MEMORIES OF MUNDUK

After a short safety briefing we’ll begin our day by warming our engines and setting out from our home base in Canggu. As we weave our way through both narrow village backstreets and quiet rural roads we can observe traditional morning routines of the local residents along the way. The only passing toll here is a wave and a smile.

By mid-morning we will make our first stop, a grand estate situated on the forested slopes of Batu Karu. Here we have the opportunity to tour the facilities and discover that it surprisingly houses a world class distillery and produces a very high quality local spirit. Although perhaps still a little early for a tasting we are welcomed to partake in their special hot chocolate ceremony, made from cacao beans grown right on the premises.

Now feeling warmed up and ready to ride we will jump back on our bikes and take the scenic cruise through wide open farmlands before hitting some smooth curvey asphalt as we begin our gradual climb to higher elevations.

After leaning in through some big sweepers we will continue on our journey along the gentle winding forest roads and through the Western foothills of Batu Karu towards the small village of Banyuatis, popularly known for it’s local coffee production. This section of our route has a few split tracks and unfinished patches so we’ll need to keep our senses tuned and reduce our speed to a slow but steady pace.

Upon reaching our destination we will be greeted with cool towels and welcome drinks before we take a rest and enjoy a freshly prepared lunch from the local menu. Our hosts here maintain a beautiful property here amongst the rice fields and we can be sure to enjoy the private view while we dine.

After lunch we will prepare for our next activity and commence on a short trek to one of Bali’s best kept secrets, a local waterfall which is seldom visited by your average selfie seeking tourist. Here we will spend some time splashing in the cool waters and basking on the bouldered riverbanks under the afternoon sun.

Around mid-afternoon and feeling fresh, we’ll once again ready ourselves to continue on to the final stretch of our journey back to Canggu. From here we will emerge from the jungle path and ride gradually back down towards the coast, enjoying the gentle roller coaster of twists and turns and epic ridgeline views along the way.

As we touch down back to Tabanans coastal farmlands it will be quite evident that there is certainly no end to the jaw dropping panoramas, even as we near the end of our journey. Here we will gradually make our way back into civilization through the bustling network of villages and traditional markets.

We’ll arrive back to our home base in Canggu just in time to enjoy sunset at the beach accompanied by a refreshing young coconut or a delicious, ice cold victory beer!