Gunung Inas Forest Reserve, Kedah (29 February 2004)
Trail Description
 
Undulating off road tracks that consist of hard dried red earth mixed with rocks and roots, creating an uneven trail surface. In certain parts, particularly where the trail slopes, deep ruts and large holes were spattered all over. Also, dense foliage flanked the trail. Trees cover most parts, while in some areas, long grass as high as 1.6 meters were growing wildly.
Trail Destination
 
A mini hydroelectric dam and waterfall in the heart of the forest reserve.
Trail Duration
 
Approximately, 2.5 hours round trip with a few scenic stops, along the way.
Total Riders
 
14 people (13 guys and 1 lady): Azmi, Su Ann, ST, Ah Hua, Shaharin, Dennis, Malik, Suprato, Pang, Adrian, Lawrence, Danny, Chew and myself.
The Journey
 
7am, the sun was just rising over the horizon - not a creature was stirring in my house, save for myself, rushing madly to pack up my bike and gear into the car. I was taking two chaps with me on this ride, Danny and Chew. Danny only arrived at 7.15am and I still had to pick up Chew from his house. The meeting time was 7.45am at the car park opposite the Penang bridge tollbooth; I had very little time to spare. With just a little under 30 minutes, I didn't waste any more time. I got out of the house, pressed the accelerator and rushed over to Chew's place to pick him up.  
Fortunately, it was early Sunday morning. So traffic was very light and we managed to get to the rendezvous point on time. 

8.10am, the trip to the forest reserve took about 1 hour or so from the Penang bridge toll, heading in the northeast direction. We took the Kulim toll highway, passing the Kulim high-tech park turnoff, almost towards Baling. The destination ended at a place called Kampung Iboi. There, we had to look for a trail sign Lata Celak. The first time we got there our guide, ST, had overshot the turning. So, we had to make a u-turn, back-tracking about a couple of kilometers. 

Throughout the journey, we knew election season was in the air. We saw lots of flags, banners from the different parties fluttering gently in the morning breeze. There were so many of them that I thought I was going to see these pasted on the herds of cattle that were wandering around the villages! 9.30am, we finally arrived at the starting point of the trail. The parking spot was situated next to a river with lots of trees providing shade from the blazing sun.  It also seemed like an ideal spot for picnics - I saw a lot of places up and down the river where families and folks could set up places for food, while taking a dip in the river. Here, the river was running clear, cool and free from sediments that clouded a lot of other Malaysian rivers. It was a welcome change for us city-folks. 

9.45am, we got on our bikes and headed down the gravelly trail to begin our adventure. The first hurdle was a river crossing; to get to the other side, we needed to carry our bikes and cross a bridge made out of two bamboo poles!  Of course, ST never told anyone about the concrete bridge 100 meters further up except for himself and I. Pretty sneaky! 

So imagine the looks on everyone's faces when they saw us on the other side before them. A couple of them had already managed to cross over but a few back-tracked and took the concrete bridge. The best part was Pang. He was halfway on the bamboo bridge but decided to chicken out and followed the rest of the gang. Initially, slightly after the river crossing, all along the path there was long, tall grass. We hadn't really gotten that far when we heard loud calls of the Siamang (a.k.a. Gibbon). It was loud, like it was coming from around the bend but these creatures were quite a distance away. I figured it was the mating season that's why they sounded so loud - trying to call out for a mate. Or was it because they detected intruders, us, in their territory...yeah right! 

However, getting further along the tall grass slowly gave way to trees, shrubs and undergrowth; we were in the jungle now. Even then, the trail had tire tracks from motorbikes and 4-wheelers. Signs that humans have been coming to this place quite a bit. 

Just as we were about to enter further into the jungle, we had our first casualty - Danny. He lost control of his bike while going down a slope. Fortunately, no broken bones or any concussion were detected. That was a relief!  As we pedaled deeper, it got a lot darker. The trees were preventing the sunlight from reaching in. So it looked like it was early in the morning, like at the break of dawn. Except, this was already 10.30am! 

Halfway through, Danny's bike, still had some problems. So the whole gang stopped to rest while Shaharin attended to Danny's two-wheeler. That didn't take long, and soon, we were off again on the ride.
 
Finally, we reached the hydro electric station and the scenic waterfall, Lata Celak (not sure if that's the correct name). According to ST, this station was built by the British before independence, to supply power to nearby areas. And it seem there are many such stations dotting the Peninsular. It was here too I encountered my first pacat (leech). Just by chance, I saw this dark, squiggly little thing worming it's way up my bike's seat post! Quickly, I flicked it off but it landed on my calf. Before it could get lunch from my leg, I quickly gave it another flick. This time it disappeared into the grass next to me. 

Since that pacat almost got close to my manhood, I got paranoid. If there was one leech on my seat post, then there's a chance there could be one in my*perish the thought! 

Quickly, I went into the generator room, asked Chew to make sure no girl came in as I stripped butt-naked! Fortunately, didn't find any. Phew! 

The waterfall may not be the Angel Falls or even Victoria Falls but from where we stood, it was majestic. The loud roar from the thundering, cascading water just drowned out our voices. The water was cool and mountain fresh. It was a place well preserved by nature, untouched by civilization and I hoped it stayed that way. 

The next place we headed was another fifteen minutes away. It was still in the jungle, but like the hydro electric station, it was built by man. The man-made structure we were headed to was a dam. Locals who go there occasionally, take a dip in the pool or in some areas downstream, go fishing for Kelah, a local fish found commonly in these rivers. 

Then it was time to go back. Cycling back to the starting point didn't take as long as we got in. Most of it was downhill but not steep inclines. In some parts however, as mentioned earlier, there were areas strewn with rocks and deep ruts. This provided a challenge for those trying to negotiate the slopes. At some points where the ruts were too deep, it proved quite an obstacle to go through them.  For those that were too much, we just got off and walked. As for some of the other chaps, they just went through like it wasn't there! 

12.30pm, we finally reached the parking lot. By then, there were more people coming into the area. Some were seen dipping in the river to get out off the hot sun. While others just walked around enjoying the scenery. 

Off course, just like previous expedition rides, it would not have been complete without the topic of food! This time, we headed for Pelita's Nasi Kandar at Perai (It's somewhere behind Pearl View Hotel). 

After riding, think food! Typical