Take a Short Break to Enjoy the Beauty of Savana Propok

The Savana Propok in East Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), is among the popular non-climbing destinations of Mount Rinjani National Park (TNGR).

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Tourists arrive at Savana Propok, Bebidas Village, Wanasaba District, East Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, Saturday (28/8/2020).

The beauty of the Propok savanna in Bebidas village, Wanasaba district, East Lombok, has been like a magnet of late. In a single week, hundreds of people come to camp or unwind and take a break from their routine lives and the chaos that the pandemic has wrought.

After resting for a while under a shady tree on Saturday (28/8/2020), Hosmandala, 23, Basri Jaya, 23, Rosydi, 21, and Hasbulloh, 23, got up.

The four members of the Rinjani Perkasa Tourism Awareness Group searched among the vegetation, armed with plastic bags. They picked up any trash they found and placed it in their plastic bag.

Also read: Beware of New Covid-19 Clusters at Tourist Attractions

When the men grew tired, they rested again, taking a sip of water or snacking on the food they brought with them. Occasionally they looked to the east, towards the trail that tourists descended to arrive at the savanna.

“Savana Propok is becoming increasingly crowded today. But visitors sometimes leave their trash behind after camping. So we are here to clean it up and at the same time, monitor the incoming tourists,” said Basri Jaya.

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Tourists who come to Propok come from inside and outside West Nusa Tenggara.

Savana Propok is one of the more popular destinations at Mt. Rinjani National Park. Although it is categorized as a “non-climbing” destination, visitors must still climb to reach the savanna. To be certain, the route is not as long or as challenging as the climb to Sembalun or Senaru, the final stage on the route to Rinjani’s peak.

Savana Propok is located at 1,700 meters above sea level. After registering at the entrance gate to the park, about 75 kilometers east of the NTB capital of Mataram, visitors must hike up to reach the savanna.

The route does not climb upward at the beginning. Visitors hike a horizontal trail through the forest for the first half-kilometer. After that, the trail winds up and down a fairly steep slope for about 1 kilometer.

Although the slope is steep, roots, small trees, and ropes offer helpful handholds at vertical points on the trail, including the last 700 meters or so before visitors arrive at the first rest stop, Bukit (Hill) Sekomak.

Just after emerging from the forest and before reaching Bukit Sekomak, visitors will pass a steep slope that is covered only by weeds and scrub. Despite the incline, this section of the trail is safe to walk. Moreover, the park management has installed a rope to help hikers along the slope at a relatively quick pace.

Visitors will feel that the rigorous, winding hike through the forest is starting to pay off along this section of the trail. Stopping to look back for a moment, the green canopy of the forest is clearly visible, nestled among the surrounding hills.

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Steep paths with beautiful views are a treat that visitors can enjoy at Propok.

It is best to tackle the hike in the morning. The views from the trail will be even more beautiful as the sun slowly rises behind the hills, and the warm light blends with the fresh mountain air.

After passing the weedy section of the trail, which takes about an hour and a half, visitors will arrive at Bukit Sekomak, the first stop before the descent to Savana Propok. There, a sign that reads "Savana Propok of Mount Rinjani National Park" welcomes all visitors who make it that far.

The sign, which has a Red and White flag attached to one side, is just an accessory to indicate a choice location for enjoying a view of the savanna or for taking pictures with the Propok Savana in the background. The main attraction is the savanna itself.

Also read: Reopened Borobudur Temple Relieves Boredom

From Bukit Sekomak, the vast expanse of weeds, shrubs, and other vegetation of the savanna fill the eye. The view is complemented by green hills to the north, east, and south, and the peak of Mt. Rinjani rising high to the west.

Stopping to take in the panoramic view at Bukit Sekomak is enough for some visitors, even without descending to the actual savanna, and then turning around to come back down the trail. But very few visitors do this. In fact, most tourists head explicitly to the hill for camping. After taking a brief break and some pictures, they continue on their journey down to the savanna.

