Slamet

Facts

  • Elevation: 3,436 m (11,273 ft)
  • Prominence: 3,292 m
  • Ribu category: Sangat Tinggi
  • Province: Jawa Tengah (Central Java)
  • Google Earth: kml
  • Rating: 1 Star2 Stars3 Stars4 Stars5 Stars (32 votes) Add your rating
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  • Other names: none.
  • Eruptions: 1772, 1825, 1835, 1847, 1849, 1860, 1875, 1885, 1890, 1904, 1923, 1926-30, 1932-33, 1937, 1939-40, 1944, 1948, 1951, 1953, 1955, 1957-58, 1960-61, 1966-67, 1969, 1973-74, 1988, 1999-2000, 2009, 2014

Photos

Bagging It!

Gunung Slamet is the highest peak in Central Java and second highest in Java island. Upon seeing Slamet during his first exploration of the world, Sir Francis Drake immediately directed his boat to dock in Cilacap on Java’s south coast. It is an immense mountain and the vast lava field summit is one of the most isolated places you can be in Java. It is also one of the best places to see both the north and south coasts.

Slamet is one of Java’s more active volcanoes and there is almost always lots of gas around at the crater. It can also get very windy on the slopes so choose your camping spot wisely and whatever you do, do not even think about camping at the summit area because of the dangerously large amount of gases. Those wishing to reach the true summit are advised to hike up from one of the routes in from the east such as Bambangan, Dipajaya or Cemara Sakti because it will bring you out at the higher edge of the crater.

There are many, many hiking routes and they are all long and it is hard to estimate exactly how long each one takes as it will vary greatly from person to person. Suffice to say that you will need at least one night on the mountain unless you climb at night which is not normally recommended. Note that the trails can be closed at short notice due to refurbishment work, volcanic activity, bad weather, forest fires, or somebody recently lost or injured.

The most enjoyable thing to do is to ascend one way and descend another way. However, please bear in mind that guides from one side of the mountain will be much less familiar with other routes and you will also have to plan this in advance with the basecamps and almost certainly pay for two tickets. Also notes that some parts of the crater rim are dangerous to traverse so not all routes can be combined safely.

Baturraden routes (SOUTH):

Two routes (old and new) from the south lead up from the mountain resort of Baturraden (just 680m above sea level) near Purwokerto. Baturraden is perhaps the easiest trailhead to arrange public transport to and from due to its close proximity to the small city of Purwokerto, so it’s a shame that given the low starting point it is a very tough trek up (10-12 hours for the ascent). It’s perhaps better to descend this way and ascend via another trail with a higher trailhead. The older trail has been closed many times in the past due to too many hikers becoming lost and is currently much less popular, overgrown, and unofficial.

Old path (jalur lama), slightly further west: The key points on this trail are Pos 1 (1,050m), Bayangan 1 (1,230m), Bayangan 2 (1,465m), Pos 2 (1,508m), Bayangan 3 (1,693m), Pos 3 (1,915m), Bayangan 4 (2,046m), Camp Tentara (2,261m), Pos 4 (2,527m) and Pos 5 (2,885m) where the trail meets the Kaliwadas trail and continues via a minor top (2,915m) up to Plataran (2,908m) and Plawangan (2,973m) which is a great camp area on the west side of the volcano. In 2021, the higher section between Pos 5 and Plawangan was very overgrown, and there are no reports of anyone having hiked along this route since 2018! If combining with, say, the Sawangan route, watch out for the many ravines which cannot be crossed easily at the treeline except halfway up to the summit itself at around 3,100m! In 2021, a white plastic pole (3,116m) marks the point at which the trails can be crossed – any lower and it may be impossible. There is also a cement pillar (3,036m) on the rocky slopes which is an important landmark to bear in mind.

New official path (jalur baru) opened in 2019 by Radenpala (the local basecamp and hiking club), slightly further east and apparently slightly easier: It leads via Gapura Pendakian (900m), Pos 1 Gowokan (1,238m), Pos 2 Jengklik (1,845m), Pos 3 Cemara (2,290m), Pos 4 Sanghyang Rangkah (2,682m), Pos 5 Sanghyang Jampang (2,950m) and Pelawangan. Raden Pala is the basecamp and place to find local guides, but bear in mind the inflated price for foreigners. The ticket does, however, include entry to the botanical gardens (‘kebun raya’).

