So, after postponing the plan like several times, I finally made my way up to the peak of Gunung Nuang last weekend, on the day when (most) Malaysians were celebrating its 57th Independence Day although it was very much disputable since there was no Malaysia that we see now, not until 1963 when Sabah, Sarawak and Malaya all agreed to form the country together.
Climbing to the top of Mount Nuang saw me conquering the State of Selangor, at least elevation-wise, because standing at 1693 feet (516 m?) simply makes it the highest peak in the state.
To tell the truth, it was not really my first time climbing Mount Nuang. I first climbed it with a group of veteran adventure-lovers back in 2010 but we didn’t make it to the peak, nor did we aim to, because we started off quite late.
We climbed it from the Janda Baik’s side back then, and it was so damn beautiful I vowed to go back there again. Unfortunately, considering the traveling time which is longer if I were to travel via Janda Baik again, I had to climb from the Hulu Langat side this time. HULU LANGAT is without doubt one of the most beautiful portions of the state but then traveling through it when the mist is still lifting against the sun rays in the early morning makes it look even more beautiful.
We arrived at the entrance gate at about 8am and started off almost instantly. Most people begin their ascent at about 7am considering the time taken to climb and return which is approximately 5 hours each. I think the management is being very generous in charging only RM1 to each climber considering all the free facilities that they have there including the regularly-cleaned-up toilets and shower rooms. I am sure maintaining the trails do need a little bit of financial considerations too.
Most blogs and forums that I read described the trail at Mount Nuang as ‘hard and difficult’ with some even describe it as “very very difficult”. Some even compare it with Mount Kinabalu, which doesn’t really bother me anyway because Mount Kinabalu for me is one of the easiest trails to do in Malaysia. It does have the elevation but the trail is made for everybody including toddlers if you may permit. He.
My partners in crime this time – Juvi, a new comer and my regular buddy, Mr. KJH
Quite true to what I had heard, Mount Nuang that I found out is not an easy mountain to conquer. You gotta walk from the entrance gate to the starting point of the climb for about 5 kilometers (or 4.9km to be exact). It does have its ups and downs so I wouldn’t really say it’s an easy walk. Another 5 kilometers of the trail would take you to the peak of the mountain but seriously, it’s not that easy. All in all, we are talking about approximately 20 km of ups and downs. o.O
Blessed with water sources in the form of beautiful creeks which at times would amount to rivers, I can see how Mount Nuang is such a popular camping site with quite a number of people camping out despite the evening rains that Selangor is currently being blessed (or cursed) with.
The jungle at Mount Nuang that I found out is more like a secondary forest. I think it is one of those things that the government do to revive the forest, after all the trees have been mowed away in the past of course. Still, it’s better late than never.
What I don’t understand is the existence of quite a number of animal traps when it is supposed to be a forest reserve. I don’t see the point of having all the trees when there are no inhabitants. It’d be a dead forest.
It wasn’t really until the third km of the trail that I was beginning to struggle. It never failed to rain for the past few days so the trail was very slippery. Climbing up was not easy and I had to practically use all the skills from my hiking experiences in the past to get through whatever obstacle that came my way. Every now and then I’d slip and I’d see people stumbling or slipping down in the most unglamorous way. LOL!
By the time we reached Puncak Pengasih – the last stop before the peak, I was completely exhausted. It was way past lunch time and I had used up almost every ounce of my energy. I noticed how at this elevation, less than half of the climbers that I met along the way had given up so they turned back. Of course, I didn’t go there to give up so I just pushed on.
With all the difficulties and obstacles that I was served with, there was a sense of exhilaration when I finally made it to the peak. There was nothing much to see actually, because the trees and bushes obstructed most of the views, but then as they say – it’s not really about the destination but the journey.
After unpacking whatever food that we managed to grab back at home, we feasted ourselves with some refreshment, in the hope of putting back sufficient energy into our system, because we knew for sure that descending would require as much energy as it was when climbing up.
Yessss!
After doing all the camwhoring in the world including a round of duck-face, we descended back to the foot of the mountain, this time without really rushing ourselves. I noticed how most of the climbers were so friendly and I had the best of time saying hi to just about everybody that I met along the way. It really made me think how blessed Malaysia is with friendly people.
We were half way down when sky finally decided to let go of its heavy burden, and there came a very heavy downpour, making ascending even more challenging than it already was. It went to a full force when we arrived at the starting point of the climb which was quite a good deal anyway because it would be a logging road right from there all the way back to the gate. But seriously, walking in the heavy downpour like that, I never expected a rain could be so heavy.
So, we arrived at the gate at about 6.30pm and avoided having to trek in the dark – something that we were prepared to do anyway. After changing to a dry cloth at the toilet, we headed back home with a sense of – fulfillment? Victory? Self-satisfaction?
It doesn’t matter. I conquered Selangor – literally – and that’s all that matters. LOL.