Peter's Cycle Tour

Map reference from Melaka to Port Klang via west coastal road

2010-01-22T21:34:00.000-08:00

Dear fellow cyclist.
Brief road map and accommodation references as you cycle from Melaka towards Port Klang /North using the West Coastal Road . Hope it will be usefull.

Melaka / Melacca map and place of interest

From Melaka to Kuala Sungai Baru

From Kuala Sungai Baru to Port Dickson

From Port Dickson to Tanjung Sepat

From Tanjong Sepat to Jenjarom or Port Klang

Welcome To My Blog

2010-01-10T18:27:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends & Fellow Cyclists!

I have always loved cycling. Cycle-touring was introduced to me during my scouting (teenage) years by my good old friend, Najib Abdullah. As time passed; career, family and responsibility had, in a way, limited me to pursue this passion. Now, however, I have tried to make time for this passion of mine.

The internet age has been a great help. Website and stories from cyclists’ blogs, traveling all over the world, have given me detailed accounts on their exciting endeavors and experiences. This has excited me a lot because with easy access to maps and information from the net, planning a cycle tour in Malaysia or to any parts of the world has never been easier.

By writing this blog, I too hope to be able to share my adventures as well as to help other cyclists and travelers alike passing through Malaysia with valuable information for their own journey. It would be great if this could attract more travelers to visit our beautiful country as well as further encourage other Malaysians to take up cycle-touring and see the true colors of Malaysia.

You don’t have to plan for a great journey to make it into the newspaper headlines, all it needs is great passion and love for what you’re doing, and the journey itself will be a great experience for you no matter what other people think. With that, you’ll be surprised how far you can travel. But what matters most is the feeling of enjoyment and self-accomplishment.

Pantai Penarik, Setiu to Kuala Lumpur (Day 5)

2009-07-05T23:57:00.000-07:00

Route : Penarik Inn-Selesa Hill Home Resort-Puchong
Expenditure:
Breakfast-RM$4.00
Lunch-RM$6.00
TOTAL : RM$10.00

Today is my final day of my tour. Beautiful sunrise greeted me upon opening my chalet door. Will be taking it easy today. First, I look for breakfast after washing-up and next will be lazing around to enjoy the beach and sunshine. Walked around Penarik Inn to take some photos. I really like the reception area where the big tree providing some nice shade and also added some coziness to the place. You could just enjoy a cup of coffee right under it. Oh! You need to bring your own coffee. Breakfast was 2km away. You got to cycle towards the round-about and the food stalls is located opposite the mosque on your right.

Cozy reception area with shady tree.

Nice to have breakfast here.

Round about next to the mosque. Breakfast stalls just opposite the mosque.

Yum..yum something different for breakfast today.

Breakfast was simple but different from my regular roti canai. Fried glutinous rice wrapped in palm leaf (triangle shape), spicy glutinous rice wrapped in banana leaf and steamed rice cube (ketupat) with satay sauces. Taste good!!

Chill up time. Sleeping on a hammock facing the sea and enjoy the day.

After breakfast I lazed around sleeping on the hammock enjoying myself.
However I need to clean my bike before the journey home. By 10.00am I was all packed up when a van pull over with the rest of the gang coming back from their Redang island trip. The bus was also waiting for us to up load all the items. One last group photo at Penarik Inn before a final good bye with handshake and some wet eyes. This group of scouts from Singapore and Malaysia besides doing their conversation project with WWF also contributed in helping the local at Kg. Penarik with some community work. Their contribution had been appreciated by the locals. It’s nice and touching to see how little contribution like this can make friendship last forever. River (that the guy name wearing the WWF t-shirt) and Nurul (standing on the right side of River) are both working for WWF.

Last group photo before leaving Penarik Inn.

All stuffs in the bus including the bicycle.

My cleaned bike in front of me also my leg rest.

The bus journey home was very comfortable but boring. With that, I end my blog with a good thank you to all that had taken time to read my solo cycle tour to the east coast. I hope you enjoy it and should you need to cycle pass this way, I hope those information I had share are useful.

Rantau Abang to Pantai Penarik, Setiu (Day 4)

2009-07-04T22:32:00.000-07:00

Route : Rantau Abang (0km)-Merang(50.35km)-Maran(104.5km)-Pantai Penarik,Setiu(128.9km)
Distance covered: 128.9km
Total Distance : 520.8km
Time start: 5.00am
Time of arrival: 3.30pm
Expenditure:
Breakfast-RM$4.20
Snack & Drink-RM$3.50
Light Lunch-RM$4.20
Dinner-RM$7.00
Accommodation-Free
TOTAL : RM$18.90

I woke up at 4.00 am by the sound of my alarm. Took a nice cool bath and repacked some of my stuffs into my pannier. Cool breeze was rushing in as I push my loaded bike out the chalet. Aah!…. another day of good riding. Have a good feeling this would be my best ride of the whole journey and also my last long ride on this trip. I pre-arranged to leave the chalet key on the door so that the owner can easy collect them later. Only the sound of waves accompany me as I quietly pushed my bike passed other chalets allocated along the path.

Final photo with my bike before hitting the road. Beautiful lighted arch just a short ride from the chalet.

The road was straight and the traffic was light. The tarmac was flat and good. The ride was easy and great but I was not alone. Buses and trucks was also zooming pass me at a very high speed. My only worry was that they could not see me in time and acted fast enough from hitting me even though I had my rear warning light on. Every time they zoom passed, I could feel a strong tail wind pushing me forward. Even though it’s nice but it’s a bit scary. Always tell myself to be very careful. It only takes one vehicle to hit me and I’m history.

Never miss the morning sunrise. Even a simple combination of the colorful sky and coconut tree make a beautiful picture. The earlier part was lovely. I took many photo stops as I paddle along some of the beautiful fishing villages and beaches.

Colorful sky + Coconut tree = Beautiful picture. Nice flat tarmac road.

