unprotected on either side of the drop off. It looked pretty much like any other active volcano, lots of smoke and mirrors.
Years ago we climbed an active volcano in Guatemala, which was just plain stupid. By comparison the Bromo hike was a cake walk and the only real danger seemed to be the jeep ride back down.
We're continuing our train trek through East Java towards Bali, just in time for the slow tourist season.
Cheers,
Murray
Republished from the Brandon Sun print edition March 2, 2013
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Hey all...
Here's a travel tip for you. The next time you're in East Java take the time to climb an active volcano for sunrise.
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Hey all...
Here's a travel tip for you. The next time you're in East Java take the time to climb an active volcano for sunrise.
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