Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Bukit Tabur Hike

Warning: long post ahead!

Last Saturday the boyfriend asked me out of the blue, "hey, you wanna go hiking at Bukit Tabur with the buddies tomorrow?" Being an adventurous person (although quite unfit as am also a certified couch potato), I said yes without much thought & preparation even though I didn't even know where Bukit Tabur was much less ever hiked before (turns out it's in Melawati which is where I went to primary school!). I've done some trekking so I thought it couldn't be much different, right? Wrong. Folks, if you've never gone on a proper hike before (I don't consider going up 8 flights of stairs hiking anymore) please for the love of God don't start with Bukit Tabur like I did! I am very proud of myself for having conquered the hike but after doing a bit more research past my first cursory Google search on the night of the hike, I wouldn't have done it without building up my stamina & experience. I mean seriously, would you do it after reading an article titled Ill Fated Hill?

Luckily I went with a few experienced hikers so I was in relatively good hands although the rugged terrain really put a strain on my soft, pampered & grossly unprepared body. Needless to say, I was at the back of the pack & the nails on my two big toes are turning an interesting shade of purple from wearing too-tight shoes on the hike (I wore my scuba booties because I read on one site that rubber shoes like my booties have excellent grip which would be perfect for rock climbing. Dumb move).

Now don't get me wrong. Parts of the hike were highly enjoyable & the views were spectacular but you need to be prepared for the rugged terrain of sharp rock formations, very steep & unforgiving climbs & drops, balancing on thin ridges & some rock climbing with a potential 30m - 100m fall. If you have a fear of heights, you can just forget it altogether.

Here are some pictures from our hike...


We started out quite late at 8:20am so the mist was beginning to clear up over the Klang Gates Dam. This shot was taken at our first proper pit stop.




A spot of relatively easy rock climbing. Cheh wah! Now I can action lah :P



The view of the Klang Gate Dam a little higher up & proof that my boyfriend can actually smile!



Trying to be the Tugu Negara at our last pit stop before reaching the peak. You can see that I'm burning under the sun as my sun block wore off about an hour ago.



Only known as the Second Rope on the trail, this is the steepest climb with no visible place for you to land and if you slip or let go of the rope, the fall is 100m down. Roger here makes it look so easy. Do not be fooled.



I'm laughing at something my boyfriend was saying to me as he took this shot while I climb up this approximately 20m high rock formation although I really should've been concentrating on my footing! Oh, and you see that back pack I'm wearing? I've had it for over 10 years now & it's been all over the world with me. That's EastPak for you folks.

More pictures here over at my Flickr account.



Now one hike up Bukit Tabur does not make me an expert so I highly recommend you read all of these sites that I'm linking below before you attempt it.

The Crystal Ridge
is an excellent blog that documents everything you need to know about Bukit Tabur is a must read! They even have a Facebook group that I just joined.


Ill Fated Hill
on The Star Online


Hiking at Bukit Tabur
on BackPacking Malaysia


Klang Gates Quartz Ridge
on Nature Escapes


Bukit Tabur hiking and back alive to blog about it!
An entertaining blogpost I wished I read before going on the hike so that I would have had a more realistic picture of the hike.

Google Map


If you're determined to go on the Bukit Tabur hike after reading all the posts above, please say hi to two very special dogs that you'll meet up on the hike for me. I personally spent some time with the brown female dog known to some as Ah Wong (but christened Toughie by Roger) as she followed me up till the First Rope after I gave her some water & she was excellent company when I was
separated from my group for awhile. I also gave her my nasi lemak as I waited for my turn on the rope & the next time I go, I'm bringing some proper dog food (although I think she enjoyed the sambal). The other black & white dog I saw at the foot of Bukit Tabur but I'm sure is just as tame & sweet as Toughie.



What's so special about these dogs you ask? Well folks, they can hike, trek, jump rocks & have been known to alert hikers of snakes! Amazing I tell ya. So remember k? Be kind to them as you should be towards all animals. And bring some dog food while you're at it!

All in all, I really enjoyed challenging myself on Bukit Tabur. Would I do it again? Definitely! But first, I'm going to jog more often & try some other tamer hikes before I tempt fate again. Right now, I'm going to book myself a nice massage session & then later see the doctor about my darn purple toenails (read the second paragraph above).


Happy trails folks!


P/S: I wanted to add that the hikers I met on Bukit Tabur were super friendly & extremely helpful. The trail was packed with people on Sunday & from what I've read that is usually the case on weekends. Do give way to those coming down the trail & if you're tired make sure you give way to others to overtake you too. Oh and don't forget to say hi or smile to your fellow adventurer :)

11 comments:

Booksybooks. said...

oohhh this is so cool. must do! must do! the view of the dam from on top looks amazing! have no proper hiking or rock climbing experience tho. what do u think? do-able?

Murni said...

if i can do it, i'm sure anyone can! lol. just make sure you practice caution & get some shoes with good grip. i saw a lot of people wearing sport shoes so i think you'll be ok with those too as long as you avoid hiking bukit tabur during or after rainfall as it might get too slippery on the rocks. also please go with someone who has had hiking experience. someone who knows the trail is an added bonus. let me know when you plan to go & i might tag along ;)

Jenny Pong said...

Wow! So proud of you girl!! It must be freshing to do some outdoor activities. I suffered alot of body aching after my first and the last climb up Mount Irau! =P Fun but way too tiring for me...

Murni said...

oh, i LOVE doing adventure sports! scuba diving, white water rafting & now i think i'm hooked on this! been looking up more info on hiking & trekking so i might just do mount irau soon. hehehehe ;)

dillazag said...

Murni,
WOW!
Tabik spring lah, dear!!!
:)
But I bet the view from atop must have been worth the pain, huh?

Murni said...

haha thanks dilla! the views were amazing even from our first pit stop not even half way up & yeah, it was definitely worth the pain. but for me, the sense of achievement was the best pay off possible :D

Unknown said...

Murni might look all girlie, poshy... who knows she has all the energy to do activities that adventurous. It has been a long time since I do something like that. My husband too old to help me go through all the rough bits climbing that hill. Ops, I hope he does not read this.

I really like the first scenery pic. U photoshop it?

Murni said...

hehehe i'm a closet adrenaline junkie my dear! i think it's important to try new things & to challenge yourself. makes life more colorful, don't you think?

nope, didn't photoshop the first pic... in fact, most of the pictures were not photoshopped because it was such a bright & beautiful day :)

Papa meow said...

That female dong is Peace, and black n white is, Popy. My friend male dog.

Love my noty Peace. :D

Murni said...

peace & popy are beautiful names for such friendly & docile dogs. i met them again 3 weeks ago when i went hiking at bukit tabur again. peace gave me a friendly lick before joining another group of hikers & i finally got to properly "meet" popy & he's lovely too! your friend is lucky to have such a nice companion canine :)

KA said...

Thanks for the linkage to my blog, unfortunately my old postings were gone forever due to some technical difficulties.

AndyC - http://eatingdimsum.blogspot.com