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 Summary: Length 35-40 kms, max height 1295m , min height 650m. Total ascent:645m. Mixed singletrack and jeep track in morning, easy tarmac ride in afternoon.
After a 2 hour transit we set off from a bustling market in the Central Volcano’s caldera and spend the first 10 km riding a real mix of surfaces on tracks looking down on the small farming communities around Candikuning, one of a few Muslim strongholds on the Island. Our path takes us through a beautifully kept botanical gardens and then out on to a wilder stretch of descending forest trail. Mainly red-mud trails continue across typical vegetable growing farmland until we reach a small but ‘testy’ piece of uphill singletrack which takes us over the head of a valley. You are then rewarded with a fast section of smooth red mud trail in a distinctly downhill direction. Eventually we reach a small tarmac road which conveniently guides us around the tops of rice paddies to our lunch stop, a small restaurant that serves excellent food with great views across beautifully kept paddy fields.
The afternoon is a pleasant spin along a small tarmac road that continues to wind its way just south of the central volcanoes. You will spend the night in a Balinese retreat set amongst the rice-paddies; the perfect place to chill-out after your first day in the saddle. For those with some energy left to burn there is a 200 m ascent (over a distance of 2 km) up to Batu Karu temple. For those that lack the energy but want to explore, transport is always available.
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