Malang to Banyuwangi

(A tour diary by my co-rider Max)

The next part of our trip took us from Malang in East Java to Banyuwangi on the far eastern coast of Java. The first bit, south to Kepanjen and the east to Dampit was not very nice as it was crowded by traffic.

The next 60 km to Pasirian along the slopes of Mount Semeru were really great, with little traffic and a nice, wide road. However, we were racing so hard along this stretch that the brake drums got so hot that they grinded against the outer rim of their casing. When we stopped for a short drink, checking out the damage, the brakes got stuck for good, effectively blocking the wheel.

We were very lucky that there was a ' benkel' (small workshop) just across the road and they took off the wheel and chipped the grinded metal off. 20 minutes later we were back on track, taking it more easy.

After Pasirian the road to Tempeh and on to Rambipuji was a bit featureless and a rather average drive. The 35 km from Rambipuji via Jember, where we had lunch, to Sempolan were also full of traffic and not very nice.

The next 40 km to Genteng were also nice, leading through the gap between Mt Raung and Mt Betiri. After Genteng the last 35 km to Banyuwangi were average and we found a nice looking hotel in Banyuwangi. The hotel looked nice but it turned out to be the probably worst hotel we stayed in during the entire trip, but we couldn't be bothered finding another one.We ate at one of the many seafood warungs, and we had great fish, crab and prawns.