Banyuwangi to Denpasar
(A
tour diary by my son and co-rider Max)
This was another beautiful
part of the trip with nice shoreline, scenic lake views and twisting
mountain roads all being passed before reaching our final destination:
Sidakarya in Denpasar and our house. The first part of the days
short tour was the 15 km trip to the ferry port, where we boarded
one of the many ferries and crossed the narrow strait to Gilimanuk.
There
we decided to follow a small road along the northern shore instead
of using the usual more direct but also heavily congested route
along the southern shore. This part was nice with the sea on one
side and the rugged dry hills of northern Bali on the other. Before
Singaraja we turned inland onto what I thought was the nicest
part of the trip: a twisty, narrow mountain road leading up to
a ridge just as wide as the road with two beautiful lakes on either
side. To make it perfect, we also found a delicious warung babi
guling here and had lunch.
After passing through
the hills we reached the main road Singaraja-Denpasar. As usual
there was heavy traffic but we made good time. When we were almost
home i managed to lose us another half an hour by finding a very
effective "shortcut", but eventually we got there.
We had made it!!!!
my brother Jack was not that impressed:
"Why did it
take so long?
Did you drive so slow???"
|
Tour
highlights:
(Oct.
2001 on Suzuki 250)
Tour
Map
|
| Gilimanuk
to Sigaraja |
|
 It's
much more fun to drive along the northern road towards Singaraja.
You can stop where ever you want along the beach for a quick
refreshing dip into the ocean. There are several dive operators,
and the Gilimanuk area offers some interesting dive spots.
There are lots of losmen to stay overnight. A nice area
is Lovina Beach some km before you reach Singaraja.The area
is still quite remote and has kept a bit of its backpacker
flair from the 70ties.
|
| up
to Bedugul |
|
 The
northern road is arguably the best way to approach the famous
Lake Braton and the Bedugul temple. You drive along a mountain
ridge through a incredible landscape with valleys dropping
on both sides of the road. You have the ocean on your left,
the lakes on your right, and G.Agung in the distance in
front of you
 Around
Bedugul you'll realize for the first time that Bali is one
of the Worlds top tourist destinations. Many tourists who
come to Bali also make a day trip up to Bedugul. From now
on there is serious traffic with a lot of busses and tourists
in rented cars, who sometimes seem to forget that they have
to drive on the left side of the road. So, be careful.
|
| From
Bedugul to Denpasar and Sanur |
|
A
beautiful wide and twisty road which is well maintained
gives a lot of driving fun, if you can manage to avoid the
traffic. So, select your time for the drive carefully. If
you lift your eyes from the asphalt, you may see the Indian
Ocean ahead.
Avoid
Denpasar, if you don't have a real reason to go there.
|
| Sanur,
Kuta, Legian |
| This
is the main tourist area in Bali, and you'll find a lot of
information about it on the web (check
the link page) There are still a couple of good rides
possible around here, and one of my favorites is from Legian
to Tanah Lot on the back roads. (but the Bali trips were not
part of this tour and the deserve a page of their own anyway). |
|
|
|
