INDONESIA - BALI - PADANGBAI - 14 to 18 July 2014 - 'SNORKEL, BEACH, HIKE'

Info

Car/driver from Ubud to Padangbai

Car/driver from Padangbai to Legian – 250 000R

Kerti’s Beach Inn - jl Silayukti - 036341391 - www.kertibeach-inn.com

Our journey

We drove from Ubud to Padangbai and checked in at Kerti’s. The room was upstairs with a patio view over Padangbai harbour and beach. The room itself was small and the aircon noisy but the bed was okay and the room was clean.

Padangbai was a port town. The large interisland ferries between Bali and Lombok depart and land here about every hour. The dock area was rough and messy. The west end of Padangbai harbour was very dirty with a sewerage waterway emptying between the docks and the cliffs. Walking along the water’s edge from the docks was a rough area of rocks and reef backed by a jumbled concrete retaining wall. Next, came the pier for the boats to the Gilli Islands in Lombok. After the docks, was the white sand beach. Boats are on the beach or moored just a little offshore. The boats are mainly for tourism – diving, snorkelling and touring. Back from the beach was the main town. The east end has more expensive hotels and the centre area is the start of the main town which spreads out north and eastward up a large hill. There are number of restaurants in Padangbai.

We walked to Blue Lagoon and Bias Tugal a number of times:

We walked over the hill to Blue Lagoon. This was an okay snorkel which starts straight off the beach. The coral and fish was nice but there was a lot less than other years. Boats were anchoring closer to shore damaging the coral. A few larger dive boats had a mooring.

There were two warungs on the hill overlooking the cove, where they have deck chairs, food and snorkelling gear for hire. There isn’t much beach at high tide. Unfortunately, red stinging jellyfish, sea lice and rubbish gets blown and carried in as the tide becomes higher. Low tide seems to be the best time for snorkelling. There was a keyhole at the eastern end of the cove for water entry without damaging the coral.

The other snorkelling and swimming spot was Bias Tugal or white sand beach. It was a 20 minute walk up and down the hill on the western end of Padangbai. The beach was beautiful with some small waves at times. The snorkelling, about 10 metres out and to the right, was excellent with coral, fish and turtles. It was also a great swimming spot. Warungs line the beach providing food and shelter.

Another attraction was the temples on the hill to the east. There was a series of large, small and cliff hugging temples. We continued on pass the temples along a rough track to the point. The rocks on the point were sharp and volcanic. Continuing in the direction around the headland to Blue Lagoon there were a few small beaches and overhanging rocks which were very cave lik., This is also a good viewing spot for the temples hugging the cliffs and the view across the bay to Candidasa.

Overall, we found Padangbai relaxing, especially during the late afternoons.

Indonesia - Bali - Padangbai - 19 to 21 May 2011

Thursday 19 may 2011 – Balian and Padangbai – sun, cloudy, rain

I surfed the river rights 1m to 1 1/2m. It was good at first and I was on my own. A few guys paddled out as the wind began to increase and within a short time it was feathery and weak.

I decided to go to Padangbai. I paid my bill which was about 850 000 for five days total. The room was 120 000 per night with breakfast. I shared a car with an Aussie girl to Kuta and continued onwards to Padangbai.

I stayed at Kerta’s as the rooms had improved greatly and it was a good deal for 120 000.

I had to change the sim on my mobile which turned out to be a drama (problem wasn’t sim but receprion). I booked Su’s II in Legian for Saturday and Nyoman to pick up at 10 am.

Friday 20 may 2011 – Padangbai – sun, cloudy, rain

I had an early walk around Padangbai and the local markets.

After breakfast, I walked to Blue Lagoon. The snorkeling was good with heaps of fish and some coral. There were a few stingers in the water. I lied on the deck chair till mid afternoon enjoying the sun and bouts of rain.

I met an Aussie guy who had his wallet stolen on the ferry from Lombok. The crew were helpful in finding the thief but were unsuccessful.  I loaned him 1 000 000 rupiah and left him my address to mail a cheque, probably sometime in July. The exact same story came from a friend of mine (Greg) 30 years ago. Time marches on but the same things happened.

Indonesia - Bali - Padangbai - Bias Tugal - 2008

This a beautiful white sand beach about twenty minutes south of Padangbai which is great for swimming and lazing in the sun.

Starting at the main ferry terminal, there is a small street on the southern side that leads up a hill. Follow this street for a short distance until you come to a sign on your left indicating a track to Bias Tugal. Follow the track through the bush until it eventually leads downhill to the beach. There are a number of tracks as you walk along but it is obvious which is the main track.

The beach is a classic white crescent shaped tropical white sand beach. The water is deep and there are some small waves that break right on the edge of the shore. The beach is lined with a number of small restaurants where you can eat and drink and sit in the shade. At high tide wave action can cover a lot of the beach.

The northern and southern corners of the beach have sharp volcanic rocky points. They are great to explore. The southern end has a blowhole where water shoots upwards when there is larger wave action.

Warnings

Take water and a hat and joggers for the bush walk section (it is a hot walk)
Currents can be strong away from the beach edge
At times, wave action on the beach can be powerful