Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Don't just eat

Penang National Park, Teluk Bahang. We reached here at 9.15am on CNY Day 4 and submitted our names at the registration counter before we were allowed to enter the National Park (foc).

The entrance to the National Park (tropical/equatorial rainforest) is on the right of the photo above.

Please click on the above for a larger photo. From the entrance, there are hiking trails leading to a few places.

We walked to the Meromiktik Lake and Kerachut Beach which according to the guide above is about 3.4km away (1 way) and takes about 1 hour and 20 minutes one way but we took longer than that.

The beginning of the trail has paved walkway so it is a piece of cake.

It became harder for me when it came to the above - a climb uphill on steps cut out from the soil because I seldom exercise at home.

There are also many portions of the trail where the path is on flat grounds, lucky for me.

Stone steps like the one above help us ascend uphill or descend downhill nearer to the beach. When it comes to ascending and descending I walk really slowly to ensure that I do not use up all my energy and let about 30 other hikers pass me. They are walking so fast that they quickly disappear out of my sight.

The sign above says "please do not leave anything behind" but we saw quite a number of empty drink bottles lying on the ground along the trail.

Although it was a hot and sunny day, some parts were quite dark due to the trees providing us with shelter from the sun.

We crossed a few cement bridges like the one shown in the photo above.

After walking for 2 hours and 15 minutes we reached the hanging bridge leading to the Meromiktik Lake (left of the photo) and Kerachut Beach (right of the photo) at about 11.45 am.

There are only a few Meromiktik Lakes in the world. A Meromiktik Lake is a lake with two layers of water that do not mix - sea water and fresh water. As can be seen, the lake is dry in many parts.

Kerachut Beach - no swimming is allowed here. There are no food or drinks sold here either so we brought our own drinking water and bread. We overheard a couple taking a boat back for MYR40 per person and they were the only ones on board. As I still have some energy left, I decided to walk back instead of taking a boat back to our starting point because to me the return journey always take a shorter time.

We sat around enjoying the lovely scenery for about an hour while eating our bread and resting before retracing our steps to our starting point at 12.55 pm. True enough, the return journey is faster although we need to climb long flights of stone steps and we reached the registration office at about 2.25 pm taking only about 1 hour 30 minutes.

For someone who do not exercise at all, my legs ache the next day but I expected that. It is a nice change to walk a forest trail instead of just hanging around in shopping malls during CNY. Would I do it again? Probably not on the same trail. Perhaps I would walk the other trail to the lighthouse instead. This is a good activity for those who are keen to exercise and learn about nature because there are many signboards along the trail explaining about the forests.

36 comments:

  1. I love the place and it is seeminly unspoiled which makes it even more relaxing...gosh this post made me so excited for summer hehe

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    1. It is unspoilt because it is a forest reserve. May you have an enjoyable summer!

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  2. After all the hiking, the last 3 sights are the most welcoming ones.

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    1. Happy to reach the destination at long last.

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  3. Not into such trail walking as I am afraid of insects and forest usually have many insectss

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    1. Not only many insects, there are also wild animals like snake and monkeys.

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  4. Replies
    1. Hehehehe I need to count to know which is photo 12.

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  5. Never been here, not all that mobile, me! Hehehehehe!!!! But I've been to Botanicals though...and Penang Hill. :D

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  6. Never been to this place, and haha, I like yout title.. Not just about food.. Today's one about hiking, forest, trees, beaches, nice!

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  7. Oh that's nice. Actually I like walking such a beautiful and green trail. Maybe I will to do it when my kids are bigger because they will complain when walk too long.

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    1. If they like nature and exercise, they will love it.

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  8. What?? FOC entrance?? I wonder if it is permanent or just CNY promo. I remember having to pay RM 10 to enter, some years ago.

    By the way, you are the first non-hiker person that I know of who would walk back rather than take the boat back. Bravo!

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    1. Thanks. I still have some energy left so I walked back. I think foc is permanent for the entry.

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  9. 3.4 km for 1 hour and 20 mins seems like a long time. I probably take the boat back...me too, no exercise!

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    1. Many people take the boat to and fro the beach if they don't want to walk through the forest.

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  10. oh, *jakun* me didn't know there's a national park in Penang.. haha, probably all I know about Penang is just food and food, ooopss!! yes, I like this place and definitely the title of this post "Don't just eat", haha!! it looks like a great place for sweating it out, and a good place to have a little picnic on the beach too!! the only thing i would wish for is cooler weather, hehe~~

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    1. I believe they declared it aa a national park not too long ago. Thanks for liking the title. Sweat a lot. It was not hot in the forest due to the trees.

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  11. Hiking is a good activity. After all the good food in Penang, it's good to burn it off hee..hee...

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    1. I think I put all the calories I burnt off back already.

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  12. Unfortunately, I do just eat!! I'm not a nature buff and certainly won't like any walking and hiking trails....hee...hee! :D

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    1. You can take the boat both ways if you like beaches.

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  13. Photos look lovely! With a beach as a reward at the end too. Guess the walk would been much easier if the weather hadn't been so hot.

    (Walking around malls during CNY was exactly what I was doing hehe)

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    1. It was cool in the forest due to the trees. Walking in malls is also good exercise.

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  14. Penang is so rich with natural resources.

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  15. I love to go on this trail.

    Lovely photos of the place.

    I also seldom go hiking or doing outdoor stuff but it is good for a change. Great for mind and body too.

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  16. The destination is soooo much fun! when the photo starting from the bridge hit, i'm like! alright! i need to freaking hike like right now!

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  17. OMG! I wanted to cry as all the sweet old memories came flooding back now. I hiked along the same trails when I was like 15 years old. It still looks the same but better & safer.

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    1. Have a walk down memory! Hike with your wife this time. I am sure she would love it.

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  18. it's just awesome.. the dark green dense forest.. ver mesmerizing.. it reminds me my Hawaii vacation way back in 2009..

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    1. I wish I have been to Hawaii. It must have been a wonderful vacation for you.

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