Once dubbed as El Dorado of the East or the place where wealth can be rapidly acquired, Sungai Lembing was once a thriving mining town of its era. Attracting people from all over the world starting 15th century, the place was at its peak around 1906 when Pahang Consolidated Company Limited held the concessionaires of 5180km2 tin mining land. It soon become history when the world price for tin collapsed and people began to evacuate the town around the 80s.
Nestled just beside Sungai Kuantan that converge into Sungai Lembing, the town was then frequently flooded during heavy rain that at its worst cut the land connection to this town. It took almost 20 years for the state government to revive the town with the opening of a museum and its mine shafts to the public in 2001. The town since then marketed as an eco-tourism destination with hilltop view attractions and nearby waterfall in addition to its rich mining history. Local community’s proactive effort is also plausible in keeping the place clean and interesting with the number of visitors started to increase, reviving business back for the town’s folk.
The plan is to ride to a campsite called Lubuk Beruk, 8km on a gated trail to Rainbow Waterfall in Remen Chereh Permanent Forest Reserve Area near Sungai Lembing. The trail after a resort was gated since November 2015 and visitors need to obtain entry permit from JKKK Seberang Baru representative, meant to control influx of visitors and maintain the site’s cleanliness. More than three groups of riders will converge at Gambang around noon, including 5 riders from Singapore, one from Melaka, one from Perak and 8 riders from Klang Valley.
Rendezvous Point One
It was a foggy Saturday morning when I departed from Rawang around 6.30am but the weather was clear and not many vehicles heading in the same direction. I’ve made it to rendezvous point 1 at BHP Karak around 7.03am finding Hashim, Jimm and Pidot were already there. Cusco, Jezz, and Tom arrived slightly later while Ikhwan was the last person to arrive at the first meeting point for riders from Klang Valley. Riding grey Versys 650 on street tyres with green jumper and blue denim, Pidot is the newest member that will join us on this ride. Professionally trained as chef, this is his first offroad endeavor and he is full of confident that morning to complete this adventure.
The Klang Valley Groupie
We departed towards Karak around 7.38am while Jezz has took off earlier to make a quick stop to his folk’s home at Bentong. We were reunited at Karak about an hour later as we took a detour to the winding road of FT9 through Perdak & Telemong. We then took a left turn to C120 towards Chemomoi passing an under construction police training center and climb up to 300m. The weather was wonderful with ambient temperature around 24°C when we passed through Kampung Chemomoi and ride to a shortcut road. We passed a security checkpoint just before entering Felda Mengkarak and another point after Felda Mengkarak 2 as we rode into a plantation road. The red laterite surface of the plantation road was slightly wet from an overnight rain and it was foggy. Relatively flat and straight, the road was almost empty, with a group of plantation worker giving us long gaze as we passed by.
I was in-front of the group with Ikhwan on my tail when I realized the rest were not following. We stopped but after 10 minutes of waiting, they were still missing. We turned back and found the rest of the group about 1km behind and they stopped because Pidot’s bike started to emit smoke. It came from engine oil that was dripping through water pump seal and hit the front exhaust manifold.
Photo Credit to Jimm
Further inspection revealed that it is still roadworthy and we continued towards Mengkarak town before making a stop at Petronas Kampung Durian Tawar.
We were still discussing about Pidot's bike as we stopped at Durian Tawar
The small station with four door refrigerator doesn’t offer much cold drink as half of it were filled with fruits. The sun started to blast its heat onto this part of Malaysia and the fog was fast diminishing. We took 15 minutes to cool down and wet our throats before we were back on the road taking FT10 towards Bera and making a left turn through riverside road of C8 heading towards Paloh Hinai.
Riverside Ride
The road surface is at its best with majority of the repair works were completed and there were not much traffic that sunny morning. Ambient temperature started climbing around 32°C and I can feel the air running through my helmet visors was warm.
