Team No Stop — CB & J

On the 4th of July, I hiked the Matternhorn with Indiana (Jay) Jones- it was really Mt. Batur, an active volcano in northern Bali, but it was an epic adventure that I'm not sure either of us was prepared for. As I recount, Indiana Jay will be giving his two cents (found in italics).

Chantal and I got to bed early that night because we were getting picked up at 1:30am by our favorite driver, Gung (who we met when we were in Bali in February). The adventure to Mt. Batur was about 2 hours away, and we slept through most of the ride. It was really intense arriving to crowds of people at the base of the volcano, who we later found out were all tour guides who hike Mt. Batur every day. Paying our entrance fee, we were handed baby flashlights as we embarked on our journey up the mountain in the pitch black.

Mind you, neither if us had considered bringing flashlights and had debated trying to skirt the tour guides and hike by ourselves. We would probably still be out there somewhere. Although there was a path, there were different trails winding off of it and our flashlights were likely made by Mattel, not REI. This was not a winding climb; this was an intense hike up loose boulders, sliding gravel, and sand that slid you back a foot with each step. The last half hour was nearly vertical. Our guide in the lead, I followed Indiana Jay- though he was bounding up like a gazelle and I was seriously questioning my proclamation to the guide that we "hike all the time". Despite this, we managed to make it to the summit in an hour and a half (most people take two). Our guide kept asking if we were okay- it was too dark for him to see us lie the entire way up and say we were fine, but we made it.

As we were sweating to death up this mountain, a lot was going through my mind. I was convincing myself that we were going to make it even though our legs said no more. As Chantal mentioned, the tour guide kept asking if we needed a break every 10 minutes. I was like, "NO, WE ARE TEAM NO STOP!" Anyway, we could have been the first couple of people at the top since we passed all the "Team Must Stop" people. It was freezing and our guide parked us on a bench hanging off the cliff as he scurried away in a little hut. Chantal and I used our body heat to keep warm on this stiff, unfriendly bench until we said screw it! Let's sit in this hut to hide from the winds. Time went on until we had 20 people, guides and tourists, in this hut meant for 6.

There's a reason why we were cold. We hiked miles UP a mountain, before sunrise (hence the name "Sunrise Hike"). I convinced Indiana Jay at the last minute that a tank top and shorts would not suffice, so he threw in a windbreaker and long sleeve shirt. I had a long sleeve shirt and sweatshirt over my tank top, also in shorts- I'm not sure why I was so smug. We were both Balinese Popsicles. Going up the mountain we'd been burning hot in tank tops, and in Indiana Jay's quest to pass EVERYONE on the mountain we made epic time. What we didn't factor in (in addition to the flashlight and warm clothes) was that getting up quicker means waiting longer for the sun to come up. Thank goodness for the hut that housed the rest of the under-dressed tourists.

Being at the top watching the sunrise with hundreds of other people was absolutely breathtaking. The clouds and fog rolling through beneath us, the huge lake, all the villages, and other mountains gave us perspective on our journey. We took it all in as we stayed up there for an hour or so before we fell all the way down. Just kidding, but I could count on 2 hands how many people wiped out attempting to get down this beast of a mountain. Chantal and I were mind blown on the way down as it shocked us what we actually hiked up in the dark that we couldn't see originally. Our tour guide was awesome and the experience was priceless.

Priceless, but not enough for Indiana Jay. After 4 hours of strenuous hiking as "Team No Stop" (running on a can of Pringles that we split) Jay convinced our driver to find a series of hidden waterfalls. That 2 hour expedition around dirt roads and villages led to another hour trek down wonky stairs and steep terrain, but the rice paddies surrounding us were almost as beautiful as our destination: the elusive Fiji Waterfall and Sekumpul Waterfall. We joked about living down there in a little hut, half because it was so spectacular and half because our legs were screaming "Team Stop Forever".

These waterfalls were absolute magic. We got to swim in the base of each waterfall and it was the freshest water I have ever been in. The energy and power from these waterfalls were incredibly strong and it almost felt like we were fresh and reenergized after frolicking in them. I felt like the happiest kid in the world swimming in these pools and getting knocked around by the pressure of them. Pictures don't do it justice as Chantal and I both agreed that it was the most magical place we have ever been to. These waterfalls and the volcano are must dos if you come to Bali!

CB & J

CB & J

Adventures Abroad

CB & J