Guci route (NORTH-WEST):

There are two popular routes from from the north-west at the popular weekend retreat of Guci where there is decent accommodation and hot springs. Each route is connected to a different basecamp. Both trails start at around 1,250m and are very accessible from Tegal and the north coast. There are plenty of buses running between Guci and Tegal but remember to agree on a fare before you board or else you may well be expected to pay substantially more than the going rate – especially if you are foreign-looking. A taxi from Tegal railway station should take just over one hour.

Guci Kompak / Gupala basecamp route: From the bend in the road just above Guci market, the trail leads up through woodland and dense foliage. It is well-marked with Pos markers nailed to trees and also red and orange ribbons tied to small branches on the higher slopes. However, initially the narrow trail has a broken asphalt surface. At approximately 1,399m the trail branches – take the left. The trail branches yet again at 1,540m. Once again, take a left to find Pos 1 Pinus (1,550m). The trails leads up to Pos 2 Cemara (1,850m), Pos 3 Pasang (2,129m) and Pos 4 Kematus (2,578m). There are small flat areas suitable for camping at most of the Pos. Near Pos 4 there is a good camping area on the left beyond which is a small trail leading down to a nearby water source – don’t rely on finding water here though. The first building of any description is a small shelter called Pondok Edelweiss at 2,675m which is soon followed by Pos 5 Cantigi (2,852m).

Not long after this you will reach the treeline and start ascending very steeply up bare rock, slippery scree and old lava flows to the crater area. Once at the top, you still have to negotiate the complex crater areas to find the summit ridge itself which lies 1km further east. In bad weather this can be very difficult indeed, especially as there are often sulphur clouds at this side of the peak. That is why experienced guides are absolutely essential for this mountain.

Guci Permadi route: The route crosses several streams (at 1,453m, 1,501m and 1,559m) before reaching Pos 1 Blakbak (1,696m), Pos 2 Rimpakan (2,057m), Pos 3 Selo Petak (2,295m), Pos 4 Ranu Amreta (2,448m) after which there are a couple of possible camp spots before reaching the treeline at around 2,792m where there are lots of cantigi bushes. Pos 5 Watu Ireng (2,905m) means ‘black rock’ in Javanese, and aptly describes the area! To reach the crater rim from this side requires the use of a rope (3,265m) near the very top on the steepest section. Reaching the highest point of the rim on the east side is not recommended from here as it is so dangerous!

The route meets the Sawangan trail at Pos 4, but at the time of writing there is a new Kaliwadas trail in preparation and it remains unclear exactly where that will go or which other trails it will meet with.

Bambangan route (EAST):

Probably the best route for the summit of Slamet starts from the east of the mountain at Bambangan (at roughly 1,510m). It can be reached by public transport from Purwokerto in 90 minutes. At the end of the road, there is a small registration building on the left where you register and pay a small fee. If you haven’t already made arrangements, guides should be easily arranged here. The trail leads up through vegetable plantation and pine woodland. Once out of the farmland the trail is clear and well-defined but the numbering of posts (Pos) is rather unusual and in previous years many of them did not have a visible number. After about 90 minutes there is a newly-built hut which is Pos 1 Pondok Gembirung (1,947m) and would be a great place to stay if making a late start.

Further on is a small stone border pillar (2,159m), followed by Pos 2 Pondok Walang (2,265m) and Pos 3 Pondok Cemara (2,511m). After about 4 hours of hiking from the trailhead you should have reached the signposted Pos 4 Samaranthu (2,686m). Another hour up the trail is a red hut. This is Pos 5 Samyang Rangkah (2,821m) and is an excellent place to shelter or camp because there is a small stream just two minutes down to the left where you can usually find water in the gully. There are plenty of places to set up tents and in good weather there are some nice views to the east.

Behind the red hut the trail continues to lead up the mountain and it is less than an hour via Pos 6 Samyang Katebonan (2,908m) to a similar shelter building – painted black. This is known as Pos 7 Samyang Kendil (3,057m) and lies just below the treeline. In good weather, this is the first place where you can really begin to admire the views. The small Serayu Mountains and the south coast of Java are often visible from here.

There are many flat areas where you can pitch a tent and if you are the first to reach Pos 7 you could even pitch it inside the shelter building for added protection from any wind and rain. It can take anything from 6 to 8 hours to reach this shelter. It is by far the best place to camp if you want to climb to the summit for dawn because the summit lies at this side of the mountain.

It is about two hours up steep, loose rock to the crater lip and summit ridge. The trail passes Pos 8 Samyang Jampang (3,090m) and Pos 9 Palawangan (3,170m). Note that this Palawangan on the north-east side of the crater is very different to the similarly-named Plawangan on the south-west side of the crater beyond where the (old) Baturraden and (old) Kaliwadas trails meet. Gloves and a torch you can attach to your head would be very useful here so that you can use both hands.