My bike was my model of the day. I apologize if you get bore of it. At Pantai Kelulut (Pantai- Beach) you can see a few islands. These islands are worth a visit. Back in 80s this islands where my regular diving spots. Pulau Redang, Pulau Lang Tegah and Pulau Perhentian, whereby there are some very interesting and attractive islands to local and foreigner as well. Very little or no accommodation back then. Those were my kind of trips. We used to camp along the beaches and what a paradise it was. It’s like you own the whole beach and it’s clean. At night huge crabs will craw out their hide out and turtle will come up to lay their eggs during their nesting season. I remember once as we were coming back from our evening dive, our boat passed over many turtle on the bottom of the sandy sea bed (visibility was 30-40 feet) waiting for darkness before the final push to the shore to lay their eggs. You could walk without your shoe to feel the fine sand without any worry of stepping on any sharp object. I’m not saying it’s not safe now but just be careful.

One of the island view from the beach.

Sunrise at Pantai Kelulut with my loaded bike.

Crossing the bridge before reaching Merang town.

After the spectacular sunrise, I was headed to Merang. Crossing the bridge leading to Merang was a sight by itself. Stopped to take some few photo. I didn’t turn in to Merang but cycle an additional 3km before my breakfast stop. My speedometer indicated I had cover 50.35km so far. Some good habit I try to instill into myself. “If you want to eat, you will have to work/cycle for it”. Roti canai, nasi lemak and plain water the usual. Total cost RM$4.20.

Breakfast just 3 km outside Merang. Roti canai and nasi lemak again.

With a quick toilet export (biggy) after the morning import (breakfast) I was ridding towards Terengganu again. The high vintage point on top of the bridge usually had a lovely view. Never fail to stop me from taking a photo or two. Traffic got a bit heavy upon coming to town. Passed Terengganu town and proceeds towards Pulau Duyung where the bridge across it will lead me on a parallel road to Pantai Penarik my final destination. I was greeted with a beautiful view of Masjid Kristal. On top of the bridge crossing to Pulau Duyung. Met up with a friendly cyclist who helped take a photo of me and also guide me on a nice beach “Kampung (village) road” towards my distination. We turn into 1st traffic light after the bridge turning to “Kampung Seberang Bukit Tumbuh”. The road runs parallel along the beach, passed the end of the airport runway (got to go around it and the end of the run way) before coming out near a small roundabout at the end of Kampung Batu Rakit. It was nice to have some company after 3 day on the road and we chatted away as we rode passed some nice quite fishing villages. My speedometer indicated 80km and we stopped to have some drinks together before we depart and went on our separate ways.

Bridge view (left & right) before entering Kuala Terengganu town

Good reminder of the leatherback turtle signage welcoming visitor to Terengganu. Beautiful Masjid Kristal resting on Pulau Wan Man along Terengganu River.

Beautiful back drop of Masjid Kristal, me, my loaded bike and a friendly cyclist (Forgive me I forgot his name).

It was really hot with the sun right on top of my head. That reminded me what my dad asked me when I did my first cycling trip to Langkawi Island during my teenage year. Why am I being so silly to suffer under the hot sun travelling on a bicycle when he could just easily buy me a bus ticket and travel in comfort? It’s not the comfort that I’m looking for but the satisfaction from the challenges and the sense of adventure getting there. That really given me the thrill and add more spice in my life. Beside how offend you get to do that in life? Maybe NEVER! I suppose I wouldn’t like to be in that category. With that in my head, I smile and rode on.

Aaah……Pantai Penarik just 30km.

I took more regular stops to cool down and to be away from a sun knowing that I’m not far from my destination. Magic word written on a small road side stalls ‘KELAPA’(coconut). Time for a cool juicy coconut drink…yum…yum! How about some Pisang Goreng (Banana Fritters) too. Great stop from the heat and my stomach.

Magic word ‘KELAPA (Coconut). Always remember to stop when you see this word. Cool coconut juice and Pisang Goreng (Banana Fritters).

At Kampung Telaga Papan, the breeze was strong blowing from the sea. Even though it’s hard to paddle but it did add some comfort from the heat. Some small resting huts along the Telaga Papan Park were inviting enough to make me stopped take a short rest and enjoy the breeze. Beautiful and lovely!

Fishing boat at Telaga Papan beach. Road entrering Kg. Baru Penarik. See… no car!

The road to Pantai Penarik is an dead end road, so there no traffic at all. I could even stop my bicycle in the center of the road to take a picture without any worry of any oncoming vehicles. That was my kind of road.

Signage to Kg. Baru Penarik and a long free from vehicle road. BEST!!!!!!

Finally at 3.30pm and a distance of 128.9km from Rantau Abang I reached Penarik Inn. For the 4 days cycling I had cover a total distance of 520km. What can I say. It’s a lovely and a satisfying ride.

The chalet (Penarik Inn) is a bit isolated but nice and quiet. The beach is clean and the owner is nice and friendly. It’s a backpacker heaven. By the time you read this blog, the chalet would have been replaced by a better one. The owner’s son whom run this place is Encik Riyad and you can contact him at 012-626 7947 on his hand-phone. The new rate for his new chalet I believe should between RM$ 50 - RM70. The air condition chalet is about RM$120.00. They even have a cable TV near the reception area. I’m supposed to meet up with the gang here. Upon my arrival there’re in Pulau Redang and only coming back tomorrow. That means that I will have the whole chalet to myself for free. Lovely!

Anyway the bed was occupies even during their absent by their begs and belongings. Not to worry, there were camp-bed and I have no complaint with that. After a nice cool ‘mandi’ (bath), camp-bed outside and breezy time. Not fair! Only when I arrived, the sun when into hiding. The cloud looks dark with lightning flashing across the sky. The wind got even stronger. However the wind was blowing the cloud inwards and changes are it might not rain but the wind help cooled the chalet. Nice!

Dinner was early and was located near a truck tire signage 1 km away. With still some light left toward the late evening, I hopped onto my bike to do a bit of exploring. The evening sky was beautiful. Villages are mostly wooden houses with some having a small jetty just a walking distance from their house. Sungai Setiu runs parallel along the beach until enter the sea a few kilometer north worth. Because of that, Penarik village have the best of both world. South China Sea on one side and river on another.

