Racing to The Sunrise at Merapi
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Do you dare to challenge your self for a jeep riding up to
Merapi Volcanic Mountain? Early at dawn?
About Merapi Jeep Lava Tour
Jeep Lava Tour has become one of the favourite tourist
attractions in Merapi recently. We can
find it at Kaliurang, about 23 km from Jogjakarta. It is called Jeep Lava Tour
because by riding an off-road jeep , we’re going to explore the paths where the lava flowed at
the big eruptions in 2010. While riding
the jeep, we can enjoy the fresh natural scenery of Mount Merapi and the
remnants of the previous eruption. Well, it won’t be such a smooth journey, but
it surely brings so much fun!
There are various offers that you can choose, depends on the
length of the routes. They are: Short Trip, Medium Trip and Long Trip. Some agency
even add Sunrise Trip, Sunset Trip or Night Trip. You can check it online
before deciding which one to choose. There are many tour agencies which give
complete description of each package. We can find it or book a trip by clicking www.traveloka.com , tripadvisor, www.tourmerapi.com , www.lavatourmerapi.online or www.yogya-backpacker.com
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| Sunrise picture taken from www.yogya-backpacker.com |
Each agency may offer different route for each package. They
may also have different rates of cost for each package.
Off We Go! The Sunrise Trip
The Sunrise package that we chose that day visited Bunker
Kaliadem, Alien Stone, Remnants Treasure Museum (Museum Sisa Hartaku) and had
some water splashes at Kali Kuning. I and my colleagues ordered the trip the
night before at the hotel we stayed, Villa Eden 1. The Manager of the hotel
kindly ordered three jeeps for us. Each Jeep carried four passengers. We paid
Rp.400.000 per jeep. The trip lasted for about 1,5 – 2 hours.
We woke up early that day. After having Subuh pray at 04.15
WIB, we rushed to the lobby of the hotel. Can’t wait for the journey! Brrr.. it
was so cold outside and oh my! I forgot my jacket. But the jeeps had been ready
in front of the hotel. No time to go back to room. The sunrise couldn’t wait. “So
off we go! Don’t mind about the jacket.”
Hmm..the first lesson for me is : Next time prepare well for
a trip, instead of chatting too much in excitement. For the sunrise trip, it’s
better for you to wrap yourself with a warm sweater, a jacket ,with a muffler
or shawl. It was at the beginning of rainy season so the dawn was even colder.
Even though it wasn’t the best season to enjoy Merapi, we’re lucky because it
wasn’t raining hard that morning.
The roads were not crowded that early morning. That’s the
plus point of having the sunrise trip. At the midday the numbers of the jeeps
might be too many. The number of the trips increased a lot during the weekend,
the driver explained. Another plus is: we didn’t get too much dust as the
roads‘re not dry yet. And the best part is:
Having the very fresh air of the new
day! It feels like refuelling our lungs with fresh clean air at dawn.
Bunker Kali Adem and Batu Alien
The First stop was Bunker Kaliadem. We were told by our
friendly jeep driver that we would watch the sunrise there. The sun rises from
the eastern side of Merapi and Bunker Kaliadem is the best place to enjoy it.
But we didn’t bring to much expectation for an overwhelming sunrise that
morning. Well, it was a dawn at a rainy season. Thick clouds and fogs were everywhere. We didn’t meet the
sunrise actually. However, we felt- we were lucky enough as the fogs were not
really thick and the clouds opened a little while; allowing us to enjoy the
awesome scenery of Merapi Mountain.
The paths were slippery as the result of the rains last
night. Wearing good sneakers were good choices . At Bunker Kaliadem, we would
walk up to the spot.
There are many beautiful instagramable spots where we can
take pictures or have thousands selfies at Bunker Kaliadem and Alien Stone. Our
jeep driver kindly offered himself as photographer during the journey.
At Alien Stone, or Batu Alien as local people said, we can
see big stone which was thrown away from the peak of the mountain during the big
explosion at 2010. According to the villagers, the stone wasn’t there before
the eruption. I found a food stall at the Alien Stone area. I enjoyed a glass
of hot tea and a small portion of breakfast with hot dishes called ‘Jangan
Lombok’ and fried tempe. There were some small shops selling merchandise, too.
Enjoying Splash of Water at Kali Kuning
The next destination of
this package was a small river namely Kali Kuning. Yuhuuu.. we would be wet
here! It was full of fun and screaming.
The driver will add some
speed as the jeep racing across the river to create more splash. “More! More!”
we spoke out excitedly. And Brrummm..brummm.. the driver turned twice or three
for another splash of water.
