Hiking Gunung Tahan (Part 3 of 3)

Our hike was between Independence Day and Malaysia Day - I wish Malaysia peace and prosperity. I genuinely hope that people would be more understanding, matured and mindful when they speak their minds. Those keyboard warriors who spread hatred and unverified fake news should be ashamed of themselves.
(Credits to the 10-men team from KL for the flag)

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Day 3

It wasn't the best sleep last night. It drizzled for 2-3 hours, and I was kept wondering if my clothes hanging on the tree-line outside the tent would be soaking wet. I didn't want to leave the cozy and dry tent to keep my clothes. Thankfully, my clothes turned out fine. 

We all woke up at 5.30am promptly - It was summit day!

The plan was to hike up the summit for sunrise, get back to Kem Botak, take breakfast, and head down to Kem Kor. It was estimate to reach Kem Kor by 5pm - almost a 10-hour day of hiking. 

By 6.15am, after some milo, biscuit and a small piece of Snickers, we departed for the summit, 'free-body' (without our haversacks). It was almost like I could jump and hop my way up. Without the haversack, I felt so much lighter and agile. We were practically leaping and running up the mountain in the dark. Rocks were scattered along the way, but we were unperturbed. Mr. Yew, the most athletic, led the way, and must have summit-ed in less than 30 min. 

The push to the summit took me around 40 minutes. There were only the 2 groups up there - us and the 10-men team from KL. We had the summit to ourselves. 

We reached the top before sunrise

Sunrise was amazing, as in, looking at the sun itself. The thick fog and morning mist rendered us unable to see much, but Pak Uda, our guide could correctly point out the directions of Terengganu and Kelantan, in relation to our location in Pahang. Nevertheless, everyone made it to the top. What an achievement! 

Sunrise - Sun only

Team-7 and Pak Uda

As the sun rose above, it was time to leave the summit.

The hike down from the summit to Kem Botak was actually more spectacular.

Striking down-jacket

The sun would rise above the summit and provide an amazing view of the rain-forest and mountain range from above

Coupled with the morning breeze, it was picturesque

Hiking Gunung Tahan (Part 2 of 3)

The journey to the foothill was pleasant, as discussed in Part 1: https://weesertan.blogspot.com/2019/09/hiking-gunung-tahan-part-1-of-3.html

We started our hike, and had a good Day 1.

Credits to my mate of almost 2 decades - Ivan for bringing and carrying the 2-men tent (bought from Decatlon, at SGD 30). I had quite a good sleep last night (which is always the case). The tent was warm, and I didn't require my sleeping bag, which was used as a makeshift pillow.

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Day 2

There were rumours that this morning's hike would be the toughest - From Kem Kor to Kem Kubang. The difference between 5D4N and 4D3N depends on how we fare today (Day 2). For 5D4N, we are to trek about 4 hours from Kem Kor to Kem Kubang (and call it a day). Whilst for 4D3N, we would then need to hike from Kem Kubang to Kem Botak, which is another 4 hours. So it pretty much depends on how fast we could reach Kem Kubang, and if we still have the strength (and determination) to continue. 

The double-ladder slope was my favourite

We started our hike at around 8.30am, and would reach Kem Kubang for lunch around 1pm. The terrain was visibly different, and clouds would form from no where. 

Packed lunch (Ayam kicap, rice and an apple)

Kem Kubang had weak telco signals - I prefer to be isolated and maintain Flight Mode

It was apparent that we still had the legs to continue, so did the neighboring team of 10 from KL. We decided to push for Kem Botak, thus officially switching from 5D4N to 4D3N. The main reason being, Kem Kubang had nothing much to offer, no views, and was far away from the water source. Kem Botak had water source, and the summit was just 2.5km away. If we could reach Kem Botak, the stage is set for us to hike up the summit the next morning. 

With an extra day to spare, we imagined going for some food hunt around Pahang on Day 5. We eventually did nothing like that. We were exhausted by the end of Day 4, and preferred to haed home. I would end up taking the 11.30pm bus from TBS to Skudai. 

