The national park is named after its two mountains, Mount Semeru (the highest in Java at 3,676 metres), Mount Bromo (the most popular) and theTengger people who inhabit the area. Mount Semeru also known as Mahameru (“Great Mountain”), is one of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes. What stands out most about this mountain is the fact that it erupts periodically (and very reliably so). Every 20 minutes or so, the volcano belches out a huge cloud of steam and smoke, sometimes interspersed with ash and stones. Climbing Mount Semeru requires some planning and a permit from the national park authority. The mountain is often closed due to its highly active nature.

Mount Bromo (2,329 metres) is easily recognized as the entire top has been blown off and the crater inside constantly belches white sulphurous smoke. It sits inside the massive Tengger caldera (diameter approximately 10 km), surrounded by the Laut Pasir (Sea of Sand) of fine volcanic sand. The overall effect is unsettlingly unearthly, especially when compared to the lush green valleys all around the caldera.

The major access point is Cemoro Lawang (also Cemara Lawang or Cemora Lawang - blame the East Javanese accent!) at the northeastern edge of the caldera, but there are also trails from Tosari (northwest) and Ngadas (southwest). The village of Ngadisari, on the road from Probolinggo about 5.5 km before Cemoro Lawang, marks the entrance to the national park. Both Cemoro Lawang and Ngadisari are rather picturesque, with brightly-painted houses and flower beds outside.

The area in and around the park is inhabited by the Tenggerese, one of the few significant Hindu communities left on the island of Java. The local religion is a remnant from the Majapahit era and therefore quite similar to that on Bali but with even more animist elements. The Tenggerese are believed to be descendents of the Majapahit prices and were driven into the hills after mass arrivals in the area of devoutly Muslim Madurese in the 19th century. These Madurese immigrants were labourers working for Dutch coffee plantation owners and the native Hindu people of the region soon found themselves outnumbered and either converted to Islam or fled to the inhospitable high mountain tops where they remain today.

The religion is quite low key though (certainly when compared to Bali) with the most visible manifestation of faith being the rather austere Poten temple in the sea of sand. The Tenggerese number about 600,000 and they reside in 30 villages scattered in and around the park with smaller communities elsewhere in East Java. For many visitors, the sight of the angular-faced, sunburned, moustachioed Tenggerese wrapped in poncho-like blankets, trotting about on ponies with craggy mountains as the backdrop, more resemblesPeru than Indonesia!

Landscape

If ever a landscape were need to demonstrate the meaning of the phrase desolate beauty, then this is surely it. Rugged, barren volcanic peaks, gravel plains and that sea of sand. Truly unworldly. The park also includes large areas which are very lush and green fed by rivers from the high tops. The medium elevations are clad with much thinner forest before this gives way to the barren plateau and peaks.

Flora and fauna

In the parts of the park which most interest visitors (the caldera and mountain tops) flora and fauna is limited – a general lack of vegetation. At lower elevations and away from the sea of sand there are though lush green valleys with a typical tropical forest flora. The higher elevations before the tree line ends are largely clad with casuarina (cemara) forest.

Down in the valleys, a few leopard cats are present but rarely seen. Java rusa deer, muntjac, marbled cat and wild pig are amongst the mammals more likely to be glimpsed by casual visitors. This park is not so renowned for birdwatching as others in Java but up on the plateau you often see hawks and eagles soaring over the valleys below.

Climate

Temperatures are refreshingly cool during the day but outright cold at night as temperatures can drop close to zero in the summer and are rarely much above 5°C in winter. Daytime temperatures anywhere in the park never exceed 20°C with low teens being normal.

It can rain at anytime and the mean average rainfall is 6,600 mm. Most of that comes in the wet season though – November to March. During periods of heavy rain in January and February especially, many parts of the park are inaccessible due to flooding. Landslips are also a real issue at these times. (Source)

Special East Java Team (AXIS PROJECT)

I would like to express my deep thanks to all of you as my friends and colleagues. Specially thanks to Mr. Reinhard, Pak Eko yang ganteng, Mr. Anwar, Pak Ismail, Mbak Meidy, Mr. Muklis, Wong “Ucing Garong”, Irvan, Joko “The Jones”, Kang Syarif “Mr.Semox”, Pak Mufly, Pak Bondan, Andy “The Jangkrik”, Fatur, Singo, Pangbudi, Ryan, Awang, Eri, Heru, Rahmat, Didik “Sang Pendusta”, Pak Jimmy “Sang Pawang”, Pak Krisnan, Pak Didi, Pak Yono, Pak Arifin, Pak Bambang, Pak Arif, and all of you that I can not mention one by one for helping and precious moments you gave to me during my time in this project and making things possible for me.
Please apologize for any mistakes which could be happened during my services for East Java Team.I wish all the best for you and continue your success. Keep in Touch Guys, because Jiaw Yang will be the team leader until the end.