Here is the video :
For safety, we were not
allowed to stand on the jeep at this part of the trip. We had to sit down with
seat belt fixed well. Make sure you wear your helmet precisely. Bringing kids
under five maybe not recommended as they will not able to sit with seat belt
fixed during that off-road journey. Older toddler might enjoy such this kind of
experience. And if you don’t like this part of the trip, feel free to discuss
with the driver. Most of the drivers are helpful and friendly.
We enjoyed this water spot
too much. It’s something that we couldn’t experience in everyday live.
The Remnants Treasure Museum (Museum Sisa Hartaku)
This is a kind of private museum run by the local villager. It was an abandoned house which was then
turned into a museum called ‘Museum Sisa Hartaku’ or the Remnants Treasure
Museum. Some other peoples may call it Mt.Merapi Museum. This spot is quite
unique as it shows the aftermath of the big eruption of Merapi in 2010. It was
such a horror catasthrophe! There were lots of victims, it was said that about
353 people killed and hundreds of houses were broken.
During that big eruption,
the hot volcanic gas known as ‘Wedhus Gembel’ destroyed and melted everything
in its path. There are many things that we were exhibit there, such as remnants
of animal bones, household and kitchen appliances, clock and vehicles.
I was moved by the sight
of a remnant of a small bicycle. I hold my tears as I imagined the life of the
kid who had this broken bicycle. Ashes were covered the remnant. The hot
volcanic gases had destroyed the small joyful dream of this bicycle. Nature is really powerful. How could we as a
fragile human being keep boasting ourselves as the most powerful one.
The rains started pouring
down as we left this museum. The jeep moved back to the hotel. Surprisingly,
the rains didn’t bother us at all. We really enjoyed this Jeep Lava Tour. It
was the most memorable adventure we had. The scenery, the jeep trip and the
museum were so awesome.
Cerita diatas adalah
pengalaman saya bersama beberapa rekan guru saat ‘escape’ dari acara In House
Training yang dilaksanakan Sabtu – Minggu akhir tahun ini. Hanya squad kami
saja, hanya beberapa emak-emak rempong, yang
ingin melarikan diri sejenak dari kepenatan acara. Untungnya bu Kepala Sekolah
mengizinkan asal saat acara dimulai, yaitu jam 08.30, kita sudah harus sudah
siap di ruang kegiatan di hall hotel.
Yess, dengan semangat 45
kita mengatur perjalanan untuk Jeep Lava Tour – Sunrise Trip. Agak mahal
sedikit sih, tapi kalau rombongan bayarnya kan tidak terasa. Terlebih lagi
sangat ‘worth’ untuk pengalaman seru yang kita peroleh. Habisnya, Villa Taman
Eden 1, tempat kami menginap ini sangat dekat dengan pusat Jeep Lava Tour. Masa
sih mau disia-sia kan?! Hehe.. inii terdengar seperti alasan emak-emak kurang
piknik, yak.
Keuntungan memilih Sunrise
Trip :
- Udaranya super sejuk di awal hari. Tepat setelah selesai sholat subuh, Jeep trip langsung dimulai. Udara Kaliurang dingin segar sekali saat pagi.
- Tidak terlalu banyak jeep hari itu. Siang hari saat weekend bisa sangat crowded, sehingga bisa mengurangi kenyamanan
- Tidak berdebu. Siang hari perjalanan dengan Jip ke Merapi bisa sangat berdebu. Apalagi jika itu musim kemarau. Penumpang perlu masker saat seperti itu. Kebetulan ini pas awal musim penghujan. Jalanan pagi tidak berdebu sama sekali.
- Pemandangan terasa lebih fresh. Sisa embun membuat pepohonan tampak lebih segar. Apalagi ditambah munculnya semburat warna munculnya matahari. Beberapa spot tampak lebih dramatis.
Memang kali itu kami tidak
berhasil mendapati sunrise yang jelas. Awan beberapa kali menutupi guliran
matahari di lereng sisi timur Merapi, tempat matahari pagi muncul. Tetapi tetap
saja pemandangannya bagi kami sangat menawan. Bunker Kaliadem, Batu Alien, Kali
Kuning dan Museum Sisa Hartaku/Museum Merapi semua merupakan tempat yang keren
untuk dikunjungi.
Saya paling tersentuh
ketika merenungi barang-barang sisa reruntuhan ledakan gunung Merapi pada tahun
2010 lalu. Sebuah pemandangan sepeda kecil membuat air mata ini hampir luruh
begitusaja. Terbanyang betapa dasyatnya lerusan itu. memudarkan impian bahagia
si sepeda kecil dan anak yang memilikinya.
Ah, betapa dasyatnya kekuatan alam ini. Malu saya kalau teringat masing seringnya muncul keinginan untuk sombong merasa lebih powerful. . Padahal - Manusia betapa rapuhnya dirimu.
