Climbing Bukit Chenuang, MALAYSIA

April 24, 2009

I had 3 choices of things to do today: an invitation to a wedding reception, play golf or climb Bukit Chenuang. I chose the latter. It was part of our Damansara Hash House Harriers’ (DHHH) extended activities, called Hash Walk.

Our Initial Group: Peter, Wu, the DAP Sec, forgot his name, me, Mary & Alvin (L to R)

We were supposed to start at 8.15am from Kg. Kemensah. I was there by 7.45am. There was not a single climber in sight. By 9am, the group started to assemble at a parking space by a stream. At about 9.30am, we started our mission to conquer the peak of Bukit Chenuang.

There were 9 of us, 3 from DHHH, Wu, the On Sec and LC Soon, a Datuk and a retired air force general and myself. The rest were new acquaintances. They were Alvin and his sister Mary; Lee, a retiree; Peter, a DAP branch secretary; and I could not remember the names of the rest of the group. We were just a bunch of middle age folks looking for some thrills to spike our lives. I was the only Malay in a Chinaman team.

Pit Stop. LC holding the backpack in front

The start of our walk took us along an established track used by mountain bikers. It appeared to be regularly used that the tyre track made waist deep crevices; we had to walk on the ridges. Everybody was in high spirit, talking and exchanging opinions on many things in life. We crossed a small stream and were met by a lady, Fiona who came earlier to camp for the night and told us that there was a river about 30 minutes from their campsite. We never came across any river.

Crossing the calm stream that later, on our way back, turned nasty

The climb was at a leisurely pace, stopping for a few minutes to catch our breath whenever we felt the need. The jungle trek took us through thick bushes, bamboo trees, thorny palms and all things the jungle threw at us. There were huge trees that must have stood there for more than 100 years. We walked over fallen timber, crawled under bamboo trees and got scratched by thorny palms and rattans. Leeches were aplenty, crawling all the way to the groin area.

Wu in Bamboo Territory

By 1pm, Wu & I stopped for lunch of sandwiches and bananas. We did not feel like eating. We got ahead of the rest of the group and ran into the trail laying party of 4 persons led by Botak Chin, a 68 year old man. They were the ones doing the hard work for the rest of us. We just had to follow the paper trail. Wu and I picked some papers and stuck them to tree branches so that if it rained it would not get washed away.

Botak Chin & the Trail Laying Party

After more than 6 hours walk, 7 of us made it to the top. LC and the rest turned back when they heard the thunders rumbling, a sure sign of rain was coming. The thunders grew louder and got nearer. We hurriedly started to make our way back.

The snake in our path

Going down was a lot harder than up. We were tired. Our legs were rubbery. To make things worse, the rain started to pour in earnest. It got ugly. We slipped and fell many times that we lost counts. Wu and I kept each other company. Once, I had a nasty fall only to be stopped by some bamboo trees. Another time, my fall was broken by Wu who happened to be in my path. We were soaking wet and getting mud all over. The rain kept pouring and it started to get dark. We plodded on following the paper trail. Those that were not washed away guided us through the dark.
Alvin & I

When we reached the stream that looked very safe earlier, was now raging with fast running and swelling water. We stopped for a while hoping it would subside. We could not wait in the dark as the rain was pouring. So we held on to each other’s hand and crossed the stream slowly. I was the first in the group to go, hanging on to 6-foot Peter for dear life. He provided some pillar of strength to this nervous non-swimmer. We made it safely to the other side.


Mary & friend with this huge tree

From there, it was a long walk back home in the dark. We reached the starting point after 12 hours of walking, climbing, descending and falling. Our bodies took the toll. When I reached home, I had to deal with 7 leaches on my body. My wife commented that we must have been real crazy to go out the way we did.

Well, "A man's got to do what a man's got to do".

We made it to the top

68 year old Botak Chin was amongst the first to reach the top