Amoi rides in the kampungs: The Call of the Wild (Dec 27 2021 - Jan 1 2022), Day 4

Crossing over from Kuala Tembeling to Kampung Pasir Tambang. Assisting us is Black

Time check 11 am, near Kampung Beluan

3 km to Kuala Tembeling Jetty. Time check 12 pm, stopping for drinks and keropok

2 km to Kuala Tembeling Jetty. Note the muddy road and brown coloured vegetations. The flood waters came up to almost 5 feet in this area!!!

Kuala Tembeling Jetty

Some pushed their bikes down the stairs...

...while others prefer to carry them!

Our boatman

First team to cross the river. If you enlarge the photo, you can see the rain drops

While our first team were on their way to Pasir Tambang, a family on holiday were on their way back to Kuala Tembeling. They cut short their holiday, worried over the incessant rain.

Even though Claudine had been harping daily about changing our route to Jerantut, should the sky melts...

...we still happily boarded our boat!!!

On the shores of Pasir Tambang. Note Kuala Tembeling Jetty in the background

Just before the spartan challenge began...

...left behind !!!

The gang waiting

The signboard speaks for itself

C163's well paved road. Time check 1.20 pm

Route 1508, 11 km to Kuala Tahan. Time check 4.40 pm

Taman Negara Jetty at Kuala Tahan. Across the river is Mutiara Taman Negara. Note the boats, water level, concrete dock and island in the middle of the river. At 5.15 pm, the water level was just 1 foot below the dock. By 10 pm the same day, half the dock had submerged in waters and by the next morning, the whole island had DISAPPEARED !

Everyone giving their thumbs up even though Claudine had repeatedly said, "We don't have to cross the river if we don't feel comfortable"

Mutiara Taman Negara's jetty. Time check 5.45 pm

Thankfully, this pulley still works !

Mission accomplished!

More than 6 hours of rain

Time check 6.10 pm

According to Nasa who has been with Mutiara Taman Negara since she graduated from school, we were the only cycling group who brought our bicycles to Taman Negara. Other cyclists have come all the way to Kuala Tahan but never crossed the river to Taman Negara with their bikes in tow!

Appreciation dinner...

...BUT soon we will have indigestion on news of a possible EVACUATION the next morning!!!

Breakfast this morning was a strange experience. As soon as we all stepped into Restoran Tong Kok, the noodle stall owner left without a word leaving behind his young apprentice in the back kitchen. He was in charge of brewing coffee but remained inside for the longest time.

When another 2 customers came in and walked directly into the kitchen to place their orders, we thought we were required to do the same! We did !!!

Requesting for pen and paper from the young man, Zoe wrote all our 11 orders down. Chooi was sent to the kitchen with our orders and stayed to offer help.

Yet our orders took awhile to come prompting some of our team members to scour both the multi level market and Medan Tangga for food. There began a food review on various types of "you tiau".

Now, we soon found out our stall owner had to leave to fetch his daughter to school. When he did return, a commotion erupted in the kitchen and Chooi was asked to wait outside. So much for trying to help our young man!

While the stall owner was polite and accomodating, our flustered young man was muttering under his breath. We were not sure if he was throwing abusives at us but we became very solemn and well behaved.

Surprisingly, his toasts were perfect, his soft boiled eggs like tau huay and his tea and coffee good. Every cup had to be pre-scalded with hot water and kept warm by the charcoal stove which boils the water. Every toasts went on the BBQ net and were carefully slotted inside the stove. Every egg timed perfectly without the need of an egg maker or timer!

After a prolonged breakfast, we began our ride to Taman Negara. Leaving the town, we crossed Sungai Lipis and marvelled over Clifford School, which stood by the riverbanks. What caught our eyes most were the spanking new signboard with the name of Datuk Siti Nurhaliza's below the school's name but in bigger fonts! Apparently, after the school was inundated with flood waters on January 2021, Datuk Siti had donated to her alma mater. The signboard must have been fully sponsored by her as clearly stated !

First stop on Route 234, near Kampung Jeram Bungor

After 15 km of rolling hills, we made a regrouping stop. Everyone were surprised with the hilly terrain especially when the road follows the river, flowing downstream!

Unknowingly, we were riding between the mountain ranges of Tahan to our north and Benum to our south. We had assumed we would be riding downhill all the way to Kuala Tembeling where Sungai Lipis merged with Sungai Tembeling to form the mighty Sungai Pahang!

Time check 10.30 am, near Kerambit

Time check 11 am, near Kampung Beluan. Note the rolling hills

We enjoyed cool weather and overcast skies the whole morning. It only began to rain around 11 am, when we were comfortably seated under the shelters of a roadside gerai offering roti canai and pulut panggang. When we stepped out again, the rain stopped miraculously. This good weather held on all the way to Kuala Tembeling.

