Harau Valley, Sumatra, Indonesia. 7 January 1986

Met the others [Alain & Evi] near the clocktower [in Bukittingi] at 7.45am.  A cloudy, misty morning, no rain. An oplet [shared taxi] to the bus terminal, then a bus to Payakumbu, 36kms away. From there an oplet to another terminal. Then we walked to another terminal for an oplet ride to the Harau Valley.

From there we walked 5ks through the valley, flanked by sheer rock-faces, quite high [~300m] with spectacular waterfalls. Some tranquil farm scenes, a lot of water buffalo. Ran the gauntlet of “hellos” yet again from everyone especially little kids. “Apa kabars” from us in return.

Got to the base of our first waterfall, then climbed a steep path for a panorama of the valley. A guy sold us drinks and peanuts up there.

Walked another 3ks to see 3 more waterfalls. The force of the water at the base created a lot of wind & spray. Men with rifles were shooting birds from the tree-tops.

We came back cutting across rice paddies for a short-cut. Most of the time there was light rain. Had soup, tea and some biscuits in a small shop. Hitched a ride in a truck to Payakumbu before bussing back arriving at 6pm.