Ijen at Night, Past the Miners Carrying 80 to 100 Kilos

The walk up Ijen is done in the dark, and the people you meet coming the other way are what most travellers remember afterwards. The sulphur miners carry their loads down in paired bamboo baskets across the shoulders, 80 to 100 kilos at a time, one way. At the top the route goes straight to the sunrise spot. If the sky is clear, what appears with the light is the Ijen plateau and the crater below it: one of the largest acidic lakes on earth, turquoise, and still producing sulphur every day. All the safety equipment is provided. The starting point is your hotel or homestay around the centre of Banyuwangi, which is what the operator recommends, and the trip ends either at Ketapang harbour or back in the city centre, whichever suits what you are doing next.