Gunung Panti Trek on 25th March 2005
Posted on 7th April 2005.
Trekking is seriously great fun! We conducted our inaugural trek to a tiny 500m mountain called Gunung Panti in Kota Tinggi, West Malaysia on 25th March 2005. Including myself, there were a total of 15 trekkers.
I met the participants at Marsiling MRT station at 7:30am and we set off for checkpoint at 8:30am. I packed 11 of them into a chartered van while my 3 buddies and I walked to the checkpoint. Due to the Good Friday holiday, customs was packed and it was 11:30am before all 15 of us cleared the gates. Now this has thrown our original schedule into disarray but such is life. Trekkers are a different lot of travelers. We take such minor hiccups in our stride.
After getting through the Malaysian customs, we divided ourselves into 2 groups. 11 of us boarded a van while the other 4 took a car. After a short one and a half hour ride, we finally reached the foot of our desired location. I told the drivers to pick us up at 5:30pm. It was a hot afternoon and it was already 1:11pm. We were originally scheduled to begin our ascent at 11:00am.
(Note: Clicking on the thumbnails will open a window that displays a larger version of the photographs.)
We had to traverse a vehicular track before fording a water obstacle. After that, the real ascent expected of a mountain loomed before us.
Within 15 minutes, we were deep into the tropical jungle undergrowth of Gunung Panti, and encountering the various flora of a secondary forest. And there was the cacophony made by cicadas. We did not encounter any animals though.
I set off on a rather brisk pace and it was nearly 2:00pm before we had our first rest, and deservedly so. By then, most of the trekkers were perspiring profusely and any pretense that this was to be an easy trek had gone away.
The group picked up the brisk pace after less than 10 minutes and it proved to be too gung-ho on our part. One of our members suffered from cramps on both legs. First aid was administered and before long, we were on our way again.
Trekkers are inherently a resilient lot. This never-say-die attitude is largely acquired though. Except for Bambi, who had to run away from predators within minutes of birth, practically no one else is born tough.
(Note: Trekker having cramps is hidden from view so as not to impinge on trekker's slightly bruised ego.)
It was to take us another 45 minutes before we reached the daunting rock face that Gunung Panti offers to all trekkers. At precisely 3:16pm, we took a breather, fully aware that the final 30 metres of the mountain was well within our reach.
With a renewed sense of vigour, this intrepid group of trekkers tackled the sheer rock face, grasping at every handhold, steadying themselves at every foothold, and always took great lengths to look glamorous.
We finally reached the summit after 15 more minutes at 3:35pm. It was time for congratulatory smiles, picture taking, and a group photo. The satisfied group lounged about for quite a while, took in the scenery, and ate their yogurt bars.
As the trek leader, one of the things that I missed must be the luxury with which to take pictures of nature, and of the people who are trekking with me. It is more important to ensure the safety of the group and not to get lost.
However, one of the perks of being a trek leader must be that I get my picture taken with beautiful ladies who are as tough as nails! And to top it up, I got a picture with my buddies as well.
Ever mindful of the time, we started our descent at 4:00pm. It was important to get down before dark. And perhaps even more importantly, it was crucial to get to our dinner location before all of us got too hungry!
Descent was much swifter and it was all over in an hour and a half. We left for our dinner location at Pasir Gudang at around 5:45pm. You could almost see the look of relief on those tired blokes' faces.
The ride to the kelong restaurant took a while and it was nearly 7:30pm before we settled on our choice of food.
In total, the 15 of us consumed 2 huge fishes, 2kg of prawns, 4kg of crabs, 2kg of clams, untold amount of rice, at least 30 cans of soft drinks, and then some more. It was well after midnight before all of us reached home. What a day!
A big “Thank you” to all my participants, it was a pleasure to lead this trek. And what a great inaugural trek it was for Team Spreo!
Allen Tan
Team Spreo
