Climbing Mt. Merbabu

This week we are off from school as we are between units.  Therefore, I thought it might be a good idea to make an attempt at climbing nearby Mt. Merbabu, an extinct volcano before rainy season really begins in earnest.  There are several ways to climb it, and we chose to begin at night with the hope of being near the summit for early morning.  So, me and 3 other friends got on our scooters and motorcycles at 12 am on Tuesday morning and rode for about 40 minutes to the nearby volcano.  We soon met up with our guide and began our climb.  The picture above was taken part way up the mountain at about 4:30 in the morning of the valley below where we live.

The above picture was taken about an hour later after the sun came up.  Long story short, we were unable to reach the summit of this volcano...this time.  It was a hard climb, and we all learned a lot on how to come better prepared for the next time.  We were about 2000 vertical feet short of reaching the 10,000 foot summit.  Many people told us how cold it would be near the top, and we definitely verified that.  When your body is acclimated to living in a tropical climate, 45-50F degrees with high humidity and high winds can really become dangerous and eye opening.  Although we didn't make it to the top, it was still a great time and some great memories were made.  Maybe I'll have another chance to make an attempt on the summit another time.