tembeling’s muse

I am still searching for a suitable camera bag for mountain climbing or trekking. And I found this interesting discussion.

I like this opinion….

Matt W , Oct 17, 1997; 01:29 p.m.

I think Ron Goodman had probably one of the best solutions. I was a climber and hiker before I was a photographer. I have search for numerous solutions since taking up photography several years ago and am convinced that there is a better solution than what I have come up with.

I don’t like the backpacks designed for cameras because they seem to have left out the fact that while you are out in the wild you might need more than your camera. When hiking in Big Bend I need to carry lots of water. In Colorado, I’ll carry several layers in case I get caught in bad weather above timberline. Camera bags just don’t give me the flexibility I want. So what I do is find the best backpack I can. Generally, you would want one for serious, several day backpacking, and one for those day trips, which for me seem to be more strenous because I am trying to get somewhere in a short amount of time.

Then what I do is pack all gear, putting the camera gear at the top. I like Rob’s neoprene pouch idea. I need to spend the money on something like that. I usually poor boy it. I slip my lens into a thick sock, stuff it in a Ziplock or stuff-sack and go.

I agree that no camera bag which are available in the market suits real outdoor activity. I tried Lowepro Computrekker AW, Off Trail II & now Inversion 200AW…..all are not good enough.

Wah…..crazy….really crazy. Initially thinking of going to Dieng-Sindoro but AirAsia 1 million free seats changed everything. We have to decide fast as the free seats are disappearing very fast! It started when Remy sms-ed me whether I had remove Bali-Rinjani from 2009 project. I said no….but I can’t find a good time. He told me he prefers Bali over Dieng…..then I called Arey for a ’second opinion’. Arey also like to go to Bali & Rinjani…..

So that was it. After a few calls between me-Remi-Arey, I bought 7 air tickets to Denpasar!! We will go to Bali & climb Mount Rinjani on 30th June - 6th July 2009!!

The boss for this trip is Mas Arey and he told me that we can accomodate up to 15 people. So far, the following have confirmed:

1. Me
2. Ali
3. Jasni
4. Kavalera
5. Nizam
6. Remi
7. Arey

The itinerary maybe something like what Remi had stated in our Flickr…

day 1
- flight departed to bali in the morning. 3 hours flight
- arrived at bali noon, took fokker to mataram, in the island of lombok
- packing up at a friend’s place and proceed to rinjani basecamp that evening.
- arrived at rinjani’s basecamp at about 10/11 pm. sleepover

day 2
- say hello to rinjani and start trekking by 8/9 am
- we proceed to the last post @ campsite in which we arrived around maghrib
- dinner and sleep

day 3
- woke up early at 3 am and accent to the summit.
- will arrived somewhere 6-7 am.
- descent to last campsite and will arrive around 10-11 am.
- lunch @ 12, descent to danau segara anak @ 2 pm
- arrived at segara anak around 5/6 pm. This really depends on weather. it is somewhat slippery.
- set up tent, maybe some may want to go fishing, the fish is really big
- sleepover

day 4
- woke up as usual 5/6 am
- breakfast @ cook lunch
- descent to last basecamp at 9 am.
- the last group arrived at 5 pm ( me )
- might say that this last part of the journey is the best, the view is far far superior than lawu.
- transport to friend’s house to sleep over

day 5
- proceed to bali via ferry…this took 6 hours
- from bali, proceed to agung, the rest of team continue to climb agung except for me, <– the traitor…ahhahaha.
- i slept over at a friend’s house in bali.

day 6
- pick up all those ppl from agung
- proceed to kintamani ( this is a high place like cameron )
- proceed to pasar seni…forgot la the name
- proceed to airport
- fly back to kl

Many pictures available in the flickr….

So, Rinjani…here we come….

However based on the level of difficulty, I would suggest that all members who are going for this trip to adhere to these recommendations:

1. Exercise. We should not cause problem to other members or the guides. Looking at what happened during Mt Lawu expedition, even the toughest mountaineers can handle certain amount of load only. They may not be able to help us all the way.

2. Teamwork. This is very2 important. We should ensure all the team members reach the destination on time. After this, I would suggest experienced mountaineers to teach us & to organise us into suitable teams.

3. On time. Also important that we should limit our rest or even photo shooting to certain time frame. If the journey taken too much of the time than expected, we may become too exhausted to trek. Having said that, we should not rush to get to the top as most of us are no real mountaineers. We are humble photography hobbyist who love to climb mountains….

4. Limit the load. Don’t bring battery charger to the summit ok? But I have solar charger…that’s different story. For Rinjani, I guess, at the most, 2 pairs of cloths are enough. Infact, one is enough. I think, plus the camera & water mebbe, 15 kg should already be too heavy! Wow….my camera stuff already 5 kg!! The tent is another 3 kg. If 5L of water….that 13kg already.

Peh…this too early to discuss the detail…but I am too excited…..

I want to visit these places….

