But as I said, we summited, so I couldn’t care less about that! The expedition allocates 10 days, so give yourself a buffer for your return flights. Wow. And then we were there. The top of Carstensz (4,884 m asl), also known as Puncak Jaya could be climb on every time in a year. From Bali, I flew directly to Timika, a 4.5-hour flight, where I spent 2 nights in a hotel there. So rather than sleep in Bali, we hopped to a burger joint, jumped on the Wifi, and flew that Night to Sydney. The trickiest section of Day 7 will be the series of passes called the New Zealand pass, which is 50m long and can be quite slippery. 2 people recently died due to rocks falling. Ouch. Not ideal for anyone (not to mention my Indonesia visa would expire in 5 days time). On normal mountains, that’s strenuous, on this sheer cliff face, it was a stressful prospect indeed! Timika is also the launching point for people who come to climb Puncak Jaya, however since the long trek through the jungle to reach Puncak Jaya has long been shut down, the only way for climbers in recent times to be able to access the mountain is via a small helicopter. You should be comfortable with routes of a difficulty up to 5.8. The team at Base Camp had given the all-clear, so we rushed to the helicopter and off we went. Since then, I started a blog, then a digital media company, I’ve made more than $1,500,000 USD, bought 4 properties and visited (almost) every country in the world. I had to send a $2k deposit, which I was a little wary about, but after travelling so much I’ve discovered it’s better to trust people than not so I proceeded, and it worked out great. Carstensz Pyramid, also known as Puncak Jaya is one of the famous 'Seven Summits' situated on the Indonesian island of Papua New Guinea.This peak is the only of the Seven which is a rock climbing peak and it requires a trek in through remote jungle to reach the base camp. If so, the Puncak Jaya or Carstensz Pyramid may be perfect for you. So, climbing Puncak Jaya can be classified as a perfect “adventure travel”, full of achievement and discovery, which comes packed with promises of rare cultural experience and classic rock climbing. Although the area experiences periods of political calm, there have been incidents when visiting mountaineers have been at the brunt of regional tensions, been in threatening situations at the hands of local militants, and even had unpleasant encounters with an Indonesian SWAT team. However, I’ve done the leg work for you guys, and found the operator directly at the source – Summit Carstensz. Although it has the lowest elevation of the Seven, Carstensz is the only peak which is specifically a rock climbing peak and it has the highest technical rating. The fear, the fatigue. Many tour companies offer a chartered flight to Timika, Papua followed by a helicopter to reach the Zebra Wall Base Camp. However, the harder summits of Denali, Puncak Jaya, Vinson and Everest will almost certainly require the support of a mountain guiding company. Lot’s of the climbing requires full trust in your upper body strength and the integrity of the equipment. My longest ever time in Thailand, 37 years old. So we carefully made our way down. It is a moderately difficult climb on the standard route up the north face and along the summit ridge, which is all hard rock surface. Overnight in a local hotel. This includes sit-ups, squats and lunges. The hotel was decent, wifi, air-con, hot water. If bad weather came in, we’d be stuck at Base Camp, on rations, until the weather clears. Carstensz Pyramid belongs to the famous Seven Summits, the highest mountains of the respective continents. We will get back to you soon. There are, of course, scores of professional guiding companies around the world that I have omitted and it may well be possible to arrive at a lower price. On this day, you will descend the ridge into the other forested, ancient valley. I guess that’s what we do it for, that and the glory. However, this cost notably does not cover the costs of the (relatively likely) delays which are beyond the groups control. Privacy | Terms | DMCA | Affiliate Disclosure | Site Map. }. Is the Vatican City a country? It took us about 5 hours to descend the mountain. This is a climb for seasoned mountaineers and peak-bagging enthusiasts. ), running the North Pole marathon having never run a marathon before, the Marathon Des Sables Ultra Marathon – 6 marathons in 6 days in the Sahara, having never run an ultramarathon before, Australia’s highest peak was actually Mount Kosciuszko, drove 3 hours to Mount Kosciuszko and had a crack at that instead, but that’s another blog post here. And the climb itself, while only taking 2 days  (one of which is acclimatization), is short, it’s hugely steep. At the bottom, the difficulty is graded VDiff (UIAA III) and at the top it increases to VS (UIAA V). In May 2019, I finally managed to climb Puncak Jaya and for a fraction of the cost of the normal prices, which are often quoted at $13k to $20k USD. Atop this ridge, you will trek over uneven terrain for another 500m until you reach the summit. And How Do You Get There? SERENGETI MARATHON CHARITY TR, A dream without a plan is just a wish. Your request cannot be processed. If you've never used AirBnB before, here's a $50 voucher for you! You can read my review here, and you can sign-up here. Even in the relatively dry season, you should be prepared for warm afternoon downpours. I left Ireland 10 years ago for a gap year, worked out how to make money blogging, made over $1m and now I’m never going back to the ‘real world’ 9-5. Puncak Jaya, also known as Carstensz Pyramid on the island of New Guinea, is the highest peak found in Oceania. It’s kind of like a handle, that’s attached to the harness around your waist. In Indonesian it is called Puncak Jaya, meaning "victory peak". Good question. But Puncak Jaya and Carstensz Pyramid are, in fact, the same mountain. The route passes though challenging terrain. Really! Climbing Puncak Jaya though, it doesn’t come cheap, and it’s not easy. A little. We were hoping to be at the Summit by 8 am but we missed that deadline by quite a stretch. Other costs which are not included in the flat rate are the significant cost of international travel, personal equipment, accommodation and meals in Bali and travel insurance. Carstensz Pyramid belongs to the famous Seven Summits, the highest mountains of the respective continents. Carstensz Pyramid (Puncak Jaya) is the highest mountain, not only of the New Guinea Island, but also of Australia and Oceania. However, at the time it was not known which summit was the highest. Carstensz Pyramid belongs to the famous Seven Summits, the highest mountains of the respective continents. Base camp is located at 4300m, so the Summit Attempt doesn’t cover THAT much altitude gain, although at nearly 5000m, oxygen isn’t in abundance and things are a little slower. I have wanted to climb Puncak Jaya since committing to climbing all seven summits, the highest mountain on each continent (if you’re wondering what are the seven summits, you can check those out here). That doesn’t normally stop me signing up for things though, like running the North Pole marathon having never run a marathon before, or the Marathon Des Sables Ultra Marathon – 6 marathons in 6 days in the Sahara, having never run an ultramarathon before, and I managed to squeeze through those. It competes for the rank of the Seventh Summit with Australia 's highest peak—Mount Kosciuszko. But the altitude is not what makes Puncak Jaya difficult in all honesty. If so, you could join one of Adventure Indonesia Puncak Jaya Climb Expedition MONTHLY departure. Not cheap. You will start the day as early as 02:00, and, using one of the climbing route options mentioned above, summit the tallest peak in Australasia. Climbing Puncak Jaya; My Personal Experience. 2 am became 3, which became 4 and 5 and 6 until finally, the sun started to rise. Just below the ridge and along the jagged cliff, there are fixed ropes to aid the climb. 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