Taman Negara's jungle

For the last couple weeks we've been back in Asia - Kuala Lumpur to be exact.  Yup, we decided to pick up right where we left off.  Kuala Lumpur is both a traveler-friendly city and a major hub in SE Asia; well-connected by land and air. With the amenities of a large city, excellent food, friendly people and reasonable prices, what's not to love?  

Taman Negara

And I've left out one of the best things about Kuala Lumpur (KL): the plethora of day trips within striking distance.  In fact, we've just returned from a journey to Taman Negara, a jungle preserve in NE Malaysia.  This 4000 sq.km virgin rain forest has never been logged and it's even more ancient than the Amazon.  We'd never heard of this national park of before coming to KL, but fortunately our open itinerary allowed us to just pick up and go.  

rural life on the other side of the river

trees right up to the water's edge

Taman Negara is pleasingly remote.  Though it's accessible by road, we chose to do three and a half hours on a bus from KL to Kuala Tembeling, followed by a three hour boat ride.  The Tembeling River forms part of the border of Taman Negara.  As you cruise up stream, even the untrained eye can see the effects of logging.  The most striking is the color of the water; because of the erosion, it's like dirty dishwater.  On the protected side of Taman Negara, the trees curtsy into the water's edge.  Towering giants stand as sentinels, garlands of plants tangle into thick Tarzan-like vines - the green is vibrant, riotous.  Though still beautiful, across the river the colors are a little more subdued.  The shoreline is often visible with grass-like plants sprouting through the soil.  It seems as though the trees aren't quite as established, and the question is, how long will it take to fill in?

the town of Kuala Tahan

We chose to stay in Kuala Tahan, just on the other side of the river.  Even though there is a resort in the Park, it's pricey, and unnecessary.  Plenty of teenage boys are waiting to ferry people across for 1 ringgit ($0.33) and being in the town allows one to mingle more with the locals.

The tour of Taman Negara, complete with a guide, was fantastic.  We had booked an extra day on top of the regular tour so that we could wander about on our own afterwards.  The first evening, armed with flashlights, we followed our guide on a night walk which turned out to be uneventful, other than the predictable spiders and a couple of stick bugs. 

a portion of the pathway

The next day we hiked about two km in the heat, humidity and rain.  Finally arriving at the summit of Bukit Teresek, we enjoyed a sweeping view of the misty jungle.  Sopping wet, shoes covered in mud, we were glad we'd packed the camera in a ziploc bag. On our descent, we detoured to a 500 meter canopy walkway.  At one point, the walkway converted to a ladder at a 45 degree angle.  I must admit, I paused briefly and debated whether I could bring myself to do this.  Climbing upwards while swinging from side to side with nothing but mesh around you is not for the faint of heart.  

the clear, rust-colored water

A highlight of our visit to Taman Negara was the extra day we took to explore the park on our own.  There is a network of rivers within the park, and these are clear, though still rust-colored.  We found a secluded spot at the water's edge and basked in the sun.  It was easy to spend an hour or two in this jungle oasis, watching the birds and butterflies, and a monitor lizard trolling the riverbank.  Half of the fun of the rain forest is the sounds: droning, buzzing, chirping, singing - always against the refrigerator hum of the cicadas.  And knowing that there we had even a chance to see a tiger, rhinoceros, or an elephant was exciting.  We didn't spot a mammal larger than a boar, though we did see our fair share of wild monkeys swinging in the trees, and that never gets old.  


P.S. There is a video of our boat ride up the Tembeling River on our You-Tube channel.