At Mt. Merbabu, the Universe is Kind to Us.
We flipped it into a “Crazy route”…
Even if the journey is over, we’ve never gotten tired of discussing this trail in the group.
The lesson here is to never underestimate anything, particularly natural situations. Perhaps since it rained yesterday, the track conditions deteriorated. The second lesson is that each mountain has a different character and cannot be compared solely on height. Of course, this will be a lengthy discussion because even on a journey to the same location, the experience can vary. However, my friends and I agreed that the road was difficult…even for those who advanced from us. For me personally, I was amazed to remember that the trip was possible with deep gratitude for having the opportunity to go there.
Mt. Merbabu is one of the dream places I want to visit and is on my “bucket list.” I’ve heard a lot of stories about this mountain, especially about the savanna. Savanna fields can also be found in places like Gupak Menjangan on Mount Lawu ,also in Mt. Rinjani (via Sembalun). Luckily, I’ve visited them all, and they’re all gorgeous !!
When Merbabu opened, we didn’t miss it. We left Jakarta for Suwanting’s basecamp in Magelang (Central Java) on a Friday night.The climb begins in the morning with a high sense of enthusiasm.From the gate to post 1, there’s a big elevation, but it’s not too bad because we have still so much energy. At that point, right/left track markers were added. It’s called HM. Every 100 meters is the distance of each HM.
From the start to post 3, where we’ll camp, there will be 36 HMs. So please count yourself.. But with a note on the way to HM 36, the road is always uphill. Therefore, my advice is not to look at it too often and calculate how many HM we have been in HM. Sometimes it’s best not to know what’s ahead, isn’t it?:-)..Just live it..slowly, slowly…with God’s willing, you will get to the goal..And, this is the third lesson for me.
It’s always nice for me to be able to walk in the forest like I did here. It’s like being in a different part of space. So different from what we find in the city every day.The vibe was different even though the fog came and went. This trip is made more delightful with tall trees, chirping birds or insects, or the breeze. I think, Merbabu through Suwanting requires more mental preparation than normal.
On HM 30–31, our mindset fell when we learned we had to use a rope or webbing. Climb the rope one-by-one, taking turns.The thing is, because of the rain, it becomes more difficult. If you don’t focus even a little, you can slip and roll down.
But this hard trip only lasted until the post was delivered… We got here in the late afternoon, and after a short break, the hard work we had done paid off when Mount Merapi came into view. Then there was no more tiredness.
People went hiking to find the best place to take pictures. I love how everything looks so beautiful from where I’m standing. What a view!
Mt Merapi seems helping Merbabu to show us an amazing scene and this is one of the best things here !
Maybe this is why so many climbers come back here again and again.
The Universe still continues to be kind to us when the morning is very bright on the way to the top/peak. Thank’s God, the most beautiful dishes from Merbabu continue to be presented in front of our eyes.
Behind us, on the right side is Mt. Merapi and on the left side there are Mt. Sumbing and Mt. Sindoro which accompanied the Summit this morning. Our morning was even more perfect with the presence of Merbabu’s savanna which was already famous for its beauty.
The good news is the trip to Merbabu’s peak is easy… even easier than to the post camp or other summits. I even went down to the camping post alone, even though climbing the summit was my hardest expedition.
Merbabu itself has 3 nearby peaks.
The closest peaks are Suwanting, Triangulasi, Syarif, and Kenteng Songo. Most typically, Triangulasi is used to retrieve documents.Yet, it’s quite good if we only want to reach the top of Suwanting and not other summits. We can see Magelang’s city and its surroundings from here.
We were very lucky because all the way back and away from the peak the weather was quite favorable. Even though in the middle of the Summit trip, it rained, but not too long, not too heavy and miraculously did not affect the scenery in front. Mt Merapi-Sumbing Sindoro trailed us. This is a blessing because we hiked during the rainy season and yesterday’s travel from base camp was foggy.
Even though it rained on the trip home and was “troublesome,” still..I’m thankful everyone made it to base camp safely. Since it’s heavy rain this time, then the hiking trail changed into a “rice field” and made us fall so many times times due to slippery. Painful, but this doesn’t make us give up:-)
When the universe is so kind, when you meet wonderful and pleasant trip partners, and when you find an amazing view , then the beautiful recording of the journey will continue to spin in your memory..