The last huge explosion occurred here in July 1988 and there are frequent fatalities usually due to the toxic gases. The summit ridge itself is usually reasonably safe but it is not a good idea to linger too long near the complex crater area and active fumaroles which are about 1km further west near a lesser peak known locally as Puncak Soerono /Surono. This spot is the southern edge of the rim where the new Baturraden trail emerges on the top and there is one of many monuments on the rim here.

Most sources states that Slamet is 3,428 metres high, but according to the Bakosurtanal map, the true highest point at the eastern side (Bambangan, Gunung Malang trails etc.) is 3,436 metres. The inner rim on the eastern side is given as 3,426m. The northern and western sections of crater rim are under 3,400 metres.

At the true top is an old cement pillar – presumably a triangulation pillar – and a new triangular monument dedicated to the students who lost their lives up here more recently. Because of Slamet’s isolation, there are few nearby mountains to admire but in good weather Gunung Ciremai should be visible to the north-west and the huge twins of Sumbing and Sindoro should be seen in the distance to the east. To descend, return the same way, or if you have experienced guides and wish to descend via an alternative route continue beyond the crater area and make sure you are on the correct, well-defined path down to your chosen destination.

Note the very similar Dipajaya (Clekatakan) route starts just one kilometre north of Bambangan and actually meets the Bambangan trail just after Pos 2 on the Bambangan trail.

Sawangan and Kaliwadas routes (WEST):

There are several newer routes still growing in popularity from the west side at Kaliwadas (1,750m) and Sawangan (1,800m), best accessed from Bumiayu where there is a train station.

The original, old Kaliwadas route led via Tuk Suci (1,840m), Pondok Growong (1,960m), Taman Wlingi (1,950m), Pos 4 Igir Manis (2,615m) and Pos 5 Igir Tjowek (2,755m) and meets the old Baturraden trail at Plawangan (2,973m) which was the preferred camping spot.

The newer Sawangan route is further north as it meets the Guci Permadi route at Pos 4. The Sawangan trail leads from Bosapala basecamp (1,800m) via Pos 1 Tanggeman (2,197m), Pos 2 Ikhingan (2,374m), Pos 3 Bayangan (2,384m), Pos 3 Genting (2,423m), before crossing a river and meeting Pos 4 Ranu Amreta (2,448m) of the Guci Permadi route. Farm ojeks can actually be taken as far as 2,155m but these are quite extreme, muddy tracks and only save you 30 minutes or so in total.

The Bosapala basecamp for the Sawangan route is a very friendly little spot, but despite the high starting elevation, do note that there are several ups and downs on the trail, so it is not an easier trek to the crater than the alternatives that start on the eastern side.

The new Kaliwadas route – the newest of all – is not finished at the time of writing (March 2021) and it is not clear what makes it different.

Some internet sources talk of a trail up from the Kaligua tea plantations in a large area to the south of Kaliwadas. However, there is very little information on this so any trail is likely to be overgrown and time-consuming. Indeed, in 2020, it appears to no longer exist according to local sources. Nevertheless, the area looks quite beautiful and there is a viewpoint to Gunung Slamet seen over the tea plantations known as Puncak Sakub (2,050m).

Jurangmangu / Dukuh Liwung route (NORTH):

One of the least-known of all the routes on Slamet, and allegedly the most haunted (!), this trail leads in from the north at 1,150m and passes Pos 1 Pondok Pinus, Pos 2 Kedung Warak, Pos 3 Sampyang Pasang, Pos 4 Sampyang Gringging, Pos 5 Sampyang Gembirung, Pos 6 Sampyang Kematus, Pos 7 Sampyang Rangkah, Pos 8 Sampyang Gorang, Pos 9 Pondok Goa before finally reaching Pelawangan near the summit.

Cemara Sakti, Batursari route (NORTH-EAST):

This trailhead is at an elevation of around 1,500m. The route passes via several Pos namely Tlaga, Gringging, Gembirung, Sampyang Pasang, Dergel and Sampyang Rangkah before reaching a junction with the always-popular Bambangan trail.

Penakir route (NORTH-EAST):

Very close to Cemara Sakti, this route is perhaps the least well-known of all. It starts in the north-east at an elevation of 1,342m and leads via Pos 1 Curug Saleh (1,680m), Pos 2 Lung Ciut 2,011m), Pos 3 Gringging (2,369m), Pos 4 Nyamplung (2,529m), Pos 5 Dregel (2,815m), Pos 6 Dampyak (2,931m), Pos 7 Gembong (3,175m) before meeting the Bambangan route at the true summit of the mountain which is on the east side. Water is available near Pos 1 during the rainy season only.

