MtRinjani.

Day by day

The itinerary.

1. 0

   Fly in, sleep at the basecamp

   The "+1N" in the package is the night before the hike. We stayed at the trekking basecamp so we could start early. On the way we stopped at a waterfall, a nice warm up before 4 days of no showers.

2. 1

   Sembalun gate to the crater rim

   Start ~8:30amPost 1 → 2 → 3Camp: crater rim

   Breakfast at 7am, register, then off from Sembalun. Everyone online says this is the easy part. There's a steep climb right at the start that nobody talks about!

   You can take an ojek (motorbike) for the first stretch and lots of people do. Lunch is near Post 2, in the shade, with a cold Coke. Felt like such a luxury.

   Post 2 to the crater rim is hot, steep and crowded. It's mostly grass so you can see exactly how far you've come, which is motivating and demotivating at the same time. Turning the corner and seeing the tents at the rim was such a relief.

3. 2

   Summit push, then down to the lake

   Wake up 1:30am~4 to 5h up, ~2h downCamp: Segara Anak lake

   Bread and tea in the freezing cold, then up. The first part is soft volcanic sand. One step forward, two steps back is real. After that it's an exposed ridge with steep drops on both sides, plus wind and a lot of dust. Wear a mask.

   We didn't make the summit for sunrise and I'm not upset. The sunrise looks better from the ridge anyway, the top is packed with people. We had to sit down five minutes before the summit. No negotiation.

   Going down is basically skiing on sand, so fun. Back at the rim by 9 or 10am for a nap and lunch, then down to the lake. It's up, down, up, down and tiring as hell, but the lake camp is such a vibe. Crater walls all around, the new volcano in the middle, stars at night.

4. 3

   Hot spring, then the Torean valley

   Leave ~8amRope sectionsWaterfalls

   Leave early to beat everyone to the hot spring, about 30 minutes from the lake. It's around 35 to 40°C, which is my shower temperature at home, but it really helped my legs.

   Then into Torean. It was SO hot. There are narrow, gravelly bits along cliff edges where you hold on to ropes, so take it slow and listen to your guide. The waterfalls keep getting bigger, and there's a short side climb to the biggest one. Worth it.

   Standing at the bottom of the valley, you can't even see the summit anymore. That's when it hits you how far you've walked. Dinner was a plate of Indomie by the campfire, then I knocked out for 8 hours straight.

5. 4

   Out to the Torean gate

   ~2hForest, downhill

   About two hours of forest, the easiest part of the whole trip. Then the Torean gate! All the groups you've been leapfrogging for days are there congratulating each other, including aunties and uncles who looked like they were in their 50s and 60s. Gave me a lot of hope for my own knees.

This is how our trip went. Timings change with your group, the season and the operator, so check with yours before you go!

Tick it off as you pack

Packing list.

Everything I brought. Your ticks are saved on this phone only, so you can come back to it.

Learned the hard way

Tips.

1. Don't make Rinjani your first mountain. Do Kinabalu or something smaller first and see if you even enjoy the process.
2. Do leg days. The downhills hurt as much as the uphills, so cardio alone won't cut it.
3. Bring hydration salts. Cramps hit one of us hard on day 1, before we even reached the rim.
4. Don't stress about sunrise. Getting to the top safely matters more. The view from the ridge is great anyway.
5. Listen to your guide. There are narrow bits with real drops. They know the mountain way better than you.
6. Pack light. We brought too much and the porters ended up carrying our extra stuff. They're the reason we finished, honestly.

The documentary

Watch it.