Trekking at Pine Tree Trail - 29 Sep 2007

“Ahhh!” Any exclamation from the members would immediately sent shockwave to others. Without hesitation, most trekkers would start pulling up the pants – including yours truly – to inspect whether there were leeches lurking at our legs.

After the inspection, in the absence of any alien creature, the team happily continued the journey. Our common destination: trekking to the peak of Pine Tree Trail of Fraser’s Hill.
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Kathy and Kelly - in vibrant colour new T-shirts

Dress for the Occasion

Kelly and Kathy’s 10-person team chartered a Toyota van and a driver. It was indeed an excellent idea as they could concentrate on trekking and not over-taxing the trekker-cum-driver. As for me, I was the driver and three trekkers were in my car.

When I chatted with Kelly and Kathy, they were really excited to show me the new and colourful trekking T-shirt in quick-dry material. They bought them only a few days ago. I was told that Mr. Lim bought a new pair of trekking shoes costing RM 700. It was dark grey in colour and it really looked terrific.

We arrived at the Clock Tower of Fraser’s Hill at about 9:00 a.m. There were only a few people at the famous landmark of Fraser’s Hill. When Josie alighted from her Toyota Vios, I saw she was wearing her RM 280 New Balance trekking shoes which she bought it for this occasion. It looks colourful.
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Josie's new trekking shoes

Looks like most team members bought a lot of new stuff in anticipation of this great trekking trip. As for me, I also wore a pair of new trekking shoes. I actually bought another new pair of high-ankle trekking shoes costing RM 270 after returning from trekking in Nepal. Since I ‘sayang’ (like) it so much, I bought another cheaper pair of less than RM 100 reserving the expansive one for other treks.

After a brief stop and a quick group photo session, we continued our journey to the actual starting area of the treks.

Trail and Terrain

A short briefing was conducted by Tony with regard to the trail and the terrain. I assisted by asking each team member to identify his or her buddy. With a 20-person team, this is to ensure everyone was accounted for and been taken care of. So, Tony leaded the team and I was the undisputed ‘sweeper’ (the last person).

Lots of fresh air and greens

The path is straight forward with the main trail clearly visible. As for the terrain, there were a few hills so the trekkers went up and down the hills. Trekking would not be complete without obstacles. To ensure that it was not like strolling in the park, nature greeted the trekkers with many fallen trees blocking the ways. So, we either climbed on top or crawled under the obstacles. Tall people would find that crawling underneath the obstacles was most difficult as we (I am tall too) require much space.

At one point, it was a straight path going downhill and that was the only moment that I could see Tony. The entire convoy of trekkers lined in a single file that stretched for almost 50 meters long.

The weather was superb with overcast sky. It was slightly cool and most conducive for staging the trekking trip. It was breezy at certain points. With the wind blowing in wet clothing from sweating, it gave us a refresh feeling. With the movement of leaves, the forest was like giving round of applause to welcome the trekkers.
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Having a break at the clearing

One trekker who went there previously told me that the rangers and army personnel actually cleared the trail. However, when I approached the dense undergrowth, it was still there. It was only deeper into the jungle that I saw there was a clearing where they built a few ‘pondok’ (shack) with bamboo and plastic sheets for shelter.
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Lim with the new trekking shoes

Blind-man walking stick – Weng bought and gave me a new trekking stick with built-in torchlight at the handle. It was quite an ingenious design. One lady trekker gave it quite an amusing name: the blink-man stick.

At the final steep ascent, the last 50 feet was lined with thick rope on both sides of the path that facilitate ascent or descent. The previous time when I went there in early this year, it was only a few strings to provide the support. I presume it was the good work done by the rangers.

We did not see any other trekkers; possibly, it is in puasa month that it is not convenient for the Malay trekkers to do outdoor activities.
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Jean - boiling water and making drink. In this photo, it looks as if the burner is on top of the mug.

At the Peak

Everyone was excited when reaching the peak. After trekking for hours, we could finally see the distant horizon. Immediately, we all took out our food to have light refreshment. Only Jean brought a burner and started boiling water to make drink. The rest was just eating light snacks and busy in chatting.
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One for the album at the peak of Pine Tree Trail

Cynthia brought Japanese curry, turkey in mayonnaise, dried mince fish meat that go with bread. It was indeed so kind of her to carry all those food up the hill. All food tasted superb up at the peak.

At 1:30 p.m., after satisfied with the view and food, we have a group photos and later started our descent.
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Beh, Cynthia, Tan

Return to Car Park

Since the trail consists of a few up-and-down hills, the returning journey would take almost the same effort. However, there were steeper uphill almost reaching the base which exhausted most trekkers.

The first batch returned to base with slightly more than two hours while the slowest took about 3.5 hours. One of the members encountered leg muscles cramp that hampered movement.

When I removed my shoes and socks, to my surprise, I saw a leech entangled in my socks. After a while, blood started oozing from the bite. The leech was clever to choose one of the main blood veins of my foot and that ensure vast supply of blood. After a few occasions with leech bites, I was quite calm to see so much blood and not to panic.
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While waiting at the car park for the return of other trekkers, Cynthia revealed that she was a cancer patient who just underwent a 9-month of chemotherapy cancer treatment. She recovered positively. After resting for four months with light exercises, she took on the challenge to trek at the Pine Tree Trail. While trekking with her, she did not show much sign of tiredness.
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Rose - In rosy face and cheerful smiles after hours of trekking

Nevertheless, my legs were feeling tired. I have not done serious trekking and running since I returned from my Nepal trip in early June 2007.

We were excited when the last batch of trekkers emerged from the bushes – the starting ground.
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Jason - Yeah! I made it!

Dinner

We later adjourned to Ulu Yam Town en route to Kuala Lumpur. Tony took us to his favourite restaurant. We have our sumptuous dinner with the famous Ulu Yam ‘loh mee’, Honey Chicken in Guinness Stouts (what a dish!), and freshly cooked prawns in young coconut with tom yam flavour, plus a few other yummy dishes. All food tasted delicious. It was most satisfying to have good food after a hard day’s work.

Kelly and Kathy’s group was most generous to pay the bill for us. To thank them when bidding farewell, we all shook hands with another. One team member commented that it was like a wedding dinner where the bride or bridegroom would shake hands with all the guests.

Overall Timing

5:45 a.m. – started journey from Kuala Lumpur with half an hour of breakfast at Kuala Kubu Baru
10:00 a.m. – started trekking
12.45 p.m. – arrived at the peak (2.45 hours)
1:30 p.m. – rest for 45 minutes
3:30 p.m. till 5:00 p.m. – return to car park
7:30 p.m. – Dinner at Ulu Yam Baru (en route to Kuala Lumpur)
10:30 p.m. – Arrived home safely.
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Thumbs up - Yours truly

Team Members

KC, Rose, Jean, Chin, Josie, Tony, Chee Sum, Mandy Chong,
Kelly, Kathy, Jason, Tan, Vincent, Lee, Cynthia, Lim, Beh.

It was indeed a fun-filled, enjoyable and memorable trekking trip in good company with all the laughter. We wish to trek again at other hills in near future.

Written by KC
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