Sumatra, Jogja to Aceh

Sumatra is an island that is synonymous with adventure, old stories of explorers heading into the dark Sumatran jungle on a journey of discovery were running through my head as I crossed from Java on ferry. I was looking forward to this ride immensely, Sumatra is home to some of the worlds most endangered animals, spectacular scenery, active volcanoes, thick jungle and winding roads that sweep their way through it all. The island still also carries with it a reputation of being at times a dangerous place to travel, even the locals that I was riding with refused to travel on certain sections of highway late at night for fear of gangs of sword wielding bandits. I was doing the round trip from Jogjakarta and back with some Indonesian friends, which meant that my style of travelling also had to change a little, most noticeably I traded my usual homestay accommodation for classy hotels, a change I could easily deal with for the next 3 weeks.

 We got off the ferry and headed for lampung, home to the Way Kambas elephant sancuary, which was an amazing place to visit, and also a memorial to the Krakatoa volcanic eruption and ensuing tidal wave that left over 36,000 people dead in 1883. We stayed in town long enough to do some sightseeing but were soon on the road again, we still had a long way to go to reach our destination, the island of Sabang in Aceh which was the zero kilometre point of Indonesia and big feather in the cap for any Indonesian motorcyclist. As we headed further toward the center of the island the flat, straight, potholed highway turned into winding and undulating roads (still full of potholes) that led us through jungle covered mountains, this was the riding I was hoping for. Every island in Indonesia has its own unique culture but nowhere else had I seen such distinct changes throughout a single Island as I did in Sumatra, building styles, religion and local customs and attitudes would totally change as you crossed from one part of the island to the next

I was enjoying the ride but soon  noticed some oil leaking out of the final drive on my real wheel, I kept a close eye on it but it soon got noticeably worse, with oil leaking all over my rear wheel the riding became much more dangerous. Obviously I had done a seal on the final drive but there wasn’t much I could do about it, the closest BMW service centre was in Medan, a few thousand km away. We made a few calls to get some advice and in the end it was a matter of topping up the rear drive with transmission fluid daily and riding conservatively until we reached Medan. I was quite concerned to say the least, especially when during an oil top up we noticed metal pieces which meant I had also done a wheel bearing, just great!!! Somehow we managed to make it all the way to Medan and within 2 days the bike was fixed and ready to take me to Aceh, many thanks to the guys at BMW Medan for getting me on the road again.

We reached lake Toba and earned ourselves a welcome rest, we had been riding long days on rough roads and what better place to recover than on the shores of this picture perfect lake. Feeling in good spirits after spending a few days in our lakeside hotel and exploring the area we were ready to make our push to Sabang. The roads to Aceh were some of the best in Sumatra, having been rebuilt by international aid after the 2004 tsunami. As we arrived we were greeted by a handful of GS riders and escorted to a local café, the Aceh GS club had come out to welcome us and we spent the evening talking about bikes, travel and watching the moto GP race that was being shown at the café, which was a popular riders hangout.  It was a sobering experience seeing some of the monuments to the destruction caused by the natural disaster, most noticabley a large ship that had ended up in a residential area Kilometres inland from the harbour and now sits as a chilling reminder amongst some of the houses that were destroyed at the same time. We met 3 other riders from Java and they joined us on the ferry to Sabang, which is a beautiful jungle covered island, we visited the 0 kilometer point, of course taking many photos while we were there. Before we left Aceh one of my riding companions wanted to visit a friend of his who was in the army and posted here, it turned out that his friend was a 2 star general and in charge of the army in Aceh, it seemed bazaar having tea and cake with a 2 star general in Indonesia, he was a great guy though, especially when he found out I had served in the army in Australia.

We were soon back in Medan and this time I wanted to head into the jungle to see some orang-utans, a must see in Sumatra. My friends weren’t as keen as me so I was so as they headed south I headed to the mountain village of Bukit Lawang. I wasn’t disappointed, I got to trek through the jungle and get up close to these amazing animals. They seemed so peaceful and gentle as they hung out in their small family groups but we got a reminder that they were wild animals when, as we were heading down the hill to the river a female who was known for being aggressive and who had bitten quite a few guides surprised us and chased us down the hill, luckily she turned her attention to a group uphill from us and with my guiding shouting to hurry up and my heart pounding me made our get away. The way out of the jungle was via river tubing, floating along the rapids in our tube was a great way to end a fantastic experience.

I had some km to make up to catch my friends and found myself riding on the busy Sumatran roads at night, an experience I would gladly never do again, even at 10pm the road was full of trucks and busses, all diving like maniacs, I made it safely but had a few very close calls. They way back to Java took us through some beautiful towns and some amazing roads, most memorable was Kelok44, just out of Padang, which was a steep road with 44 sharp, switch back corners overlooking glassy maninjau lake. We had been on the road for 24 days and covered approximately 7000 km when we returned to Java, we were almost home but we had one last obstacle to conquer, possibly the hardest yet….. riding through Jakarta in the middle of the day. Jakarta is one of the worlds most populated and most traffic congested cities, the experience was a nightmare, especially on an air cooled Beemer that was hating the traffic even more than me, I had to stop regularly to let the bike cool down. We made it through and I chalked it up to another experience, glad I had done it but also happy not to have to do it again.

