Category: nature

Rinjani 3-day trek from Sanaru

A hiking trip for Mount Rinjani in Lombok

This guide is based on a trip I made I made this trip 24th – 27th June (2025).

Rinjani is a semi-active volcano on the Island of Lombok. At 3,729m it’s the highest peak, and towers over the rest of the island on days when it is visible.

A view of the summit obscured by cloud.
A view of the summit obscured by cloud.

There’s a 2 day or a 3 day trek option. With Rinjani 2 day trek option, you spend one night on a lower ridge see the crater lake and the active volcano, then begin your descent back to Senaru in the morning.

With the 3 day trek, you see the crater lake, active volcano, walk down to the lake and hot springs. On the second night, you will walk and camp on a higher altitude ridge at 2,800m. At 2/3am on day 3, your guide will take you and a thousand other visitors up to the summit of Rinjani ,3927m, for Rinjani summit sunrise which is quite spectacular, if you make it up! Believe me, not everyone does.

I can’t think of any reason why you would do the 2 day trek. The 3 day is much harder, but it’s so much more rewarding. 2 days is like eating half an ice-cream then having it whipped out of your mouth as you’re about to take a mouthful.

The prices I’m giving here and all the experience are from the 3 day trek from SENARU. I booked it in Bang Sal, Lombok with my homestay owner.

If you want to, you can book online.

Rinjani trek price

Prices to climb Rinjani
Prices to climb Rinjani

I paid 2,678,000rp (including card fee). This was for the 3 day, 2 night trip going to the summit and crater lake from Senaru. I believe the opening price was above 3 million. Over the course of my travels, I bartered it down to this level. The company I booked with was called ‘Go Rinjani’. Go Rinjani is one of the main tour organisers for Rijani trips.

I didn’t book it directly with the tour company, I did it with one of my homestays. The owner gave me a better price than anyone else was offering.

The price in UK pounds was £127. That includes meals for the 3 days you will be hiking. Breakfast on day one to lunch on day three. You get a tour guide; he will speak English or other languages, (you must check), will talk to you about the hike and deal with any problems or questions. You get one night’s accommodation in a homestay in Senaru and two nights accommodation on the mountain. This is in two man tents. As I was a solo traveller, I got a tent to myself. You also get a sleeping bag. You may be able to hire essential kit, like boots or a jacket from your tour company. You should check with them if you require these items.

Continue reading “Rinjani 3-day trek from Sanaru”

Up the Aynho

Used to be the last stop on my journey down southwards.

Now, it’s not. CRT have told me I need to go further in a year.

It’s probably no more than 1/2 way of the distance I need to cover.

Located

By the pub. Aynho has all the amenities. Shop/chandlers (expensive), coffee shop, pub. Boatyard.

Banbury locks have been broken for 10 days+ meaning that there weren’t any hire, or travelling boats as passage was blocked for 2 weeks plus.

I had a look around the locks last Monday, whilst I was in town. No-one was there and there was nothing going on. No plant. No nothing. Just a cordon around the lock.

Fairly pathetic considering a lot of people’s wellbeing and businesses depend on the traffic coming through Banbury.

Better for us boaters, marginally. Live-aboards anyhow.

After two weeks plus, the lock eventually got fixed and as I write this, the traffic is now flowing.

Boat painting

I’ve been touching up the side of the narrowboat. Something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time. Particularly on this side of the boat. It’s been neglected for a long time. More as a victim of circumstance. More often when I’ve moored up, it’s the other side which is against the bank.

Here in Aynho, I’m in a space where the bank is low enough, and the recent trimming of the wildlife has left me in a position where I can access the sides and paint them up.

5 coats

Is a standard level of coverage. 1 Primer if needed, 2 undercoat, sand down, apply topcoat x2.

I’m currently up to the final topcoat and the weather has changed.

The last 2 days it’s been raining.

Rain and paint don’t mix. Today I’m having to leave it.

Here’s a picture of Bonnie with the undercoat applied.

