Hiking Pemuteran

Nestled in a peninsula on the western tip of Bali is West Bali National Park (Taman Barat Bali Nasional). It’s an oasis of many species of coastal mangroves, savannah vegetation (eg acacias), birds (eg Bali starlings), and other animals (eg black monkeys).

As mentioned in Why you should visit Pemuteran, Bali, December to January is a great time to visit north-western Bali, and this includes the National Park. But really, it’s good year-round. You will have no trouble getting a guide – take your pick from many (see my recommendation below) – though it may be more difficult to get together a group if you’re travelling solo. For me though it was well worth the extra cost of going it alone.

My trusty driver-guide Kadek recommended Gede Kerta Yasa (West Bali Adventures), aka Mental, an official park ranger with 25 years’ experience. I ended up doing two hikes with him, to two different areas of the park. Having a guide all to yourself (as opposed to his maximum group of 10 in high season) gives you a great deal of flexibility in terms of itinerary and routes. The first hike was in the southern section of the park starting at the coastal mangroves near the main road, the second in the peninsular section.

Hike No. 1: Mangroves and river bank to Pura Jayaprana (Jayaprana Temple)

A 10am pick up by Mental starts a great and easy hike in my Teva sports sandals – no boots needed. The route we take begins with coastal mangroves, then across the road to the inland area following some very picturesque trails to an almost dry river in our search for black monkeys, finally ending up at a very special temple.

Several species of coastal mangroves can be found here

At one point the trail leads to an open brick pit structure which at first looks like a well, but is in fact the remains of a coral burning kiln which was used in Dutch colonial times to produce a kind of coral cement, which was then applied to the exterior of local houses to provide extra structure and protection.

Continuing along, Mental talks about black monkeys and even imitates the sound of the adult and baby monkeys. He also describes the monkeys’ diet of mostly leaves, revealing that they are identifiable in nature not only by their calls, but for experienced locals and rangers, also by the smell from the wind that they pass as a result of digesting the leaves! (click here to view a video of black monkey calls)

We reach and walk along the almost dry river and after a short while locate a very well concealed group of monkeys at the top of a large tree by the bank. Even though black monkeys are very shy of humans, this family group tends to show itself more than others in the area, and after looking up from the bottom of the tree and barely spotting just one monkey high up in the canopy, we sat down by the edge of the almost dry river bank and waited. Mental said that it was a usual time of day for them to come down and get some water from the small pools by the bank. “They have a very good instinct”, he says, “but if they feel they can trust us they will come down”. Our patience paid off, and after around 20 minutes some of the young ones, less shy than the adults I’m told, slowly started making their way down. The fact that they are very familiar with the guide also probably helps. At first one solo youngster slowly makes its way down a bunch of lianas until just above the water, still taking time to check us out at every step along the way, before finally bending down, taking a drink, then heading quickly back. Some more follow, and position themselves at various points up the lianas above the first one – still cautious – numbering around five or six in total by the time we leave.

On the return leg on the ascent up to the temple hill we come across Pura Macan (Tiger Temple). Balinese temples and shrines are everywhere, from the tiny to the majestic, in forests, by the beach and, like this one, in caves. The legend goes that during the Singaraja Kingdom period, a tiger and a python went into a little cave in the small cliff on the hillside, so this shrine bears little statues of a tiger and a python, cleverly blended into the rock formation.

At the top of the hill via the back entry we come to the last stop of the hike, Jayaprana Temple (Pura Jayaprana). Here, to put the place in context, my guide tells me the condensed version of a really great story about Bali’s own Romeo & Juliet: The legend of Jayaprana and Layonsari. In a nutshell: King adopts boy (Jayaprana) from poor family orphaned by plague, raises him as a prince in the royal court as his own child. Boy falls in love with local girl (Layonsari). King struck by her beauty and in his jealousy wants to make her his own wife (his own family also all died from the plague). Does this by ordering trusted court vassal to kill Jayaprana during a military sortie and make it look like an accident. Jayaprana too strong and repels attack. Vassal then sadly reveals king’s plan and Jayaprana, broken-heated by the betrayal, allows vassal to end his life with the stroke of a dagger. Layonsari is told Jayaprana killed by thieves and in her grief also kills herself with a dagger. King loses his marbles from grief and guilt in the ensuing years. Brilliant! If I had my way this would be made into the next 3-hour long epic blockbuster film of our time. Click here for a longer rendition of the tale (note: the story has variations according to which source you read. The one above is as was relayed to me personally).

Temple painting of Layonsari after killing herself out of grief

The couple were interred in graves on the hill which later had a temple built around them. Inspired by the tale, people started coming from far and wide to pray at the graves, as Jayaprana is considered to have powers to bless and grant wishes. The temple is called Pura Makam Jayaprana (Pura Luhur in Balinese). Makam is a Bahasa Indonesian word for tomb, reflecting the fact that the temple is visited by not only Hindus, but also by Muslims and other religions, because they all believe the boy has power and can bless them. (Ah, if only world religions could come together like this more often….).

