Sekumpul means a group, and the falls earn the name: up to seven slender cascades pour down a single jungle cliff side by side. The two strongest drop about eighty metres, and volcanic rock walls more than a hundred metres high wrap the scene into a green amphitheatre. Ferns, moss and vines hang off those walls, dripping with spray, and the valley stays cool and loud with birdsong even at midday. It is in the hills of Buleleng in northern Bali, a long way from the island's crowded southern beaches. Seeing that many separate cascades land in one place is rare, which is why many travellers rate Sekumpul the finest waterfall on Bali. Two more waterfalls stand in the same valley, both within a short walk of the trail.
The classic first view is from the upper platform, where the whole cluster lines up across the valley in one frame. To reach the foot you climb down hundreds of steep concrete steps and wade a few shallow stream crossings. At the base the spray drifts over you, the roar fills the rock bowl, and a rainbow hangs over the plunge pool when the late-morning sun clears the rim. Getting here takes some care. Reaching the valley floor means hiring a local village guide, and you should pay only at the official Welcome to Sekumpul gate — groups have set up convincing fake checkpoints as far as twelve kilometres up the road. The falls run all year, but dry-season mornings, roughly May to September, give firmer footing and cleaner light.