Trip to Blahmanukun waterfall Bali

Chris is here in Bali for a week and I wanted to show him some of the lesser populated parts of the island. Erica from San Francisco is in town and she eagerly came on board too.

I rented a Toyoto Kijang from Okie House by asking Kadek the previous day. Actually I think it belonged to one of her friends. The Kijang is a 4 door SUV that is stick shift, power sterring, AC and is comfortable. I found it easy to drive.

When we reached Okie House on Poppies Lane II on Tuesday morning at 10am Kadek phoned her contact and he was over shortly after with the car. The price was 125,000rp per day, 40,000rp extra for insurance which supposedly covered everything above $400.

I checked the car and it seemed fine although I did notice the gas tank was empty. I think he figured that most tourists will fill up the tank and however much is left he’ll be a winner.

Our first destination was Pupuan in the hills north west of Denpasar. We drove past my house in Seminyak heading towards Tabanan, then once reaching the small town of Antosari heading north up quiet roads. We stopped on the way for a wafer and the bottle which gave Erica a chance to check out local toilet facilities and Chris and chance to interact with locals.

Driving in Bali can be a stress for some people and I can see why, traffic doesn’t seem to follow the same rules as many westerners are used to with �biggest is boss’ mentality. Riding a motorbike I’m usually one of the �ants’ who has to watch out for everyone else. Driving an SUV means they have to move for me and my responsibility is to try not to hit them while watching out for larger vehicles.

Reaching Pupuan I have trouble finding the waterfall I was looking for. A short double back got us where we wanted to go and we stopped at the little shop at the bottom of the hiking trail. A 40 minute hike through the forest and past paddy fields found us at the Blahmanukan waterfall. I have been here 9 monthes ago when it was really pumping, this time the flow was considerably lower but we could still get wet. The water was cold and the deepest section was about 6 ft. I told Chris if his work friends back in England ask him where he was for the last week to tell show them a picture of him splashing around in the waterfall with Erica.

The whole time we were at the waterfall we didn’t see many other people. I don’t imagine many tourists make it up here.

Back at the car the time was getting on, it was 3.30pm and I wanted to get to Amed. We stopped at a masakan Muslim place for a quick bit and ordered satay. The owner used a electric fan to get her satay bbq going and whipped up the chicken and quickly. I must say it was the worst satay I’ve ever sampled�chunks of chicken heart, fat and gristle. I couldn’t eat the stuff although Chris and Erica gobbled a bunch.

We hit the road heading for Seririt and the north coast. The coastal road is a straight shot round and after making it through traffic in Lovina and Singaraja we moved faster. It still took us a while to do the 60 miles to Amed and we arrived around 8.45pm. One thing to bear in mind when you are touring in Bali is that although distances are not great, you will spend a while covering them as roads are windy and there are congested areas. I had stayed at the Amed Caf� before with Chris from Australia and knew it was affordable and had a restaurant. In the parking area a tout was already waiting and I agreed to pay 70,000rp for Chris and I, 50,000 for Erica.

We were all tired and I was frazzled after hours of trying my hardest not to kill any locals and watch for vehicles coming out of nowhere. I tell you out in the country areas its customery to sit with your back facing the road relaxing having a chat. This makes for dangerous situations when visibility isn’t good.

We ordered a couple of large Bintangs and chose dinner from the menu. My choice was grilled tuna with garlic and chili for 15,000rp, Erica ordered pork and mushrooms, Chris going for chicken. The food was decent but not thrilling, pretty much what I expect for the hotel restaurant.

This was a long day and Chris and Erica got to hike, swim and see some of the island outside of Kuta.