The sight of magnificent Sungai Pahang along this road was mesmerizing although it was slightly swollen. On this route, they were a lot of animal crossing the road, from monkeys, goats, cows, buffalos, wild boar and a brown squirrel. A brown squirrel cross my bike and it was too fast for me to react and loses its tail on my rear wheel.
We took another rest at my favorite stopping spot along this route with magnificent view of Kuala Wau.
C108 View Point
GPS N3.47772 E102.82527
the road, as usual, is almost empty
Photo Credit to Hashim
Just before Paloh Hinai, we took a left turn to FT12 Gambang - Muadzam Shah Road that is still under construction. It is one of the main road that connects Kuantan to Segamat and it was a busy road with many busses and lorries in both directions. We have made it to our second rendezvous point at Restoran Hijau Gambang around 12.35pm and Asoi with Cikgu Joe were already there.
Rendezvous Point Two
An active figure in outdoor activities and rugby, Asoi and I were university alumnus. Riding an adequate Honda Wave 100, he prefers to hike than ride but on this occasion, his hiking trip scheduled on the first week of October was cancelled and he decided to join us. Wearing black jacket and washed khaki, he rode alone from Sungai Rambai, took off at 7am riding through Segamat and Muadzam Shah. On the other hand, Cikgu Joe was riding alone from Seri Iskandar today because Cikgu Jasni cancelled his participant to attend his wife’s family day.
Restoran Hijau Gambang - Lunch
Photo Credit to Cikgu Joe
(from left) Tom, Jimm, Jezz, Ikhwan, Hashim, Asoi, Kert
(from right) Pidot, Jalil, Saniboy & Ross
Photo Credit to Cikgu Joe
Ross, Jalil, Khai and Saniboy whom were riding from Singapore arrived slightly later. Saniboy, a tall, dark & well-built active rider frequently accompanied Ross riding in Malaysia and Thailand. This will be his first ride with us. He regards Ross as his ride mentor, enticed by our last ride to RPS Jernang, he wore a blue denim and fluorescent reflective jacket while riding his Vstrom 1000. Saini had problems with his bike and missed Ross’s group departure so we will wait for him at Sungai Lembing. Also available at the restaurant was Hafiz ‘Kert’ Husin, a lecturer at a nearby matriculation center contemplating to acquire a dual-purpose bike. Like Asoi, Kert is my university alumnus with passion for riding.
We had lunch at the restaurant and a few of us packed dinner for the evening. The afternoon was hot around 36°C and we were seated on the walkway of the corner lot restaurant. Around 1.36pm, we were on the bike again heading to Sungai Lembing as we need to get permit to enter the trail from Mr. Tang by 2pm.
We took FT2 Jalan Gambang heading to Kuantan and made a left turn towards Felda Pancing on route 1490 passing Batu 10 Army Camp. The road surface here is bad with a lot of potholes and rough tarmac. It soon get better as we made another left turn on route C4 Jalan Sungai Lembing. During heavy rain, this road was often flooded, cutting land connection to Sungai Lembing.
We arrived at Mr. Tang’s place around 2.05pm and found him inside an aged wooden shoplots. The place seems used to have a glorious past but now it seems damped and tired. All of us filled up the necessary forms and paid RM13 for the permit. I also surrendered my driving license as a deposit to the trail security pole key. Saini arrived about 10 minutes later and completed the form in double time.
Hashim striking a pose
Photo Credit to Hashim
Ikhwan filling up entry form to the trail & Rainbow waterfall
(from left) Asoi, Cusco, Hashim & Cikgu Joe
(from left) Saniboy with Jalil
Pidot & Jimm admiring Khai's GS Rallye
Rockstar arrival of Saini. Form filled ready for action!