Ah, betapa dasyatnya kekuatan alam ini. Malu saya kalau teringat masing seringnya muncul keinginan untuk sombong merasa lebih powerful. . Padahal - Manusia betapa rapuhnya dirimu.
Pengemudi yang begitu
ramah bersahabat membuat perjalanan selama dua jam itu terasa lebih
menyenangkan. Beliau malah yang menawarkan diri sebagai fotografer merangkap
pengarah gaya bagi emak-emak narsis di beberapa spot yang instagramable.
Perjalanan dengan Jeep ini
memang agak membuat kita terguncang-guncang. Tapi kita sangat menikmatinya.
Bahkan saat hujan turun sekalipun. Aiihh jangan salah, pimpinan squad kami ini
adalah biangnya emak-emak. Beliau adalah guru sejarah saya dulu saat SMA dan
sebentar lagi mau purna tugas.Perjalanan jeep ini oke-oke saja untuk orang yang
sudah berumur selama dalam keadaan sehat dan mau mengikuti aturan.
Overall, perjalanan
mengejar sunrise di Merapi dengan Jeep ini sungguh terasa menyegarkan dan
istimewa. Merapi menyapa, menuturkan keindahan dan kedahsyatannya pagi itu.
18 comments
Dari foto-fotonya terlihat berkabut. Udah pasti dingin ya Mbak. Alhamdulillah gak hujan, meski Sunrisenya gak terlihat sempurna. Hihihi..
BalasHapusBrrr..bangeettt..mana saya ketinggalan jaketnya. hehe emak pelupa nih ,mbak
HapusPengeeennnn ke siniii, semacam tour ke Bromo ya, pas sunrise, dan dingin pula.
BalasHapusSeru banget tuh hehehe
Emak-emak pun tetep eksis dan tetep keceh untuk racing ya :D
Iya, mbak rey. Emak-emak kurang piknik tuh. Ngeksis racing meski belum pada mandi.
HapusWoow seru bangettt. Kalau bawa anak balita gimana nih mba persiapannya?
BalasHapusKalau masih baby banget, sepertinya tidak recomended deh,mbak. Jalannya berguncang guncang banget. Pernah juga ada kecelakaan. Helemnya dan seatbeltnya sebaiknya kenceng. Diskusikan dulu sama sopir Jeepnya ya,mbak.
HapusPas itu kan kami sama ibuk-ibuk yang sudah berumur. Sopirnya mau kok diajak agak perlahan jalannya. Yuuk dicobaa kesana
Oalah aku baru tau ini bisa subuh2 loh mbak. Pas kesana aku mulai jam 8 siang. Dan gila itu si masnya ngebut banget tapi seru baju basah sebasah-basahnya karna jail tapi pengen lagi hehe
BalasHapusHihi..deg degan tapi mau lagi . Kalo sopir kami tidak ngebut mbak.karena tahu yang dibawa kan emak emak panikan :)
HapusMasya Allah Mba seru banget sih acaranya. Aduhhh aku udah lama nggak ngerasain keseruan seperti itu. Jadi kangen ngajar dan maen kayak gitu ama temen-temen guru.
BalasHapusHehe..seru seruan sama kangmasnya ajaa.sekalian honeymoon kan
HapusDuh, jadi pengen berburu sunrise di Merapi Lava Tour juga, nih. Bagusss...
BalasHapusInsya Allah, April nanti saya ke Jogja. Tidak ada jadwal ke Merapi sih. Mungkin gak ya melarikan diri sebentar seperti Mbak Dewi dan teman-teman?
April pas bagus tuh mbak cuacanya.Tidak kehujanan seperti saya.semoga menyenangkan besok pas di Jogjaa
HapusRehat sejenak dari rutinitas bersama teman-teman yang heboh, pasti sangat menyenangkan. Dari foto dan video sudah terbayang gimana keseruannya. Have fun Mbak ��
BalasHapusThank you mbak yanti, it was fun kalo barengan teman gitu. Yuuk ke jogja
BalasHapusKerennn mba! Akunyang wong Jogja aja belum pernah ikut lava tour hahaha. Ngeri bawa balita euy. Mau ditinggal juga gak mau. Tapi tipsnya emang oke deh ikutan yang trip pagi. Masih seger
BalasHapusKalo bawa balita memang nggak recommended deh , mbak. Kadang ada yang bilang sopirnya ngebut gitu. Kalau pas saya kmaren kebetulan sopirnya pas baik banget, jalannya tidak ngebut.Mungkin karena ngangkut emak-emak panikan. hehe
HapusKeren abis mbak, jadi pengen
BalasHapusterakhir ke merapi tahun 1993, perpisahan team pecinta alam dan pramuka. dulu ada sayap garuda di pinggir kawah...tapi katanya udah hilang ya...
BalasHapus