"The tiredness I felt during the hike is paying off. The view is really good. At night, many stars are clearly visible in the sky. In the morning, even though it is cold, the air is fresh. Mount Rinjani is also very close [now],” said Ellya Supria “Ria” Ningsih, a 28-year-old visitor from Mataram who visited Savana Propok during the second week of September.

Ria, who works in an office, highly recommends taking a trip to the savanna, even during the health emergency.

"It really is like medicine to me. Not just a break from routine, from the boredom during the pandemic. Here, at least we can take off our masks because there aren\'t many people. The air is still fresh and clean. In Mataram, I have to wear a mask almost every day and at all hours. It\'s stuffy,” said Ria, who plans to come back to Savana Propok sometime soon.

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Savana Propok II on the west side of Propok I.

Since 2015

Before becoming a popular tourist destination, Savana Propok was originally known among deer hunters. The local youth who now manage the area used to work as porters for the hunters who came from various regions, including foreign visitors.

“My first visit to [Savana] Propok was in 2015. Not for travel, but to hunt. I was a porters,” said Chandra Susanto, now 30 and the deputy chairman of the Rinjani Perkasa Tourism Awareness Group that manages the savanna.

On that visit, Chandra saw the savanna’s potential as a tourist destination. He took several photos, and then consulted with groups in Sembalun that had previously developed a similar destination in Sembalun, East Lombok. One of these groups was the Royal Sembahulun that manages Bukit Pegasingan, another popular destination in the Rinjani area.

Also read: North Toraja Starts to Reopen Tourist Destinations

"From various discussions, my friends in the tourism awareness group and I started a promotional campaign. The trick was to hire a photographer and then promote [the savanna] on social media,” he said.

It was not easy to promote new tourist destinations at that time, but Chandra and his colleagues were not discouraged. They kept at their efforts.

"The [first] tourist visit was only in 2017. It took a long time because in 2015, we were not focused. There were still doubts. We were not convinced. Moreover, we had installed signboards, but there were no visitors,” he recalled.

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Visitors with camping equipment.

Savana Propok became more widely known in 2018 after the area was covered by local media, including vloggers who uploaded footage from the savanna on their YouTube channels. But the Lombok earthquake that year temporarily halted all tourism activities in the savanna.

"Twenty-nineteen was the peak of [tourist] visits to Propok. On the weekends, up to 1,200 people visited every day. Meanwhile, visitors on weekdays reached around 100 to 400 people,” said Chandra.

Zulkarnain, the chairs of the Rinjani Perkasa Tourism Awareness Group, acknowledged that Savana Propok was managed without a permit from 2015 to 2019, but that the relevant permits were being processed at the time

Zulkarnain said that it was only in 2020 that Savana Propok was was recognized as a non-climbing tourist destination in Mt. Rinjani National Park.

"Since 2020, we started [selling] tickets in collaboration with the Mt. Rinjani National Park Office. But after running in just a few months, the pandemic [started],” he said.

As a result, just like many other climbing and non-climbing destinations, the Mt. Rinjani National Park management closed the savanna to visitors under the government’s Covid-19 restrictions on all tourist destinations and attractions. It reopened on 7 July 2020 with tight implementation of the health protocols.

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The gateway to the Propok Savana in Bebidas Village, Wanasaba, East Lombok, about 76 kilometers east of Mataram, the capital of NTB.

According to Dedy Asriady, the head of the Mt. Rinjani National Park Office (Balai TNGR), the park’s reopening referred to guidance from the Environment and Forestry Ministry’s conservation, natural resources and ecosystems directorate general, and involved coordination with the West Nusa Tenggara provincial administration as well as the administrations of North Lombok, East Lombok and Central Lombok regencies in consideration of the Covid-19 risk zones.

The park was opened at 30 percent visitor capacity, or a daily quota of 150 visitors. A month later, after monitoring tourist activities in the area, the Balai TNGR increased the visitor capacity to 50 percent. This boosted the visitor quota, for example, to 250 visitors per day to Savana Propok.

"According to the results of the evaluation, every non-climbing natural tourist destination to reopen has generally implemented the health protocols. There has been no exceeding of the [visitor] quota and no Covid-19 cases have been found,” said Dedy.

