Bali Biking Tour

Our last day in Ubud we signed up for the cycle tour which consists of about 85% downhill riding through villages, forests and rice fields. We had a very talkative guide who explained a lot about Balinese life and customs including how all the children are named by their birth order (1st to 4th) so there is no need for baby name books!

Rice Terraces

To ride down we first had to drive up so we started with breakfast at the edge of a giant crater that overlooked Lake Batur and the Batur Volcano.

Breakfast view

 Second stop was a local tea and coffee plantation that demonstrated how different coffees are grown and harvested including the famous Kopi Luwak which is produced by the "Toddy Cat" who looks like a ferret more than a cat. The cat eats the raw coffee beans which is then digested and collected by locals and brewed into coffee. It can be sold in North American for $60 a cup but we could sample it for just $6. We decided to pass and just go with some of the undigested tea and coffee samples.

Tea and coffee sampling

Now for the bikes! We were fitted for a bike and helmet and set off on the downhill tour. They weren't lying about the downhill part and we didn't have to peddle much but we were really thankful our brakes worked! Along the way we stopped at some villages and at various rice fields in different stages of growth and processing. We were even able to help some of the local women harvest the rice.

Rice planting

Rice harvesting

At the end of the bike tour we were giving an option 45 minute uphill ride to get to lunch. Feeling like we hadn't really earned our lunch yet we decided to go for it. I can say that the ride was humbling as riding uphill in sun in 40 degree weather is not something I have experienced before, but we made it and lunch was even more delicious.