Senaru - Pelawangan I (Gn. Rinjani crater rim) (Tropical approach)

Access to starting point:
The village Senaru is located at the northern part of Lombok island in Indonesia (east of Bali). The trail begins at the end of the road in Senaru village.

Path description:
The trail from Senaru is known as a tropical approach. The trekking adventure usually starts in the late morning hours at the Rinjani trek centre at the end of the road in Senaru village at approx. 600 m of elevation. After signing (and paying the fees) the trek can begin. The trail gradually heads up through the rain forest to POS I at 934 m (1 hour). Look out for an "organic" walking stick at this point! The beginning is the hottest part of the entire trek and only after additional 2 hours when the POS II at 1500 m is reached, it gradually gets colder. POS II is a usual stop for a rest and a meal. Be on a lookout for macaque monkeys! Epic battles for snacks were fought and lost here! … From here on, the forest begins to brighten up a little, but clouds begin to gather. In the case of rain, do not touch too many tree trunks. I got a leech like this on another trek in Bali mountain Gunung Agung 85 kilometers away. But I guess the same can happen here. However, after 2 hours of walking up the forest suddenly ends with no gradual transition to pine trees or something. Instead the high grass and an occasional bush dominate the scenery for the next 5 minutes until the POS III at around 2000 m. The path continues gradually at first but it gets steeper and steeper the closer one gets to the crater rim near Pelawangan I. It takes 2 hours to get there and if it is not cloudy, the rim can be seen far above as a distant destination that persists to stay away for more than an hour. It is normally cloudy in the late afternoon / evening so the views down to the lake and Gunung Rinjani are not as clear as in the morning. But it is nevertheless rewarding to spend few minutes at the rim before returning a few 10 meters down the path to the camp where the night is usually spent.

On the way: POS I (934m), POS II (1500m), POS III (2027m)