Hike No. 2: Peninsular Section

Two days after Hike No. 1, I’m up at dawn for a 5.30 am pick up by Mental. Not far out of Pemuteran we begin the day with a Bali coffee at a local store and Warung. Any slight grumblings about the early start soon give way to the absolute magic of not only the Park at this time of day, but also the journey to and from.

View of East Java from our boat on the way

On my guide’s advice, in order to experience the wildlife of the area more fully, we enter the park not by road at the main entrance, but instead access the eastern area by boat from picturesque Sumberkima Bay (Teluk Sumberkima). The dawn light on the calm water is magic. We pass several fish farms, a small newly-formed island close to the shore on the other side of the bay, then onto superb views of the volcanic peaks of Mt Raung and Mt Ijen over on East Java.

On reaching the eastern shore, we spot a group of deer and manage to get a good viewing before they retreat, leaving only the interesting shapes of their prints in the sand.

At least the deer know to leave only their prints behind 🙂

A short walk through an area of magnificent acacias brings us to Brumbun Bay (Teluk Brumbun), a very nice setting and also the location of a ranger station. I take a look at the bay and manage to get a glimpse of a group of deer taking shade under the trees by the shore before my presence spooks a monitor lizard, that scampers into the deer and makes them run away. Back at the ranger station, the rangers on duty invite us to share a cup of coffee, and my guide talks about one of the ‘stars’ of the park: the Bali Starling. Previously hunted and captured to sell as pets, almost to extinction, the large dome-shaped aviary here is the key part of a breeding program, after which they are then released into the wild.

Good size poster of the Bali Starling at the breeding area and ranger station

We continue up the hill behind the ranger station and soon I’m signalled to be still and quiet as Mental points to a barking deer just up ahead. We are downwind of it, so it stays long enough for a good viewing and opportunity for pics.

We reach the highest ridge and so get a good view down over Menjangan Island (Deer Island). This small uninhabited island is also a part of the park, and also has a ranger station. Menjangan is a very popular snorkelling and diving location, and there is also a temple on the island, which is quite picturesque when viewed from your snorkelling/diving boat. I had a great snorkelling trip here on my first visit to the area as mentioned in Why you should visit Pemuteran, Bali.

I hate the plastic that washes up on the shores, but I couldn’t resist this cute little piece of flotsam

We return to the boat pickup point via a ravine, which varies in depth and width as we descend. This is by far the best part of the hike for me, as it is often cool and shady, with plenty of animals and formations to see on the way down to the coast. This includes a series of caves of various shapes and sizes, many with stalactites. My guide explains how the caves can also serve as a final resting place for old or sick/injured black monkeys, and we eventually do come across a skeleton in one cave about halfway down. Not only that, but a little further along Mental’s keen senses pick up on the possible presence of the monkeys; good news since I wasn’t expecting to see any more since the first hike, given their shy nature. Sure enough after not too long, a few of them scamper away as they spot us, high up in a tree then across and away onto the top sides of the ridge.

The amazing contorted shapes of snake trees

Reaching the shore, a phone call brings our boat and we enjoy the return trip to Sumberkima Bay, thus concluding another very interesting, satisfying hike. I’m back at my accommodation by 9am, with the rest of the day still remaining to swim, relax, and of course, eat local food.

I highly recommend that you add at least a couple of hikes to your Pemuteran itinerary: one in the national park and another to one of the temples in the scenic hills surrounding the town. This whole area is a nature-lovers paradise. See below for some stats and useful info. Happy trails!

Bali Barat National Park – Information Guide

West Bali National Park info:
- Quick Facts:
  - Indonesian name: Taman Nasional Bali Barat (literally: “park national Bali west”).
  - Location: North-west tip of Bali, 15 mins from Pemuteran (Google maps here). 130 km from Denpasar (capital fo Bali) via the southern road.
  - Area (size): 190 square km. Additional 580 km² in a protected reserve and 70 km² coastal and water area.
  - Climate: Av. 30-35°C (85-95°F) and pleasant year-round. Drier than rest of Bali.
- Comprehensive info at WikiTravel (https://wikitravel.org/en/West_Bali_National_Park)
- Comprehensive info from Indonesian Ministry of Tourism (https://www.indonesia.travel/au/en/destinations/bali-nusa-tenggara/west-bali-national-park)
- Activities
  - Hiking
  - Swimming, snorkelling and diving
  - Viewing plants and animals, including: birds, deer, monkeys, lizards, sealife.
Park Guide: Gede Kerta Yasa, West Bali Adventures http://westbaliadventures.com/
Transport to and from Pemuteran: Kadek and his team at Pemuteran Menjangan Bali Transport (http://www.pemuteranmenjanganbalitransport.co