After our Machu Picchu adventure earlier in the year, we decided to explore some hiking trails around Singapore and the most affordable and scenic one was Mount Bromo. Mount Bromo is located in Surabaya Indonesia which is less than 3 hours away from Singapore by plane.
Once we landed, our guide picked us up and started our drive towards Mount Bromo in a 6 seater sedan car. It is an almost 4 hours drive to our first stop which is the Madakaripura Waterfall.
On route to the waterfall, we stopped by a Chinese restaurant for lunch. The full review of the lunch can be found here
Once we arrived at the waterfall, it is at least another 10mins scary pillion ride on the motorcycle driven by the locals. It was a harrowing experience for me since I never rode on the motorcycle before. The journey was extremely bumpy and rough as the road was unpaved and there were many pot holes. I was grabbing onto the back of the bike so tightly my hands were white from the lack of blood flow when we arrive.
Once you reach the entrance to the waterfalls, the motorcycle will drop you off at the entrance where they will check for the tickets for entry.
Once past the tickets check, it was another 5 – 10 mins brisk walk before you will past the toilet and the main signboard of the waterfall.
This is the main signboard of the falls.
After passing the sign, it will another 30mins walk on foot through uphill paths and stairs.
There are also slippery narrow paths like these and is pretty painful to walk on with slippers. We were recommended to purchase slippers at the carpark as we would be walking in the water which will is knee deep. The slippers were only less than SGD 1 each. I was having some difficulty walking and carrying all my stuff that the guide offered to carry my very heavy camera bag.
After close to 30 – 45 mins walk, ( depending on your pace ) , you will reach this bridge where you can see the first signs of the waterfalls. This is also the last stop where you can buy your ponchos or protective cover for your mobile phones.
Armed with our ponchos and with our bags covered, we started to walk towards the main falls itself which is quite steep and there was no railing to hold onto.
The only way to reach the falls was to walk down the rock slopes and across the slippery rocks where you can see the 3 people in ponchos in the picture. You need to be very careful walking down the slope as it is extremely slippery and there is no proper pathway to walk on. The guide will also help you if you need assistance.
The water was ankle high in some areas and knee high in some areas. The water was also flowing quite rapidly making it quite difficult to walk properly. There are many areas where you walk directly below the waterfall and have water raining down onto you making your visibility lower. We had one of those ponchos from Daiso and it was not as good as the ones sold by the locals as the sides were not covered. We ended up getting all wet even with a poncho. The water is quite chilly but once you get used to standing and walking in the water it was bearable.
Once you have seen the main waterfall, there is another only smaller fall with a fantastic view. You can only reach the other side by climbing up the rocks like a spider man in slippery slippers. Only 1 of my friend was daring enough to climb the rocks with the guide to get to this view of the only fall in the video which is really beautiful.
Overall, here is my tips for the Madakaripura Waterfall which is not majestic but has a quiet serenity to it.
- Come prepared for a scary pillion ride on bumpy road
- Carry as little bags as possible.
- Come in waterproof booties instead of slippers which can get really slippery in the water and on the rocks.
- Come with a full poncho that covers you fully unless you do not mind getting totally drenched.
- Come with an adventurous heart
The walk back to the entrance was much faster since we knew the distance and took almost half the time we did to get there. The pillion ride back was also less scary since I knew the technique to hold onto the bike. After the wet experience, the guide drove us to our first accommodation for the trip
We stayed at the Bromo Terrace Hotel and the full review could be found here. We managed to get a few hours of rest before heading for our star gazing tour pick up at 11 pm. Please see my next post for Mount Bromo.
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