Actually, this experience happened about three months ago. I was just hanging out with my brother when suddenly, he suggested we go for a trail run in Sentul the next day. Without thinking much, I just said, “Sure, let’s go,” assuming we’d be running on the usual trail toward Leuwi Hejo. Feeling confident, I agreed. My brother stayed over at my place that night, so we could leave early at dawn straight from Jakarta to Sentul. Coincidentally, I couldn’t sleep that night, so I ended up running on zero sleep.
Starting the journey
As the dawn prayer call echoed, we prayed, had breakfast, and then set off to pick up a friend in the Cilangkap area. Once everyone was on board, we continued toward Sentul. I think we left around 6:00 AM and arrived at the Leuwi Hejo trail entrance by 7:00 AM.
Once we got there, we were unsure whether to head toward Leuwi Hejo or Cisadon. We asked some locals, and they told us that the left trail led to Leuwi Hejo, while the right trail went to Cisadon Village.
Trekking trail to Cisadon via Leuwi Hejo entrance
Cisadon or Leuwi Hejo?
After some confusion, we decided to head toward Cisadon Village. The locals seemed puzzled, like, “Why are these kids taking this route to Cisadon?” Right from the start, they kind of made us feel intimidated about going to Cisadon through this trail. But we just went for it.
So, we took the right path toward Cisadon Village. One of our friends had actually been there before, but via the Prabowo cattle farm route, so none of us were familiar with this path.
Step by step, we made our way through local coffee plantations. The terrain got steeper, sometimes forcing us to push through bushes. Every time we saw locals picking coffee cherries, we’d ask, “Kang, which way to Cisadon?” They’d reply, “Euhh, still far away, man.” Hahaha. We even asked an old lady sorting coffee beans in front of her house, and she just said, “I don’t know.” Well, at that point, we were already halfway there, so turning back wasn’t an option.
The highest plateau in Sentul
As we climbed higher, the air got colder. It felt like a mistake to dress for city running. Others were wearing full-body rashguards, while I was in shorts and a short-sleeve running shirt. My legs got bitten by mosquitoes, but the higher we went, the fewer mosquitoes there were. Our drinking water was running low, and phone signal started disappearing. I started to worry because our water was critically low. Neither my brother nor I had brought any extra water. Hahaha.
A lifesaving waterfall
We continued hiking despite being low on water. Then, subhanallah, we found a mini waterfall! The water was crystal clear and super refreshing. So, after a certain altitude, you’ll find mini waterfalls along this trail. There were about five of them in total. We stopped every 30 minutes to rest, and the trail felt more and more like a mountain hike rather than a simple trail run.
First waterfall on the Leuwi Hejo – Cisadon trail
Eventually, we stumbled upon a small hut where some locals were sorting civet coffee beans. While resting, we asked, “How much longer to Cisadon, sir?” He answered, “About 30 more minutes.” That reassurance helped ease my anxiety. Hahaha. The weather also started to drizzle at times, and to make things worse, I was wearing regular city running shoes—not meant for trekking or trail running—so they were ridiculously slippery.
Cisadon Village
After roughly 45 minutes, we finally arrived at Cisadon Village—a remote village in the hills of Sentul. It was completely isolated. There were no smooth asphalt roads for cars to access this place. When we got there, many trail bikers and trail runners were already resting. However, they had taken the route through the Prabowo cattle farm, which, while rocky, was more manageable than ours.
We rested for about an hour, and I even dozed off because I hadn’t slept the night before.
When it was time to head back, we decided not to take the same route down. Instead, we went through the Prabowo cattle farm trail. At this point, my legs started feeling weird—especially my heels. It was hard to bend my feet properly. Yep, I had cramps. Maybe because I had exerted too much energy and then rested for too long. As a result, I had to go down while dealing with a throbbing pain in my legs.
Reflections and lessons learned
There were many takeaways from this short trip.
- I’m the kind of person who enjoys climbing up, but I didn’t realize that descending is not as easy and fun—especially when your legs are in pain. Turns out, going down isn’t as enjoyable as it seems.
- When my legs were aching, I kept looking ahead, trying to see how much further I had to go. It made the journey feel even more exhausting. It’s the same in real life—we often worry about the future, wondering how long our struggles will last and when we’ll succeed. But when I simply focused on taking one step at a time, everything went smoothly, and I eventually reached my destination.
- Lastly, never take the Leuwi Hejo entrance to Cisadon but exit through the Prabowo cattle farm route! It’s a hassle to get back to where you parked. Hahaha.
That’s it for my experience in Cisadon. This place is a perfect short escape for people from Jakarta. It’s not far from the city, but it feels nothing like Jakarta. I saw traditional Sundanese stilt houses, pristine waterfalls, lush greenery far from city noise (and no phone signal), and some campsites available for overnight stays in the hills.
One last piece of advice: don’t forget to withdraw cash beforehand! Hahaha. There’s no Indomaret once you leave the commercial area of Sentul.
