Our
Trekking Record Stays
Date: June 28-29, 2006
Destination: Gunung Bujang Melaka, Kampar, Perak |
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The
goal was the peak of Gunung Bujang Melaka in Kampar, Perak.
We
forgot a group photo at the campsite and had to settle for one
along the trail.
Like the last few treks when only Adrian,
Nee
On and I
went, we didn't get to where we were supposed to. But we're getting
better at reaching our goal, our destination. Unlike the time at
Fraser's
Hill when we simply hacked our way through a jungle because
we couldn't find the mountain trail, we actually made it up to approximately
850m on this outing. The mountain is only 1234m tall (some say it's
1242m), so we figured it'd be relatively easy.
Wrong! We only reached Kem Lebah
after trekking 5 hours with our backpacks. That's almost as difficult,
if not more difficult than getting to Kem
Pacat at Gunung Nuang. Seems like we underestimated the mountain.
Then again, it has been nearly a year since I had a proper trek,
and the other two have had a lapse of more than a year since the
trek up Gunung
Nuang in April 2005. But by all logical calculations, it was
to be expected. The chances of us reaching the peak were like 45,232,452
to 1 when one considers that of all the peaks of all the mountains
I've even been on, I made it to the top of fewer than five mountains
on my first attempts.
One of the many
beautiful cascades on this mountain.
Although we were embarassingly slow by our usual
standards, I enjoyed the trek up Gunung Bujang Melaka. The
trail is clearly marked and shows signs that people hike up this
mountain quite often. The path is not wide, and it is one of the
cleanest I've been on. For the most part, we could hear the river
nearby; we crossed about four little streams. Hearing the river
is always a good thing; it assures me that I was less likely to
get lost, and even if I do, I'll not die of thirst.
Collecting
water.
I'm not sure if it was because we were unfit, or the hot afternoon
sun that made us sweat so much. After toiling for nearly five hours,
we were at Kem Lebah. We
filled up our water bottles at a nearby river and decided to move
on, but we couldn't figure out which one among the few possible
trails from the campsite led to the top. There were a number of
possible paths that eventually lead to nowhere. There was this one
we tried: it brought us across a river and then disappeared. What
a waste of time that was. There was this other one (the last one
I tried): No sooner does one start on this path, one can see a fading
time-worn no-entry sign
on a tree trunk. If one ignores the sign and trekked on, there is
a path with a gradual slope leading up (to I do not know where).
Having tried a few paths, we were also hungry; not even the famous
duck thigh noodle we had at Bidor can keep us going for more than
five hours. Our stomach insisted that we stayed. Plus, we reasoned
that it'd be dark if we
reached the peak. Our "guide" points out that we would need about
three hours to the peak. We eventually set up camp, swept the place
clean and made the site as homely as possible, cooked a marvelous
dinner (yours truly did the cooking again) and slept for the night
instead.
Spring
cleaning with a tree branch.
I suppose if there were more people on this trek we could have moved
at a faster pace. In one of our conversations we agreed that if
Noelle were with us,
she'd have just kept on circling around us when we sit for a breather.
She wouldn't have let us set up camp at Kem
Lebah, too. She'd pester us so much about getting to the
peak as quick as possible that we'd get up and walk rather than
be humilated by a girl.
Rock
Sculpture #1: Do I need a degree in Architecture?
The next
morning, we headed down instead of up. We chose to dip in the cool
waters down at the base and leave the peak for another time. Just
like I'll always remember that it was most likely to rain whenever
I'm on a trek with Ian
Wikarski and Don
Mah, I'll always remember that I've rarely reached the peak
when I'm just with Nee
On and Adrian.
8.54 points for the jump into the pool.
9.99 points for the photo taken. |
Trek
Who's Who?
| The Ones Who Went |
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Me, Nee On and Adrian WOng only
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