Indonesia East Java Active Volcano Climb : Mount Ijen (Part 2)

A short recap on this trip:

Mount Bromo (Part 1)

– Go to Probolinggo by train

– take bus/taxi to Cemoro Lawang

– Stay at airbnb

– Walk up Mount Bromo / Penanjakan

Mount Ijen (Part 2)

– Go from Probolinggo to Karangasam

– Sleep at Kampung Osing Inn

– Share a truck or take an ojek

General tips

– Eat at the local warungs (the name for a local cheap restaurant)

– Take a sweater and rain jacket for both volcanoes

– Take a mouth mask and possibly wet it to help with the sulphur fumes at Mt. Ijen

TO IJEN

To go from Probolinggo (the base of Mount Bromo) to Mount Ijen, there are few possible ways. If you read many blogs they will guide you thru.

However the lazy me prefer something more convenient and economic as well. We took a train from Probolinggo Station to Karangasem Station and took the cab to Kampung Osing Inn.

We had our dinner on the train
It was warm and yummy
We tried to sleep on the train during that 4 hour journey
But I couldn't sleep though the night before I only had 1.5 hours sleep
The train was very noisy and humid

 We got to rest for 2 hours then we gotta depart for Mount Ijen at 12.30am
 We just arrived at Kampung Osing Inn at about 9pm from the train journey
 I was like a zombie climbing up Mount Ijen at wee hours

 Kampung Osing Inn was a nice homely airbnb 
 Without aircond and hot shower of course
 Sometimes at night or noon, the room is a bit warm
 But friendly hosts and guests

 We boarded the jeep, there were 5 of us
 It tooked us an hour to reach the mid hill of Mount Ijen
 Started our 3km hike to the Ijen crater for blue fire
 The first km was going up steep slope and believe me
 When I say steep it's really steep
 Then 0.7km going flat road where you gotta wear your mask
 The smell of sulphur will evade your delicate lungs
 We were told to go another 0.3km up slope a little
 From then onwards was very difficult 1km down to the crater
 It was rocky, very high and crowded as people were moving very slow

After about 45 minutes, we finally made our way down 

And yes the blue fire was still very fierce and the time is 4.45am
Our guide told us that the blue fire will disappear by 5.30am

He made his way down to the blue fire and snapped few closed up pictures for us

Nearby we witness liquidified sulphur

At that moment, there weren't any pungent smell at all

We took off our masks

Some art and craft items sold by the locals

The sun rises very quickly and brighten up the surroundings

We looked up and we were terrified
We came a long way from the top of the mountain
Now the most difficult time was to climb up again

We weren't that fearful when it was dark

We see almost nothing but the rocks in front of us

Now that it was all brightened up already
The heart would stopped a beat or two sometimes

It was amazing these people was so mighty

Carrying sulphur up and down the slope daily

And this is our dedicated guide
He is always joyful and always willing to help us take pictures

We enjoyed our hike so much thanks to him

After 2 nights of no-sleep night

We decided to sleep for few hours and head out for evening stroll

Checked nearby beach and got here to check it out

It was the kite festival yeah.. just on time..

We shared a simple meal for tea break

And continue to stroll on the beach overlooking kite flying competition

I love the sand colour, it's space grey owh

The view from the jetty at Banyuwangi beach

The one opposite me is the Bali island de

If you take a closer look, you might find a hidden rainbow between clouds

Someone selling kacang putih hmm I was not interested

Catching the sunset at Banyuwangi beach

Walked around the little town and had our dinner at local stalls
Nothing fantastic just a simple dinner

I like their cereal a lot, it was easy to make and that's all for supper

Passed by a calm paddy field

Our host was very kind and she packed us yummy breakfast
We headed early to the train station at 8 am
Train journey back to Gubeng Station, Surabaya took us approximately 6.5 hours

Me being the mischievous one will not sleep
Instead I finished watching a horror movie on board
While boy dozed off midway

Business class are cooler and less crowded

Happily leaving the train to embark on another shopping experience at Surabaya town

At Tunjungan Plaza we had our Indonesian style dinner

Cleared our loot back at the hotel and head out to hunt for souvenirs

Last day in Indonesia with the last sunrise
Happy time flies quicker than expected

Last breakfast in Indonesia before heading back to Singapore

And ofc something Singapore cannot find, must eat at Indonesia

And safely back Singapore in the afternoon

Here are the breakdown of the tour charges by Kampung Osing Inn

Additional Fees	Description	/Pax (IDR)	/Pax (SGD)
Kawah Ijen by night (over 4-pax)	Rp 200,000 tips for the awesome guide.	Rp350,000	$36.46

We spent less than SGD600/ pax for a 5day 4 night trip to explore East Java inclusive of air tickets, accommodation, tours, and shopping.