I did my second trek to Mt Ophir on 25th Jul 08 and this time, it was a bigger group. The last trek was done exactly 2 years back (read the trek details in the travelogue section of my travel web page http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/5f4b9/138b89/ ), on 14-15th Jul 06. This time around, a lot of the members were first timers. There were 21 members and hence we divided them into 4 groups. I was the group leader for the 3rd group, which comprised of experienced trekkers like Siti and Hayati and also some first timers like Mohd Amin, Sharianna and Hayati’s son, who was the youngest member of the group.  We started from Singapore at 7 PM.

Bye Bye Singapore  

There were two buses. I took the seat next to the driver and was engrossed in long conversation with the driver, whom I was calling ‘Uncle’ and he was OK with that. After clearing the Singapore and Malaysian customs from the Tuas 2nd Link side, we were cruising at 100 KMPH on the expressway. It didn’t take much time to reach Gelang Phata food court in Johore. We had our dinner in the food court. I exchanged some Singapore dollar (S$) to Malaysian Ringgit(RM) @ 1S$=2.375 RM. Not a bad exchange rate. Same as what I would have got in Singapore . Immediately after dinner, we were back on the road at 9 PM, again cruising along the Johor-KL Highway . Within half an hour, everybody was dosing off, knowing very well that we will not be getting a wink of sleep in the night to come. So everybody wanted to make the most use of this 3-hour bus trip. The driver stopped again at R&R (rest and recreation centre) for a short break. By 10:30 PM, we exited the North South Highway (called Lebuhraya in Malaysia ). The highway toll was around RM20.70. and the highway exit number was 235. It is called Tangkak exit. Tangkak is a small district within Johore state and borders Melaka state. From the exit point, it took 40 minutes to reach the Asahan village and we were at the base camp at 11:15 PM. The base camp cum registration centre is located deep inside the forest and is not all marked. Only those who are familiar with the place can find out the location. But I saw, efforts for putting up road signages was in full swing.

Arrival at the Trek start point: Trek Registration

  This time, the driver didn’t have any problem in locating the base camp. The last 3-4 KM stretch of this road was in horrible shape and the driver was not very happy to risk his bus. It was pitch dark at the base camp. At a distance, we could see a simmering light in a small makeshift camp and this is precisely the base camp. The warden had the prior intimation and hence was waiting for us. I recognized, he was the same guy I met last time. We did the registration for our group and paid the taxes and porter charges. The office is managed by Taman Negara Johor Gunung Ledang (Mt Ophir is locally known as Gunung Ledang) and we are supposed to fill up three forms

Mt Ophir Registration form, where we mention our personal details like name, age, nationality, passport number, address, profession. We fill up the details of all the members in the same form.
Tagging list of visitor. This form is to be filled up individually by all members. Each member is supposed to give a description of all the items they are carrying in the pack pack like plastic wrapped food, canned food, paper wrapped food, batteries, torch light clothing’s, fuel, tent, cigarettes etc. We are supposed to fill up the form, show it to the warden, and keep it with us. Later, at the end of the trek, the warden will check whether we have brought back everything that we stated in the form. The idea is to prevent littering in the forest area. There is a rubbish deposit of RM 50. If you loose some of the item or if your items don’t tally at the end, the deposit will be forfeited. Just for your information, the enforcement is followed very strictly. Indemnity form: This form is filled up collectively. We just have to put our names, passport number, date and sign.
 

The registration and other applicable fees are as following

Park entrance (Malaysian) RM 5, Non Malaysian RM 10
Hiking permit (Malaysian) RM 5, Non Malaysian RM 10
Insurance RM 2
Guide Fees: RM 190 for a group of 10, for the crossover trail
Rubbish Deposit: RM 20 per person (refundable)
 

 All the registration and paper work was completed in 30 mts and we were ready to start our trek at 00:30. I briefed my group on the safety measures. We had two guides. One was instructed to be in the lead position. The other was in front of our group. 

Various trails to Mt Ophir

The route was the same as what we had undertaken last time-Asahan trail. And it was a crossover trek. That means, we start from Asahan Village (Melaka state side) and end out trek near Taman Hutan Ladenga resort in Johore state, after crossing over the mountain range. And this was going to be a whole night trek.