Nice wooden kampong houses (houses on stilts) with lots of shady coconut trees.

Beautiful cloud formation before the storm.

South China Sea on one side and Sungai Setiu on the other side.

My evening ride took me towards the end on the tarmac and into a coconut plantation along the beach. You will not miss it. At end you can see a nice Balinese resort under construction and the sandy road run beside it. The off road is worth an hour of exploring. I would suggest you go early because I have to turn back as the sky was getting dark. Another beautiful day had ended and WHAT A DAY!

Beautiful sunset.

Nice tarmac road with no traffic.

Nice scenery at the coconut plantation at the end of the tarmac road. Worth exploring.

Cycling route on day 4.

Kuantan to Rantau Abang (Day 3)

2009-07-03T22:04:00.000-07:00

Route : Kuantan(0km) – Cukai(67km) – Rantau Abang (154.9km)
Distance covered: 154.9km
Total Distance : 391.62km
Time start: 5.00am
Time of arrival: 4.45pm
Expenditure:
Breakfast-RM$2.80
Drinks-RM$3.00
Light Lunch-RM$4.00
Dinner-RM$7.80
Snacks-RM$5.50
Mosquito coils-RM$2.50
Chalet-RM$35.00
TOTAL : M$60.60

Great rest and after a nice early bath (to wash the smell from my head) I was all eagered to proceed. 5am sharp I was pushing my bicycle passed the sleeping men on the front desk. Didn’t have the heart to wake him up so I just placed the room key on the counter and rode off. No traffic. That’s what I like the most when start early. Many road signs pointing towards Terengganu and within an hour I was out of town.

My plan was to cover at least 30-40km before stopping for breakfast. However, I seem to run out of stamina (feeling fatigue) after 15km. Maybe I push myself a bit too hard yesterday. Should I stop? But the sky was dark and I’m supposed to stop at least when the sun rise. If I stopped, I would miss my morning sunrise along the way. I was undecided whether to stop. Finally stopping would be a better option, I felt rather disappoint for such a short ride. Stalls beginning to open, as I rode in and stop at one of the Kedia Makan (Food stall). The fresh ‘roti canai’ aroma coming over from the cast iron pan was indeed a welcoming to my arrival. “Roti canai dengan-(with) telor-(egg) dan tea tarik-(Pull Tea) kurang manis-(less sugar)” my usual order. (Total RM$2.80). ‘Tea Tarik’ – or ‘Pull Tea’- literally a direct English translation. Is a way our local prepared the tea by pouring/transferring the tea drink from one metal container to another a few times before it’s served to you in a mug/glass. This process will make the tea much tastier. The way of doing it required some skills and style. It’s a culinary art. It’s indeed interesting to see them demonstrating and on many occasions National level ‘Tea Tarik’ competition are held here.

Stopping for breakfast early was a good choice. Feeling better and stronger after 30 minutes, I hopped onto my saddle and hit the paddle again. Consoling myself (so as to not feeling guilty) it’s a tour and not a race. My early research on the road had indicated, this would be a longest road before my next stop for the day. Accommodation in Paka and Dungun town were either full or too expensive. Plan ‘A’ was to pass Dungun, go as far as I possibly can before dark and look for a cheap place to stay. Plan ‘B’ (should plan ‘A’ fail) was to find a place to camp for a night. Had never camp in any of my tour so should be fun. I came prepared with a new Coleman two-men tent. My four-men tent was too big so I decided to purchase a smaller one. Hope I get to use it.

It was 7.30 am and the sky is brighter now. It was still chilly and ideal for my cycling. The tarmac was good and flat. I passed another foreign cyclist cycling the opposite direction towards Kuantan. He looks well prepared with a pair of nice black with grey flap Ortlieb pannier (I will die for one of those pannier). I only notice him after we had passed each other. We only wave at each other present and move on with our journey. What was I thinking! I could have turn around stop him and give him a treat before having him shared some of his travel tales with me. That would well worth the money and time. Idiot! I mumble to myself. Should he be reading this blog, please do get in touch with me. I would like to get to know him.

Border arch before entering the State of Terengganu.

Time fly when you are enjoying your ride. I passed an arch and enter into the state of Terengganu. My morning sunrise was not that spectacular so I didn’t bother to stop and take any photo. However the scenery gets interesting after passing the Terengganu state boundary. The road which runs parallel along the South China Sea provided some of the nicest view along the road as specially when crossing bridges. With high vintage point I could enjoy the beautiful fishing village with colorful boat nicely arrange along the jetty. Traffic turned a bit heavy as I entered Chukai town at 9.30am. Didn’t waste time there and I hit the paddle and move on.

View from bridge before Chukai Recreation shelter beside the river

The sun picks up as I rode towards some roll of stalls selling ‘Lemang’. ‘Lemang’ are glutinous rice mixed with coconut milk, place into a bamboo and cooked over a small fire. Once cooked, the bamboo will split open to review the glutinous rice. It’s then cut into cube and usually served with ‘rendang curry’ (Beef curry). The aroma is tempting even for a foreigner. Competition is tough as I could see many stalls trying very hard to outdo each other. ‘Lemang’ are usually very popular during the fasting month and Hari Raya. The site was also quite unique, with rolls and rolls of bamboo stacking up right to catch the heat without spilling it contains. Beside ‘lemang’ another delicacy is ‘Satar’. ‘Satar’ are a mixer of fish paste and coconut wrapped in banana leaves in a form of a triangle before skewer and barbeque over a slow fire. You can just open up banana leave and eat the filling. There are colorful jars of local fruits made into pickle in every stall. The ‘redang’ curry are usually place in round transparent sealed container and sold separately from the ‘lemang’.
There’re many varieties and cheap foods along way which you will have no problem if you are hungry. Feasting in Malaysia can be an adventure by itself if you are ‘food adventurist’
As much as I would like feast on the ‘Lemang’or ‘Satar’, it’s was too big of portion for me.
So I just took some shots and hit the paddle again to the disappointment of some of the stall owners.

