Day trip to Sendang Gile & Tiu Kelep Waterfalls from Senggigi

31 May 2024

Sendang Gile & Tiu Kelep Waterfalls are located in the town of Senaru, which is the area most people would stay in before trekking to Mount Rinjani. In fact, most of the Rinjani trekkers would include a visit to these waterfalls either before or after their trek. Even though our group is not trekking up Mount Rinjani, the two beautiful waterfalls are worth seeing.

Senaru is located in the north of Lombok, about 77 km from our hotel in Senggigi. We had booked a chartered van with driver and guide for the day trip to these waterfalls. Our guide for the day was Jali since Omar (our guide in the first 2 days) had some family commitments and could not join us on this day.

We left our hotel at about 9 AM. It took us about 2 hours to get to Senaru. On the way, we saw plenty of villages, countryside, beaches and padi fields. We even chanced upon a large herd of goats crossing the road.

By the time we arrived in Senaru, it was time for an early lunch before trekking to the first waterfall. Jali brought us to Rinjani Lodge, a restaurant and hotel accommodation located on the borders of the Rinjani National Park. Situated on the edge of a cliff, it has infinity pools with views of the surrounding mountains, including Mount Rinjani.   The first thing that wowed us when we arrived at Rinjani Lodge was the awesome views.

Infinity pools at the lodge.

Accommodations at the lodge for trekkers to Mount Rinjani.

We enjoyed the scenic views from the observation deck and even spotted some wild black monkeys in the jungle next to the lodge. The observation deck protruded out from the cliff and was quite scary for those who are afraid of heights.  

Observation deck at the Rinjani Lodge with steep drop into the valley below. Notice the extremely low railings.

The restaurant offers a range of Indonesian and Western specialties. My wife and I prefer to try Indonesian food such as the Bebek Betutu (a local duck dish) and the Curry Chicken. The dishes were served with steamed rice, artistically packed inside a cone made from banana leaves.  Lunch at the Rinjani Lodge before our trek to the waterfalls.

Energised from our lunch, we started our trek to the waterfalls. The ticket booth and trailhead leading to both the Sendang Gile & Tiu Kelep Waterfalls is within walking distance from Rinjani Lodge. Entrance fees were taken care of by our guide Jali.

Jali had made arrangement for a local guide from Senaru village to lead us to the waterfalls. Guides are not mandatory but I was glad Jali arranged for one as we would soon find out.

Our local guide (I did not get his name), armed with a wooden stick, led us down a steep path paved with concrete steps through the rain forest towards Sendang Gile. He told us the stick was to defend us from wild monkeys that lurked in the forest.

Interesting flower of a unknown plant. We saw quite a few of them. 

We could hear and see the waterfall from the trail as we approached it. It only took about 15 minutes from the entrance to the Sendang Gile waterfall.

Once we got to the foot of the Sendang Gile waterfall, we could really feel its might.

Sendang Gile is an impressive two-tiered waterfall with massive force.

We could feel the cool spray of the mist generated by the force of the falling water against the rocks beneath. Despite being the dry season (from May to October), the volume of water cascading down was quite massive.

The pool of water around the Sendang Gile waterfall is shallow at this time of year. It is hence not suitable for taking a dip.

After taking some time to enjoy the surroundings and admire the power of the fall, we continued on our trek to the next waterfall. One member of our party was not feeling well, so Jali stayed with the couple at Sendang Gile Waterfall while our local guide led the rest of the group (3 other couples) to Tiu Kelep.

From Sendang Gile Waterfall, we headed back towards the entrance and turn left at the sign for Tiu Kelep Waterfall. We saw a troop of small monkeys in the trees above but they did not bother us.

The trek to Tiu Kelep was more interesting. The first part of the hike was easy, with steps going downhill and then up to a bridge which is actually an aqueduct carrying water from the mountains to the village of Senaru. As we made our way across the aqueduct, we could see the water gushing rapidly along the aqueduct through the metal grills below us. 

At the other end of the bridge, we saw some locals with inflated rubber tires, offering rides through the aqueduct. 

Hiking towards the Tiu Kelep Waterfall. The sluice gate is the structure at the top of the stairs.

After passing a sluice gate, the hike becomes more exciting. We went through lush tropical jungle, rocky trails and had to cross the shallow river that leads to the Tiu Kelep waterfall.

Our waterfall guide lends a helping hand to ensure all the ladies and some gents negotiate the trail safely.

Before the first water crossing, we changed into our aqua shoes (already wet from the previous day’s trip to the Gili Islands) or sandals so as to keep our shoes dry.  

Changing into our aqua shoes or sandals before the crossing the stream.

Our guide offered to carry our backpacks for the water crossing but we told him we could manage. The water was mostly ankle deep only. Just need to watch out for slippery rocks and strong current. 

First water crossing for the day. 

It was amazing to see our waterfall guide going through the terrain with bare feet. There are some parts of the rocky trails that were lined with sharp chicken wires on top and he just walked right on them.

Enjoying the thrill of hiking through rough terrain.

The path to the Tiu Kelep Waterfall is not well-marked but it is not easy to get lost. Just follow the trail along the river to the waterfall. Having said that, it was good that we had a guide to show us the best path to take.

There are several water crossings before we arrived at the falls. We got more confident after completing the first water crossing. Overall, it took about 40 to 50 minutes to reach Tiu Kelep Waterfall.

Tiu Kelep Waterfall is impressive! It offers a fantastic photo backdrop. Our guide added value by helping to take numerous photos at the waterfall. The area near the waterfall has high humidity and there is a constant stream of misty water spray from the waterfall. Non water-resistant cameras or phones could be easily damaged by the wetness. The ground at this place was also soaking wet so our guide carried a few of our backpacks on his shoulders while taking the photos!

Our guide was careful to shield the lens and openings of my friend’s mobile phone with his hands before taking quick shots. 

Couple photo with Tiu Kelep Waterfall as backdrop.

Group photo taken by our guide.

Our guide knew the best angle and places to get the good photos.

Photo of the day.

The aqua shoes provided good traction on the slippery rocks.

The wet rocks were very slippery and we had to be careful. One of my friends slipped once and suffered a slight abrasion on his ankles. 

After we had enough of the waterfall, we returned via the way we came.

Our guide insisted to help carry some of the backpacks. 

On the way back, one of the guys went for a dip in the rock pool and I followed suit. Big mistake!

I realised that I had my wallet and mobile phone were in my hiking pants after I stepped into the water. As a result, my phone went dead and could not be revived. I lost all the photos taken on this trip. 

I made the mistake of jumping into the stream to take a dip at this point.

Swam with my wallet and Samsung Galaxy S10 in my pocket.

Drying ourselves and changing back to our hiking shoes before trekking back to Rinjani Lodge.

After the last water crossing, we took time to dry ourselves and changed back into our hiking shoes.

After the fun, we trudged back up the steps to the entrance and then back to Rinjani Lodge where we met up with the rest of the group.

From there, we took the 2 hours drive back to Senggigi. By the time we arrived back at Senggigi, it was already dark.

We decided to have dinner at the Ocean Blue Seafood Restaurant. This restaurant is owned by a Malaysian Chinese and serves seafood cooked in Cantonese style. This is also one of the few restaurants we saw that displayed live fish, crabs and lobster in tanks for us to choose from. 

After dinner, we requested our driver and guide to bring us to Fresh Mart Senggigi, an upscale grocery store chain, to buy some beer, wine and snacks.

We ended the day with a get-together to enjoy some beer, wine and snacks in my hotel room.