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I love hiking. I love getting out there, seeing new things, new sounds, new smells, and learning along the way. When I read that a hike was offered through my guest house I thought it sounded like a great idea. An easy hike up to the top, followed by a hike down into the valley, ending at a tea plantation. About five hours. It sounded relaxing and beautiful. Only the latter was true.
To be fair, I haven't gone hiking in a few years. And I've been doing a LOT of driving since moving here. But even then, my definition of hiking doesn't involve the regular use of my hands to stay upright.
We started out walking toward the hill we'd climb. It was a beautiful area and our guide was really knowledgable about the plants and wildlife. It was so exciting when we saw bear tracks. And he had stories of other wildlife encounters over the years. And other stories about traditions of the native people, folk tales, and knowledge of medicinal uses for the plants. I couldn't believe how much I was learning! It wasn't too hot yet, either, since we left at 830 am. My little
bag had 3 liters of water, chocolate, and my camera. Soon, it would also hold many layers of clothing, as the sun rose quickly.
It didn't take long before our path became extremely narrow. With very loose dirt. There was a lot of sliding as earth gave out under our feet.
We continued upwards finally reaching the peak 2 hours later. The views were amazing, I must admit, but by now it was hot and the sun was beating down. We took a break to have a snack, rest, drink water, etc. Then we started the trek back down.
I'll summarize the trek down from my own experience. My experience was more exciting than others'. The trail became invisible. Without being able to see people in front of me, I sometimes wasn't sure where to go. I got trees stuck in my hair (they tried to come with me!) on several occasions. Once, to stop myself from landing on my butt, I grabbed onto a tree and ended up with a thorn in my hand. I slid down a few hills. I climbed up a few hills using my hands more than my legs. I got tired
and intentionally slid down steep dirt hills, rather than trying to slowly inch my way down. I was sure I would fall on my face. My foot started bleeding. It hurt to walk. I ran out of water. I was one with the mountain.
We got to the tea plantation and my legs were feeling a bit numb as I carefully picked up one foot after the other, worried that I'd trip over my own feet on the pavement. The views were stunning, of course, and the walk through the plantation was calming and refreshing. I even cooled down a bit in a stream as the icy water washed over my feet, cleaning out the insides of my hiking sandals.
I enjoyed some tea at the plantation while we rested, took in views, took photos, and talked about the hike. I'm sure the other people in the cafe were delighted with our natural odors and dirty bottoms. We took taxis back to our guest houses. I was relieved to sit in air conditioning for a few minutes since I was still really hot.
Climbing the stairs to my room, I winced with each step. But I certainly
slept well that night. And I recommended the hike to everyone I met.
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Home and Away
Bob Carlsen
I went to high school in Tanah Rata...
and hiked the jungle many times. One of our teachers was lost for three days. We also combed the jungle in search of the missing Thai silk king, Jim Thompson...who was never found. Once we played fox and hounds with the elementary students. I was the fox laying the trail and they were the hounds following the trail a half hour later. They were strung all the way down the mountain to the Boh tea plantation. Luckily no one got lost. So thanks for the memories! I'm pleased you are enjoying the Cameron Highlands.