Mr Tang (JKKK Kampung Bharu)
+6010-9001090
GPS N3.91712 E103.03610
on a new bridge crossing in Sungai Lembing, awaiting the riders to regroup
1km into the trail, we reduced tyre pressure
We made a move towards the campsite around 2.36pm and it was a hot afternoon with ambient temperature around 34°C. The trail surface is made of loose small rocks with some sandy area, climbing up to 200m meter within the first 2km, but it gradually drop back to 50m within the next 4km.
Pidot's first river crossing
After the first river crossing, there is an opening for log collection area and the trail is going flat for 4km along Sungai Kuantan until Xcape Resort. There is a gate just after the resort and a security post is still under construction when we were there.
At Xcape Resort, Sungai Lembing
Gated Trail
When we arrived, the gate was open and we have locked the gate after we passed it as instructed by Mr. Tang. After the gate the remaining 8km is climbing to 100m elevation with two river crossings. The trail surface was made of loose rocks and some of the rocks were big. Saini dropped as he lose footing when tried to stop just after a crossing.
It was 4.30pm when we arrived at Lubuk Beruk and I found that the area were filled with overgrown grass & wild plants. We scouted around for more suitable campsites but at the end the team decided to camp at the opening just before the newly constructed bridge towards a trail to Rainbow fall. In the process, I took the bike on a plain below street level with grass as tall as 1m. During one last climb, my boot caught in the grass and fell to the ground. The team came to rescue and Tom rode my bike up the edge.
Photo Credit to Hashim
Lubuk Beruk GPS N3.92432 E102.95702
The area has no trees so it was still beaming with direct sunlight, although it was already 5pm. While the rest unpacked their tents and bags, I decided to jump into the river, with slightly milky color water from the last overnight rain. Despite the color, the water is still cold, flowing from a forest reserve upstream. The inflatable mattress bought at a clearance sale last week double as my raft, relaxing my spine from the whole day riding.
Photo Credit to Cikgu Ikhwan
Work that muscle - Cikgu give the manual chain saw a try
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
Campfire
That night we sat around campfire exchanging stories and news across a few groups of people. By 8pm, we started to barbeque marinated lamb & meat slices with chicken, brought by Jezz in a chiller bag. Saini brought 2 birds of ayam golek bought from a roadside stall and we shared the food among us. The night was clears with stars available on the sky and we chatted through the night. By 11pm, I retrieved to my tent.
Jezz barbequing marinated lamb slices
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
Photo Credit to Jezz
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
I had instant noodle with coffee for breakfast and prepared to hike to the fall afterwards. Some of us had decided to stay at the campsite, while the rest started to walk around 7.25am.
Hiker's departure
200m into the trail
The hike to the fall can be categorized into three main phases; the first phase is a 4 feet wide rocky trail with loose rocks and generally flat terrain. The rocks are all natural granite rocks that form a base of a small creek from the fall, which varies is sizes, some are as big as a basketball. As we turned right following a large arrow sign, the second phase of the hike begin. It is a 3 feet wide trail over tree roots and mostly on the forest floor. The path is clear and if there’s a junction, large arrows are already in place pointing to the right direction. A few pools are also available on the trail side, with the river running parallel to the trail. The remaining distance to the fall are also stated on large signage keeping hikers in-check.
Photo Credit to Abg Jalil
Photo Credit to Abg Jalil
Photo Credit to Abg Jalil
Photo Credit to Abg Jalil
Photo Credit to Abg Jalil
The last phase of the hike is a pathway on top of large rocks marked by ropes. In this phase the trail is zigzagging the river and we have to jump from one rock to another to get to the main lagoon.
We completed the hike around 30 minutes in relaxed and shutter happy mode. Most of the time, we stopped for a chance to take photo and since we were the first to arrive, the lagoon is completely ours. By the time we arrived at the pool, it was 8.00am and the sun is still blocked below the tree line so rainbow isn’t there yet.
Rainbow Falls
Depending on the rain, the amount of water cascading from about 15 foot high cliff might varies. When we were there, water dropping more like rain than a waterfall. The surrounding vertical wall is greenish from crawling moss and grass growing on it. As the sun rises above the tree line, the sunlight produces rainbow.