Longonot is a beautiful young stratovolcano rising above the Kenya rift valley. The crater floor measures about two miles (3.2 Km) from east to west. The northern crater rim reaches an elevation of 8,583 ft. (2,617 m). According to local legends Longonot erupted in the 1860′s. When I climbed the volcano in 1967, steam was issuing from a few spots on the inner wall. The entire crater interior was heavily vegetated so that walking was difficult, and the stories that lions were there was frighteningly . Real Mount Longonot is a dormant stratovolcano located southeast of Lake Naivasha in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya, Africa. It is thought to have last erupted in the 1860s. Its name is derived from the Masai word oloonong’ot, meaning “mountains of many spurs” or “steep ridges”.

Mt. Longonot is protected by the Kenya Wildlife Service as part of Mount Longonot National Park. A trail runs from the park entrance up to the crater rim, and continues in a loop encircling the crater. The whole tour is only about 8-9 km long but very steep, so that the round trip of park gate – Longonot Peak – park gate takes around 5 hrs hiking. The gate is around 2150 m asl and the peak at 2780 m asl but following the jagged rim involves substantially more than the 630 m vertical difference. A forest of small trees covers the crater floor, and small steam vents are found spaced around the walls of the crater. The mountain is home to various species of wildlife, notably zebra and giraffe and buffaloes (droppings on the rim) and hartebeest. Leopards have also been reported but are extremely difficult to spot.
Mt. Longonot is 60 kilometres northwest of Nairobi and may be reached from there by a tarmac road. The road was re-done by the EU and is now excellent, reducing travel time from Nairobi to around an hour. A nearby town is also named Longonot. The Longonot satellite earth station is located south of the mountain.

The Maasai people of East Africa live in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania along the Great Rift Valley on semi-arid and arid lands. The Maasai occupy a total land area of 160,000 square kilometers with a population of approximately one half million people. However, many Maasai see the national census as government meddling and often miscount their numbers to census takers. This part also they called Land of Massai because, the Maasai society is comprised of sixteen sections (known in Maasa as Iloshon): Ildamat, Irpurko, Irkeekonyokie, Iloitai, Irkaputiei, Irkankere, Isiria, Irmoitanik, Iloodokilani, Iloitokitoki, Ilarusa, Irmatatapato, Irwuasinkishu, Kore, Parakuyu, and Irkisonko, also known as Isikirari (Tanzania’s Maasai). There was also once Iltorobo section but was assimilated by other sections. A majority of the Maasai population lives in Kenya. Sections such as the Isikirari, Parakuyu, Kore and Ilarusa lives in Tanganyika.

Lake Naivasha is a beautiful freshwater lake, fringed by thick papyrus. The lake is almost 13kms across, but its waters are shallow with an average depth of five metres. Lake area varies greatly according to rainfall, with an average range between 114 and 991 sq kms. At the beginning of the 20th Century, Naivasha completely dried up and effectively disappeared. The resulting open land was farmed, until heavy rains a few years later caused the lake to return to existence, swallowing up the newly established estates. Afternoon wind and storms can cause the Lake to become suddenly rough and produce high waves. For this reason, the local Maasai christened the lake Nai’posha meaning ”rough water”, which the British later misspelt as Naivasha. The lake and its surrounds are rich in natural bounty, and the fertile soils and water supply have made this one of Kenya’s prime agricultural regions. Much of the lake is surrounded by forests of the yellow barked Acacia Xanthophlea, known as the yellow fever tree. These forests abound with bird life, and Naivasha is known as a world class birding destination. The waters of the lake draw a great range of game to these shores. Giraffes wander among the acacia, Buffalo wallow in the swamps and Colobus monkeys call from the treetops while the Lakes large hippo population sleep the day out in the shallows. The region surrounding the Lake is well worth exploring. There are two more smaller lakes nearby, Oloidien, and Sonachi, a bright green cater lake. Hell’s Gate National Park lies beside the lake. This Park was named for its pair of massive red tinged cliffs framing a geothermically active interior of steam vents and bubbling springs. The park is home to a profusion of plains game and birdlife. Walking is permitted, making it ideal for hiking, biking, and rock climbing. Boat trips on the lake are widely available, and is a great way to spend an afternoon or morning.

The Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa lies across the equator in east-central Africa, on the coast of the Indian Ocean. Kenya borders Somalia to the east, Ethiopia to the north, Tanzania to the south, Uganda to the west, and Sudan to the northwest. In the north, the land is arid; the southwest corner is in the fertile Lake Victoria Basin; and a length of the eastern depression of the Great Rift Valley separates western highlands from those that rise from the lowland coastal strip. Kenya has numerous wildlife reserves, containing thousands of animal species.

Kenya is situated in East Africa, and its economy runs primarily on tourism. It is a country of geographical extremes like the highest point being the Mount Kenya peak at 5119 m and the lowest point being the Indian Ocean at 0 m. It also shares a part of Lake Victoria, which is the largest lake on the continent. But Kenya has much more to offer than this and one such place is the Masai Mara. The Masai Mara is a Game park and a heaven for animal lovers as you can spot the big 5′s of Africa.