Road side stalls selling ‘lemang’ Colorful jar of pickle and goodies

Nicely arranged ‘lemang’ cook over a slow fire. Pretty lady preparing ‘Satar’

I’m on the roll now as my speed pick up average 20-25km (not because I’m strong but thanks to flat road). Making some good progress from the lost time on my earlier start. Heading toward Kertih, I stop for a brief rest and admired at one of the most scenic spot on my tour. As I approached the huts, I could also notice some interesting large ground lizard (not monitor lizard) running around before diving into their barrow. I don’t know what species it was but I recognized it, as it was sold as pets in some of the pet shop in Kuala Lumpur. The place was just picture perfect. There was a nice resting hut platform under a shady tree with a gentle breeze blowing from the sea. Small fishing boat anchor along the shore with crystal clear water. It was so comfortable and relaxing that I nearly fell asleep laying there.

Scenic spots along my ride to Kertih

Giant supermarket at Kertih.

Kertih is a booming town. Thanks to the petroleum refinery situated there. A great contrast a few kilometers down the road. Here you even a have a big supermarket. Both side of the road are line up with grey color furnace pointing towards the sky. You could see some of them with ball of fire shooting up 30 to 40 feet high. It’s quite a spectacular site and imaging if you passed here during the night. It’s even better. The site lasted over a few kilometers and along the way you will notice signage telling not to take any picture. I wonder whether would I be arrested or my camera be confiscated if I did. If you are driving you would have no problem escaping. Riding on loaded bicycle would be a different story. Anyway the site was too nice to be missed without a few shoots. If I‘m arrested, I could just pretend to be a Japanese cyclist and don’t understand a word of English nor Malay. After a few shoots, I paddle as fast as possible to get away from here.

My loaded bike and a fierily furnace backdrop.

Entering Dungun with a merciless bright sun over my head together with a strong head wind, my progress is slow and torturing even if it was downhill. Up to now I had already cover at least 120 kilometers. Lucky I had change to my long sleeve shirt for today ride so most of my body is cover from the sun. There were road stalls selling ‘Air Nira’. It’s fermented palm juice with small among of alcohol from the fermentation process. The sugary cool drink sure feel great as is slowly flows into my body. It did boost up some Ooop! (Power) thanks to the sugary stuffs… or is it the alcohol? Hmm….I wonders. By 3.00pm I had passed Dungun and yet to stop for lunch. Stopping by the road stalls I just don’t have the appetite for any heavy meals, instead I gabble up 4 bananas and 3 glasses of water.

Booster juices. Fermented palm juice. My healthy lunch

It was quite encouraging noticing the signage beside the stalls indicating that Rantau Abang is just 12 km away. I could have gone further to Marang if I wanted to but Rantau Abang seem to be a more popular choice for its beautiful beach and fine white sand.

The endanger Leatherback turtle use to come ashore at Rantau Abang by the thousand during the sixty. This was one of the few shores in the world the Leatherback come to lay its eggs. Little conservation and enforcement have resulted in mash exploitation and abuse. From un-control eggs collection, tourism and human statement had force the declined on this species coming back to this shore. Now conservation effort are being done to help protect other species of turtle along the coaster shore before it come to the same faith. WWF are running an Eggs-Turtle campaign. For more detail information please log to http://www.wwf.org.com/ or http://www.projectorin.sg/ Everyone have a role to play to protect our heritage and one way is to support this conservation effort.

Encouraging signage to Rantau Abang

Even with a strong head wind the ride along the coast road was rewarding. I stopped at Kampung Kuala Abang, one of the scenic beaches to rest and enjoy the view. Managed to pass my camera to some locals to take a shots of me with my bicycle. The beautiful beach runs for miles and seem endless on either side. By now it’s 4.00pm and I had been on the road since 5.00am in the morning, on total of eleven hours and a distance of 151km. I’m rewriting my record. I was pleased and happy with my result. Off course I can’t compare to cyclist like Alastair Humphreys or Rob who cycled round the globe, mine is just peanut. They rode their loaded bicycle 200 MILES a day. MILESSSSSS! NOT KILOMETERS. My is peanut and theirs are NUTS!!! You can log on to their site at http://www.alastairhumphreys.com/ & http://www.cyclinghomefromsiberia.com/ and read all about their adventure. Rob had just published his book and also has a 6 episodes DVD on his tour.

Beautiful rock formation.

Me & my bike at Kampung Kuala Abang

Locating accommodation along Rantau Abang is not difficult but to get one that fits your budget take a bit of patient and time. I stopped at Dahimah’s Guest House to check out the rate. Looks okay but my only complaint was that it’s not at the beach front. When you have the upper hand you can be a bit choosy. I finally settled at Al Awang’s Beach Resorts and restaurant . They wanted to charge me RM$50 (with fan) but I manage to bargain down to RM$35. Reasoning with them I will leave early and it’s now already coming to 5pm. It’s a bit run down but just for a night and right in front of the beach I felt it’s a bargain. Wonderful!!!

The breeze was wonderful. Didn’t waste time after placing my bike and pannier inside the chalet I move for a dip in the sea together with my cycling attire of the day. Need to wash it anyway. They say salty water helped to removed dirt and it’s good for you skin. I hope so!!! I needed a dip for both of them.

Dahimah’s Guest House rates. Stayed at Al Awang’s in front of the beach.

Inside the chalet. View of chalet from the beach

Over exposed sandal foot. Me and the endless beach

Death baby shark on the beach. Killer dish.

