Tetebatu: rice fields, black monkeys and a jungle waterfall

A slow walk through terraced rice fields and tobacco barns on Rinjani’s southern slopes, into a patch of forest where black leaf monkeys watch from the canopy.

Area

Central Lombok

Start from

Tetebatu

Distance

about 8–10 km on foot

Time needed

1 day

Best season

All year (greenest December – April, driest May – October)

Difficulty

Easy

Transport

On foot with a local guide; scooter for the waterfall

Tickets & rules

Small entrance fees at waterfalls; guide fee

Why go

Tetebatu is the Lombok that people who have been to Bali twenty years ago say they miss. It is a farming village at about six hundred metres on the southern slopes of Rinjani, surrounded by rice terraces, vegetable plots and coconut palms, with the volcano rising straight behind on clear mornings. Life here runs on the rhythm of planting and harvest, and the paths between the fields are used by farmers, buffalo and children, not tour groups.

The classic walk wanders through the paddies with a local guide, following irrigation channels and the narrow dykes between fields. You pass farmers bent over young rice, women carrying bundles on their heads, and tall brick barns where tobacco is dried. The landscape changes with the season: mirror-flat flooded fields after planting, brilliant green a few weeks later, gold before harvest.

At the top of the village, a strip of forest is home to ebony leaf monkeys, sleek black primates with long tails, as well as the usual macaques. A little further, a short jungle trail leads to a waterfall where you can cool off before walking home.

The story

Tetebatu was one of the first places in Lombok to welcome travellers, back in the days when there was no tourist strip in Senggigi and no fast boats from Bali. A colonial-era guesthouse here is often mentioned as the start of local tourism, and for a while Tetebatu was known as a quiet hill station. Then the attention moved to the Gilis and the beaches, and the village went back to farming.

The tall brick barns that stand among the fields are oven tembakau, tobacco curing barns. Central and East Lombok became an important area for growing Virginia tobacco in the late twentieth century, and the dried leaf is sold to cigarette companies. In the harvest season the barns are fired up and the sweet smell of curing tobacco drifts across the village.

The ebony leaf monkey, also called the Javan lutung, lives in forests across Java, Bali and Lombok. It feeds mainly on leaves and is shy, unlike the bold macaques. Babies are born a bright orange colour and turn black as they grow, so a mother with a ginger infant is an unforgettable sight.

Water from Rinjani irrigates these fields through a network of channels managed by farmers’ associations, a system similar to Bali’s subak. That water also feeds the waterfalls nearby, including Jeruk Manis, which sits in the edge of the national park forest.

Getting there

Tetebatu is about an hour and a half by car from Kuta or Mataram, and about the same from Senggigi. There is no reliable public transport, so come with a driver or by scooter. Once there, everything is reachable on foot.

Homestays can arrange guides for the rice field walk and the monkey forest; agree on the route and price the day before.

A suggested plan

1. Early morningWatch the light come up over Rinjani from your homestay, then breakfast.
2. MorningWalk through the rice fields with a guide, stopping at tobacco barns and small farms.
3. Late morningContinue up to the forest to look for black monkeys.
4. MiddayLunch at a warung; try nasi campur with local vegetables.
5. AfternoonRide or walk to Jeruk Manis waterfall for a swim, then rest in the shade.

Where to stay

Tetebatu has many small homestays and bungalows among the rice fields, run by local families. They are simple, quiet and good value, and many have a view of the volcano from the veranda.

Good to know

• Hire a local guide; they know the paths and the farmers.
• Wear shoes you don’t mind getting muddy.
• Mornings are clearest for Rinjani views; clouds usually build after midday.
• Ask your homestay about a cooking lesson with local vegetables.