Monday, June 30, 2008

Gunung Datuk Climb
Night Trek Edition
by Albert85

For the reason that job comes first before pleasure, Albert85 and Tere planned to climb the Gunung Datuk on the night of June28, 2008 after their work duties. There were lots of negating factors involved before successfully climbing the Gunung. Albert85’s monitored servers at work showing some problems before departure, Tere having queued on a very very slow Singapore immigration officer which took her 30minutes in the queue, to Tere being injured as she stepped on a soft part of the wooden steps, and to a wrong path taken from the jump off point in the foot of Gunung Datuk that led them face to face 2meters away with a live 8feet Mangrove Cat Snake.

Though like the trip was jinxed, both climbers pushed on with their adventure. These factors were experienced first time by the two, making them lessons to learn from. From the long bus ride from Larkin to Seremban and cab ride from Seremban to Datuk, it was already 3:00AM when the two reached the jump off point. Unpacked their stuff and got ready for the climb. Unpacked, geared up and ready to go, the two turn on their headlamps and started trekking. The path was so dark, the only light upon was their headlamp. The moon sometimes comes into view occasionally though deeply covered by the trees. The distinctive sounds from the cicadas, the croaks of the frogs and the chirps and buzzes from unknown insects combined were like mozart's art.

About 10minutes of climbing the steep trail from of roots, rocks, mud and fallen trees, their body were sweaty and tired –asking for rest. 2minutes rest Tere suggested. It was a good break for a sip of water, the night was neither cold nor warm but surely the trail was draining them. There were ropes and vines on some parts to help on the climb. Follow the plastic markers and keep on going, is what were on their minds. With patience and fighting spirit to reach the top, they soon came halfway where three members of the morning trek came down for assistance -JungleBoy, Silverchair and Ardie. The three even played a prank to surprise the two new comers. The two were very thankful. Albert85 went with Silverchair and Tere went with JungleBoy and Ardie.

As Silverchair and Albert85 reached the campsite a huge toad was sitting on the topmost step, the toad was there since the first group came. The camp was already setup, the others were sleeping (Trish and Gits), someone was snoring, and the others greet the newly comers welcome. Lady_Anarchy was one of the greeters, then StabiloBoss whom who just popped out his head on the tent and made his surprise move, Sandy also woke and greeted welcome. A couple of minutes, a tiny scream was heard. It was Tere, surprised by the large toad still on the same position. The group was finally completed at around 0530 July29,2008. After couple of minutes of rest, Albert85 and Tere share three shots of Vodka before going to sleep.

It was truly a climb with a lot of ‘first-times’ and first-timers –a climb so memorable.

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Story by: Lady Anarchy

June 28, 2008 Saturday - It was the most awaited day for all of us. Call time: 0800 at Kranji station. I was the first one to arrive. No, I'm not excited. And I didn't get enough sleep the night before. No, I’m not excited. I'm super excited. Haha…. So after a few minutes Jungleboy arrived, followed by Trishe... and for the rest who came late, blame it on the drinking session on the night of Friday. Hehe... And so we all travelled... from bus to another bus to cab which totaled about 4 hrs. Some slept during the journey. As for me, well... I can't sleep so I just listened to my mp3. Again, I'm not excited. Hehe... Fast forward... so finally we arrived at the foot of Gunung Datuk at about 1700. We prepared ourselves, some did stretching, while others fixed their things. Before we started the trek, the group asked for the Lord's guidance led by StabiloBoss. The first few minutes of the trek was very challenging. With a slope ranging from 60 to 70 degrees... woah... this one's surely draining first timers like me. Not to mention the heavy bags we carry on our backs. As the group stopped for a much needed rest, it began to rain. Thank God! We laughed at each other as smoke emitted from our mouths and wet bodies. After a few drinks of water, the group went on. Surprisingly, it seemed that everybody was refreshed. I even joked that I was regenerated by the rain, making me "isandaang porsyento". I was talkative then, asking Gits for tips and advices on how to breathe properly while climbing to what type of clothes to wear. Yeah right, I was wearing this hang ten cotton shirt and jogging pants that became heavier as it absorbs the rain water. So up we go... with Silverchair on the lead as always followed by Superwoman Trishe. I was third in line. Then suddenly a sound was heard. I was shocked when a tree fell on the path, seeing Silverchair few steps away from it. Thank God no one was hurt. The team went on... with Trishe occasionally shouting, "we're here!" so as just to give high hopes to everyone as well as boost our morale. As Gits and I passed by some very huge rocks, we stopped for a while to appreciate its beauty.