Laying and lazing around on the beach over an hour to see the sky turn dark slowly sure feel good after a long ride. I have broken my cycling distance record. It’s stand now 154.9km in a day. That called for a celebration!!! Lets buy myself a good dinner. Order something nice! After a good clean up it is time for dinner. A bit disappointed with the Resort Restaurant as they only carter meals in group. The daytime eating stalls were closed and I got to walk over 1.5 km till I reached two small little stalls that are still operating. There were a Petronas gas station which also acts as a small provision shop. My favorite fried Kangkong chili belacan (Fried vegetable with chili and shrimp paste) had never failed to disappoint my appetite so far. But this time my choice of eatery had really tested my taste. My dinner was a disaster. My favorite Kangkong chili belacan turn out too freaking hot that I only took to spoon of it and wave the white flag. It’s not a dish, in fact I could easily use it as a secret weapon to kill any unsuspected western tourist with it. The cook was kind enough not to charge me and I decided to replace with another dish. “Sayur masak Daging” (Vegetable with beef meat) was my replacement. The second dish was neither good. The meat used was so tough and rubbery that I can’t even bite half while chewing it. I believe the tiger can die of indigestion if it shallow this meat. All I could do was chew and suck the juice out of it before spitting out the meat. Now I know why I was the only customer sitting in the stalls. I should have tried the eating at the stall next to the Police Station. On the way back I notice there were many customers having their meals there. No to deter from my celebrating mood, I bought myself two sinful favorite. Yes! Potato Chip and Cashewnuts at the Petronas Gas Station. At least I enjoyed nice snacks looking up at the stars and enjoying the breeze sitting all alone at the dark beach. Time fly and it’s time to go to bed.

Petronas gas station . Sinful favorite

http://www.awangs.com/ web site and signage.

I finally got to use my new tent, but for a wrong reason. The mosquito where like ‘KAMIKASI’ diving at all angle and sucking the juice out of me. Thinking I was being smart I used the tent as a mosquito net but even with the fan turning at full, it’s was still too hot inside. I finally walk over to the Petronas at 12am to buy some mosquito coil and the rest was history. ZZZzzzzzz!!!!!!!!

Tent on the bed? Why? Find out. New record distance in a day-154.89 km

Cycling route on day 3

Temerloh to Kuantan (Day 2)

2009-07-02T22:00:00.000-07:00

Route : Temerloh(0km) - Maran(54.5km) – Gambang(107.88km) – Kuantan(137.38km)
Distance covered: 137.38km
Total Distance : 236.72km
Time start: 5.15am
Time of arrival: 4.45pm
Expenditure:
1) Breakfast RM$11.00
2) Lunch RM$5.00
3) Drink RM1.80
4) Hotel RM$45.00
5) Dinner RM$4.80
Total : RM$67.60

Over spend by RM$7.60

Yip!! That’s me. All ready to go at 5 am in the morning. My evening walk on the 1st day did help to get my sense of direction right. Getting started early in the morning without any traffic and with the help of the streetlight, I managed to get out town in just a short time. I did accidentally make a wrong turn and I landed on the opposite side of the road. Touring on bike is wonderful. You can just carry your bicycle over the divided and you are on your way again. Try that if you’re driving a vehicle?

My bicycle with my LED light on just before I cycled across the Pahang river.

My next target distance from here is Maran, just 54km away from my yesss!!! breakfast..yum..yum. Will be easy….. well that what I thought!!! First my bottom (my ass) was getting painful. The lining on my under pant was giving me lots of discomfort and cause a lots of pain due to the long hour of sitting on the saddles. Managed to solved that problem. Just wear the short pant without it. I stop and hide behind the bush to have it removed/ done. Thank god it was still quite dark. Yeap! without underwear. You will thank me for this advice.

Rest stop. The road was wet after a heavy early morning rain storm.

At 6am the heaven start signaling with flash and strong wind telling me, it’s going to spill the guts out. The sky open up at 6.30am and it start to rain really heavy. I was prepared for the rain but not this early. Yes! I was soaked to the bone and it was freezing. I had placed all my clothing in the garbage bag before placing it into my pannier so I have no worry of it getting wet. Lucky I took time to stop to place my wallet and camera into a plastic bag before putting in my waist porch. I didn’t stop for shelter even it was raining because today I have to cover quite a distance and I don’t want to reach Kuantan when the sun is down.

Not much traffic but occasionally you get heavy vehicle using this road to exit to the highway at Maran. So occasionally I will have water splashing over me when vehicle run over the puddle. The early ride was not that bad as most of it were flat or moderate hill.

Breakfast at Maran just 16km away. Hurray!!!

As I proceed toward Maran the rain beginning to subside, I notice a slow tortoise was making his way across the road. I took time to stop to give it some assistance. With such speed and heavy vehicle zooming pass; the odd of tortoise pancake on the road is 99 to 1. Anyway it great to appreciate such beauty that you don’t get to see so offend. The reward was much more than expected. As I turn around; right in front of me was this spectacular rainbow arch, painted across the sky.

Tortoise crossing. You want to race????

Spectacular rainbow arch, painted across the sky.

I always tell myself that I would never want to die without trying to see all God’s masterpieces on earth. Besides being the creator, God is also a master artist. Every beauty on earth like this one it a masterpiece by itself and every masterpiece is never the same. It sad to know how many of us take for granted and take no effort at all to protect the beautiful mother nature given to us for free to enjoy.

My first flat.

Just 10 km from my breakfast stop I felt I needed more effort to paddle just to make up my normal cruising speed. Maybe it way up hill! Not so and I realize my front tire was flat. In so many of my short tour, this is the first flat. Why don’t I just fill it up, ride to Maran, have a good breakfast and fix it after that. Maybe have someone fix for me. That will be nice!! Good plan but my front tire was not cooperative at all. Dame it! In just a short distance it went flat again. Of course I came prepared. It took me 20 minutes to have it fixed and off I adjourned my journey to Maran. I got only one spare tube so I better get another one in Maran.

Hit and run. Poor monkey hit by a speeding car while trying to graped a rambutan(fruit) on the road.

I passed a monkey laid on the road which has just been hit by a car. As I stopped, the poor fellow was rolling in pain and slowly inching itself towards the side of the road. As I approach nearer to have a look at the poor monkey, I could hear and see a group of monkeys nearby jumping and screaming. Obviously must be it family members trying desperately to warn him on my present. I felt helpless as I realize there’s little I can do. As I moved over to the front were it was facing to take a shoot, I could see the degree of it injury. Blood was on it mouth and a big cut on the top left hand shoulder. Fearing for it safety, the monkey stood up with all the remaining energy and slowing lip into the bushes to safety. Felt a bit better now as I could see it still a life and mobile.