August 2008
1. Cherating - 30th August 2008 (FMDC-Petronas Merdeka Convoy)
2. Tasik Chini - maybe 31st August 2008 if I can find friends who wanna join me

September 2008 - Ramadhan
No plan yet

October 2008
1. Fraser’s Hill

November & December 2008
Can’t go anywhere

January 2009
No plan yet

February 2009
1. Jeram Perahu

Mac-June 2009
No plan yet

July 2009
1. Dieng-Sindoro <– full participations already
1. Bali-Rinjani

August 2009
1. Surabaya-Bromo <– super santai family trip <– Kene kansel! Anak nak UPSR in Sept!

Wow! I stumbled upon this article at Yahoo! It is so inspirational.

I must be crazy but I wish to plan itinerary for the next trip! It can be the basis for discussion with Mas Kaboel.

Day 1 (Preferably Saturday)
0845 Board AirAsia AK6381 from Kuantan to LCCT
1335 Board AirAsia AK1004 from LCCT to Yogjakarta
1525 Arrived at Yogjakarta Airport
1630 Travel straight to Dieng Plateau (estimated 6 hours journey).
Route: Yogja-Magelang-Temanggung-Wonosobo, unless there is a shortcut!
2200 Arrived at Dieng Plateau - overnight here

Day 2
Visit places at Dieng Plateau from sunrise to sunset

Day 3
0500 Travel to Mt Sindoro basecamp (braekfast along the way)
0700 We should be able to start the trekking (approx 6-7 hours, should be max 12 hours)
(maybe via Kledung, and trekking down via Sigedang - I don’t know which one is better)
1900 Should reach the last Post by now. Camping here.

Day 4
0500 Ascend to the summit - still not sure the exact route
0700 Should be able to go back to the tent & packing
0800 Trekking down
1900 Arrived at basecamp.
If we can sleep there, we just sleep there, else have to check-into the nearby hotels in Wonosobo.

Day 5
0500 Travel to Yogjakarta (5 hours drive)
1000 Arrived at Yogjakarta. Can visit outdoor boutique or Malioboro again.
Lunch & solat there.
1400 Drive to airport.
1555 Board AirAsia AK1005 from Yogjakarta to LCCT
1925 Arrived at LCCT
1200 Board the last bus to Kuantan! Or with a MAS SuperSaver, we can fly using MAS.

This trip is a ’santai’ trip. I don’t like sleeping inside a van. So we should plan our travelling nicely. And we need good sleep especially before & after the tiring trekking. So who are with me for this trip?

A picture of Sindoro…..from flickr

Sindoro & Sumbing (The Twin SUSI Mountains)….maybe Arey & Paie would want to skip Dieng & attack Sumbing then together we can go to Sindoro…

How about the view from the top?

Some references:

1. http://www.joglosemar.co.id/mt_sindoro.html
2. http://isackfarady.wordpress.com/2008/07/06/back-packing-to-sindoro-sumbing-part-i/
3. http://blog.kenz.or.id/2005/05/16/slower-rain-pendakian-gunung-sindoro-6.html

About the flight…

Just a teaser….

So for flight from LCCT-JOG, its about RM400 each….and for KUA-KUL returns flight, super saver price…If AirAsia offers special price, or RM0 fare, then without further ado, I’ll buy the ticket!

About extra RM200 per person if we want to fly from Ktn-KL…emmmm….but the journey will be more comfortable. Since it will be a long time till Feb July 2009…we should start saving….

Update: What a coincidence. Just musing about AirAsia’s promotion….but it will be in my busiest months of the year!

About the date…

Can you all see the date? 7-11th Feb is OK? Meaning 3 working days. So need to apply 3 days leave. Need longer time?

OK here is a snippet about Java climate…

So, its true April-August is the best time to visit Java. And its coincide with AirAsia offer….so I will finalise the date & it should be in July 2009. Wah…another one complete year!!

Maybe mid-July we will go to Dieng-Sindoro. As for Bali-Rinjani……I don’t know. One trip per year should be OK I guess……

About the people…

For ‘petualang’ from Kuantan OK or not? We should aim for max 9 people for this trip, as this is the most cost-effective number. Oh btw, we need people who can setup tent, willing to cook (teh hangat…..boil the canned food….those simple stuff) & willing to carry maybe upto 15kg backpack. If we can get a proper porter than we can hire one. Else we have to carry stuff ourselves.

Muahahahaha…..4 people already given me their names….

1. Me of course
2. dR ali
3. Nizam
4. Kavalera –> the first to confirm
5. Jasni

Jasni, are you coming? Remi, you can fill-in the rest. That’s quota for Orang Gunung! Else many Orang Gunung wannabe wanna go.

About the gears…

I plan to bring my 35L Future Deuters instead. And a usual travel slig bag. Because from the previous experiences, most of the time the bag will be at the top of the van. And when we trek, we only need to bring a pair of cloth, the tent, water (maybe) & taht’s all. The rest are camera stuff.

I think I am crazy…..

My previous spec broken. Thanks to Mount lawu expedition. I though it can last at least till I can do Lasix but on last Friday, the frame broke. So yesterday I went to my regular optical shop at Kuantan Parade & bought my self Rudy Project’s Kabrio Gravity 4. Its a full frame (peh…just like my camera) spectacle with clip-on sun glass.

