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We got reactions from the classic "Are you crazy?!" to the "Jaw-drop-stare" from both family and friends when we announced the plans to scale Gunung Ledang (Mt. Ophir), just a week after the taxing 42-KM Standard Chartered full marathon~ >_<
Just as well, since the gruelling race would already have conditioned our legs for the climb. ^^
And so we packed our bags, and embarked on a 6-hour journey up north to Segamat, Malaysia.
The speedy coach that brought us to Segamat from Larkin bus terminal in Johor Baru
It was already nightfall by the time we arrived at the Segamat bus terminal, and we transferred to a cab to get to Hotel Sri Pelangi, one of the few major hotels in the town. And omg, the taxi make and model is the one my parents used when they got married, and it could do at most 60 KPH! *faints*
Service provided by the cabbies there is pretty impressive compared to Singapore, honestly. All of them would get off the taxi and help us load our barang-barang, before opening doors for us. They would wait for us to get properly seated, and then close the doors for us, before getting back in their seat! Kudos to the cabbies in Segamat! ^^ And shame on you, the Singaporean cabbie who left me to load my stuff on my own when I paid bloody airport surcharge when I came back from my Taipei trip! *mad*
The very, very classic Mercedes taxi we took to the hotel
Bunking in a deluxe suite in the hotel costs RM 105 per night, including daily breakfast.
This was our home away from home for the 3 days at Segamat~ =)
Interestingly, the hotel uses a mechanical thermostat for the air-conditioners!
Something that should be common to most, if not all hotels in Malaysia - A pointer to indicate the direction in which to pray for Muslims...
The next day, we went to make arrangements for the climb at the visitor centre of the Johor National Parks Corporation, which was a 45-minute drive from the hotel:
On the way to the visitor centre, with Mt. Ophir in the distance...
We had to transfer to a mini-van at the entrance of Pintu A near the foot of Mt. Ohir, which would take us to Pintu B, where the visitor centre is located. For those interested to scale the mountain sometime in the future, note that this is a must as not all vehicles can enter deep in the palm plantation that leads to the visitor centre.
The van was shaking like crazy as we travelled along the rough terrain in the palm plantation~ T^T
Note that an official trail guide accompanying the group is a must due to the new regulations enforced by the authorities, and this is arranged at the visitor centre. Climbs will start every morning at 7 AM to ensure that visitors have sufficient time to come back down the mountain - The average time taken is 6 hours to scale, and 4 hours to head back to the foot.
The visitor centre offers both dormitory-style lodging with minimal facilities at RM 10 per head per night, as well as chalets for rent at RM 100 per night, so if you're here solely for the climb, staying here might be a better option as one could cut down the long drive from the town area of Segamat.
The main hall of the visitor centre, nicely built of timber, and showcases a host of preserved creatures found in Gunung Ledang
The huge rubber-band rifle clearly beats the ones we played with when we were young~ *nostalgic*
After all the admin stuff, we headed back to town for some shopping and makan:
Segamat actually reminds me of the streets of Taipei ^^ *loves*
Bought apples and pears here for consumption up in the mountain =P
Had a nice dinner before we "suffer" at the climb the next day >_< Eh, didn't take the rest of the dishes 'cause we were all too hungry! =X But the drunken prawns were seriously sedap!
Watched a seriously lame reality TV show named
Who Wants to be a Superhero before snoozing and waking up at 3 AM the next day for big time suffering T^T
Soothing sights near the foot of Mt. Ophir~ ^^
The water flows with greater urgency as we move up the mountain...
The first section of the climb consists of 600+ steps =_= If it was not for the breath-taking sights and sounds, we would've given up already~ T^T
Higher up, the air is fresh and cool, and it gets really misty in the mornings
And here's where the fruits we got come in useful! With the spring water at about 18 degrees celsius, dipping apples and pears in it makes them real crunchy~! Satisfying! ^^
There's a section of the trail near the summit dubbed "KFC", which stands for "Killer For Climbers", which consist of a 10-metre near-vertical rock wall climb using just ropes. No helmets, no safety lines. *gulp* >_<
View from top of the rock wall - Can't see the bottom! >_<
Further up near the submit, one will be able to see bonsai that are at least a hundred years old, at the checkpoint called Taman Bonsai. After that, it's sweet victory at the summit! ^^
Yays! The summit stone marker, at 1,276 metres above sea-level! ^^
Another stone marker in the vicinity with Chinese characters inscribed on it. Can't make out what it says though =/
A plaque laid down on the summit by the officials, which was quite badly vandalised =(
It was really nice to lunch on the summit with the awesome view of the tree tops. For those who are afraid of the cold, do bring your wind-breakers along as chilling winds blow constantly at the summit... *brrr*
The climb was achieved in a faster-than-average 4.5 hours, and we descended in just 3.5 hours, which made us one of the fastest groups to scale the mountain, as commented by the trail guide! ^^ Woots!
And the reward for completing the climb:
An official climber's certificate! *loves*