Gunung Malang route (EAST):

Just south of the popular Bambangan route, this newer trail leads via Pos 1 Wadas Gantung, Pos 2 Pondok Syahang, Pos 3 Pondok Pasang, Mata Air / water source, Pos 4 Pondok Ihing, Pos 5 Puncak Gunung Malang (2,815m), Pos 6 Pondok Tanganan and Pos 7 Plawangan.

Bagging information by Daniel Quinn (last updated March 2021)

Trail Map

Peta Jalur Pendakian Gunung Slamet
For a high quality PDF version of this and other trail maps, please download from our Trail Maps page.

Local Accommodation

Booking.com

Featured Guides

If you are a reliable local guide and would like to be featured on this page to increase your bookings, or a tourist who would like to support the development of a local guide business, please email danpquinn@gmail.com with the following information: Mountain name, guide name, guide location, guide contact details, and at least one English language review from a previous hiker who was pleased with the guiding services. An example is given below for reference. We have a maximum quota of 3 featured guides for each mountain page on the site. The fee for this is £20 (British pounds sterling, typically via the Wise app or PayPal) for a period of 1 year and helps to pay towards the ongoing development of the Gunung Bagging project.

  • Name and location: Pak Budi, Surabaya, East Java.
  • Contact details: +62812xxxxxxxx, budi@gmail.com, https://www.instagram.com/budi_mountain_guide/ 
  • Review from previous client: “Budi was a brilliant guide for our September 2023 trek up Gunung X and I would definitely recommend him to other tourists“, John, USA.

Practicalities

  • Getting there: From Jakarta, take a bus to Purwokerto from Lebak Bulus, or a train (more expensive but faster) from Gambir or Pasar Senen station to Tegal (for Guci), Purwokerto (for Baturraden, Gunung Malang and Bambangan) or Bumiayu (for Sawangan and Kaliwadas).
  • Guides and GPS Tracks: Want a PDF version for your phone? Looking for a guide? Need GPS tracks and waypoints? Gunung Slamet information pack can be downloaded here.
  • Trip planning assistance: Would you like Gunung Bagging to personally help you in arranging your whole trip? Please contact us here.
  • Permits: Available at all the basecamps. Take a photocopy of your passport photo page and sign any guestbooks if requested to do so. Rp15,000 per hiker at Kaliwadas, Rp25,000 per hiker in Cemara Sakti, Rp50,000 per hiker or Rp150,000 for foreigners at Baturraden (in 2020).
  • Water sources: Water usually available just before Pos 1 and just after Pos 2 on the old Baturraden route, Pos 4 on the Guci Permadi and Sawangan routes, at Camp Tentara on the old Baturraden route, Pos 5 Samyang Rangkah (2,821m) on the Bambangan route and sometimes Pos 4 Kematus (2,578m) on the Guci Kompak route.

Local Average Monthly Rainfall (mm):

pangandaran

Location

Origins and Meaning

Mount Safety. Slamet is the Javanese variant of the Malay-Indonesian word selamat meaning “rescued from danger”, “having avoided danger”. In the region around Gunung Slamet local tradition records that in pre-Islamic times the mountain was called Gunung Gora. In Javanese gora is a slightly archaic word meaning “horrible, scary, intimidating”. It is very likely that when the people of the region converted to Islam (probably some time in the 1500s) the forbidding name of the mountain inherited from Hindu-Buddhist / pagan times was changed to the more reassuring Islamic name of Gunung Slamet. See also Gunung Sawal. (George Quinn, 2011)

Links and References

Wikipedia English
Wikipedia Indonesia

25 thoughts on “Slamet”

  1. A group of us climbed Slamet via Bambangan this past weekend. It’s a beautiful trail, and much faster than expected, actually.

    We did it overnight, and camped at Pos 5. Nobody is camping above Pos 5 at the moment, because the sulfur has become too strong, so the guides tell us it’s dangerous to sleep at Pos 7. Pos 5 itself is very lively on a Saturday night – lots and lots of large groups, so if you’re looking for solitude, maybe try a different spot (even camping at pos 4 just 10-15 mins down the path would be quieter).

    In terms of timings, from basecamp to summit was 5.5 hours (3 to pos 5, then 2.5 to the summit). Then the way down was *fast*. For me, only 2 hours 45 mins. A couple of people in the group who are not very experienced hikers added about an hour up and an hour down to those times.