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
Photo Credit to Jezz
Photo Credit to Jezz
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
By 9.30am we were back on the campsite again ready to pack our equipment. The sun started to emerge from the tree line behind our campsite and I began to feel the heat. After finished packing the tent, I took a final dip in the river to cool down and refresh myself. We have cleared the campsite around 10.15am and started riding towards Sungai Lembing town.
Photo Credit to Jezz
Photo Credit to Abg Jalil
Photo Credit to Jezz
We rode through the same trail as yesterday and I planned to take a group picture at a hilltop with 360° view of the area.
However, I took a wrong turn and only after about 2.5km into the trail I realized it was a wrong turn. While making a u-turn, a few of us were separated from the main group and when we finally got to the right junction, 4 riders missed this spot.
Photo Credit to Saini Abdul
We were reunited again at the waypoint and rode together to Sungai Lembing town for refreshments. While they made their way to a food court, I went to see Mr. Tang to return the key and collect my driving license.
we said goodbye to each other at the food court
Anjung Selera Sungai Lembing
There were a few busses carrying visitors to the area but the food court itself was barely filled. It was 11.30am when we arrived and the weather was clear & hot. After brunch, we said goodbye to Asoi, Min, Pidot, Ross, Saniboy, Jalil and Saini here while riders from Klang Valley had decided to have lunch at Temerloh.
We continued to ride towards the same route through Felda Pancing and then to Gambang. It was really hot and I can feel gushing warm air running through my jacket, making a few minutes of wait at a traffic light felt like a torture.
The old road on FT2 towards Temerloh through Maran was in excellent condition. The tarmac surface is well-maintained with all dangerous bends and intersections clearly indicated by bright signboards. We arrived at Temerloh around 2pm, looking for Selera Patin Bangau but it was closed. So we double back to Temerloh’s food court to have lunch there. We made another stop at Masjid Jamek Karak for prayer and a quick rest before heading towards Gombak.
The main gateway to the eastern part of peninsula Malaysia, Karak highway is always receiving a lot of traffic heading to KL on Sundays. There was a 5km crawl towards the Gombak Toll when we passed through and we made a final stop just after the toll booth. We said goodbye to each other here and I safely arrived home around 6.15pm that Sunday evening.
Last stop - Gombak toll booth
Murky water intrusion into the headwaters of Sungai Kuantan has turned the water to milky color, especially after heavy rain. I believe this is one of the reasons why the numbers of campers to this area is reducing and has left a few campsites in this area filled with overgrown grass. This is a serious and appalling matter that should be looked into seriously if we want to preserve the nature and bring back nature lovers to this area.
We had wonderful time coming to this area for the night before trekking up to the Rainbow Fall the next day. With every one safe riding back home I hope they enjoyed it as much as I did throughout this adventurous weekend and looking forward for our next ride.
Ride snippets:
Riders:
1. Zairul “Asoi” Hafiz Honda Wave 100
2. Jezz Yamaha FZ150
3. Hafiz Cusco Yamaha Y15
4. Jimms BMW F800GS
5. Khai BMW 1200GS Rallye
6. Ross Suzuki V-Strom 1000
7. Saniboy Suzuki V-Strom 1000
8. Sarjan Saini Honda NC750X
9. Jalil Honda CB400X
10. Tom Kawasaki Versys 650
11. Hashim Kawasaki Versys 650
12. Pidot Kawasaki Versys 650
13. Ikhwan Kawasaki Versys 650
14. Cikgu Joe Kawasaki Versys 650
15. Rashidin Kawasaki Versys 650
Distance: 712km
Date: 29th – 30th September 2018
Average moving speed: 71km/h
Lowest temperature: 21°C (Campsite)
Highest temperature: 35°C (Bera)
Expenditures:
Petrol: RM90
Food: RM15 – Lunch & Dinner
Jackfruit – RM10
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