23052015 : It has been a long time since I hiked a hill or mountain in Malaysia. After more than 1 year of hiatus, I am back in the mountains of Malaysia. My last hike was in Gunung Angsi on 20.04.2014. There is one thing for sure while doing this hike - for the first time, I felt the urge to vomit and my heart was beating so hard. It is said that if your body cannot stand the physical activity, you will have the urge to vomit because you are pushing your body's limits. I hear my body. I walked slow. But carrying my backpack did not ease my body. I was worried of 2 things - if I may faint or if I may worsen my scoliosis. The first did not happen, but I am not sure of the 2nd. I digress.
We drove at about 2am, and reached close to 6am at Masjid Lojing located in Cameron Highlands. It was very cold. I slept throughout the drive because I was too tired. When we opened the car doors, the breeze was chilly and I could feel it in my bones. We loaded our backpacks into the pickup trucks and left the mosque at 8am. It was about a 20 minute drive. The trucks stopped at the gate of the entrance. It drizzled and I wore my rain coat. Officially started our hike at 8.20am. Initially, it was an easy walk on the laterite soil and we passed by a vegetable farm.
The rain stopped, and the guide tells me to remove my raincoat as it will get warm, and I may get a headache. Here, we have reached a big space of land which is before the gate of the jungle. From here, the trail ascends and descends. If my memory does not fail me, there are 7 false peaks. Hence, peak means ascending and descending.
This is me at one of the false peaks holding a KitKat bar that I got from my friend because I am running low on energy and I forgot to stock up on chocolate. Such bad move.
We reached the first camp - Kem Tudung Periuk at 12.15pm. Kem Tudung Periuk if translated means Pot Cover Camp. Therefore, there is a pot cover hanging at the branch of a tree above the signboard. There is an option to camp here but our place of camp is the 2nd camp which is Kem Kasut (translated as Shoe Camp). We stopped here for a bit and continued the trail.
At 1,665m above sea level at 1.50pm, we stopped for lunch. Truthfully, I was not hungry but more tired. I suppose this is where they said - too tired to be hungry. The food was cold because it was 25 degrees. We were cold after 10 minutes.
Trail continues and we reached Kem Kasut at 5.25pm. Kem Kasut means Shoe Camp and that is the reason you see shoes hanging there. We washed ourselves at a small stream which is about 2 minutes descending walk. It was a very cold stream. So cold. Too cold. Freezing cold. I washed bottom half of my pants because they were dried with mud. Did I forget to mention that half of the route is muddy and you have to walk on roots and fallen tree trunks and rocks if you must. I have fallen into the mud trap a couple of times. My socks were so dirty. Good thing I have another pair of socks. After the short wash, back to the campsite we go. The chef of the group cooked rice, chicken curry, sweet porridge, and mixed vegetables.
At night, we slept under the flysheet and it was of course, cold. I was sleeping awkwardly next to a root which I have to curl myself up to not suffer a backache from the root. We slept at 9pm, and amazingly, there was sporadic mobile connection and I managed to receive messages! Tomorrow, we attempt to go to the peak, and we have to be awake by 5.30am!
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