    I think doing it as a day hike would be pretty reasonable, if you wanted to. Though of course sunrise has by far the clearest air and therefore best views. Also probably possible to hike it overnight – leaving in the middle of the night to hit the peak for sunrise. I met a group from Surabaya on their way down around 10am who had done just that. Also several warung told me they stayed open 24 hours on the weekend, so you can even get snacks on your way up!

  2. Overview: Climbed to the summit of Gn. Slamet on 26-27-June-2022 via Bambangan.

    Climbing: From the trailhead to the summit is about ~7-8 hours at a moderate place. If camping, the most popular stops are at pos 5 (which has a water source and very well-stocked warungs on weekends) and pos 7 (no water or warung).

    Decent: About 6 hours

    Trail: The trail is extremely well-marked and sees a lot of traffic, particularly on weekends. I had no trouble climbing it solo and would have been comfortable climbing at night, had the staff at the basecamp not given me a hard time about doing so (see below).

    Other: Climbing on weekends means significant amounts of traffic on the trail. The upside of this, however, is that there are very well-stocked warungs at post 1,2,and 5. Ascending on a Sunday and decending on a Monday means one could carry minimal food and water, buy those at the warungs on Sunday as needed, and still easily find a camping spot at post 5 or 7.

    The biggest downside of this mountain is the descriminatory attitude of the rangers working at the trailhead. I was told that as a foreigner, I needed to hire a guide to climb at night. Either this is simply an unfair ploy to take foreigner’s money, or it’s for safety and the rangers care less about Indonesian peoples’ safey, relative to foreigners. I’d love to hear their reasoning on this topic. Either way, this is a very unfair policy and if I were to climb again at night, I simply would not report at all, so that this greed is not rewarded.

    Stats:
    Climb time: ~8hrs
    Descend time: ~6hrs
    Water used: 6L
    Min temp: 17deg C at night with torrential rains
    Leeches encountered: None (although I am told this is an issue on the Southern routes up the mountain)
    Guide used: No
    Registration required: Yes
    Costs: 200rb. Ojeks are available to just short of pos 1, but only shorten the trip by a very modest amount.

    Guide:
    While I did not use a guide, I did spend a night at Flyingcamp Bambangan (https://goo.gl/maps/fitAvzQjvoJ64VtB8). The room was of a surprisingly high standard and the Alfan (+62 8562561546), the owner, was amazing. He is extremely knowledgeabout about the mountain and can arrange registration, ojeks, and guides, as needed.

  3. After a rather disgusting present for my 40th birthday – a cutaneous larva migrans worm in my foot – I was happy that I was back on the mountains just a week or so later after treatment!

    Had a great hike up Slamet on the Sawangan trail, another one I hadn’t done for over a decade and fancied exploring another side of. Bosapala basecamp is definitely a place I would recommend, with guys who will happily ojek you to where you need to go or pick you up from the station – for a price. It depends on the time of day or night too. It was 100k for an ojek late at night from Bumiayu station, which I thought was fair given it is a good hour from there to the basecamp. We saw 2 snakes on the road, one had yellow and black stripes. Registration is Rp20k per hiker, and ojeks to Pos 1 are Rp50k during the day and more if like us you wanted one at 2am! Best book in advance or you may be waiting a while like we were for villagers keen enough on this!

    Amazingly for early March there had been no rain for a couple of days and we were lucky for the most part with good weather for most of the trek. We started at 2am, farm ojeks up to just below Pos 1 (not essential by any means, especially for the descent). From Pos 1, you are already on a pleasant ridge with the lights of Guci visible down below. Indeed, the Permadi route runs fairly close to the Sawangan trail but several hundred metres below it, before meeting at Pos 4.
    The Sawangan trail is basically a ridge walk as far as Pos 4, with fine views of Slamet ahead (if clear). Our plan was to descend via the rarely-used Baturraden lama (old) trail, one of the few you can combine with Sawangan (aside from Guci Permadi), but the old Baturraden trail near the treeline is very overgrown and a forest fire in 2018 means the trail is hard to see and it could be that nobody has been this way in over 2 or 3 years! I thought it was rarely-used but not that rarely-used!

    Indeed, we did our best to find Pos 5 where the trail drops down from the ridge, but had no luck. I checked later and it turned out we needed to go a bit further. At the time, I was worried that we would get even more issues lower down, with denser, faster growing foliage, and this could cause issues. So, the only safe and responsible thing to do was to go back down the Sawangan trail. Because of ravines on the slopes of Slamet, this means ascending up the bare volcanic rock a fair way, to a safe spot where you can get back over to the Sawangan trail – exhausting stuff, but the safest option!

