Bali- cycling the islands

we were told that there are 2 ways to explore lembongan: scooter or bike. the books say that it's only a 4 hour round-trip ride by bike, so we decided that's how we'd tour lembongan and ceningan. we rented two mountain bikes for all of 8 AUD and set off on our ride.

the first thing to note is that we had no map. and even the few maps we did see, well, they were quite poor and don't actually show the little off-shoots on roads. signage isn't as bad as WA but it's not much better. so we did a few "turn arounds" whilst out on the roads. the second thing, sadly, is that we forgot the camera and so we have no pictures from the very scenic ride we did.

we headed around the island in the direction that is suggested in all guide books (clockwise) so as to avoid a serious hill within the first few kms. but don't worry, there were many a serious hill for us to do instead. we cycled lazily around lembongan, enjoying the bit of shade that the trees were providing. we pulled in an out of a few dirt roads, thinking that they led to beaches but in fact, they led right into someone's property. oops!

the first half of lembongan is rather uneventful, but beautiful. we (luckily) took a left turn at one point and discovered the "bridge" to ceningan. the bridge is little more then a wooden suspension bridge. it rattles as you cycle over it- to the point that it feels like each piece of wood is falling behind you after you touch it. i felt (relatively) safe though, as there were scooters whipping across it. you do have to wait your turn though, as it's not very wide (or secure...)

ceningan was much like lembongan but has nothing on it other then a few shack-shops for water and essentials for the locals. there's not even a warung on the island, which is a local eatery. the ride around, or should i say up, ceningan was pretty hard. though the island isn't actually that high, the hills/roads are killer steep and just seem to go up and up and up. i actually had to get off my bike a few times to push it up the hill! the view from the top (once we got there) was incredible: turquoise water and green islands. the ride down was equally, if not more, treacherous, as our brakes were sketchy at best. john had the joy of riding a bike with brakes that sounded like he was killing an elephant every time he pressed on them. and he pressed on them a lot as we wound our way down the hills. i had to stop riding a few times to keep myself further back, away from the noise (and to have a good laugh, cause i think we were scaring the villagers).

after crossing the bridge again, we decided to find a little beach to eat some fresh watermelon (yes, we'd been carrying it). we found a tiny little alcove with white sand, clear water and lots of little boats rocking in the wind. a great stop!

we then rode over to dream beach, which we'd been advised to check out. we navigated the sealed roads (with potholes big enough to take out a scooter) carefully but were rewarded with spectacular views as we pulled into dream beach. we had planned on swimming, but after taking a look at the massive waves and the rip only a few meters out, we decided that it was in our best interest to just wade and get our feet wet. instead we had a snack at the hotel overlooking the rugged bay and rested a little. we then plowed along tiny dirt paths along "devils snare" to more rugged coastline. the type of coast you don't get close too on the off chance that a wave crashes and takes you along for the ride!

our next stop was mushroom bay, which we'd been assured was far more of a proper swimming beach then jungubatu. alas, 'twas not. mushroom bay is the more upscale area on lembongan, with the big, swanky hotels crowded along a rather small beach space. many of the tourist boats drop people off for the day, the ferries all pulled into the bay and there were dozens of boats tied to the beach. we did manage to have a swim, but it was made less enjoyable by the sound of boat engines and that mild oily feeling you get in a harbour... needless to say, we didn't swim for too long!

we then chugged our way home. and i mean chugged. the ride from mushroom bay to jungubatu is very hilly with many unmarked/poorly marked roads. having no idea which one led us back to our hotel, we did a few too many in and out's on some killer hills. thankfully we'd run into our new friends (who'd been scooting around the island) so they were able to ride (a bit) faster then us and decide if we'd be able to continue. but a 50cc scooter carrying 2 people doesn't go up a hill much faster then a cyclist (in fact, sometimes one of them walked up). it didn't take too long for us to find the right path though and soon enough, we were back at the shop dropping off our bikes.

in my foresight, i'd arranged with our hotel to get a massage that night. on the beach. for all of 8 dollars. *sigh* it wasn't the best massage i've ever had, but it certainly wasn't the worst! can you really complain if you're paying less then 10$? i think not. nicely rested, we had drinks with our new friends that night, which was truly a great way to end our day, and our trip.

will we head back to bali? probably not. but are we glad we went? absolutely!
xo