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| Starting the ride in light drizzle |
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| Conquering the soon to be laid railway lines |
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| We were told this is similar to New Zealand scenery! |
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| Sitting by the railway tracks waiting for the old train to pass |
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| Here comes the train! |
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| When this photo was taken, Claudine had just come off the phone instructing her boys to transfer all food to Yusof's home and non halal food to the Fairway Suites and D suites Akasia. Their 10 year old fridge had called it quits the night before! |
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| One of the century old bridges that will be removed once the new double tracking line takes over |
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| At Labis Railway Station |
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| The gang at Taka Melor |
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| Taking a cold dip |
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| The dinner party ! |
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| The dinner party ! |
Wet weather reports flew in as more members began to rise for the day. Simon, who had stayed a night in Yong Peng, reported that it was raining cats and dogs at 4.30 am. This was further validated by Ivy at Paloh!
Despite the wet weather conditions, this did not dampen our spirits. After all, there was a birthday song to be sung at Ling Nam coffee shop.
While we presented Henry with a chocolate cake, Uncle Wong gave a special performance to the birthday boy! He showed off his skills; opening a tin can in 3 seconds, blindfolded !!! Such mastery can only happen by brewing excellent coffee for over 50 years. Of course, while Henry appeared thrilled, a lady jumping out of the box mimicking Marilyn Monroe's seductive rendition of "Happy Birthday Mr President" would have struck the chord!
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| Caryn, Hong Lao Tze and Henry from Team Paloh at the start of the trail |
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| Puddles !!! |
It was still drizzling when we finally rolled out from Rolan Homestay. Despite all the warnings given by Chuan Soon, we were adamant to hit the trail. Thank goodness he tweaked it on the 11th hour, combining trails and tracks which offered so much more fun.
Riding along the double tracking railway line which was still under construction with the century old line running parallel was fun and easy. The wet weather was a blessing as the 10 km route on the railway line was devoid of tree covers and the granite pebbles could heat up and hold heat under the sun!
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| Riding into Bekok through the back streets |
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| Riding towards the town center |
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| The epicenter of the town consists mainly of wooden shophouses. Note the bike shop |
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| The old Bekok train station has been completely stripped down and replaced with this temporary makeshift one. |
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All in the name of modernization
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At Bekok, we said goodbye to Caryn, Henry and Hong Laotze before proceeding to Chaah. Taking J150's Jalan Bekok, the first half of the route was filled with slopes but ones which took very little efforts to scale. Every downhill slide could propel you to the next peak with almost zero effort.
On the second half of the route, we witnessed the effects of this morning's heavy rain. Rivers were bursting its banks!
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| Chaah |
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| Route 1, the oldest federal road in Malaysia |
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| Riding towards Chaah's food court |
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| A small church in Chaah |
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| The backroads |
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| Unlike Bekok and Paloh which is tucked away from Route 1 which becomes the main artery connecting all towns, Chaah was sporting more shops |
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| Keldai Betina looking mucky at Chaah's food court! |
It was almost 12 pm when we arrived in Chaah. Taking lunch at the food court, we were charmed by the stall owners who offers complimentary Chinese tea along with their meals, a custom no longer available in bigger towns. As they were closing up, they offered to fill up our water bottles with leftover tea for free!
Setting off for Labis on Route 1, we were grateful the nation's oldest public road way, connecting the north and the south and traversing through 7 states in the west peninsula was built with wide road shoulders. Traffic was significantly low on this trunk road with drivers taking a preference for North South Highway.
Stopping for regrouping at Caltex petrol station,the early arrivals took the opportunity to wash off the mud collected over the morning. Unfortunately, we collected 10 x more mud when we did an illegal crossing over the railway tracks at Labis' railway station. Claudine's bike ended up with naturally tanned tyre walls and needless to say, fat tyres!
It was good to see Labis' old railway station still standing despite the upgrading works around it. In contrast, Paloh and Bekok's had fallen victim to modernization.
Sadly, Paloh's concerned residents could not save their town's century old signboard. Without skill, it broke when the workers tried to remove it.
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| Taking a shortcut to our pau shop... |
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| ...Claudine ended up with doughnuts instead !!! |
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| Pau steamed over charcoal fire |
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| Our loot !!! |
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| Old is gold |
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| Traditional coffee shop |
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| Hot pau in bamboo baskets |
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| The coffee shop has been patronized by super stars! |
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| Labis old town |
After collecting our pre-ordered pau that were steamed over charcoal fire, we left for Taka Melor. Our intended lunch at Kedai Makan Ah Tee, famous for their kueh tiau kia had to be shelved as they were sold out at 2 pm!
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| On the backroads of Labis, heading for Ah Tee's Kueh Tiau Kia |
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| Rolling hills on J151 |
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| Pekan Air Panas just before Tenang |
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| Tenang |
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| Hungry for pau in Tenang |
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| The last stretch to Taka Melor on a single lane road |
The ride to Taka Melor was a challenge. Taking route J151 which mainly cuts through rubber estates, it was filled with undulating hills. Our resolves broke when we reached Tenang! The paus meant for a picnic by the falls were quickly sacrificed.
It was Hari Raya Haji, a holy day celebrated by Muslims worldwide to commemorate Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son in honour of God. Muslims took to the mosques in the morning followed by visit to the graves. Taka Melor was almost deserted except for the park ranger who had followed us in. They took our temperatures as per Covid 19 SOP and made sure we filled our details for tracking purposes.
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| The falls |
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| Spot the frog! |
The weather was cool the whole day and the waters freezing cold. A short dip was all we could endure. Meanwhile, Claudine and Cindy suffered cramps right at The Falls due to the cold!
It would have been splendid if Labis Hotsprings was not closed for renovations. Soaking in hot thermal water on a cold day to soothe tired muscles would have made the pinnacle for the day. Disappointingly, the banner at the gates stated it's closure from March to May, for the MCO but extended further for renovation works!
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| The nest |
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| The bee is said to have a built in "GPS", flying back to their nests using the same flight path. If you block the path, the bee will hover momentarily before finding a new route home |
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| Family portrait on wood |
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| Fine craft |
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| The artisan can build anything |
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| Kayu Warisan |
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| Pre-loved cars at KW |
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Pre-loved motorcycles at KW
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Pre-loved cars at KW
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The ride back to Labis on the same route seemed a lot easier. We made a stop at a stingless bee farm and Kayu Warisan, a workshop in Tenang which showcases amazing carpentry work of an artisan. Due to the holy holiday, the carpenter was not in and so was the bee farmer.
As for the porcupine farm, we must have missed the visit by seconds. Chuan Soon who had left us, enroute to Taka Melor had stopped to make enquiries with the owner. We had arrived at 5 pm, their closing time, with no sights of the owner!
According to Chuan Soon, the breeder sells the porcupine by pairs at RM 2k above. These animals are highly sought for their bile stones; also known as porcupine dates which are a mass of organic ingested herbs accumulated in the mammal's digestive system. Believed to be able to cure all kinds of illnesses from dengue to cancer, a bile stone the size of a ping pong ball can cost as much as RM 40k to RM 60k!
We finished dinner as dusk was setting in. Picking up our supplies at 99 Speedmart, we then made the short ride in darkness to our stay at Labis Sunrise Farm. That night many exhausted riders turned into their rooms and was not seen until the next morning....shy of 5 riders who still enjoy a get together over beers and snacks!!!
Photo credits : Amy and Derrick
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