A wheel alternative in Bali

By GEOFF CUMMING

As the bus climbing into Bali's mountainous interior slows to a crawl, members of our tour party question their preparation for the bike ride to come. Around an S-bend, the active volcano of Mt Batur (1700m) looms into view. Far below, Lake Batur is dwarfed by the volcano on one side and the Abang mountains, rising sheer on the other.

All hairpin bends, the gravel road down to the lake looks like a mountain-biking adrenalin rush. But what about getting back up in the heat and humidity?

Thankfully, this is adventure tourism Bali-style and, after morning tea in a restaurant overlooking the lake, we detour to less dizzy heights.

Our mountain-cycling adventure is billed as a gentle meander through sleepy rural villages, past traditional temples and stunning rice terraces - and so it proves.

The only strain on the downhill run is on the wrists as a result of constantly applying the brakes, either to dodge potholes on the crumbling roads or to slow sufficiently to absorb the Third World sights along the way.

Sobek Adventures is one of a handful of tour companies opening up Bali's hinterland for those wanting to do more than bask on the beach. Rainforest treks, kayaking, trail-bike rides and river rafting are other ways to work up a sweat and to learn more about this tropical island's history, people and culture.

Our journey begins at a layby at the village of Pludu, suitably distanced from main thoroughfares and the prospect of being forced off the narrow roads by tour buses and vans.

Against a backdrop of a village compound with its regulation Hindu shrine, we don helmets and gloves and choose from a range of shiny, imported bikes.

Dewa, our guide, explains how to change gear, serving only to confuse despite his tolerable English.

Soon after we set off, the tarseal gives way to gravel and the surface just gets worse from there.

But the bone-rattling, one-hour ride provides casual tourists with an ideal glimpse of Bali beyond the beach resorts. The silent, freewheeling ramble is interrupted only to enlighten us about village life and collective farming practices.

Dewa explains that pride of place in each small hamlet is taken by the village temple.

Although Balinese Hinduism is not as strict as in India - the caste system has no untouchables - belief in reincarnation remains strong. That explains the token offerings, usually food items, left on the shrines built near the entrance to each family compound.

Entering one walled compound, Dewa gives a sanitised account of how each area corresponds to a body part. The shrine represents the head, the courtyard the abdomen, the various separate bedrooms, social room and kitchen are the arms and so on.

The aura of isolation is momentarily blurred by a glimpse of a late-model television and stereo inside one family room.

But hill country villagers still lead a semi-subsistence, if not self-sufficient, existence. Small orchards, often no more than one hectare, provide food for the family and the village collective.

High sunshine, rainfall, humidity and volcanic soil combine to provide plentiful crops of limes, mandarins, tapioca, bananas, papaya and breadfruit.

Dewa says land is cheap, about $6000 a hectare. But visions of a simple life are dashed by reminders that Bali's dependence on tourism extends even to these remote hamlets.

Outside some compounds, children and men huddle around small pools of water, making sandstone bricks and paving stones to feed the southern construction boom.

Others sit in the shade, whittling carvings from softwood which, darkened with shoe polish, will be sent to the tourist shops.

Many of the educated young leave home to work in Denpasar or the tourist resorts, sending money back to support the extended family.

As we descend, the steep hills flatten and orchards give way to rice paddies - a light-green sea against a backdrop of tropical palms and jungle. Dewa spoils the effect slightly by explaining that the nutritionally superior Balinese rice is giving way to a genetically engineered hybrid which is faster growing.

Bali's hinterland may not be immune to the outside world and it will inevitably be further opened up to tourism. For now, however, it offers stunning scenery, Third World images and an insight into a totally different way of life and culture.

And a no-sweat bike ride is an (almost) painless way to experience it up close and still be back at your hotel in time for cocktails.

* Geoff Cumming visited Bali courtesy of Garuda Indonesia, the Government-owed airline.

CASENOTES


GETTING THERE: Garuda International flies three days a week - Wednesday and Thursday via Brisbane and Saturday direct. Accommodation packages including transfers start at $1075 for four nights. A $400 upgrade to business class is recommended for the eight-hour flight, if your budget allows.

ADVENTURES: Sobek Tours' half-day mountain-cycling adventure costs about $75, lunch included. Longer (and more demanding) treks are available from the likes of Sobek, Bali Adventure Tours, Waka Land Cruises and Waka Tangga.

At Benoa Harbour, Bali Hai Cruises offers "ocean rafting" on high-speed, New Zealand-made inflatables to view dolphins and whales, as well as day-trips on fast ferries to nearby Lembongan Island, scuba diving and sunset cruises. Prices, including meals, range from $80 to $170.

Quicksilver operates tours to other offshore islands.

Check for specials and discounts through your travel agent or at your hotel.

WHEN TO GO: Our winter months are recommended, with temperatures in the low-30s and humidity low. The dry season extends from April/May to December.

WHAT TO WEAR: You won't need a jacket, and beach clothing is fine for browsing the markets. But wear something respectable if you plan a temple visit.