Time check 12.15 pm, after our drinks and keropok stop

3 km short of Kuala Tembeling Jetty, we made another stop by a roadside gerai. As it was only 12 pm and we were not hungry yet, we only ordered drinks and keropok. Instead, we packed nasi goreng for the second part of our journey.

Medan Pelancong Kuala Tembeling comes with a food court, shops and toilets though everything seems to be closed. Kuala Tembeling Jetty used to be the only transit point to Taman Negara. The role is now taken over by Taman Negara Jetty at Kuala Tahan.

The jetty is still maintained for the local's daily transfers and private excursions

Tourism office

View from the jetty's ticketing booth

Call Black for private charter

RM10 per pax including bikes to cross from Kuala Tembeling to Pasir Tambang

You can charter a boat to Taman Negara for RM450. It seats 6 pax and 6 full sized bicycles

Pasir Tambang viewed from Kuala Tembeling. Enlarge the photo to see the road at Pasir Tambang

View of the jetty and floating dock

Black was waiting for us by the jetty as pre-arranged but we had to wait a bit for Zoe who had a puncture. As this was her first ever puncture in her cycling career, she should always remember Henry riding back for her rescue.

Note the rails by the side of the stairs. A trolley operated by pulleys used to bring baggage up and down the jetty

When we began our river crossing, a light drizzle had begun. This rain will continue throughout our journey, the whole evening, the entire night and on to the next morning !!!

Note the road in the middle of the photo and motorcycles parked by the riverbank. Locals still use the river crossing

Across the river is Pasir Tambang. It is aptly named after the wide deposits of sand collected by the riverside. Depending on the season, the size of the sand bank varies. On dry seasons, the sand bank beocmes wider as the water level recedes.

As the river was swollen on the day of our crossing, we only had a 50 m challenge from boat to high ground. But it was a spartan challenge to get bike and feet off soggy ground.

By the time we reached high ground, our bicycle wheels had turned into fat doughnuts and our feet like Ronald McDonald's. Mr Lim found an abandoned boat filled with water to clean up but attracted a ravenous leech!

Pushing her bike up to flat ground in order to park her bike, Claudine found to her relief, civilization! Nestled by the edge of the river were a few kampung houses!

What luck to find tapped water by the side of the road! Seeking permission from a curious makcik, we helped ourselves to the tap, cleaning our wheels and feet!

The ride on C163 was not as remote as we had anticipated. The road was well paved for 2 way traffic.

There were a few dwellings at Pasir Tambang and another settlement 2.5 km away where the road turns right. We also noted settlements at every few kilometers apart, all along C163.

Time check 1.45 pm

After lunch, we found a hose to further hose down the mud on our bikes

Looking out for a shed to stop for lunch, we were pleasantly surprised to find Masjid Kampung Pasir Durian. It was a God sent refuge, topped with a temporary canopy, tables and chairs! It was Heavenly to be able to eat without having the rain fall into our food!!!

After lunch, we rode close to 7 km before turning left to join Route 1508. Here on, the road is wider, running mainly through palm oil plantations. Traffic was few.

We took fewer photos as the drizzle persists into rain. As Mr Lim tires out but championed on, we made many regrouping stops by the roadside with no shelter, allowing the rain to fall freely down on us. Strangely, after every roadside stops, we seemed to spot shelters a little ahead!!!

Soon we passed the entrance to Felda Sungai Retang, our initial intended stop for the night before a kampung wedding ruined our plans. Rest Inn Sg Retang was fully booked for the balik kampung event.

After Felda Sungai Retang, we had planned to turn back to C163 for Kg Lubok Payung and Kg Merting. However, due to the incessant rain, decided to stay on Route 1508 as we figured help is more likely to come by on the main route should the need arise.

At the northern entrance to Kg Merting, there was a row of shophouses. We decided a stop was necessary even though we were charged with negative ions. Pressing on to Kuala Tahan even though it is only 23 km more, may end with grievous errors.

"15 minutes to Mutiara Taman Negara" Unfortunately, the signboard only works for motor vehicles!

Route 1508

Note the blanket of mists over the mountain range

Once we crossed Sungai Tekai, we left the palm oil estates and began on a winding road which circumvents the hilly forest. Soon, we left the mountains altogether and found ourselves on a flat plain. The land had been cleared for acres after acres of new palm trees.

At the entrance to Benus Bird Conservation near Kampung Gol, we made another regrouping stop. This time, we finally found proper shelter by a roadside stall which was closed.

Then, a final push to Kuala Tahan jetty with yet another river crossing. Our journey ended on the left side of Sungai Tembeling, in the comforts of Mutiara Taman Negara!