Finally, we reached the base camp at around 1930. Some were bleeding, including me. Thanks to the friendly lematiks. Stabilo even took a picture of my bleeding right leg. The group then decided to go the summit. At first I was hesitant. But Stabilo, Jungleboy and Trishe persuaded me. It was really terrifying. You just have to trust the ladders and ropes for you to be able to climb to the summit. I kept on shouting, "This is madness!" We enjoyed its coolness for a while, though we cannot see its total beauty for it was already dark. The group decided to return to the camp, going down with only flash lights and head lamps to light the way. After dinner (prepared by Trishe and Sandy), the group shared a bottle of tequila and whisky. Some even sang and dance with the fresh and lively music coming from Jungleboy's handphone. Gosh! Even Ardie danced... blame it on... hehe... Tired as I was, I wondered why Ardie, Jungleboy and Silverchair decided to go down to wait for Albert85 and Tere who, during that time, were on their night trek. It was about 0530 when Albert85 and Silverchair arrived. Albert85 even tried to surprise me by hiding behind Stabilo's tent. Ironically, he was the one surprised as Stabilo popped his head out from the tent. After a few minutes, a shriek was heard when Tere saw the large stationary toad on the last step before the camp. While others slept, I listened to Albert's story, from taking the wrong path, to seeing a snake he described as black with golden yellow stripes, to Tere falling hard on an aged wooden step. Tere and Albert shared 3 shots of vodka each before going to sleep.

I woke up at about 0700, cooked noodles and prepared hot water for our coffee. Uhmmm... it's so good to sip coffee when you're on top of the mountain. The group again decided to go back to the summit, took some pictures and enjoyed its beauty for the last time. Before we went back to the camp, I looked around and promised myself that I will do this again. We packed our things, making sure that we leave no trash. We prayed, led by Albert85, thanking Him for the wonderful experience we shared. We all went down, down, down. Even the trail going down is equally, if not harder. I even fell as I slipped while crossing over a log. Thanks to Trishe for her band-aid. We then reached the jump-off point, the same spot where we started, stopped and took our first picture. There was a stream nearby and some, including me, took a dip. The group prepared to leave as 3 cabs awaits us. Fast forward... we are then on our way to Melacca to see some historical places and devour on some sumptuous food.

But well... that's another story.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Gunung Datuk Itinerary


GUNUNG DATUK CLIMB
(Located in Negri Sembilan, West Malaysia)

Day 1 Activity

0800 Gather at Kranji MRT Station, Proceed to Larkin Terminal
0930 Arrival at Larkin Terminal
1015 Bus to Tampin
1400 Arrival in Tampin/Lunch
1445 Cab to foot of Gunung Datuk
1530 Start of trek
1800 Arrive at Summit of Datuk
1830 Setup Camp
1900 Cooking of Dinner
2000 Dinner/Interaction/Free time

Day 2 Activity

0515 Rise and shine(Optional)
0530 Proceed to summit again
0700 Rise and shine(for the rest that don't want to go to summit again)
0730 Breakfast
0830 Pack up
0915 Start of Descent
1130 Arrival at foot of Gunung Datuk
1145 Cab to Tampin
1200 Lunch/Wash up
FREE TO ROAM MALACCA (4 hours or more)
1600 Bus Terminal at Tampin
1615 Bus to Larkin Terminal
2000 Arrival at Larkin Terminal
2100 Arrival in Singapore

Cost:
Bus Ticket (JB to Tampin): RM 25.
Cab to foot of Datuk and back: RM 60/taxi, 3 person per taxi RM 20.
Bus Ticket (Tampin to JB): RM 25.
all cost are estimates.