Suki Jezz First Camping and Hiking – Mt Irau
5th March 2011 – There are four of us, two girls and two guys (gentlemen) and off we go! From Kuala Lumpur to Cameron, all I did is – sleep, sleep and sleep. They are even amazed how I can sleep so well, despite the roads to Cameron were narrow and untamed. Finally at 730pm, we reached the foot of Mount Irau. For your information, Mt Irau is locally known as Gunung Irau at Malaysia. At 2110m, it is the 15th highest mountain in Malaysia. The peak has a border marker shared by 2 states - Pahang and Perak. To go there you have to travel to Cameron Highlands and proceed to G.Brinchang by road. You will need to hike about 3 hours to reach G.Irau from the road. The road is to be said for being the highest road in Peninsular Malaysia. Mossy forest and fairyland, cold wind and misty clouds; are some of the wonders at G.Irau as stated as others, but if you ask me, there are also avatar version and lots of… muds!
6th March 2011 – I rubbed my eyes and looked at my hand phone. It was only 630am, so I just woke up and went for the morning ‘business’ – toilet. “Oh my god, Jess, so early?” asked Emkay while he and his family were doing their morning prays. “Yeah, even me myself hardly believe that I wake up so early.”
And at 815am, off we go! We start hiking, climbing, taking pictures, paused for catching our breath and drank water. All I can see is mud and mud again. I sloped and almost fell, and then stood back up and started walking again. Luckily, I had my husband with me (my husband is music) to motivate me to keep on going and never stop to snake a while. Kenny said: “very very very beautiful!” “Yeah, yeah!” I replied. Eventually, I hardly replied her, as I wanted to go up fast and reached the peek.
Finally at 11am, we reached the place. I can tell you, it was really amazing, you will not regret going there. The scene was beautiful, and we were in the middle of both states – Pahang and Perak, it was a twinning hiking program, nah, just joking.
So we rested and had some snacks, took some pictures, and off we went back down. This was always that weird, when we go up, we are in a rush, and never managed to get pictures or really observed the surroundings; but when we went down, that is the time when we know we had achieved it, and by doing something to reward ourselves, we appreciate the greens, the surroundings and see what our own eyes can see. We should say one thing to ourselves: I am lucky to have what I had in my life now, and I should never give up any seconds any minutes, as things happened differently every day, and new challenges await for me. And there it is, I saw many interesting things when I was coming down: The plants, trees, flowers and much more. Of course, not mud (if you ask me, I can hardly describe how interesting mud is)!
Finally, I reached and it showed 230pm, so my record for climbing the whole Mt Irau (2110m) was 6.5 hours, but I was already half dead, seriously tired. The funniest part was, Kenny See sacrificed her shoes! Her 10 years shoes were finally torn and she has an excuse to buy new sport shoes then.
And again, we had our late lunch, lots of food I will say, by Chef Mervyn, plus with a refreshing brewed coffee. After gaining back much power, we cleaned up the place, and we decided to stop by at Felda Residences, for a nice hot spring. The hot spring was just nice for us who just finish hiking at Mt Irau. It was indeed a good journey, as my first camping and hiking and hot spring activities are done within two days.
So, there it is. Have you tried to hike? Will you dare? Come on, we should try everything when there is a chance. (well, of course, only for those you are interested in, and not calling you to try everything, from digging a hole to fly a plane!), unless you could, and when you believe you can, you can, just do not keep on busy working till neglect so many good things around you.
*****
Hey ya! Thanks for dropping by....do you have any comments or thoughts after reading my blog? I always love 2-way communication, do leave a comment in the comment box below, alright? Thanks!
Enjoy Life in Good Ways,
Suki Jezz
Comments
I read your blog on your trip to Irau and I really enjoyed all the amazing photos and the description. I am interested in leading a group of students (age 20-25) on a trek up Gunung Irau. Hence, I would like to trouble you by asking you several questions with regards to the trek. Thank you for taking time to help.
1) I understand that vans may not be able to get to the starting point of Gunung Irau and a 4WD is needed. How did you go about hiring the 4WD? If possible, I would truly appreciate it if you could leave details of your drivers.
2) Are permits needed for the climb? If needed, how can it be done?
3) Approximately how many tents can be pitched at the false peak and peak?
4) Is a guide needed for the trek? If not, is the path well-defined enough for self-navigation?
5) Where is the last water point before the trek up Irau?
I understand that there are many questions here, but I am grateful for you taking time to help us out. I believe the trek would be a lot smoother with your help.
Thank you very much.:)
If an email is more convenient, do feel free to email me instead:
ptlian.2013@economics.smu.edu.sg
I read your blog on your trip to Irau and I really enjoyed the amazing photos and the description. I am interested in leading a group of students (age 20-25) on a trek up Gunung Irau. Hence, I would like to trouble you by asking you several questions with regards to the trek. Thank you for taking time to help.
1) I understand that vans may not be able to get to the starting point of Gunung Irau and a 4WD is needed. How did you go about hiring the 4WD? If possible, I would truly appreciate it if you could leave details of your drivers.
2) Are permits needed for the climb? If needed, how can it be done?
3) Approximately how many tents can be pitched at the false peak and peak?
4) Is a guide needed for the trek? If not, is the path well-defined enough for self-navigation?
5) Where is the last water point before the trek up Irau?
I understand that there are many questions here, but I am grateful for you taking time to help us out. I believe the trek would be a lot smoother with your help.
Thank you very much.:)
If an email is more convenient, do feel free to email me instead:
ptlian.2013@economics.smu.edu.sg
Regards,
Pei Ting
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'Hiking & Camping Around Malaysia'
Cheers!