Exploring Bali by motorbike is one of the true pleasures that is available to most people. If you can’t ride a motorbike or drive a car you can always hire a car with driver (price depends on how
nice the car is). People staying in the Ubud area are spoiled for choice when it come to scenic rides, but here is one that you might enjoy on your next trip to Bali.
Starting downtown in Ubud on Jl. Raya Ubud locate Cafe Moka, the large French cake shop / restaurant. Across the street to the east is a small lane heading directly north. This lane is called Tirta Taman, but if you miss it don’t panic, as the next small lane Jero Ganding, also heads north and connects with Tirta Taman. As soon as you get off of busy Raya Ubud, the whole pace of life slows down. On Tirta Taman you pass locals doing their daily tasks and soon come into some lovely curving bends that give you views of tiered rice fields, all in the first 5 minutes!
Keep heading north on Tirta Taman, taking the right side option when it comes along. This route will lead you to the main road Jl.Tegallalang) at Tegallalang. Turning left will keep you heading north and straight away you’ll notice the abundance of carved goods at small shops lining the road. You’ll get much better deals here than in Ubud, so just for shopping its worth the trip. After a few minutes you might pull over to the side of the road to admire the terraced valley to your right, a really stunning rice field layout that is a popular place for photos. There are places for a snack and a drink too, should you feel the need. Tegallalang is proximately 10km north of Ubud.
After Tegallalang head north on the main road another 10km to the village of Sebatu, looking out for a sign on the left side of the road for ‘Elephant Safari Park‘. In case you have a GPS unit the co-ords for this turn are 08 23 42S / 115 17 30E.
Following this country road and swinging around to the left, which takes you southwards, look out for a sign to the Elephant Safari Park in Taro. This is the best elephant park in Bali and the site has a large section of natural jungle in which visitors can ride the elephants. This is a perfect place for a family group. The co-ords for the Elephant Safari Park are 08 23 29S / 115 17 04E. Its fairly well sign posted, but if you end up down a different street your GPS will come in handy.
The Elephant Safari Park sits at 609m, but temperatures are pleasantly warm. Continuing down the lane where the park sits, you pass another few hundred meters through rice fields, then come to the village of Lodsema at the dead end. This place doesn’t see to many visitors and might be an interesting place to walk around.
Coming out of the Elephant Park entrance you turn left and simply follow the road south. This route is so pleasant when done on a motorbike, as the hill allows you to cruise along for miles,
passing small villages, traditional Balinese scenes all the way, men with fighting cocks, old ladies wandering wearing just a sarong, temple ceremonies and great scenery appearing at the end
of a village. This route takes you through Payangan and Keliki. A right hand turn eventually presents itself leading to Sayan Ridge, the area west of Ubud. Take this route and when the lane reaches the main road, Jl. Raya Campuhan, a left turn will have you back in Ubud in 5 minutes.
The whole trip, excluding shopping and elephant rides would take maybe 2-3 hours and is best done at a leisurely pace.