Breakfast at last. Two roti canai, one nasi lemak and 100plus. My bicycle in front of me for safety.

After four and half hours, I finally I reached Maran at 9.30am; my breakfast destination. The eventful slow 54km really work up my appetite. Entering Maran was much more relaxing as I speed over 2 km downhill all the way. You can see the Highway going to Kuantan running parallel with Route 2. I was hoping to lose some weight by the end of this trip but at the rate I going/eating, well I’m not so sure now. Breakfast was heavy. Two roti canai (Indian bread with curry dip), Nasi lemak (Rice cooked in coconut milk, some chili sambal, egg and some fried peanuts) and 100 plus (Local isotonic drink). Total cost $7.20 and I felt generous that day to paid (RM$3.80-Roticanai with chicken curry) for a blind old “Pakcik” (Malaysian way of addressing an elder) which share the same table with me.

With a total refill and a good rest of 45 minutes, I was off searching for my spare tire. Lucky for me it didn’t take long before I manage to purchase two spares. Asking around do help. Small town like this usually everyone knows what they have in their town.

The ride to Gambang (my next stop) was nice. After an early thunder storm, the weather was much cooler and cloudy. The sun managed to slip through once in a while but the reminding journey to Kuantan was cooling and shady. Niceee!!!.

Beautiful lake along the way.

Lots of green, beautiful lake along the way and good weather make a nice ride to Gambang which is another 54km away. Stopping occasionally to rest and take some nice shots did make the ride more relaxing and enjoyable. Lunch time was 2.30pm at Gambang. By now I had covered 107km. Lots of trucks stopped here for lunch before proceeding to Kuantan or to Pekan after exiting from the highway. Lunch was just a simple chicken rice and drink (RM5.00). The curious shop/restaurant owner and have a chat with me. He was rather surprise when I told him I was doing a solo tour to the east coast from Kuala Lumpur. Why solo he asked? Ya.. hah! why solo? Good question. I suppose I enjoy the flexibility and the freedom of cycling at my own pase. More over I can never catch-up with all the young Tour D’ Langkawi guys if they joint me or if I joint them. Why bicycle? Well on a bicycle speed you get to really see everything along the way whether you like it or not. More over you can feel the real satisfaction of travelling on your effort. Doing solo do have their set back. When you need to go to the toilet to do a biggy, you don’t feel safe even if you bike are locked up. Well I did find some consolation every time from the restaurant owner when I patronize their shop. The trick is to smile and be friendly. Start some small talk and their curiosity will take over and before long Wallah! you are friend. He will be happy to keep an eye on your bicycle during your brief absent. Malaysian are usually a friendly lots and happy to help out especially if you are a foreign traveler traveling in our country.

Two ‘Orang Asli’(Native) selling chopping board and Sampan (Wooden Boat) paddle made from local timber.

Beautiful Chinese Temple. I don’t think I will enjoy walking up. Do you?

Welcome arch just before you enter Kuantan.

Entering Kuantan is a long 10km straight flat road passing the airport on the left. Even though the traffic was heavy, the emergency lane at side was ideal and safe to cycle into town. Only after you crossed the bridge, traffic get a bit havoc. Finally reach Kuantan. Checking my speedometer indicated I had cover 137.38 km. It’s 4.45pm when I check in Sungai Wang Utama Hotel. Below are the rates for your reference should you decided to stay here. Telephone number : 609-513 4233. Owner handphone : Tan Lian Kui, 013-935-2233. Address : No 16, Jalan Penjara, Kuantan. Very clean and right in the center of town.

The RM$35 room was taken up. So I took the RM$45 room which I felt was reasonably cheap and is on the ground floor. Cheap for me but not for an Italian lady backpacker standing beside me. She have been traveling since October ’08 so every cents count. She went to another hotel looking for a better deal. I was too lazy and settle with the ground floor room which I thought was great deal. I don’t have to carry my bike up & it was just two rooms behind the reception counter. A very wrong choice which I regretted later. See these two ladies below. Remember their face. If you decide to stay here and this two are still there, please take the room up stair. You will thank me later. This two will yak and yak (talk) none stop for hours and hours. With a narrow walkway leading to my room; their voice echo will keep you awake, Guarantee. Forget about taking an evening nap or go to bed early. Even the late evening thunderstorm could not beat their voice.

Talkative receptionist. Remember their face!

Bike in my room. Airing my map and personal items. Getting ready for tomorrow.

The room are clean with attached bath room. Hot shower with air-condition and TV throw in. My only complaint (beside the talkative receptionist) was the pillow case. It smelt. Got to wash my hair the next morning to get the smelt off. Dinner is just a 3 or 4 shop lots away from the Hotel. Can order dishes and rice or just fried rice or noodles. I could have try their ‘Chili Lala’ (Clam fried with chili). I notice everyone was ordering it after I had ordered my fried noodle. Another setback if you are doing solo. If you have another partner, you can order more and share out the cost. A big shopping Mall is just a short walking distance away if you choose to do some shopping. I did take a short tour around town but didn’t enjoy it as it was still drizzling and the traffic was a bit heavy. I went back and was busy getting my map dry and laying out all my items for airing before I repack it into my pannier again. Tomorrow will be interesting ride. I will cycle along the coaster road which some of the most beautiful scenery along the way. It’s not that I have not passed this place before, but it has been a while now and I was driving a car then. Off to bed and hope for a shining morning. I miss my sun rise…… Good night for now.

Front view of Hotel Sungai Wang Utama. Highly recommended but from 1st floor onwards.

Cycling route on day 2.

Solo tour to the East Coast (Day1)

2009-07-01T22:00:00.000-07:00

I had tour the West coast all the way to Langkawi Island but never on the East coast. Opportunity came when Malaysia & Singapore Scouts were experiencing their Scout of the World Program-Turtle Conservation with World Wildlife Fund called “Project Orion” in Setiu, Terengganu. I got really excited because I can hitch a ride back to Kuala Lumpur at the end of their program. That will save me time and cover my journey back.