    Sadly, I had booked a train from Purwokerto, assuming the old Baturraden trail would be passable, so it was quite a long day, starting at 2am and getting into Purwokerto around 8pm after a mammoth hike, another ojek, and then a bus journey.

    Although Sawangan is not much use for bagging the highest part of the rim (best done from the east) it is a very pleasant trail of great interested to those who have tried the eastern trails before.

  4. Well, trying to arrange a hike up Gunung Slamet this month has probably been my most time-consuming failure yet. Probably more than 24 hours of messaging, rescheduling, trying new contacts etc! Just turning up at a basecamp and being told to go home would have been no more time-consuming. What follows may be quite interesting, as a guide to others who try to plan anything, especially in conjunction with the numerous basecamps circling this particular volcano.

    Last time, way back in 2010, I did a traverse from Bambangan to Guci, and I wanted to do a different traverse, namely from Kaliwadas to Baturraden. Kaliwadas starts high up at 1,750m and the original trail followed an interesting ridge where it joins with the old Baturraden trail. Baturraden is the toughest of the lot, starting way down at under 700m, so best to descend that way and expect to meet leeches in what is well-preserved forest.

    This was planned many months ago – Slamet was closed for a long time due to volcanic activity, but I got the contacts ready for when it re-opened, which it did a couple of months ago – October I believe. Anyway, the whole situation at Kaliwadas seemed weird. My first guide contact had been keen but then came up with excuses why he would be busy. I then contacted the basecamp – who said it was closed as they were refurbishing the trail, but by December it would be fine.

    So I booked train tickets. Nearer the time, the basecamp contact starts getting vague or unresponsive, and cannot find me a guide for the traverse to Baturraden. Strange. So I ask at Baturraden for a guide from that side who might be interested in the traverse. I am told I’ll have to pay 2 tickets – one for each side and that although the trail is open, you cannot go to the summit or do traverses due to volcanic activity. Indeed, on Instagram accounts there are various images of ‘do not cross’ warning signs erected officially at the treeline, which kind of makes a hike much less attractive, especially if this is the plan permanently, like at Merapi where hikers are strongly dissuaded from going beyond Pasar Bubrah.

    I am also informed that there are two Baturraden routes and two Kaliwadas routes. The old ones used to meet and would be ideal for a traverse not involving going too close to the crater either. But a price for a guide…. I couldn’t get any clarity on this. I was being asked for ID but not being given a guide price. Indeed, the guides themselves said I must speak with the manager, and the manager seemed to be trying to work out if I was a foreigner or not. Whenever that happens it becomes very tedious because in the majority of cases you know the price is going to be higher without any reasonable justification and for sure the guide is not going to have any bonus skills like speaking English, not that I would want that anyway.

    Anyway, it turns out that Kaliwadas is closed as they continue to work on a third trail, despite promises it would be open, and despite me having booked a train ticket to Bumiayu. So, a Plan B is needed. I ask about going up one Baturraden trail and back down the other, but know this is a massive hike considering the low elevation start. Anyway, I’m asked for 1 million including ojek to the train station only 15km away, and I feel this is too much. As soon as they start saying WNA (foreigner) and certificate included I really go off these people. I’m not interested in a certificate and I live and work in this country. It’s as if they cannot comprehend that I might have some experience in this area.

    But I get the feeling they couldn’t care less and far from perhaps being interested in meeting someone who has done a fair bit for hiking tourism here I instead feel that there’s a distance here, and it’s the distance between a local person who doesn’t like foreigners very much, and a foreigner who works here and just wants to go for a hike up Gn Slamet and is happy to pay a reasonable fee for it.

    Plus the official ticket at Baturraden for foreigners is Rp150,000 versus Rp50,000 for locals and KITAS as usual is some kind of grey area in the middle. But at least in Baturraden they are very anti-plastic, even if this does mean more time spent listing what you are carrying before starting your hike, all because many local hikers leave their noodle packets behind without a care in the world.

    Anyway, by this time, just last week, the weather has been a bit stormy. Basically a lot of cloud cover and windy gusts. I experienced this on Gunung Sumbing last week and it was basically like hiking in Scotland in below average conditions. But a local hiker had died on the Bambangan / Gunung Malang route due to hypothermia, presumably due to getting very, very wet and cold and not being prepared with dry clothes and warm layers. An incredibly sad story, and it happens every year. You might not be able to avoid the near-random fate of being struck by lightning, but when hiking the big peaks in the rainy season you need sufficient dry and warm clothes to use, especially if you are not used to cold temperatures.

