Facts
| Elevation: | 1,774 m (5,820 ft) | Prominence: | 1,143 m |
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| Ribu category: |  Kurang Tinggi |
Province: | Nusa Tenggara Timur |
| Google Earth: | kml | Other names: | |
| Rating: |   (2 votes) Add your rating
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Photos
 The track to Fatu Timau (Daniel Quinn, August 2011)
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 The Mutis mountains as seen from the track to Fatu Timau (Daniel Quinn, August 2011)
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 Fatu Timau in the distance (Daniel Quinn, August 2011)
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 Beautiful scenery on the track to Fatu Timau (Daniel Quinn, August 2011)
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View a slideshow in our Picasaweb gallery
Bagging It!
Fatu Timau is a beautiful little mountain that appears pyramid-shaped from many angles. It’s one of the easiest Ribus to bag, as there is a track which leads to less than 400 metres below the summit. However, if you think that sounds like an easy day out from Kupang, think again because it takes between 5 and 6 hours along bumpy farmland tracks to get there! Under normal circumstances, Fatu Timau might therefore be regarded as a mountain only for the fanatical yet given the incredible scenery – rolling grassy hills, cacti growing by the side of the track, wild horses, traditional Timor villages of huts, locals chomping on betel nut – it makes for an excellent day out into the wilderness of West Timor.
Once you’ve found a guide willing to take you to this remote mountain, or summoned enough confidence to try without one, remember to take your camera with you and set out at first light if not before. The somewhat epic journey from the main road at Takari via Lelogama and then on to the shoulder of the mountain is a memorable and picturesque trip in itself so it’s best not to be in too much of a rush to get to the mountain. Very few foreigners visit this area, so don’t be surprised if the local people are very bemused to see you! The interior of Timor has a somewhat autumnal feel to it as the ground is often covered with fallen eucalyptus leaves, yet there are also cacti happily growing here.
The track snakes its way up and down and over and round the dramatic hillsides of Timor regularly offering fabulous panoramas. There are so many interesting limestone cliffs and minor hills on the way that you have to wait quite some time before getting a glimpse of Fatu Timau itself. When you finally do, it seems as if the road simply doesn’t want to take you there – but be patient, sit back and enjoy the striking scenery unfolding before you.
When you have finally reached the mountain itself you will almost certainly need a rest! Don’t worry however, because from the highest point of the road (1,432m) which skirts the mountain it is just over one hour’s hike to the top of Fatu Timau. At first it looks a steep and daunting prospect but it’s actually pretty easy. Push your way through the undergrowth and try to gain the top of the ridge which leads up to the left-hand side of the mountain. There is a large boulder just 5 minutes’ walk from the road. From the boulder, it is pretty easy going as you follow a very vague trail used more by adventurous cattle than by people which leads up through woodland and sometimes dense vegetation. As you follow the shoulder of the mountain round to the right there are a few places where you may have to back-track after reaching a dead end or pull yourself up over rather overgrown sections of narrow cattle-track. Gloves are definitely recommended. For actual trailfinding, one of the best pieces of advice is to keep a look out for cow dung! Then you’ll know you’re heading in the right direction. Do watch out for occasional large crevices in the limestone beneath your feet – you really wouldn’t want to get stuck somewhere as remote as this.
After just over 30 minutes from the start of the hike, you will have emerged from the undergrowth and forest onto open, rocky mountainside. Views here are excellent in all directions. The way onwards is zig-zagging over limestone rocks up the final section of the mountain. In good weather this must be an excellent viewpoint for Gunung Mutis, the highest peak in West Timor.
Soon you will have reached the top of Fatu Timau which is crowned with a broken cement trig pillar. There is also a small metal geodesy marker on a nearby rock. If anyone is back at your car on the road below they would probably be able to hear you shout that you’ve reached the top, such is the shortness of the distance covered. The mountaintop itself is rather reminiscent of rocky limestone peaks in Yorkshire – it certainly doesn’t resemble either a typical Indonesia volcano (because Timor island is not volcanic) or indeed a typical tropical Indonesian forest summit.
You can be back down at the road in 45 minutes, before starting on the epic journey back to the main road, which is a wonderful experience in the late afternoon as the sun is getting lower in the sky.
Bagging information by Daniel Quinn (August 2011).