Total Budget : RM$300 (RM$60.00-Accommodation & meals a day)
Total distance covered : 520 Km
Date: 1st July– 5th July 2009 (5 days)
Destination: KL- Temerloh - Kuantan - Rantau Abang - Setiu, Terengganu

Day 1
1st July 2009 (Wednesday)
Route : Selesa Hill Resort (Kg. Bukit Tinggi) - Karak - Mantakap -Temerloh
Distance covered: 99.33km
Total Distance : 99.33km
Time start: 6.00am
Time of arrival: 1.30pm
Expenditure :
1) Breakfast (Batu Caves) on the way to Selasa Hillhome : RM$2.60 (2 tosai)
2) Breafast again (Karak) : RM$4.50 (Wanton Noodles)
3) Snack : RM$2.00
4) Hotel : RM$60.00
5) Road Map : RM$11.00
6) Evening Tea : RM4.40
Total : RM$84.50
I over spend, so tighten budget ahead.

Being a working week day, it will be crazy to start my journey from Puchong because of the usual heavy traffic. So at 4.00am I packed my bike into my car and head off to Selesa Hillhome Resort just after the Genting Sempah tunnel. Park my car at my friend apartment and started my journey at 6.00am using the old road towards Bentong which run parallel with the highway. Coming down from Selesa Hillhome was indeed a surprise as I turn towards the dark road, my front LED light shine on a beautiful Civet Cat (Musang) looking for food beside the road. My present doesn’t seem to bother it at all. I always enjoy riding early morning. Time passed fast and the cold air seen to make me feel nice. The real reason is, I’m sucker/crazy about sunrise rise along the way. Ride in the dark always have a negative side even though I have my real caution light and front LED light to help me. So would be wise to choose you route wisely. It was really quite, dark and chilly. I love it and further more mostly doooooown hill. Whoooooo!!!! Nice!

Early morning sunrise along the lonely road to Bentong (Route 68). If you love the green and lonely road try using this way. There is hot spring along the road if you felt you need to have a hot dip. Go for the dip but close your eye on the facilities.

‘Serenity’ that the name of the beautiful bungalow which poop out from the jungle hill top along the way. With lots of trees and a clean river running along this property; it owner surely pick a right name for it. With “Serenity” the owner should add another word to it. “Longevity” Tell me who don’t live longer at this place. I know I would.

At 15km, now I got to turn left toward Route E8 (Express Highway) before cutting to Route 2 which is the old road to the East Coast from KL. Please take note; cycling is not allowed to use E8 after the Karak turn off to Kuantan. You are better off using the Route 2 because of the less traffic and lots more things to see along the way.

King of fruit ‘Durian’. “Smell like Hell but taste like Heaven” Westerner will rather die than to go near it (Smell like Hell) but local (Malaysia) are willing to die for it.

MORE DURIAN Yes! Our famous durian!!(Torny Fruits). It’s the durian session so if you are a durian lover, cycling along this route will be you heavenly route. For the Mat Salleh (that how the local descript the westerner) I believe you will speed like hell every time you see such store along the road. Take the challenge and try having one at least if you are a Westerner visiting Malaysia. You dare to travel so far. What can this harmless fruit do to you? It’s not that bad really. Send me a photo of you eating one if you can. The flesh is sweet and creamy. It tastes…..heavenly for me.

MORE & MORE DURIAN!!!. Two friends with durian in their car boot and back seat. Can you imaging what would happen if the drive hit the emergency break at high speeds???

Sign to the Elephant Rehabilitation Center. It’s out the way so I didn’t turn to visit this place. It’s a very interesting place to visit if you have the time.

Yip! Another 4 km and I reach Temerloh. It’s quite safe cycling in Malaysia. With road nicely tarmac and an emergency lane on most of the road, cycling here is indeed ideal.

Sometimes we refer small town as cowboy town. Look like this supermarket had followed the trend. Maybe the owner should add a cowboy hat on top of the signage and dress their worker with full cowboy attire. Look better and business might even pick-up.

Swiss Hotel located along Jalan Tan Sri Yahya. Telephone number 09-2963700. If you are calling from international, add ‘6’ in front (609-2963700). RM$60.00 per night with TV and air-con. If you are cycling from Kuala Lumpur it will be wise to put up a night here as there no accommodation in Maran which is another 54km up the road.

Yes! You’re allowed to keep your bicycle in your room. However you will have to carry your bicycle one floor up where the reception and the room are located.

How the condition of the room??? Well the picture speak for itself. I called this the “NCA” (No Choice Accommodation). The other hotel looks even scarier. Since I arrived just after lunch (1.30pm) on a very bright sunny day, I pamper myself by having a good afternoon nap with the air-con full blast.

I decided to take a nice walk (too lazy to carry my bike down) towards the evening as it gets a bit cooler. Lots of shops selling shoes. Haaam…! Look familiar. “Happy Fried Chicken” I don’t think Colonel Harland Sanders (KFC) will be happy at all. Look it’s crowded inside anyway.

The Store (Shopping Mall) just round the corner. Should you need to top-up your suppliers, you should find it here.

Aaah! Yes. Refueling. Don’t really feel hungry. Trying out the kopi-thiam toast bread, a cup of tea and some kuih for my late tea. All for just RM$4.40. Only after 10.00pm I was hungry. However all the shops were closed by now and I have to walk about 30 minutes hunting for food. Lucky to find a Malay store that was still open and I have my dose of Mee Goreng for RM3.50 before I call it a day.

Cycling route on day 1

Backyard Cycle Tour

2008-06-01T17:17:00.000-07:00

Introduction
Writing essay was never my cup of tea or good at writing interesting story. However the interesting visitation and exploration of ridding on my bicycle changes my mind. So forgive me if you think my write-up is crappy. The idea of this blog is to share information so that if you choose to cycle along this way, this blog could help you plan your ride. Map of my cycling route will be included at the end of the blog (Upload map later. Sorry!). Please take note that my choices of riding are more to touring. Some of you might find the distance, time taken and places is not worth the trouble. You have been warned. If you still wish to continue reading from here on, then thank you for your time and hope you enjoy it.

