Why this ride
238 km from Colomadu to Colomadu, about 3 h 27 of riding. It goes by way of Prambanan Temple Compounds, Mendut Temple and back through Prambanan Temple Compounds. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Sangiran Early Man Site and Mendut Temple
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 238 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 27
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Sangiran Early Man Site
Half of what we know about Homo erectus in Asia seems to have come out of the ground near this village in central Java. Sangiran is a dome of eroded earth, a few kilometres across, in which stream cuts have exposed layers of volcanic ash and river sediment that built up over about two million years, and in those layers the bones of early humans and extinct animals have turned up. The first finds were made in the 1930s, notably by the German palaeontologist Ralph von Koenigswald, and the site has since produced the remains of some fifty individuals, about half of all known fossils of its kind in the world. UNESCO listed it in 1996.
Read the complete Sangiran Early Man Site write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sangiran Early Man Site is where the day begins. Next is Prambanan Temple Compounds.
2. Prambanan Temple Compounds
Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple complex in Indonesia, a cluster of soaring stone towers on the plain between Yogyakarta and Solo, with the volcano Merapi brooding to the north. The central shrines were built in the ninth century and dedicated to the Trimurti: Shiva in the tallest tower, about forty-seven metres high, flanked by Brahma and Vishnu, with smaller temples for their mounts facing them. The walls are covered with reliefs of the Ramayana, carved so that you read the story as you walk clockwise around the galleries.
Read the complete Prambanan Temple Compounds write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Prambanan Temple Compounds comes up 58 km in. Next is Mendut Temple.
3. Mendut Temple
Mendut is the small, elegant temple that most visitors pass on their way to Borobudur, and that is a mistake. Built in the early ninth century under the Sailendra dynasty, it stands about three kilometres east of the great monument, on a straight line that also passes through the tiny Pawon temple, and scholars believe the three were connected in a ritual sequence. Each year, at the Buddhist festival of Waisak, monks walk in procession from Mendut through Pawon to Borobudur, carrying candles and chanting.
Read the complete Mendut Temple write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
117 km in you reach Mendut Temple. Next is back through Prambanan Temple Compounds.
4. back through Prambanan Temple Compounds
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Prambanan Temple Compounds write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Prambanan Temple Compounds, late in the day. Next is Sangiran Early Man Site.
5. Sangiran Early Man Site
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sangiran Early Man Site write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Sangiran Early Man Site. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Sangiran Early Man Site to Prambanan Temple Compounds
Sangiran Early Man Site → Prambanan Temple Compounds is 72 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Prambanan Temple Compounds to Mendut Temple
Prambanan Temple Compounds → Mendut Temple is 45 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mendut Temple to back through Prambanan Temple Compounds
Mendut Temple → back through Prambanan Temple Compounds is 45 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Prambanan Temple Compounds to Sangiran Early Man Site
back through Prambanan Temple Compounds → Sangiran Early Man Site is 72 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.