But that story is another day - Part 3. Stay tuned.

Hiking Gunung Tahan (Part 1 of 3)

It's been 10 years since I hiked up Mt. Kinabalu, the tallest mountain in Malaysia. Last weekend, I was fortunate enough to join a group of hikers for Gunung Tahan (Mt. Endurance), the tallest in Peninsular Malaysia. 

Gunung Tahan has a reputation of being one of the toughest and most challenging in the country (I rate it twice as tough as Mt. Kinabalu). Since the 70's, the only way up was via Kuala Tahan, a scenic but long trek that takes 7 days round-trip, with views of tigers and elephants along the way. It's about a 80km round-trip. 

In the 90's a new route was founded, via the sleepy village of Merapoh, Pahang, a kampung between Gua Musang and Kuala Lipis. The Merapoh (also known as Sungai Relau) route halves the hike duration, with a one-way distance of 32km. Most hikers who would attempt Gunung Tahan (mostly having sufficient hiking experience) require 4D3N. A more relax 5D4N is possible, but you 'waste' valuable time doing nothing on the 2nd half of Day 2, where you camp at Kem Kubang. 

Needless to say, Gunung Tahan was always on my mind. 

My training and preparation wasn't fantastic. I hiked up Gunung Pulai, a relatively 'easy' mountain near Kulai, Johor during the weekends. The night before I left, I actually joined my weekly badminton session, but was extra-cautious. Nevertheless, I was excited. I prepared my haversack weeks in advance, though I brought the bare minimum. Gunung Tahan, almost somewhat mysterious to me, commands respect to any Malaysian nature-lover and hiking-enthusiast.  

I tried doing research online regarding Gunung Tahan, but couldn't find much. I would later realize the reason - hiking was already tiring enough, not many would take photos, let along have extra energy to write about it. 

Entrance into the woods - Ready to go

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Day 0

We boarded the 7pm train from JB Sentral, and reached Merapoh station at, well, 7.30am the next morning. It was my first time taking the Malayan inter-state Railway. The last time I took a sleeper train, was from Hanoi to Sapa Valley on the Vietnam Railway, more than a decade ago. The Malayan Railways or Keretapi Tanah Melayu is a colonial-era dinosaur, used to ship tin and rubber from the interiors to, most notably the port of Singapore. 

It still had a sense of elegance and class. Buying the train tickets though, was not too elegant. You have to basically 'walk-in' to the ticket counter at JB Sentral. Tickets start selling one month before the travel dates, but you could always try your luck 1.5 months before, like I did. Single ticket costs RM 51 from JB to Gua Musang (For Sleeper train to Merapoh, you need to buy a ticket to Gua Musang). KTM is definitely not the up and booming railway company of the 21st century. You could tell it's happy running on it's own pace, which in a way is an attraction by its own.

Bed for the night

Making yourself at home

I must say the train ride was pretty comfortable, at least for me. As usual, after hours at work, a quick shower and a heavy dinner, plus the oscillating (and rocking) movement of the train, I took a 1.5-hour nap upon boarding. It wasn't until Kluang (famous for its coffee), when I realized the sheer number of people alighting and coming aboard the train, that I woke up. I had a nice chat with a strong-looking uncle who had just got up at Kluang Station. He stays in Layang-Layang, and was heading to Gua Musang. He manages an oil palm estate there. We spoke at lengths from Oil Palm, Durian plantations, job opportunities, Singapore, and etc. Uncle who is in his late 50s, was very sharp, and able to identify the economic trends. He'd traveled extensively during his career, clearing land and managing oil palm estates for Genting for 3 decades. He also stayed in Sabah for a decade, but reiterates the fact that Malaysia is still home, and no matter how far we go, there's still no place like home. 

We would reach Merapoh station on time, at 7.15am. The train would only stop for 1 min, and we jumped off the train, into a misty village. We were back in the wilderness! 

The train would only stop for a minute, we scrambled for the exit

Morning breeze, not haze