There are two popular trails for reaching the Summit of Mt Ophir-one from Johore side, which starts from Taman Hutan Ladenga Resort in Johore side (this is called Sagil trail), and the other from Asahan village on Melaka side (this is called Asahan Trail). As I mentioned, we took the Asahan trail. This trail is considered shorter and less difficult. Asahan trail is not so popular among the trekking enthusiasts, probably because the approach to the base camp is not so well marked. Most of the trekkers start and end from the Sagil trail. No wonder, we did not encounter any trekker on the Asahan side.

Before we started our trek, the warden mentioned to us about a major change in the trekking route after crossing the summit (Johor side). He said, there is a new trail which shortens the total travel time from 6 hrs to 5 hrs. But it is not as scenic as the earlier one. He mentioned that the guides are familiar with the new route. Later we discovered that some parts of the old route is still maintained (Gua Kambing, CP6, KFC) but just before Kolam Gajah (little elephant pool), the route bifurcates and we were supposed to take the route on right side. At this point, the trail is made of wooden steps and is well marked. So we don’t need to keep walking along the stream to reach Gunung Ledang Resort. Instead, we proceed towards Taman Hutan Ladenga resort, which is the new registration office for trekkers on Sagil side. So there is no need to proceed to Gunung Ledang Resort. At the Taman Hutan Ladenga resort, there is a Park registration office for the trekkers proceeding to Mt Ophir.  The best part of this new registration office is that there is a beautiful waterfalls next to it and is a blessing in disguise for travel exhausted trekkers who can enjoy the poolside, waiting for other team members to come.

Beginning of trek:

We started our trek at 00:30 hrs. The initial 30 mts was without any problem. The trail was very gentle, but moist. Lots of wet leaves obscured the trail. Nevertheless, the guides were doing a wonderful job and nobody had any difficulty. After 30 mts of climbing, we had a short break of 5 mts and set off to more difficult section of the trail. During the next one hour, the trail was medium steep and the climb was kind of OK. Two of our group members had slowed down and we were providing support to these members in terms of constant cheering. There was a small slope and after that, again a steep climb. The going was getting tough. Members were cooperating with each other. Along the way, members were clicking photographs of each other, more to provide them with much needed rest than to appreciate nature. The trail was full of winding and intertwined roots of the gigantic trees and they used to provide a good stepping stone to move forward. Some of the steps were too higher and was a challenge to negotiate. I had moved to the tailgate position, just in front of the tour leader Eric because of my stomach upset. I think the Roti Prata which I ate in JB could have played a role here in giving shock waves in my stomach. After further two hours of climb, we reached this gigantic rock face I was keenly waiting for. It was around 4 AM. There was only one rope and hence there was a long queue of climbers trying to go up the rock face. I decided to go last. I almost got a break of 20 mts. This came as a welcome relief and I felt much better. Another 10 mts and I was over the gigantic rock face. As always, we decided to break for 1 hr because we had lot of time here. At the end of the gigantic rock face, there is a resting ground and there is also a stream of water just behind the resting ground.

From here, it takes around 2 hrs to reach the summit. We started our onwards journey at 5 AM. The trek resumes with a short climb followed by a steep slope. The slope is quite a big one and I was getting nervous at the idea of climbing the same height in order to reach the summit. At the end of the slope, we took rest. The rest sessions were more of bantering moments where the members used to narrate the lighter and serious experiences which they faced along the way. Some members were really very exhausted at this moment and hence their backpack was offloaded by more experienced members of the team like Joanne. What a wonderful gesture! I was delighted at the level of team work and cooperation. All along the trail, Siti, Eng Keat and many other members were sharing whatever food and water they were carrying.

There was another steep rock face and must have been equivalent to 8 storey building. It took a long time to cover this rock-face. When we came out of this steep rock-face, it was already daytime. The darkness was conquered by day light. We switched off our headlamps and put them back in our backpacks, never to use it again in this trek. The path all of sudden became very step and rocky. Fortunately, it wasn’t dark any more. This section of the trail was the most difficult section on the way up to the summit. More so, because we had exhausted all of our energy and now everybody was eagerly waiting to reach summit. There were numerous sections with aluminum ladders and ropes to facilitate the rock climbing. It is important to negotiate this section carefully. Some of our members found it difficult. The key is to hold the rope firmly, stand at right angle to the rock and make sure the feet is firmly in grip with the rock. It is very important to have a good pair of climbing shoes. Most of the times, the rock is moist and they have moss growth, which makes it slippery and dangerous. The experienced climbers displayed their expertise by providing support to the first timers and again this was an extremely commendable gesture. We proceeded further and now the telecommunication tower of the adjoining peak was visible.