The description….

KABRIO GRAVITY 5
By bringing the KABRIO™ to reality, our craftsmen have redefined the limits of optical innovation ahead of contemporary boundaries. This unique piece of eyewear has been forged around pure technological refinement, advanced light conditions management, slender design and human ergonomics requirements: while Kabrio‘s half rimless eyewear architecture allows full RX-ability and unsurpassed comfort on a pure titanium platform (optional), its user-friendly solar adapter enables you to instantly see clearly when light conditions change dramatically by flipping up the adapter. Once free of its solar appendix, Kabrio™reveals the subtle elegance and the comfortable solutions of a full RP optical platform: 360° adjustable temple tips, resilient silicon nospads, spring hinges and titanium structure. Kabrio™ - unique optical reliability and sculptural comfort with innovative convertible features. Source: www.rudyproject.com

What make the spec expensive is not the frame, but mostly the sunglass. Rudy Project is popular for its good sunglass reputation especially for sport.

What had happened? Our van almost broke down. The vans’ brake & clutch plate broke down! That mishap had cost us our plan to go to Dieng Plateau on the first day. Instead we had to go to Jogja to get another van. Therefore, instead going to Dieng, we went to Magelang & visited Borobudur. It was my 2nd trip to Magelang & Borobudur.

Our very first group pix.

Mountains viewed from Borobudur.

The group pix at Borobudur.

I didn’t shoot many pictures at Borobudur. Afterall there was so many people up there.

So after 2 hours or so, we went to Jogja. We went to an outdoor boutique first as some of the group members need to buy extra outdoor gears. Well, I also bought myself portable gas stove. About RM50 each. Yeah, I bought two. Another one for a friend here in Malaysia. We stayed at Twin Trim hotel if I am not mistaken. A simple hotel but a quite expensive (for Indonesian rate). The next morning we went street shooting. I am horrible at street shooting, therefore I will not going to share my shots with you guys.

About 11am, we were already preparing ourself for a trip to Dieng.

Posing for a picture before boarding the van to Dieng. That’s our official drink….Mizone!! (But I didn’t drink even a single bottle for this trip).

We stopped at a small town (can’t recall its name) for solat & lunch. We tried Pak Rahman Soto. Not as tasty as Mbok Giyem soto in Boyolali.

Then we continue our journey to Dieng. Our guide miscalculated the time taken to reach Dieng. He thought only 3 hours but instead we needed 6 hours to reach Dieng Plateau at Wonosobo district. Well, what can we do…..some pictures from inside the van…

We stopped at a small food-stall (warung) at the top of Dieng Plateau…When we reached Dieng, it was already passed Marghrib. We had our dinner & solat here. Now, we have to decide whether we want to stay overnight at Dieng & may compromise our trip to Mount Lawu, because the trip to Mt Lawu (Central Java & East Java border) may take another 6-8 hours. We held a simple meeting & with a majority vote of 4-2 (another 2 members neutral), we decided to go sleep over at Selo Pass & will miss Dieng’s sunrise! But we already plan to go to Dieng & to climb Mount Sindoro next year (maybe in February).

To be continue…..

Ah….still busy but I better write something before I forget.

We strated the journey on 29th July after Marhgrib from Kuantan. Me, Ali, Nizam & Sani went to my friend’s house, Azahadi in Shah Alam for short rest. Few hours later at about 4:00am, Azahadi was so kind to send us to LCCT. We met Remi & Todd at LCCT. Waje & Jasni were also there. So after a while, at about 5:00am, we went straight to check-in. It was already a very long que.

Subuh was at 5:45am, but we already at the counter that time, so we check-in immediately, alhamdulillah no excess luggage, then went straight to musholla. We didn’t have enough time to have breakfast. We stuck again after the immigration. So many people & was later found out that our flight has been delayed a bit.

We boarded AK996 eventually. Soon we were already on the air flying to Solo.

Upon reaching Solo, we managed to shoot the legendary smoking Mount Merapi & not to forget Mount Merbabu.

About 9:00am local time, we already in Solo Airport.

We met Mas Kabul & Memeng (the driver) at the airport. We were told that the actual van (Kia Pregio) was not ready and we have to use another van for the time being. We then went to Magelang enroute to Dieng Plateau. Stopped at Boyolali to savour Mbak Giyem soto for breakfast. We also stopped at Selo Pass, just to give some of the members who didn’t have the chance to view Mount Merapi to shoot some pictures. We then continue to Dieng, but somethingeunexpected happened!! (to be continue)

Alhamdulillah, the nine of us succesfully conquered Mount Lawu! We went to various places but I am not able to write the story now due to work commitment. This is a pix at Bromo for a teaser….

p/s This pix was taken from inside the moving jeep.

Best! First time order through Amazon. Ordered 15 July & arrived today!

I ordered 2 books, How to report statistics in medicine & Mediacal statistics! Detail later. Got work to do!