Touring the calderas at Mount Batur

Touring the calderas at Mount Batur

Tarko Sudiarno, The Jakarta Post, Bangli, Bali

The Javanese usually say, "Wow, as beautiful as Sri Gunung.
Beautiful from afar but very ugly, when near." This may also be
an appropriate thing to say about the spot where Mount Batur
belched out lava when it erupted in 1963.

The lava flow looks like a darkened mass on the southern slope
of Mount Batur. It is just like one massive rock. For a while,
you may think you are on another planet, devoid of vegetation,
water and signs of life. Scorching sunrays that afternoon became
all the hotter when this solidified lava reflected the heat of
the sun.

When you get close to this mass, you will think these bright,
hollow rocks, already decades old, have just been belched out. Of
irregular shape, they are scattered over a vast area just like
thousands of temples in miniature. Indeed, these may be
considered a superb installation work in Bali, the island of the
gods.

This sight is one of the unique features that one can find
when going round the foot of Mount Batur from its southern slope.
Mount Batur is one of a popular tourist sites in Bali but
tourists usually can only enjoy its beauty from Kintamani or
Panelokan.

Kintamani and Panelokan are part of the caldera located on the
southern side of Mount Batur. From here, tourists can get a full
view of Mount Batur surrounded by its calderas and also enjoy the
beauty of Lake Batur, which is located on the eastern side.
However, if you wish to enjoy the Mount Batur fully, you must
descend to the bottom of the caldera, to which a paved road has
been built.

This paved road goes round Mount Batur. Although it is not
very broad, it is wide enough for cars. There are in fact several
roads to the bottom of the caldera but the safest for cars is the
one that passes Panelokan. The other two roads are too steep.

Volcanologists are right in saying that a Batur caldera is
like a giant kettle. It measures 13.8 kilometers by 10 kilometers
and is one of the world's biggest and most beautiful calderas. No
matter on which side you stand, Mount Batur looks graceful with a
mixed foreground: a mass of lava, a vast expanse of sand, a pine
tree forest and the life in villages on the mountain's western
and eastern sides.

While on the southern side you can see the lava flow that the
volcano belched out in 1963, on the western side, you will catch
sight of human settlements. The further north you go, you will
find more densely populated areas. In the last five years, the
villages on the western side of the slope of Mount Batur have
seen rapid development. You can fine permanent stone houses amid
old buildings with thatched roofs.

When you are in this western valley, you will find yourself
surrounded by the mountain. On your east, you will see Mount
Batur. Meanwhile, on the western side, you will see the walls of
caldera I and caldera II forming giant steps. Soil and rock
layers on these walls show their beautiful texture when seen from
below. As these calderas are very wide and deep, the eruption
must have been very powerful. Humans feel very small when
standing inside these giant kettles.

The caldera on the western side, which looks barren and lacks
water during the dry season, is now a densely populated area. The
locals no longer think that this is part of a volcano and that it
could pose any danger to them. They have developed this area just
like other places. They farm, raise cattle and conduct trading.
This area is now abuzz with migrants.

Even the mass of lava in Yehmampeh village that the mountain
spewed out in 1974 is now flattened and the area is ready to be
converted into a human settlement. The vast expanse of dark
solidified lava looks like a paved road.

However, amid the rapid growth of human settlements in the
western area, public facilities such as latrines are still rare.
During the trip, we could spot locals -- male and female --
freely responding to nature's call wherever they chose to. For
them, this is not unusual because water is hard to find. To
foreign tourists, this may not be such a pleasant sight.

After going along the arid western side, we finally got to the
northern side of the slope of Mount Batur. This is a densely
populated old village. Here we could witness greater mobility
among the locals. We could see traditional markets and stalls on
the roadsides. The roads were quite busy with motorcycles and
cars.

This northern area also separates two different natural
conditions in the Batur calderas. While water is scarce on the
western side, there is an abundance of water from the lake on the
eastern side. Farmers can source water from the lake and use
pumps to irrigate their farmlands. That explains why along the
edge of Lake Batur up to the mountain slopes you can see green
farmland.

Meanwhile, along the road on the eastern side, you can find
quite a lot of hotels and restaurants, especially in Toyobungkah
village. This cool village is home to a hot spring that can
reportedly cure various ailments. From this place, you can freely
enjoy the view of Lake Batur, which is surrounded by the walls of
the eastern caldera. Across the lake, right at the foot of the
wall of the eastern caldera lies Trunyan village, which is noted
for its unique burial rituals.

It is from this eastern side that mountaineers usually climb
to the top of Mount Batur to view calderas I, II and III. From
here, the climb will take between one and one-and-a-half hours.
It is advisable that you take a guide if you wish to climb Mount
Batur. These guides can be found in Toyabungkah or in Kintamani.
When the volcano is not active, it is quite safe for tourists to
climb to the edge of the crater. Today, you can even find several
food stalls at the edge of crater I, which is at the very top.
Morning is the best time for climbing.

It will take you less than three hours by car to travel round
the ring road that goes round Mount Batur at the bottom of its
calderas. If you make this car trip, you will find traces of the
greatness of this old volcano. Few, however, have made this trip.