Mount Rinjani Trek – 3726m (2014)

Gunung Rinjani or better known as Mount Rinjani is the second highest volcano in Indonesia. It is one of the most beautiful treks to do in the region (in my perspective) and definitely one summit that is worth to go.

To get to Rinjani, one must first take a flight to Lombok directly or to Bali island and then from there take another domestic flight to Lombok or a local ferry or speedboat.

The trek starts from either Senaru or by Sembalun and will take around 3-4 days depending on your fitness levels. I climbed Rinjani back in 2009 and now this year in 2014, I decided to lead a trek for a group of friends. The group consisted of many of my friends from secondary school to my adventure racing teams to my university and even my teammates from Himalayan expeditions in Nepal and India.

It is a climb that involves a lot of steps and climbing but it is not as serious as Mount Kinabalu. Mount Kinabalu is pretty high and steep like the stairway to heaven but Rinjani is a more gradual climb, spread out within 3-4 days. Rinjani is also an excellent stepping-stone for people who want to prepare themselves for Everest Base Camp Trek and also other Himalayan treks.

It was a beautiful but pretty rushed trip as we wanted to be at Senggigi for one day of R&R but overall, the group made it to the summit with 6/8 people reaching the summit. It was a great adventure, definitely one for the first timer in trekking and great for couples looking for a short getaway.