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Published: February 13th 2010
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Cameron Highlands
Beautiful Campsite: we were the only ones there! We had heard fantastic tales about the Cameron Highlands from Mairi, her childhood memories of holidays taken from Singapore. It was only 4 hours from KL and there was an internet rumour of free camping, we couldn't resist.
The bus struggled with the steep climb around numerous hairpins but slowly and noisily took us up into the forest. The sights of tree-covered hillsides, tea estates, waterfalls, and mists descending were
spectacular and upon stepping of the bus into cool damp air it was clear that this was a completely different side of Malaysia.
We didn't know what to expect from the campsite in terms of facilities, but as it would shortly be getting dark we grabbed a few supplies and took a taxi to Sungai Pauh campsite.
It was a beautiful spot to camp, surrounded by forest, a river running through the middle, pagodas, BBQ pits and hardly any other people in sight. We successfully pitched our tent for the first time, the bargin
£13 two-man had just enough room for us to lay down, cozily squashed against our rucksacks. The floor however was very hard and the evening was getting colder, we had only sheets to sleep
Cameron Highlands
Nasi Lemak (rice with egg, dried fish, and spicy-Yum!) in so with this
thought we went off in search of some extra bedding. We also hoped that the little town of Taman Sedia might be able to provide us with some dinner, no shops at the campsite and as usual we were rather
hungry!
Taman Sedia was a ghost town and the few shops they had were closed. I suddenly remembered it was Friday and therefore the Muslim community would not be working today. We didn't go back to the tent empty handed though, a chance knock at a warmly lit bungalow led us to the forestry officer who lent us three sleeping bags. A perfect mattress, just add a blanket and a hammock for duvets and you've got a makeshift bed. As for dinner...a feast...of peanut butter sandwiches.
Laying like sardines we fell asleep to the sounds of night birds and rustling in the undergrowth, unlike our last camping experience I felt safe in our tented fortress.
The next day we gathered supplies in the rather prefabricated town of Tanah Rata and ate a delicious breakfast of Roti Canai. A flaky yet doughy bread served with a collection of curry sauces. I predicted
before we
left that all the new culinary experiences would be one of my favourite parts of travelling and so far i've not been let down.
We traipsed back up the hill, arms aching from the weight of our BBQ supplies. On the way through Taman Sedia we dropped in at one of the strawberry farms, and picked our own.
We camped for five days and apart from the first night had the place to ourselves; taking walks into the forest, lounging in the hammock, reading books, eating homemade strawberry icecream and making some great BBQ meals. I prepared tinfoil parcels of vegetables and noodles in chili sauce, while Lewi would tend the barbie and pour the whisky. In the evenings we made a fire and sat beside it drinking and listening to our jointly varied music selection.
Almost every afternoon we were forced to take refuge in one of the pagodas while the rain poured down all around us. There were some impressive storms too, thunder rumbling around for hours until...BOOM...it's right overhead. I love a good storm, and once we were sure the tent was watertight it was great.
The river was cool and gently flowing
Cameron Highlands
Peanutbutter sandwhiches for tea most of the time and we foolishly thought it would be a good place to chill our sun-warmed Chang beers. It may well have been had the river not swelled and surged with the intense rainfall that afternoon. Two hours of heavy rain later, upon inspection of the now doubly wide river, the beers were nowhere to be seen. The disappointment on Lewi's face was tangible.
After a slightly subdued evening, he awoke renewed of energy, vowing to find the beers. I thought it was pointless, but an hour of wading in the river poking around with a stick (getting some strange looks from passing hikers) Lewi's Chang Fishing was rewarded! Wedged above water against a rock, the beer was typically still warm. But regardless, a breakfast beer never tasted so good.
We really enjoyed our relaxing time here, but it was plain to see that the environment is suffering. Deforestation is heavy and has been continously so for the last fifteen years. The pollution of the
waterways with sewage and rubbish is terrible. And much of the indigenous animal and plantlife has been wiped out as a result. It is so sad to see such diverse nature
Cameron Highlands
Cream tea, scones and straw jam disappear, yet the goverment allows
new construction projects and ignores scientific evidence. The economy is more important to them than the environment.
On our last day in the Cameron Highlands we went for tea and scones at a friendly cafe. Maybe the description of the Camerons as ''A little corner of England in Malaysia" isn't so far wrong afterall.
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mouty
non-member comment
Camerons
HI, great that you went there, gandhi will be pleased to hear about it all. V sad about the destruction. It is difficult but possible to believe. A real lesson in what the media tells about deforestation. When I was there it was deep jungle with monkeys and tigers. Still great that you were there and that you sourced blankets! Well done intrepid travellers! Food looks amazing and v english or even cornish. Like the pics of you both, food does seem to come high on the agenda. William says good on you to L for fishing the beers out of the river but what a mut for not securing them. Love m and m