The Unconventional Majesty of Mount Sunda

Photo: Pradipta Dirgantara

Mount Sunda | 2,000 words | Translated from Bahasa Indonesia by Dan Benjamin

Mount Sunda is not a popular mountain for hikers. It’s not like Mount Ceremai, the highest peak in West Java, or Mount Papandayan, which has a reputation as a good mountain for trekking beginners. There’s not much information about Mount Sunda on the internet. But this was part of the reason we chose to hike it: we wanted to avoid a ‘commercialized’ mountain visited by lots of tourism-focussed people. Also, Mount Sunda’s not too far from the city of Bandung, where we all live.

From the middle of Bandung, the foothills of Sunda can be reached in about two hours by car or motorbike. Myself and five others, Tedi, Dimas, Brian, Cecep and Anugrah, departed on four motorbikes, with me, Tedi, Dimas and Brian each driving our own bikes and Anugrah hitching a ride on the back of Cecep’s.

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English translation © Dan Benjamin

About The Author

Pradipta Dirgantara

Pradipta Dirgantara works as a lecturer in Environmental Communication at Telkom University. He holds two Masters degrees, one in Environmental Science from Universitas Padjadjaran and one in Environmental Management from the University of Twente. He is always happy out in nature, whether mountain-climbing, jogging, hiking, bike-riding, or diving.