It took us slightly over a hour to climb to the top in the hot afternoon. It's an extinct volcano so the steps are either cut into the rock or cast concrete so be alert as it can get slippery with sand on stone. There are campsites along the way and near the summit. The summit was windy and offered great view of the area: terraced paid fields, a reservoir, another summit (Five Fingers) and Jogjakarta in the distance. We came down by the other way and met a family of macaques which were not friendly even though we did not disturb them. Just take care of your belongings. There are some local farms with chicken, goats, cocoa beans at the bottom of this track.

Nglanggeran ancient volcano is 700 meters above sea level and located in district Gunung Kidul, +/- 1 hour away from Yogyakarta by motorbike/car. Mt.Nglanggeran is an ancient volcano that used to be an active volcano million years ago and being in active since 60 million years ago. I visited this place few times there are 2 peaks, the east peak and the west peak,the east peak looks higher when i saw it from the west peak, but i haven’t been to the east peak because the west peak offers more spots for photography as what locals said. The hike to reach the top of Mt.Nglanggeran (the west peak) will takes +/- 60 minutes, including few stops to rest a bit, enjoy the view and to take some photos, it’s not a difficult hike and suggested to hike around 16.00 - 16.30 so you can enjoy the sunset once you reached the top (sunset in Yogyakarta usually around 17.20 - 17.50), during the hike sometimes you will hear monkey’s noises or see some monkeys in the forest as well. If you plan to hike after 17.00 it’s recomended to use a mosquito repellent, there’s no mosquito at the top of the mountain because the wind is strong but there are plenty in the forest and they’re only active when the weather is colder and darker. On the way to the top,if you love photography, you will find many amazing and wonderful spots, the path between the giant boulders, the rocks formation, the nature and many more, but when you hike at 11.00 - 15.00 it’s a bit difficult to get a perfect shot because the sun is very strong and the weather is too hot, i haven’t try to hike after the rain but in my opinion it’s going to be wonderful. Once you reached the top you will be amazed by the view, the landscape and the horizon are magnificent to see and from the top of the mountain you will also see,”The Embung”, which uses to collect the rainwater to irrigates the fruit gardens and the rice fields around the reservoir, especially during the dry season. On the way back if you choose another way when you came, you will pass through a village, you will see a lot of chocolate trees (this village also produce chocolate), livestocks and meet some nice and friendly villagers. Mt.nglanggeran is also open for a night hike or camping, i haven’t done the night hike, but i wish someday i had an opportunity to do that, since not so many light pollution around the area at night, i’m very sure that it would be beautiful to enjoy the stars and the city lights. This place is worth to visit and my advice is don’t forget to bring enough water, the first time i hiked this mountain was at noon with a friend, 15 minutes after we hiked we realised that we don’t have enough water with us, but we kept going because we thought that it would be like a common touristic area where you can find a small local shop selling drinks, but we’re wrong, we didn’t find any until we reached the top, so we decided to go back down immediately once we reached the top, because it was so hot that moment and we’re so thirsty. It’s really an unforgettable moment 😂😂😂. Thank you for reading my writing, if you need more informations about our city, place of interest, where to eat and what to do, please don’t hesitate to text or drop by to our hostel (aftermidnight hostel), we’re not only providing an accommodation but a friendship and some information as well, forgive for any lackness in my writing, hope someday we had a chance to explore the city together, happy traveling. 🙏🙏🙏