Batukaru Temple

Pura Luhur Batukaru sits at around eight hundred metres in rainforest on the southern slope of Mount Batukaru, the second highest mountain in Bali, and it is one of the sad kahyangan, the pillar temples, with responsibility in the Balinese scheme for the western part of the island. It feels entirely unlike the coastal temples: moss on the stonework, tall trees closing over the courts, constant damp, cold air and very few people, with a moat around the inner precinct and a seven-tiered meru to the deity of the mountain. The temple was destroyed in 1604 during a conflict with Buleleng and rebuilt in the twentieth century. It is a working temple with a strong quiet, and the Jatiluwih rice terraces on the same flank are usually visited on the same trip.

What you actually see

• A rainforest temple - moss, tall trees and damp cold at eight hundred metres.
• A seven-tiered meru - the tower for the deity of the mountain.
• A moated inner precinct - the water channel round the central court.
• Very few visitors - the quietest of Bali's pillar temples.

When to go

April to October, though it rains here in any season. Half a day.

Honest expectations

It rains often and the courts are wet and slippery. Inner areas are closed to non-worshippers. Sarongs are required. The road up is winding and narrow.

Nearby

The Jatiluwih terraces are on the same slope; Tabanan is south.