Boat painting. Painting my narrowboat.
Boat painting. Painting my narrowboat.
5 coats. This is the undercoat on the patches that have been damaged.
5 coats. This is the undercoat on the patches that have been damaged.
Continue reading “Up the Aynho”

My first victim

For those familiar with the matter…..

I’m a bit of a hunter gatherer type. I like the appeal of free fayre springing up round and about in the countryside, the fresh fruit and vegatables that any tom, dick or harry can pick up for free. Left to grow, cultivate themselves and continue the Saṃsāra of life.

It’s natures way….
Previous posts:
https://www.michaeltyler.co.uk/can-you-eat-fairy-ring-mushrooms/

Wood Pigeon

Imagine my delight when I saw this sight above Bonnie Lady at 7am this morning.

Wood pigeon on wire

Now I know woodpigeon is very tasty with new potatos, fresh vegatables, maybe a little gravy and beans.

Like all the other things in nature this one was free, fresh and organic.

Unlike meats we buy in the supermarket, this one had had a free and gainful life around the countryside; flying, mating, eating the farmers crops, just doing the general things that pigeons do.

A gainful existance.

Free.

Bird on a wire

I am the owner of an S410, which for those who don’t know, is an air rifle.

It’s quite a good air rifle. Probably the best air rifle, certainly at one point in time.

It’s a PCP, which means compressed air fueled. Like a bullet rifle, there is no cocking of barrels and compressing of springs as with a traditional air rifle.

Continue reading “My first victim”

Things I’ve seen around Oxfordshire 🧐😲😍

Biology in and around Banbury – feeling the diversity from the perspective of a steel machine marine dweller.

Yeah bouy.

There’s so much to live for around here, at least that’s what the animals believe, as there seems to be rather a lot of them. Flying insects and birds…… birds on the water, animals that crawl and creep, hop and swim. There are a great diversity of the critters here. There is no doubt….

What I’d put this down to I don’t know. I can only guess that the local wild spaces by way of the country park and the Cotswold AONB has let some of those that would otherwise have perished, survive.

Time spent – time wasted

Seeing as I have so much time on my hands at the moment, I’ve taken some and committed it to a little fishing.

I’ve been a few times, 4 to be exact, with varying results. 2 times I caught these.

Bream from Cropredy Marina
Bream from Cropredy Marina
A 2lb roach from Oxford Canal
A 2lb roach from Oxford Canal

They are biggies….. especially the second one.

The other 2 times I caught nothing, or very little, just sat in the sunshine drank and listened to Youtube music streaming on my bluetooth speaker until it got dark, or I got bored. Whichever came first.

These two grand specimens more than make up for it.

Continue reading “Things I’ve seen around Oxfordshire 🧐😲😍”

Tiffield Pocket Park

Seeing as the weather was so unseasonably warm, I decided to spend a little of my time investigating this local feature.

Tiffield Pocket Park

Was set up by a local philanthropist who wanted to provide a space for nature, etc.

John Mawby bought the land from the railroad when in became derelict in the 1960’s for the purpose of providing a place for nature to flourish etc etc.

Here’s a picture of the sign for the park where I joined the trail.

As you can see, it illustrates the flora and fauna, birds and animals to titillate the whims of potential visitors.

Unfortunately, I can’t attest to seeing any of these, especially not on the stretch toward Banbury and Tiffield.

All I saw was a badger set and a couple of jays, which I didn’t even see I heard.

Venturing in the northerly direction, I can attest there was a lot more nature, whether that was because the weather was better on the day that I visited I can’t say.

But heading North, there were pigeons, squirrels, blackbirds, and some more rare variety of bird I wasn’t familiar with, as well as the usual tree creepers, wrens, some horses in the fields.

Toward the canal, there is undoubtedly more.

Tiffield Pocket Park
Tiffield Pocket Park

Initially, I took the path toward Northampton in the north. Down toward the canal. The railway runs in a NW direction from Banbury in the South. Continue reading “Tiffield Pocket Park”