    So the Bambangan and Gunung Malang trails were closed.

    I didn’t have many options left now having started my plans in the west at Kaliwadas, moving to Baturraden, and then looking at what options were left. Cemara Sakti was still open but nobody seemed keen on being a guide there. Jurangmangu remains closed. So pretty much all that was left was Guci, which I have done before so of less interest. I asked for a price anyway, and they wanted 800 for guide and said there were no ojeks to Tegal train station and I could charter a car for 400 for a 40km journey. 800 is too much for a quick up and down hike (perhaps 400 per day is ok for 2 full days and a camp for a group) and there being no ojeks seemed hard to believe. So, 1.2 for a hike I have done before in less than ideal weather conditions…. no thanks.

    I may do a Slamet hike next year, or I may just not bother due to the hassles. Kaliwadas to Baturraden remains the one I am most interested in, but I cannot exactly recommend either basecamp based on how they handled things recently. Having done a full 360 degrees of basecamp enquiries in recent weeks however, the list of local guides for Slamet is now very comprehensive!

  5. Just finished a hike up Slamet from Guci. Took a train from Jakarta Gambir to Tegal, an angkot from Tegal to Slawi (immediately to the left once you exit the Tegal station – Rp. 10000), an angkot from Slawi to Tuwel (Rp. 20000), then an angkot from Tuwel to the basecamp in Guci (Rp. 15000).

    The Guci route is well marked, whether with ribbons on trees or trash on the trail. Even hiking at night it is straightforward to follow. Water was available immediately after Pos 4. Good camping at Pos 3 and Pos 5.

    I went up in 5 hours and back down in 4 hours. My original plan was to descend via Baturaden but was unable to find the trail down from the peak. For those descending down to Guci, an Indonesian and red/blue/yellow/green flag can be seen at Pos 5 from the summit if the clouds allow.

  6. Just returned from a 2D1N hike to the summit of Mt. Slamet. We took the Bambangan – Guci route.
    Prior to the climb, I stayed at Villa Anandha Guci for several days to recuperate from the fatique of climbing Mt. Merapi & Merbabu. Soaking in the hot spring sure helped.
    I rented a pick-up truck to go to the trailhead at Bambangan.
    My guide was Udin, the ranger of Mt. Slamet NP in Guci. Warto was our porter. Both know the route well.
    Udin’s hp: +62-818-039-84342.

    The video I made shows the gorgeous display of volcanic gases from the crater including descending the bare rock, slippery scree to Guci:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FHeCoJLpZY&feature=c4-overview&list=UUr-dHMWQ97A46Twwge6HpdA

  7. Pos 5 and Pos 7 of Bambangan route are are good shelters to camp in. But do not erect your tent inside the shelter(s) because actually the hikers without tent would be dis-advantaged. Another ethic, please be quiet for you do not want to disturb our exhausted friends’ sleeps.

    Around the summit you could easily lose your way without a guide or waypoints. Guci route is longer but the trek is clear and you would not be lost.

  8. Hi, we were supposed to climb slamet this wek end with a guide who had checked conditions but upon arrival, the local forbid us to climb from bambangan. Reason was the risk of bushfire.
    Don’t think this was a set up from the guide as he proposed me slamet over sumbing. Went for this one but pissed off by bambangan…

  9. Actually I have another question to ask… :p

    If we dont use guide and rely on our GPS and map, do you think is advisable…?

    Thanks
    -dheva-

  10. Hi Dan,

    Thanks for the very useful information. We plan to hike Slamet this christmas and based on your advice, experienced guide is essential.

    Appreciate your advice on recommended guides (name and contact number would be great) as we plan to ascend from Bambangan and descend to Baturaden.

    Thanks much
    -dheva-

  11. Hi Dan,
    just returned from the Baturaden trail to Slamet. The Bambangan route was closed these days, presumably for stronger than usual activities of the volcanoe.
    The Baturaden trail is clearly the longest one compared to Guci and Bambangan. It took me 10 hrs uphill and 7 downhill. In addition, we had 6-8 hours rain, including in the early evening hours when we had to build tent. Lesser experienced trekkers should calculate with eleven to twelve hours trekking upwards, through extended and beautiful stretches of untouched mountain rain forest, with quite some birds and monkeys. I started at 7h from my hotel in Purwokerto by motorbike, at 8h I was on the trail. It is clearly advisable to stay in one of the many Baturaden resorts to be on track at 6:30 or earlier.

