The Mount Gede-Pangrango Cianjur Hiking Trail Is Re-opened

Mount Gede Pangrango PHOTO DOC ANTARA

CIANJUR - The climbing route of Mount Gede Pangrango National Park (TNGGP) in Cianjur, West Java, was reopened with a quota of 300 people per day, after the implementation of the Cianjur Community Activity Restriction (PPKM) dropped to level 2. The management continues to apply strict health protocols (prokes) for aspiring climbers.

A spokesperson for the Cianjur TNGGP Center, Agus Deni said the climbing was reopened based on the Circular (SE) of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry Number 1671/BBTNGGP/Tek.2/11/2021 concerning Nature Tourism Activities in Natural Tourism Attractions (ODTWA) Sector Management of the National Park (PTN) Region 1 Cianjur.

"The hiking trail is open to the public starting on Wednesday (17/11), with the condition that every visitor must undergo a minimum of the first dose of vaccination, or bring the results of the H-1 or H-2 antigen swab test before climbing," he said, quoted by Antara, Wednesday, November 17.

The number of climbers is still limited to 25 percent of the usual or 300 people per day who can enter from the three entrances of Gunung Putri, Cibodas, and Salabintana-Sukabumi, so that each gate can only accept 100 climbers per day, with a strict process that must be implemented.

His party will return to closing at the end of the year, in order to restore the ecosystem which is always implemented from December 31, 2021 to March 2022. Even the closure can occur again when PPKM Cianjur rises to level 3, although he hopes that this will not happen, because the government is aggressively vaccinating.

"If the level rises again, the climb will automatically be closed. At the end of the year, it has become a routine agenda for the restoration of the ecosystem and cleaning the hiking trails from the garbage left by climbers," continued Agus Deni.

His party appealed to prospective climbers to apply all applicable rules, including preserving nature and bringing used waste while in the national park area.

"Every year, tens of tons of garbage are successfully lowered from the summit to the hiking trails. We hope that climbers will carry garbage when they descend the mountain," he said.