Activities Report 1999 July Newsletter
Gunung Stong A Trip for the Strong
By Dr. Kiew Chik Sang
The morning of 17 April 1999 saw us start
off in the dark. There were 23 of us in 5 cars and a van. We stopped for
a quick breakfast at Lenggong before burning rubber on the road again till
Jeli where we turned off the East-west Highway on to the Jeli--Dabong road.
At about 47 kilometers from Jeli we turned right into what appears to be
a private road leading to the Perdana Stong Hill Resort, but not before
we were awed by a tall waterfall cascading down a sheer rock face to our
right in the distance.
None of us had been to Gunung Stong
before but we instinctively knew that that waterfall was our target. We
were later to know that the waterfall stands 800 feet (246 meters) tall,
the top was at an elevation of 1500 feet (461 meters) and later in the
day we would be standing right at the top where our base camp would be.
Base camp was achieved after a two and
three quarter hours' trek with the trailhead beginning at the resort. The
trail was very well-worn and eroded. Even so, we had trouble just after
the resort, because we had to cross the rocky base of another smaller waterfall
along the lower reach of the river which formed the bigger fall we had
seen earlier. Of course, no trail could be seen on rocks and our leaders
had to scramble over a considerable distance looking for the continuation
of the trail. Fortunately we had the aid of a sketch map from another group
of intrepid explorers who passed that way in 1995.After about 20 minutes
of scampering hither and thither over rocks and boulders we found the trail
again and by 3.30 pm we marched into the Jelawang Jungle.
This was to be our base camp. It consisted
of several wooden huts with leaky roofs and damp mattresses. There were
also several tents. All of them belong to the enterprising En. Baha. It
wasright at the top of the tall waterfall beside the river that flows over
a rocky bed for about 100 m before plunging almost vertically down 246
m. Above the rocky section was a smaller fall of about 20 m. At the bottom
there was a good-looking pool for soaking and swimming. It was here the
next day that some of the more adventurous among us had a lot of fun repeatedly
climb-ing the watery rock face of the fall for several meters and then
sliding down the fall, splashing into the pool below.
Before we could enjoy the pleasures of the
next daywe had to endure the discomforts the first night which was a night
to remember. Just after 7 p.m. it started to rain. It really poured for
about one hour after which it continued to rain less furiously. The river
underwent a fearsome transforma-tion. Where we had enjoyed our cool, balmy
soaks in the quiet river flowing into rocky pools of water, there was then
a raging, roaring, murderous-looking torrent. The river had risen a full
2 meters higher. It was a frightening and chilling sight to behold. To
add to our woes, those staying in the leaky huts did not find them as comfortable
as they had wished while those in the tents were literally flooded out
and had to flee. One group of ladies fled into a nearby hut and dislodged
one of Encik Baha's assistants and so gained relatively dry sleeping quarters
that night. However the men in the other two tents had no such luck. They
had to make do with whatever was available.
In case you wonder why, they were not
our tents they belonged to the proprietor and they either had no fly
sheet or the fly sheet was stuck to the tent roof or there were holes in
the tent floor. We did not bring our own tents because we were looking
forward to chalet accommodation and were too lazy to carry our own tents.
I think that should be a lesson to us and in future we should bring our
own tents unless we know for sure it is safe not to do so. This was amply
borne out by the wisdom of F. K. Law, the only one who brought his own
tent and had no problems that night. Some of us did not get to eat a proper
dinner the rain got into the dinner so unexpectedly fast and
heavy did it poured down. Indeed, the group staying at the hut nearest
the 20-meter waterfall had such a fright thinking that their hut was going
to be overwhelmed by the waterfall that at the height of the storm they
evacuated and crammed into the next hut, only to return later when it let
up. After such a long litany of woes it was to the credit of the hardiness
and uncomplaining spirit of the MNS members that virtually no grouse was
heard though I did wonder aloud how I was able to survive the long wet
night standing in En. Baha's kitchen which was nothing more than a slightly
leaky roof over
four upright poles with nary a wall to speak of. Thankfully, the rain
stopped some time after 10 pm and we managed to mop off the water from
the tent floor, spread some plastic sheets over the damp
floor and in such fashion spent the night sleeping fitfully on the
plastic sheets.
On the second day we trekked up to the
summit of Gunung Stong, reaching 5,244 feet (1,613 metres). On the way
we passed a cave but it was actual1y a space formed by a rocky overhang.
It was fronted by a clearing and we found signs that it was a popular campsite,
there being no space to camp at the summit. This was also where we provisioned
ourselves with water before continuing to the summit. From the top we had
a good view of part of the Kelantan River with a sizeable settle-ment on
its bank. None of us were able identify that township. Nearby was Gunung
Ayam, a peak of comparable height. At the summit we ate lunch andd took
photographs to prove we were there.
On the way down we repeatedly cast worried
glances at the sky. It sure looked like it was going to rain. We were even
more anxious when we heard soft distant thunder behind us. Earlier on we
felt one or two fine raindrops at long intervals. We were praying repeatedly,
"Please, God, dont rain because we had to cross the river on the way
back and the spectactular transformation of the river the night before
was still fresh in our minds. ThankfuIly, the threatening rain did not
come and we breathed a sigh of relief when we crossed the river for only
then we knew we were safe. Despite our anxiety, we took the trouble to
stop briefly take photographs of a giant rattan of about 15 cm in diameter
and we also drank water from a bamboo stem. It was nice. This latter pleasurabIe
activity is actually an important jungle survival technique how not to
die of thirst in the jungle.
The weather surprisingly held good throughout
the remainder of the second day and the night was spent lazily enjoying
the night view from our high perch, chatting, eating and frightening one
another telling ghost stories.
On the third day we trekked down after
breakfast. We split up one group retraced the route taken on the way
up, another group took a fresh route down, finally crossing the river by
a suspension bridge and reaching the resort car park where we had
previously left our cars. We washed and changed at the resort, had a late
lunch at Grik and dispersed separately. A rather enjoyable outing, I would
rate it despite the difficulties and discomforts which in itself was
a new experience arid a good lesson to learn.
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Created on 30th June 1999