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15th Nov 2025 - 23rd Nov 2025
9 days/Indonesia /Challenging
This four-day trek gives you an insight into Sumatra’s natural beauty and biological diversity as well as a great opportunity to push yourself out of your comfort zone.
This trek requires stamina, good level of fitness, a positive mental attitude and bucket loads of determination as you will be trekking on steep and uneven terrain through hot and humid primary jungle and staying in basic campsites well off the beaten track.
Along the way you’ll learn traditional jungle survival skills such as identifying edible fruits and plants as you gain a deeper understanding about the complex ecosystem and how the local communities thrive here.
If you’re lucky you may encounter some of the local wildlife such as orangutan, gibbons, hornbills, pig tail macaques, Thomas leaf monkeys and lizards.
You don’t have to fundraise to join an open challenge but you can support a charity of your choice if you wish. See the costs tab for more details.
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This tour is classified as challenging for someone already at a good general level of fitness, due to the hot, wet and humid climate, carrying your own backpack each day (your backpack could weigh 6-7kg), the hilly, uneven and rough jungle terrain and basic accommodation and bathroom facilities.
You must arrive in Sumatra fit and prepared for this challenge. You should start training upon signing up to this trip to ensure the best chance of success and enjoyment on the challenge.
Hill walking while carrying a heavy backpack should form a major part of your training as this will most closely replicate the actual trek and is the best way to prepare your body for the numerous ascents and descents involved.
Increasing your cardiovascular endurance, core strength and leg strength will also benefit you greatly so resistance workouts should be added to your training regime in addition to plenty of hill walking. You can download a number of free apps which will help you train and track your progress. E.g. MapMyWalk, couch to 5k, MyFitnessPal etc. If you attempt to complete the challenge without training it will make the trek unnecessarily difficult and may be detrimental to your experience, and the experience of your team mates.
The climate in Sumatra is hot, humid and wet all year round. It cannot be stressed enough that the distinction between ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ seasons is not marked, and while weather patterns and rainfall is unpredictable it will generally be hot and wet for most of the trip. October is the wettest month, but November historically sees approx. 136.7mm rainfall per day and you are likely to experience short sharp showers throughout the day, often in the middle of the afternoon. Temperatures historically reach up to 30°C during the day and drop to around 23°C at night although it may feel cooler at higher altitudes. The humidity is high, usually at least 83% every day.
Please note: the temperatures and conditions given here are historically accurate but climate change can impact the seasons so you may experience uncharacteristic conditions during the trip which are out of our control. Should this happen the guide will assess the situation and make decisions to ensure the best enjoyment and ultimately safety of the group as a whole.
The terrain varies greatly on this trek, from overgrown jungle paths to good open tracks and smaller paths. You can expect uneven and often slippery ground underfoot. There will be a number of steep ascents and long descents so you must arrive in Sumatra fit and prepared. You must be prepared to climb over overgrown vegetation, tree roots and other jungle obstacles. The paths can be muddy and slippery after rain. This trek is not easy.
During the trek you will spend each night camping in jungle clearings set up as temporary camps. In the jungle camps you will sleep in tents (two sharing a three-man tent). You need to bring a lightweight sleeping bag, sleeping bag liner (cotton or silk) and a mosquito net.
There are no showers so you should bring a pack of baby wipes for general hygiene. It may be possible to bathe in some of the streams near camp; if you do this you must use natural, bio-degradable products which will not contaminate the water (products from Lush.co.uk are great for this).
Basic toilets are available at camp, as is cold running water for washing. If you need to use the toilet during the trek day you must inform the guides you are stopping and find a private area off the trail. You must never leave used toilet paper on the ground; this must be packed up into a nappy bag or sanitary disposal bag and carried to camp.
Sumatran food is traditionally very spicy with lots of chilli, lemon grass, ginger, garlic and coriander. The spiciest food tends to be from Padang in West Sumatra.
Meals are cooked by your trek team and will comprise of various simple local dishes served with rice or noodles. Plates, mugs, cutlery and other equipment are provided for you and dietary requirements can be catered for if we are notified in advance.
You will be accompanied by first aid trained English-speaking guides who have an excellent knowledge of hiking, culture and nature in the region. You will also be accompanied by a team of local support staff, a Different Travel Company UK tour manager.
You must be at least 18 years old to participate on this trek unaccompanied. It may be possible for you to participate if you are 16 or 17 years old, but you must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. There is no upper age limit.
The trek can be undertaken by anyone with a good level of fitness, who is healthy and determined.
Adequate preparation, planning and training is important because the fitter you are the more you will enjoy this experience. An ideal candidate would be a hill walker, an open-minded person with a sense of adventure or someone who would like to take part in a life-changing fundraising experience in the beautiful landscape.
If you’ve a question about this challenge that you can’t find the answer to within the given information then complete this quick form and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
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