Year 2- 5th October 2025 –Boom Marina -Banyuwangi- Java-Welcome Party etc.
The Adhan (call to prayer) started at 4.00am and it went on for at least an hour – we were not impressed. I dozed off again and were up by about 7.00am. It was a very quiet day by then. The area around the marina is quite pretty and has been preserved. There are a few food shacks but grass areas and you look toward a steel bridge which lights up with different colours at night. We chilled and had some tea and chatted.
I then decided to make banana pancakes which were good and then we waited as we had booked a trip to go quad biking. We were picked up about 10.30am and we drove through Banyuwangi, the town, which seemed to be quite a large town really. It was busy with lots of traffic and the buildings were more substantial with proper roof tiles. In fact there was little corrugated iron in contrast to what we have seen in other Islands which have mainly been corrugated iron. The town looked wealthier as well although the driver said that 70% of people live from day to day and are quite poor.
Our driver Rian was at college when his father died so he had to leave college to work to support his sisters and family and he now worked in tourism which he enjoys. Once we had driven through the city we started to get more into the countryside and we saw paddy fields with many terraces and there were many locals working in the fields and we saw an old rotavator turning over the soil. It was beautiful and so green; scenes that we have probably seen in films and documentaries and here we were seeing it for real. There were many banana and palm trees and bush/jungle type trees which lined the paddy fields which added to the range of different greens of the landscape. We climbed up slowly through this agricultural scene and passed through a number of villages. There were growing all sorts of crops here and there were papaya trees with their green fruit hanging and growing.
We then came to a traditional village which Rian said is very determined to keep their cultural conditions which includes cooking and dancing. We parked up and Rian led is down some steps to the Jagar Waterfalls which were a lovely set of waterfalls tumbling (25-30 foot high) through the jungle and undergrowth. We stripped off to our swimming trunks and went in and the water was cool and refreshing. This was a welcome break from the intense heat and humidity. The area was very pretty as we had trees around us and bushes which had some purple leaves. It was clean and tidy and a sort of sanctuary.
Once we had enough we dressed and climbed up to the village and then took the car to a coffee plantation restaurant where we had some food and drink. The coffee was very good as was the passion fruit smoothie. We all had a good lunch and then we were off again in the car driving through the countryside until we came to the quad bike park. We had to change our shoes for wellington boots and then were given a briefing about how to use the quad bikes.
We then followed a leader who took us along the road initially and then we turned off into the jungle and paddy fields lined with palm trees. There were parts which were stone pathways and then other areas which was mud tracks with ruts and stones and quite rough terrain. We went up and down and round and the scenery was very pretty as I have already described. It was fun and enjoyable whizzing around in such a great environment.
We then came to a point where we had to go into a water culvert and the instructor had set up a quad bike in the water on a rock so as we came past he revved the engine and the wheels turned without moving and sprayed us with water and we all got soaked. We then had to proceed along this culvert for about a hundred yards and then we came up a steep bank. We spent about 90 minutes going through the route and then came back to our starting point. We were still soaked and when I took my wellingtons off they were full of water. It was great fun.
We returned to Stormbird and had only 20 minutes or so to get changed into evening gear -white was the theme. The Banywangi People had laid on a welcome party for us beside the marina. We were welcomed by the Mayor, the President of the Marina Company and there were many dignitaries there as well as member of the Police, Army, Navy etc. They then played some traditional music and then the local dancers came on and danced for us. It was all very colourful and they are proud of their traditions and culture.
Unfortunately the dancers then asked some of us to dance with them and regrettably I was picked. After this was dinner and they laid on a great feast for us with local dishes. There was then a band who played western style music to which some danced. We all sat and chatted and enjoyed their hospitality. They are so kind, welcoming and generous. It was a good event and we returned to Stormbird about 7.30pm.
t was not time to go to bed as we have planned to climb Mount Ijen -a volcano overnight. We therefore prepared ourselves for the expedition. Some slept and read in advance and I am writing this blog and I will tell you the story of our journey tomorrow.
The Ijen volcano complex is a group of composite volcanoes located on the border between Banyuwangi Regency and Bondowoso Regency of East Java, Indonesia. It is known for its blue fire, acidic crater lake, and labour-intensive sulfur mining.
It is inside an eponymous larger caldera Ijen, which is about 20 kilometres (12 mi) wide. The Gunung Merapi stratovolcano is the highest point of that complex. The name "Gunung Merapi" means 'mountain of fire' in the Indonesian language; Mount Merapi in central Java and Marapi in Sumatra have the same etymology.
Ijen Geopark stretches across the entire regency which is specifically in the Mount Ijen area, Pulau Merah Beach, and Alas Purwo National Park. It has various geological, biological, and cultural sites. It became part of UNESCO Global Geoparks in 2023.
West of Gunung Merapi is the Ijen volcano, which has a one-kilometre-wide (0.62 mi) turquoise-coloured acidic crater lake. The lake is the site of a labour-intensive sulfur mining operation, in which sulfur-laden baskets are carried by hand from the crater floor. The work is paid well considering the cost of living in the area, but is very onerous. Workers earn around US$13 per day and, once out of the crater, still need to carry their loads of sulfur chunks about three kilometers to the nearby Paltuding Valley to get paid.
Many other post-caldera cones and craters are located within the caldera or along its rim. The largest concentration of post-caldera cones runs east–west across the southern side of the caldera. The active crater at Kawah Ijen has a diameter of 722 metres (2,369 ft) and a surface area of 0.41 square kilometres (0.16 sq mi). It is 200 metres (660 ft) deep and has a volume of 36 cubic hectometres (29,000 acre⋅ft).
The lake is recognised as the largest highly acidic crater lake in the world. It is also a source for the river Banyupahit, resulting in highly acidic and metal-enriched river water which has a significant detrimental effect on the downstream river ecosystem.
The Blue Fire Crater - the blue fir is ignited sulfuric has, which emerges from cracks at temperatures up to 600 degrees centagrade. The flames can be up to 5m high ; some of the gas condenses to liquid and is still ignited. Ijen is the largest blue flame are in the world.
The sulfur, which is deep red when molten, pours slowly from the ends of these pipes and pools on the ground, turning bright yellow as it cools. The miners break the cooled material into large pieces and carry it away in baskets. Miners carry loads ranging from 75 to 90 kilograms (165 to 198 lb) up 300 metres (980 ft) to the crater rim, with a gradient of 45 to 60 degrees, and then 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) down the mountain for weighing. Most miners make this journey twice a day.
A nearby sulfur refinery pays the miners by the weight of sulfur transported; as of September 2010, the typical daily earnings were equivalent to approximately $13 US. The miners often receive insufficient protection while working around the volcano and complain of numerous respiratory afflictions. There are 200 miners, who extract 14 tons per day — about 20% of the continuous daily deposit.
The picture of the day is a picture of the 6 of us at the waterfalls.
Need/Opportunity Year Three
In year three I will be going from Thailand to Sri Lanka, India, Maldives and then on to Chagos, Mauritius, Reunion, Cape Town, St Helena, Azores and back to the UK. I am looking for crew from Mauritius/ Reunion Island to Cape Town and from Cape Town to the UK. If of any interest do email me.
The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com