Practicalities
| Getting there | There are plenty of buses on the main Kupang-Soe road but you still have a huge distance to cover on poor tracks. It’s best to arrange transport in Kupang beforehand (4WD if possible) rather than trying to get lucky with ojek driver who may not nknow the way or be happy with the terrain and/or distance. From Kupang, it’s about 90 minutes to Takari where you take a bumpy track inland (opposite the police station) towards Lelogama (not signposted). After Lelogama you will almost certainly need to stop and ask locals who may or may not speak Bahasa Indonesia, let alone English! That’s why taking a guide is well worth it. From the Takari turning it takes around 4 hours to reach the shoulder of the mountain. |
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| Accommodation | The best bases are Kupang and Soe, both of which have a number of hotels. Hotel Maliana in Kupang is a decent budget option and just across the road from the L’Avalon bar. In Soe, Hotel Bahagia 2 is the best because it has hot water (which is really appreciated at 800 metres above sea level). |
| Permits | None required. |
| Water sources | There is no water on the hike and there are no shops anywhere near the mountain. Make sure you buy drinking water before you turn off the main Kupang-Soe road. |
Location
Origins and Meaning
Literally ‘the rock of Timau’ – Timau is the name of a place nearby. (Gabriel Faimau, 2011)
Climbed this great little peak yesterday. Arriving in Kupang the afternoon before I was slightly surprised that nobody seemed to have heard of it. Finally Edwin who runs the L’Avalon hostel and ramshackle bar on the waterfront (frequented by lots of interesting intellectual characters from the nearby island of Roti) put me in touch with Ony Meda, a great local guide. He’d heard of the mountain but had never climbed it and didn’t know of anyone who had! But he was up for an adventure so we arranged transport (bloody expensive in this part of the world). On Google Earth I had spotted a small track just 1km from the actual peak so I was hoping access would not be too much of a problem. Ultimately it wasn’t – if you don’t mind sitting in a car for 6 hours over bumpy tracks! It took us 6 hours from Kupang to the foot of the beautifully shaped mountain and then just one hour to the peak itself which means it’s the second easiest Ribu to climb (after the ludicrous Keli Lepembusu, also in NTT). Whilst the bumpy journey to the mountain is no recommended for those who got drunk at the bar the night before (I put my hand up) it is definitely one of the most fascinating and scenic journeys I have ever made in Indonesia (although a 4WD would be preferable if you can afford it). It gets about as wild as Timor gets, as the dirt track leads through grassy, almost Autumnal scenery similar to the Northern Territories of Australia, beautiful white-trunked Eucalyptus trees, wild horses and villages whose inhabitants chew on the betel nut and live in the beautiful traditional ‘beehive’ houses. The track affords wonderful panoramic views and skirts around a few interesting rock cliffs. and There is also a great deal of birdlife.
The mountain itself is very very infrequently climbed but cows wander up to the top so there is a vague trail up there. The last bit is great – clambering over limestone boulders to the peak which is crowned with a broken cement trig point. The views over to the Mutis mountains are tremendous.
I’m in Soe at the moment – off to Fatumenasi today to climb Mutis tomorrow. A proper trip report for this mountain will be coming soon.
What a great find! The journey to Fatu Timau is fantastic. If trail bikes were/are available in Kupang, this would be one best rides in Indonesia.
Dan’s bagging info get’s the facts right, but the road is not that bad and the scenary is fantastic and makes up for the bumps. We stopped to take photos many times – karst outcrops, traditional houses, semi-wild horses, cacti – and we arrived at the trailhead in 5 hours in a Kijang. The return was quicker and we stopped for dinner.
The trail to the summit is easy to follow; the first 10 minutes is where the trail is most uncertain. But you really can’t go wrong. From the rocky summit we could see the north coast of Timur and Gunung Mutis to the south – at this time of year it is pretty hazy, and would be fantastic the the day after a rainstorm. We particularly enjoyed hiking through the eucalyptus forest, with crunch of dry leaves underfoot and distinctive smell.
A 4-wheel drive would seriously reduce the drive time, so definitely ask about this in Kupang. We used the same guide as Dan (Ony), but he is expensive and likes to use the drivers he knows. The driver we used (Forkus) is excellent and his Kijang stands up to the road very well. It would be much cheaper to just use Forkus since he knows the way and hiked to the summit with us (Forkus is a big guy, which shows how easy the trail is).
We can’t recommend Timur and Rote enough as a holiday destination. Off the well worn tourist trail, but easy and full of great people.