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Belum
Forest
Write
Up
by
Adam
Gottlob
(USA)
To
be
honest,
I
booked
this
trip
with
only
a
general
idea
of
what
kind
of
trip
it
could
be.
There
was
no
way
to
know
for
sure
what
the
people
would
be
like
or
if
I
would
like
the
trip
but
I
wasn’t
going
to
let
this
uncertainty
prevent
me
from
trying.
I
was
very
pleasantly
surprised
with
all
aspects
of
this
trip
and
can
recommend
it
to
anyone
looking
for
adventure.
Mike
(our
English/Bahasa
speaking
guide)
could
not
have
been
more
helpful
or
worked
harder
for
our
enjoyment.
He
was
able
to
offer
many
things
on
the
trip
that
other
trekking
organizations
were
not
willing
or
able
to
do.
The
food
during
the
trip
was
also
great.
It
is
not
easy
to
cook
for
so
many
people
at
a
campsite,
but
all
of
the
meals
were
expertly
prepared
by
a
Grik
resident.
The
only
disappointment
on
the
entire
trip
was
some
of
my
choices
of
things
to
bring,
but
these
are
impossible
to
get
exactly
right.
Day
1
- Mike drove us in the “MM” van
from Kuala Lumpur to Grik (normally
a 6 hour drive) but was willing to
take us to see many sights along the
way. We saw Batu Caves, the
Pagoda (not really on the way), , ,
and other stops. It really made the
drive worthwhile as we could not
have seen these sights otherwise. We
stayed overnight at a hotel in Grik.
Day
2
- In the morning we drove to the
dock (or jetty) to meet the boat. It
was a 2 hour ride through great lake
and mountain views to the 1st
campsite. The campsite was very nice
and within walking distance to the
hill where the indigenous Malaysians
live (Orang Asli). This village was
amazing to see and it was
interesting to meet the natives. It
was here that we picked up our
native trekking guide and porter.
The overnight was in a nice tent
slightly uphill from the river.
Day
3 - This was the first
day where we could get an idea of
just how difficult the trekking was.
To an experienced trekker this was
probably moderate, but we were not
used to the many hills and it took
us longer than normal to finish the
2.5 hour trek. The trek took us
through very dense rainforest, 8
deep river crossings, muddy hills,
animal tracks, etc. After 3 hours we
reached the 2nd campsite right near
the river. We could rest for a while
for what was to come tomorrow.
Day
4 - If the previous
day seemed difficult for us,
trekking to the waterfall was even
harder. We followed our native guide
through difficult paths and up
mountains. It was 90 minutes of the
most physically challenging workout
I can remember. Covered in sweat,
the ice cold waterfall was welcome
relief. The return trek did not
involve as much climbing, but also
took quite a bit of energy. We
returned to the 2nd campsite to rest
for the night.
Day
5 - As we expected, we
had to trek the 2.5 hours back to
the boat but this time it was
easier. After much practice over the
previous days, the return trip
seemed almost simple. We again met
the boat to ride back to the dock
where the van was parked. Mike then
drove the 6 hours back to Kuala
Lumpur and our hotel.
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