At the summit

Within next 10-15 mts, we reached the summit. It was 7 AM. The summit was clear of any clouds and at the far end, we could see the towns of Tangkak, and perhaps Segamat. The sight was mystical and the ambience was serene. Ours was the only group on the summit.

Hayati broke the silence of the morning by declaring at the top of her voice that it was Siti’s birthday today and that she had baked a cake especially for her. She had carried it all the way from Singapore and nobody had any inkling of it. As if this was not enough, Eric, the team leader too opened up his back pack to declare that he too had something for Siti. Oh my God!, what a place to celebrate the birthday, what an eclectic moment.  This was a unique venue to have a birthday celebration. Everybody sang the Birthday song in their own language. Joanne’s voice was most vocal and she was singing in Mandarin. I am sure Siti would remember this birthday celebration at an altitude of 1267 mtrs, all throughout her life. She was overwhelmed and didn’t have a voice for a while. The cake was distributed and was gulped in a fraction of second by all. Now it was the turn to show our photographic skills. Everybody was busy taking snapshots from all possible angles. As usual, the sunrise was not visible because of the clouds. Interestingly, there were two layers of cloud. One high above us and the other one below us. This provided an excellent panorama and a photo by our member Belle to show this two layers of clouds looks beautiful.

The return trek

After few more minutes of fun and joy, we decided to go ahead with the return trek.  It was around 8:30 AM and we decided to follow the new trail, which the warden had mentioned earlier. The return leg was more difficult and the initial section of the trail was very rocky, undulating and uneven. Taj’s group was in the lead and the steep slope had to be tackled carefully. Again, there were lot of Aluminum ladders and ropes to go down the vertical rocks. We continued going down hill almost for 2.5 hrs. There were lots of difficult sections and all this slowed down our pace. At one point we reached a cave just before Gua Kambing and there was a traffic jam. This was the first group we encountered in the opposite direction since the beginning of the trek and it was a relief to see other human faces. They were girls and boys from a local school and they were full of energy and enthusiasm. In spite of the difficult climb for them, they all were smiling and greeting all of our team members. The traffic jam gave us an opportunity to take rest and it was a welcome break. At this point, the group had started segregating into fast and slow groups. I was in the front and Eric was taking care of the rest of the folks. Within minutes, we reached Gua Kambing. After long and arduous downhill climbing, this was a flat surface and there was long trunk of wood which we used for sitting and relaxing. We also had photo sessions and I was really very thirsty, but my water stock had already exhausted. Siti was kind enough to share here water with me. After another half hour trek, we came across a rivulet stream with extremely cold and clean water. The running stream was producing soothing sound and it was very refreshing. We decided to take a break, as many of out members were trailing behind. I filed up my empty water bottles with the natural spring water and tasted it. What a nectar it proved to be. I took out some munchies from my back pack and shared it with other team members.

Other team members arrived within 30 mts. We informed Eric that we are proceeding to the next camp site. After this, there was a steep climb but the steps were negotiable. But the path was very muddy and slippery. There are ropes along the path at some points to provide support. The climb continues for almost 45 mts. After this, it is much better. But at this point, we just keep going on and on and on, with no end in sight and this is a very frustrating experience. We took rest for 5 mts. After almost 3 hrs going down the declivity, we reach wooden steps and you can rest assured, there is no tough section after this. But as I mentioned earlier, the new trail starts from here and it bypasses the scenic sections like Kolam Gajah and Twin waterfalls (Sungai Segi Tegah).  Nevertheless, the feeling that the trek is finally coming to an end is enough for you to let you keep going. Wooden steps have been made recently (from this point onwards) and this comes as a big comforting factor for the trekkers. At one point, just before the end of trail, you start hearing the sound of flowing water and the sound keeps getting clearer and clearer. There is a resting place and the trail bifurcates from here. If you wish to see the waterfalls, take the right trail, otherwise keep going further up till you reach the Taman Hutan Ladenga Resort. Since we were quite ahead of the rest of the group, we decided to take a break and proceeded to the waterfalls. It is a beautiful waterfalls and the water is cool and extremely clean.  It’s worth taking out your shoes and soaking them in the cool water of the stream.

We waited for 30 mts and rest of the team (except Eric and two members) arrived. In the resort, there is a washroom. We took shower and freshened up for the return journey to Singapore .