16.11.13

UJUNG GENTENG UPHILL ADVENTURE


Feeling a bit sleepy, I drove my car in that early morning. It was 03.15 AM, and I headed to our meeting point at Pantai Indah Kapuk.

As I was reaching the Toll Booth, I was taken aback by the long queue. There were approximately 15 to 20 cars in every line. Fortunately, it did not take long and soon I was driving again.

I was the first one who reached the place, and in no time there were 12 others. We loaded our bicycles on a pick up car, and hopped on the bus. Some of us continued our sleep while others were chatting.

Our next stop was Roti Unyil in Bogor, where we met some other friends from other bike communities: "eNTe", which was the abbreviation for Nanjak Terus (Always Goes Uphill), and "Teman Gowes" (Friends for Biking).

It was a pleasure to join them in a bike trip, and we were happy to make friends with other bike groups and communities, who shared the same passion for biking.
At approximately 08 AM, 31 bikers started pedaling to Ujung Genteng, which would be our destination that morning.

The city of Bogor offered a comfortable track with small climbs, but soon it began to be steep in some areas. We passed several wet markets, where the traffic jams were commonly heavy.

After we had finished the first half of the route, the track was getting harder. It started to ascend, but this time it was rather flat for a few meters, and then climbed, flat again for a few meters, and then climbed again. It was not going-up-and-down as before. The bike trip from Bogor to Ujung Genteng was probably one of the hardest tracks we ever tried.
The route was hard, and the speed was low. We were divided into small groups eventually.

We tried to stay close to one another, so that the smallest group would compose of at least two people. This would come in handy if any of us had problems en route. 

We continued biking until it was dark, and the first small group reached Turtle Beach Hotel at 06.30 PM. We had our dinner in the hotel's restaurant, and soon everybody went to their bedrooms and slept.

That night, we stayed in a separate hotel from "eNTe" and "Nanjak Terus" communities. They planned to stay for two nights in Ujung Genteng, while we were planning to spend only one night, and going back to Jakarta the next day.

In the morning, we had our breakfast, and wandered around the beach to enjoy the fresh sea breeze.
After checking out from the hotel at 09 AM, we stopped by at Cikaso waterfall. We had a short trip on the boat to reach the place.
Unfortunately, there was only little water coming down from the waterfall. Apparently it had been weeks without rain, and the water level was low. Nevertheless, we took photo for remembrance.
After having lunch, we continued our journey back to Jakarta, and reached the same meeting point at 10 PM.

Our trip to Ujung Genteng was a short one, as the main purpose was to try the 165-km uphill adventure. Nonetheless, if we ever go there again, I think I would love to explore the surrounding beaches, just as our friends from "eNTe" and "Teman Gowes" did.



Written by: Chris Wibisono - GF 71

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