What an experience, Sumatra had lived up to its reputation, this was real adventure riding and I enjoyed every km

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kulon Progo & Kalibiru

 

I was very fortunate to be invited by Andry Berlianto and 3M Adventours for a motorbike tour around beautiful Kulon Progo and its surrounding areas. Kulon Progo is a unique place to visit in central Java, it is blessed with some of the most spectacular scenery that can be found in the area but is not yet flooded with tourists. The tour took us along winding mountain roads that were perfect for riding and past iconic local attractions like Sermo Dam and Kalibiru. After stopping for some photos at Kalibiru we ventured further into the mountains and soon found ourselves riding steep, narrow roads surrounded by think vegetation, this added a real flavour of adventure to the riding. Perhaps the highlight of the day was visiting Taman Sungai Madal, we took a walk along the cascading waterfalls and went for a swim in one of the many natural pools. The tourist potential here has only recently been discovered by the local villagers and it was quite inspirational to see the local community come together to build a sustainable tourist industry and meet people who were keen to share the beauty of their backyard. Many thanks to Andry and all the other riders that joined me for the day and also to the many locals that warmly welcomed me into their community. www.facebook.com/kulonprogotour

Central Java

Every island that I have visited in Indonesia has its own character and identity and I remember each for a different reason, Java stands out for the hospitality and generosity of the people I have been fortunate to befriend here. Java has many big bike owners and the island boasts a strong motorcycle community, especially among BMW GS owners, I was lucky that many of the clubs and groups were more than happy to invite me along for a ride.  From Surabaya to Jogjakarta I couldn’t have hoped for greater hospitality, I was invited to stay at people’s homes, given help with the bike and asked to come along for some great rides time after time. Java has the distinction of being the world’s most populous island and many other motorcycle travellers warned me of the traffic congestion and advised me to pass through quickly. I found myself doing the complete opposite, every time I went to a new city and met new riders it seemed I’d extend my stay here for a little longer. The traffic in the cities was often quite frustrating but it wasn’t long before I was riding like a local and zipping in and out of traffic with the congestion soon forgotten once I discovered the sweeping bends of the hills surrounding Jogja and Solo. I joined a few groups for some day and overnight trips and got to ride some of the best roads I’ve found in Indonesia with some of the friendliest people I have had the pleasure of riding with. The Riders from Central Java know how to organise a day of riding, the scenic roads were only matched by the delicious food we would eat when we stopped for a meal…. Enak Sekali!!! Some of these guys were also very fast, it was the first time in quite a while that I had the chance to do some really quick riding with other riders and I must admit Toletto and Adhi easily had my measure. Many thanks to Babe, Aditya, Odhon, Yudi, Robi, Toletto and a long list of other riders and friends that I have met while I’ve been here and have made my stay so memorable.

Mount Ijen

I was looking forward to visiting Mount Ijen immensely, there are better known and perhaps more spectacular volcanos in Indonesia but what grabbed my attention here was the impressive stories I had heard about the Sulphur miners carrying huge loads of the yellow mineral the hill. It was a short hike to reach the summit of the mountain, only 3 km’s of reasonably steep dirt track and I was only a few hundred meters into the walk when I crossed paths with the first miner carrying sulphur down the hill. The miners all had the same quick, shuffling gait, you should see by their bent over posture and rush to get down the hill that they were carrying a very heavy weight. What these guys do is truly a Herculean effort, men that weigh not much more than 50 kg’s carry up to 75 kg’s of sulphur 700 meters from the bottom of the crater up a VERY steep goat track and then 3 ½ km down a dirt road to unload at the bottom of the hill. The Sulphur, once known as Brimstone is mined by hand at the bottom of the volcanos crater amongst thick plumes of sulphur fumes, no gas masks are worn and the bright yellow sulphur residue sticks to the faces of the miners. These men don’t have a comfortable pack or harness to carry the sulphur, they simply use a thin but strong piece of wood that sits across their shoulders with a wicker basket on each side. What amazed me was that even though many were grimacing in pain every one of them would smile and have a polite word as they went by, often asking if I had a cigarette to spare. I have seen infantry soldiers quit a pack march and sit on the side of the road after 5km while carrying 30 kg’s in a comfortable pack yet these guys just bear their burden without complaint…amazing. I chatted with quite a few of the miners on the way up and on the way down the hill, many have been doing this job for years and they showed me the scars and bruising on their shoulders from carrying the heavy weight day after day. There’s no OH&S officer on mount Ijen and the men get paid by weight so there is an incentive for them to break their bodies with heavier loads to get more money to feed their family.

Almost as amazing as the effort of the workers on the mountain is the volcano itself, the view from the top reveals a crater lake amongst clouds of Sulphur fumes in what resembles a lunar landscape of volcanic rock. Mount Ijen usually puts on a spectacular show of blue fire but due to some recent volcanic activity in recent weeks the blue flames couldn’t be seen while I was there. One of the miners took me down the track to show me how the sulphur was mined, steps were roughly cut into the rock in some places but for the majority it was a precarious walk down. The sulphur is channelled down through metal tubes where it oozes out as a liquid amongst thick fumes and cools until the hardened substance can be collected. I wasn’t wearing a mask and the taste of the sulphur fumes was very strong, breathing this toxic gas in on a daily basis greatly reduces the life expectancy of the miners that work here. It is quite paradoxical that such an alien landscape which fuels an occupation as brutal as sulphur mining could be so beautiful, the lake itself even had a tranquil feel about it.