1am is a time suitable for one thing, and one thing only on holidays: getting in from dinner and dancing. Or so I thought, until my alarm (and several others around the room for good measure) went off. L and I had long decided before our arrival in Bali that doing the sunrise hike up Mount Batur was firmly at the top of our bucket list…
We’d decided we’d move to Ubud from Seminyak in the second half of our holiday, so our driver picked us up from our hotel in Seminyak at 1am, ready for the 2 hour drive to Ubud. It felt surreal to be wrapped up in hoodies and wearing sports leggings and trainers (trust me when I say, you’re going to want to dress up nice and warm for this one, yep, Indonesia gets super cold where we’re headed – who’d have thunk it eh?).
Our driver dropped us off in a gritty car park which had a shed housing a toilet. We were met by Wayan, who was to be our guide, and handed 2 lunch boxes from the driver. Wayan passed us two torches and we began our hike. Starting on relatively flat terrain we wandered up and up…
Pausing when it got a little tough to peak out at the town bathed in moonlight.
Eventually the terrain got steeper and steeper, until eventually it was only 2 minutes to the top. Wayan grabbed a couple of patches of carpet, led us down a slightly hidden path which jutted onto a ledge and told us to wait there and that he’d be back soon. We had an hour to wait until sunrise, and though weather conditions were good it’s always an unpredictable science; we sat patiently waiting.
Unbelievably, we saw a shooting star streak it’s way down the sky just disappearing behind the mountain.
We made our respective wishes and waited. Before long, Wayan was back with our breakfasts. A hard boiled egg (cooked in one of the craters), and a croissant which we positively devoured after the hike up.
Slowly but surely, the morning began to get a little bit lighter
We started to be able to make out the difference between the lake below and the mountains in front
And bit by bit the town woke up too.
Eventually the sun decided it was time to get up too, and within a matter of minutes, it had made its appearance.
Wayan came to get us, ready to trek back down the mountain. The climb down was a little trickier as its pretty slippy, but it is beautiful getting in to take in the scenery that had been so dark on the way down.
The way back down saw us encounter offerings that were made at the mountain, monkeys and a few stray dogs too!
^Sadly I can’t take credit for this as our guide took it – I’m scared of monkeys OK!?
This was without doubt one of the best things I’ve ever done.
The Mountain hike is a hugely popular excursion; we inadvertently booked a private tour which cost £50 each – but it gave us a driver, breakfast, lunch, tour guide up the mountain and also visits to the hot springs and a coffee plantation tour (more on those later!). You’ll need to wrap up warm as the mountain gets super cold first thing in the morning. Take a rucksack – your guide will have one but you’ll be glad of the extra water and it’s easier for carrying something like an SLR.
Finishing off this post has made me a bit emotional! I’ve been a bit slow on getting posts up; work, flu and being back in the swing of the routine has meant blogging had to take a bit of a back seat, I miss Bali so much, and I will always look back at this as an experience of a lifetime – made all the better with one of my best friends by my side!
I hope you’re enjoying reading the travel diaries as much as I’m enjoying writing them – it feels like writing postcards to old friends!
Kate x
Wow! What an experience! This sounds utterly amazing and what gorgeous photos <3
I feel like I start off every comment on your blog with “WOW” so you might be a little sick of it, but here we go… Wow, this looks absolutely incredible! The scenery is just stunning and being able to watch the sun come up over the mountains (whilst you’re tucking into your boiled egg hehe) must’ve been absolutely amazing! Definitely worth the 1am wake-up call! I am so glad that you and L had this experience together – doing it on a private tour must’ve made it even more personal and special! Although I have some real postcards from you from Bali (which are now up on my noticeboard yay), I totally agree that these posts read just like postcards as well, it’s obvious how much you enjoy writing them!
Abbey 🌷 http://www.abbeylouisarose.co.uk
This really looks like an incredible experience! I love arriving somewhere in the dark and then slowly being able to see exactly whats there so I imagine this was amazing! I love how there were just monkeys around, although I would be skeptical too! Sounds like you had a lovely time!
Sarah | http://www.sazsinclair.com xx
Aw this sounds so amazing and I can hear the emotion in your words, what fab photos.
Oh my gosh, this is such a beautiful post that has filled me with envy! Such gorgeous photos, it was so worth that 1am alarm.
I am absolutely loving your holiday posts, you can feel how much you loved your trip through your writing. I got your postcards this morning which made me so happy, I totally get what you mean about your posts feeling like postcards, they’re so personal and happy 🌏💕📸
Hels xx
http://www.thehelsproject.com
Amazing photos!!! Incredible. So glad you had an amazing time!! Xxxxxx
lucylovesbeautyxo.com
Wow, it looks like you had such a beautiful adventure and so, so worth that 1am alarm. I absolutely love reading about people’s travel adventures, so thank-you so much for sharing! Such beautiful imagery as well!
http://www.sabrinadoeslife.co.uk/
This sounds like an absolutely stunning thing to do! Watching the sunrise/sunset is one of my fave things so I’m sure I’d love doing this – even if you do have to wake up very early haha! xx
Wow, what an incredible experience! The sunrise looks absolutely gorgeous, and this is certainly a once in a lifetime kind of thing. The price isn’t bad either considering it includes so much, and you can’t put a price on an experience like this!
Hayley X
Lifethroughtsg.com
Your photography is absolutely stunning!! I might have to visit as the price is pretty reasonable. I loved this post xo
http://www.laurenannbeauty.com
It looks like such a stunning place! I’m such a sucker for pretty sunrises/sunsets, and your trip looked like it was full of them!
wow what a fab experience! Sounds like you’ve had a fab time in Indonesia! X
Wow! Your photos! That honestly sounds like the most incredible experience! What a wonderful thing to watch!
PaleGirlRambling xo
Sounds totally worth the 1am alarm, looks beautiful!
Steph x
http://www.wanderlustpulse.com
what an amazing experience! such stunning photos to
http://www.oliviamulhearn.co.uk/
I love those views!! I’m intrigued by crater cooked eggs too!
Hannah @ The Northern Writes | http://www.thenorthernwrites.co.uk
How incredible! I’m lost for words, this trip looks unbelievable.
Em
Emmajaderamselll.wordpress.com. xxx
This sounds like such an incredible experience! You don’t get that view in the cities in the UK! Fantastic photos too!
Sian x
http://www.theenglisheverygirl.com
These photos are amazing. Looks like a once a lifetime opportunity. Great Post.
Jamie | http://www.jamies-corner.com
There really is nothing quite like a sunrise hike. What beautiful views – I bet you felt so good for doing it! xx
Your photography is amazing Kate and it looks truly stunning here!
Steph xx
http://www.stephsworld.com
I love your travel posts! That must have been such an amazing experience to go for a hike during sunrose. I love the photos and would love to do sonething like this someday. I hope you had a brilliant time!
This looks lovely, I am adding it to my list (I am going to be living down under soon and travelling through Asia & Bali). Got to love a majestic boiled egg on an early epic hike. I know what you mean about blogging being on the back burner but your stories are always within you and I definitely enjoyed reading this whether your told it sooner or later <3
Jen xx