Date : 1^st June 2008

Taman Putra Prima, Puchong - Carey Island- Jenjarom – Puchong

Total Distance – 103.7km

Journey start - 6.30am

Journey end – 3.30pm

The first time I surfed into ‘Google’ map really got me excited. The world map is on your fingertips. Anywhere you want to go, you could zoom in or out to enlarge or have it print out if you choose too. Better still I could copy and paste (I’m a trained graphic artist) it like a puzzle to make an enlarged detailed map of the location I wish to explode. Would be nice to try the back yard where I am staying now, Taman Puchong Prima, Puchong, Malaysia. Surprisingly to see some interesting villages (Kampong) road that lead to the farm land, seaside, fishing villages and hours on lonely tarmac road to ride (that if you like touring). Not to worry about food and drink. It’s not that isolated, both are easily available along the way. All you need is some Malaysia Ringgit (RM) or currency. The exchange rate is US$ 1.00 to RM3.50.

Morning sunrise along a long, lonely, beautiful tarmac road for ridding.

This might sound silly/childish to you, but like “Ultraman” (the older generation of super hero on TV) once exposed to the sunlight, his power get charge up. With the added power in Ultraman, the giant monster will definitely be defeated. The morning sunrise always give me the strengths (not to fight against the giant monsters along the way) to cycle on. I suppose the morning temperature together with the surrounding beauty add on to the pleasure of cycling that worth every crank on my paddle seem easy. Always like an early start.

The first 9km starting from my front door, will take me pass a tunnel under the highway before coming to a short muddy road running parallel along the Klang River on my right. Turning left then right after a short distance, I turned towards Kampung Lombong were I’m on the tarmac again. This straight road will eventually lead me to Jalan Kebun (‘T’ junction-speedometer 9km).

Ginger harvest ready for the market.

There are some farmland planting ginger and pineapple along Jalan Kebun. The soil must be suitable for such plants. The narrow single lane road causes some uneasiness as I paddle along. Traffic picked up slightly. However most of the drives will slow down on an approaching vehicle before over taking after the opposite vehicles had passed. I had to make a right turn (after a “Paid to Fish Pond”) before the road lead me to Jalan Langat which is a straight road all the way after the turn. From Jalan Langat I will make my way to Carey Island where I would visit the Temuan Native Village. Beware! Heavy traffic on Jalan Langat as this is the main coastal road towards south.

The Temuan Native tribe (Orang Asli Temuan) residing at Carey Island had been feature on various newspaper articles of their beautiful wood carving had interest me to pay them a visit. Before that breakfast at a small stalls after the Carey Island signage. After breakfast I paddled another 2km before coming to Sungai Buaya and crossed a bridge into Carey Island.

Beautiful wood carved signage to Kg. Orang Asli Sungai Bumbun.

The ride (after bridge) would be a straight road with oil palm plantation on both side running through most of my journey until I reach a beautiful wood carved signage to Kg. Orang Asli Sungai Bumbun. Turn left and keep right at the next juntion. This will led you into their village. The road runs parallel to the main road so you can exit at the end, turn right, hit the main road and proceed further to the end of Carey Island.

Beautiful carved mask.

Small little working huts are build along the road were the native would carve and display their master piece. Their craft are beautifully carved but way over prices. Tourism had in a way commercialise their crafts. However purchasing here will directly benefit the community. They are no middle man involved and you will have to bargain with the wood carver himself. The government is building a bigger museum replacing the small one at the time I was there. By the time you read this, I hope it would be ready. The old museum did have some impressive carving. I would do a bit more research in order to add more interesting information in future.

Logs for carving.

Mud flaps. Sorry no sandy beach.

My brief visit to the “Orang Asli” village was interesting but I believe the Carey Island is worth more exploring. Just before reaching the end of the road I turned left on a muddy road that cut through the plantation before I come to gentle slope at the end of the road. The smell of ocean brought about by the breeze indicated it’s just over the slope. Sifting to lower gear, pushing the paddle hard over the sandy path I managed to cycle to the top. The beach was wide and muddy. The beach was endless on both ends. Nothing impressive nor interesting on my standard. Maybe I was expecting a sandy beach. I back track to the main road before cycling further up to the end of the Island.

Small fishes caught by some local to supplement their meals.

A woman with her fishnet and catch.

The sun is up and lucky for me there are small stalls selling drinks at the end of the road. As I set along enjoying my cool drink, I could see a family combing the sea dragging the long net behind them. Husband, wife and children each helped to pull the net at both end. The fish caught were small but for this family, it would be worth a few dishes on the table for their hungry children’s.

Lunch time! The back track from the end of the island to the bridge is a 12km of boring ride. However, Kang Guan Seafood Restaurant which is located on the right just before the bridge was worth the effort. The food is good and the price is reasonable. I had dined here before and had never been disappointed so far. The ‘Chilly Crab’ or ‘Fried Lala’ is a must. The restaurant is located next to the river and the dining area is on stilt, edged out to the river. Don’t be shock if you see the waitresses cleaning the table conveniently throwing plates of empty crap shell or shell fish right into the river. Just order fried rice on this visit. Anything more would be too much or wasteful. The long 1 hour lunch felt good and relax.

Don’t miss this place. Good food and reasonably price.

My ride back along Jalan Langat heading towards Banting was not that interesting. Maybe the sun was up and the traffic was heavy. The only interesting site was this model huts build inside a nursery on display along the road. The hut gave a rusty mood and would be idea for our Malaysian weather. However the roofing would be a problem. The local long grass used (we called it ‘Lalang’) wouldn’t last long compare to those used in Bali. Moreover it’s highly flammable. This is my personal opinion and you don’t have to agree with me.

Nice rusty looking hut. Is it safe????

Finally out of Jalan Langat into Jalan Jenjarom on my left. The traffic thin down on this road. The first land mark is the government clinic on your left. 3 kilometer further up I had to take a right turn to Jalan Rajawali where it will lead back to Jalan Kebun and from there on I will paddle back using the same road back to where I started.