    On the trail there are five so-called “pos”s, with some smaller additional campsites in between. None has any shelter or other facilities. The last water supply is at Pos 2, about 2 1/2 hours after starting from the Baturaden Nature Park. There you should make sure to have 5-6 liters of water. After Pos 3 it is getting more and more steep. Pos 5 is just below the tree line. The last stretches before Pos 5 are easy walking on an extended saddle. There is no flat campground to find on Pos 5, except some small area at the very upper end, beyond the last trees, but still protected by some high grass.

    As you walk nearly all way on rarely used paths in a vital jungle the trail is strongly overgrown. We did not need machetes, but we were wet all tour long, even when the rain stopped. Each of us had “invited” 8 to 1o leeches, around the feet, not on our necks.

    From Pos 5 it is another 500m in altitude, between 1:20 hrs and 2 hours to the peak that is visible from Pos 5. It is mostly firmer ground, but with some parts of loose ashes. From Pos 5 you reach the caldera, leaving the big cut in the crater rim to your left, and looking into the huge crater against the rising sun at sunrise.
    Best
    Wolfgang

  12. Hi Dan, appreciate your infos on Slamet very much, as this is one of the few peaks on java that i did not climb yet. And the infos on the Java Lava website date back to 2006. I plan to go to Slamet May 17 or 18 till 19 or 20. Can you recommend a porter/guide, with hp/E-mail possibly? As I don’t speak bahasa indonesia some basic english is more important than the starting point. Although from your description the best starting point appears to me Bambangan. I understand that the train to Purwokerto starts from Gambir station every morning.
    Best regards
    Wolfgang Piecha

  13. Hi Wolfgang, for the summit I would definitely recommend Bambangan though it takes longer to get to the starting point. The shelters are handy for if it rains too. Baturaden is supposed to be open again which is considerably closer to Purwokerto but I think Bambangan is higher anyway. There are quite a few daily trains to Purwokerto from Gambir – both early morning and early evening. Takes about 5/6 hours, have a look here http://kereta-api.co.id/
    For guides, I suggest you ask JL Jenny. If you have no luck, email me via the contact page. Cheers!

  14. Just back from Slamet. Up from Bambangan and down to Guci. The taxi from Purwokerto barely made it to the top of the Bambangan road! Finding the trail down to Guci was very difficult – it turned out that our guides weren’t too sure and we ended up descending almost vertically down old lava flows and then hacking through jungle. Luckily we found the correct path eventually. If you’re thinking of heading down to Guci, make sure your guides definitely are familiar with the route or else you could end up getting very lost and spending an additional night on the mountain! Unfortunately there can often be a difference between guides saying they know the way and them actually knowing the way. Great hike though – do-able in a weekend from Jakarta with Kereta Api to Purwokerto or Tegal. Next time I’ll probably descend to Baturaden or back the same way to Bambangan.

  15. Hello Zac,

    Thanks so much for your suggestion.
    I appreciate it a lot.
    I have thought about what you said before writting to you but I was still in doubt. Now, I’m sure about it 🙂

    Cheers,
    G

  16. Gita,
    I would like to have a go at your question if I may. Personally, I thinnk that you should follow your instincts and judgement.It is one thing for some body to say yes you should go above 3,000 meters or no, I think that you should stay below 3,000 meters. Actually I started out with Batur being my first Climb and then worked my way up to Ceremai,Merapi,Gede and so on. My advice would be to pick a mountain around 2500 meters for training within that month.Then fter preperation,research and physical training, just go and attack those big mountains that you dream about. Take proper guides and be cautious and you can do it.

  17. Hi Dan,

    Thanks for your advice.
    That’s what I was thinking because I had a bit problem with the strong wind when we were climbing Mount Merapi via Boyolali on Oct 12 2009.

    One more thing please, If I’ve reached the top of Sindoro with some difficulties, do you think I would be able to climb Slamet or Semer? Or should I stay with those below 3,000 metre?

    thanks,
    G
    PS: sorry for asking too much….

  18. Hello,

    I’ve got the information about this website from The Jakarta Post last Sunday’s edition.
    It looks really nice and quiet helpfull for me.

    I’d like to ask for your advice if these days are good period to hike this mountain considering the weather.
    Is it going to be too cold and windy for an Indonesian like me 🙂

    Thank you so much for your kind attention.

    cheers,
    Gita

  19. Hi Gita
    It is not a good idea to climb during the rainy season – I would wait until April/May, especially for anything the size of Slamet!

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