According to Zulkarnain, the Balai TNGR strictly implemented the Covid-19 health protocols in light of the health emergency, from temperature checks, to public awareness campaigns on face masks, and to hand washing. Certain items that could draw people to gather together, such as musical instruments and loudspeakers, were also banned.

Impacts

In addition to the visitor quotas, camping trips to Savana Propok are limited to stays of just two days and one night. On weekdays, entrance tickets cost Rp 42,000 for one person on one motorcycle and Rp 54,000 for two people on one motorcycle.

Meanwhile, weekend tourist passes cost Rp 47,000 for one person on one motorcycle and Rp 64,000 for two people on one motorcycle. The pass includes an entrance ticket to Mt. Rinjani National Park, tourist insurance, park services, and parking.

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The Gunung Rinjani National Park Center imposed a quota of 250 people per day for visitors to Savana Propok to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Savana Propok, the entrance gate of which is accessible to both two-wheel and four-wheel vehicles, has been counted among the tourist destinations for nature lovers since it reopened. Tourist activities at the savanna have also had a positive impact on the local community.

According to Zulkarnain, before they found jobs managing the savanna, dozens of the group’s currently active members were unemployed or worked odd jobs, including as migrant workers in Malaysia. Some were even involved in poaching and illegal logging.

"Now, the [Sava] Propok and the constant arrival of visitors has created jobs. Those who used to be in illegal logging have now joined us,” he said.

Not only that, people outside the group also felt the impacts, said Zulkarnain. This could be seen from the number of people in Bebidas who were helping to manage parking, working as porters, and selling food to tourist groups heading up or coming back down the trail.

To continue attracting visitors, said Chandra, the efforts to maintain visitor safety and comfort must be continued in addition to promotional efforts, especially in conserving the environment of Savana Propok.

"We are now laying down the rules, such as banning open fire anywhere and banning tents in several [locations]. In the future, we will also limit the number of visitors, not just because of the pandemic,” he said.

Now, the [Sava] Propok and the constant arrival of visitors has created jobs. Those who used to be in illegal logging have now joined us

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Visitors take pictures with the Propok Savana as a background

The bans were needed because what they were promoting was the savanna, Chandra stressed. If it became too crowded and camping was allowed everywhere, then the savanna would disappear.

At present, out of the three designates sites in the savanna, visitors are prohibited from camping at Savana Propok I, where they are only permitted to take photographs. This is because the vegetation in the area is recovering. The prohibition is intended to not only protect the savanna, but also its wildlife.

“There are two forests surrounding the savanna that are home to various wildlife. So if visitors were allowed to camp there [Savana Propok I], it would disrupt everything,” said Chandra.

In addition, he said, efforts were being made to draw water from Bukit Kondo, a nearby hill in the area, to provide a water source in Savana Propok II by the end of 2020 or early 2021. This was intended to provide easier access to water for tourists as well as the local wildlife. The water will be stored in an artificial pond or a man-made pool.

The forest is our shared responsibility, not just us as its caretakers

Apart from their efforts to maintain Savana Propok for the comfort of visitors, Chandra and Zulkarnain both shared the hope that visitors will possess awareness on protecting the forest, such as by not littering their campsite.

The group has a team that patrols the area regularly and picks up trash, like the four-man team comprising Basri Jaya and his peers. But environmental awareness and forest conservation must develop hand in hand.

“The forest is our shared responsibility, not just us as its caretakers,” said Chandra.

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Through the forest with an uphill path.

In addition, Chandra also highlighted the importance that visitors were well prepared for their trips in terms of supplies and equipment, especially those who intended to camp at the savanna. This was vital because of the many cases of campers who fainted from hunger, as they had run out of food during their stay.

“Because they had no food in the morning, they were found unconscious the next day,” said Chandra.

Take a break from work was of course important. Camping and enjoying the beauty of nature at Savana Propok in Bebidas could be solution for relieving accumulated stress, especially during the pandemic. Aside from preparing sufficient camping supplies and equipment, visitors must still exercise discipline in complying with the health protocols.