My holiday back home will never be complete without going for an adventure trip ever since my very first one not too long ago.
This time round i opted for the atv biking adventure over the others cos it looks so much fun annnnndd it was!
The trip lasted for only half a day. Too bad my second sister's schedule didn't coincide with mine for this holiday - she's only going back mid of next month - so what she did was to call us twice when we were in the jungle. Heh.
She was like bad bad me! For organizing one without her. Lol :P
Sorry sis!
Anyway, the atv looks pretty easy and not challenging at all.. at least, that was what i thought initially and bet you feel the same too but it is so not.
Before we embarked on our adventure, the guide had to trained us for 15 mins on how to operate the atv [very complicated but once you get the hang of it, it's pretty ok], which has a manual gear - that means, we had to adjust the gear accordingly just like a car or a motorbike - and also, we had ride on it for many many rounds in the training area for us to feel comfortable and confidence.
The trainer would watch each of us to see how we fare.
If he feels that we couldn't make it, he will not allow us to continue on with our trip... Safety always comes first.
Unfortunately, my mom didn't manage to pass the test. Yep, mom came along too! She's one sporting mom yeah? She loves outings like these in fact. And my youngest sister almost couldn't make it too! That baby.. ha!
So the mother was not allowed to ride on her own atv. She was told to follow the trainer as a pillion rider instead.. very much to her relief. Yes yes. She was relieved to know that :)
Because the whole thing sounds pretty scary to her.. and to most of us too especially the going up the hill part which the steepness is around 60 degree!
There were so many stuff to remember especially when we are on the slope. Eg :
. No putting our feet down when the atv is not balanced - one or two wheels are not on touching the ground due to the unevenness because it's a jungle track after all. According to the trainer, such reaction is a reflex. But we have to counter it. We have to keep our feet on the atv at all times
. must lean forward at all times else we'll really feel like we are gonna topple
. must accelerate gradually. Sudden acceleration = backward summersault and we definitely would not want that, would we?
. no avoiding holes on the track. So that's back to point 1.. which means the atv will have one or 2 wheels in the air
. no stopping in the middle of the slope. We have to keep on moving no matter how scary it is
Honestly, we were all pretty scared and the guide was worried for us too!
Even though the very nice guide wasn't oblige to come with us, he actually followed us till the slope and helped out through the riding up, holding on to our atv so that we really wouldn't do a backward summersault.
When we first saw the slope, we all wished we were in our mother's position, that is.. as the trainer's pillion rider. I felt giddy by just looking at it. We all went 'oh shittttttt...' ahahaha. I had tons and millions of butterflies in the stomach i tell you and i am so not joking about it.
All ready to go.. see the big rock? We went round and round around it for more than 30 times!
My heart beat darn fast.
I was scared. So were the sisters. Hehe... All of us were worried about 1 thing only. Which is - sudden acceleration = backward somersault. Heh.
Anyway, we turned out doing exceptionally well. We made it! Woo hoooo~
The trainer was really pleased. So was the guide.
In fact, the trainer was pretty taken by us that at the end of the journey, he actually told us that we were alot more skillful and 'terel' than he had first anticipated. He thought it was his doomed day that day when we 5 ladies went marching in to his shop that morning. Lol.
After the first slope, we rode a little while before the slope no.2 came.. a more dangerous one definitely.
The thing is, usually after you managed to go through the first obstacle successfully, the second one doesn't seem so scary anymore though the fear is still there. We were definitely more confident compare to our first attempt on the slope.
The ride through the jungle was a pretty scenic one. Not sure what type of jungle it was but we sure saw many bamboo trees or rather, we were surrounded by them. I almost could imagine myself in "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". Heh.
For our final adventure, we were asked to leave our atvs and hiked for a good 10 minutes ONLY to the waterfall.
Hiking time!
The short hike wasn't tough but there were some difficulties eg; crossing a wobbly handmade bridge. However, it was good fun!
I wish the hike could be longer. I enjoy leisure walking in the jungle tremendously [sans leeches that is].
Finally..
The waterfall!
From here, we hiked up further, to almost the top of the waterfall at about 2 storey high.
But not before the sister spotted my bleeding leg.
Initially, the sisters thought i had hurt myself during the ride, scratched against something etc but i was VERY sure i didn't.
Then.
Almost simultaneously, our heads screamed LEECHES!!!
The sisters, especially the eldest sister and my mother instructed me to pull up my pants further to check if the leech was still there. It wasn't.
I tell you, i almost wanted to strip down to butt naked if not for the 2 men there. I cannot imagine how high up the leech could have gone!
Not to mention holes >.<
Then, the sisters and mother started to squeeze my whole upper thigh damn hard and did the rub down motion, hoping they could squeeze the leech to death and bring it down too.
Guess what?
It worked!
The sister got the leech but alive, stucked to her finger. Now.. it was her turn to scream. Hehe... The very amused trainer [after witnessing the whole incident] offered his expertise then. Just dip the finger to the water and the leech will let go. Easy peasy.
Yeah, so the sister saved my life! *phew*
Just before we leave the waterfall to resume our atv biking, the sisters spotted this.
Aarrrrggggggggggghhhhhhhhhh~
Why oh why?
Me again!!!
That #$%^&* leech!
This time, the trainer came forward to save me by offering his finger to the leech. By then, we were pretty cool by these leeches already which explained the photograph. The sister told me to hold still and snapped a couple of photos of it before the trainer stepped in and told us that if i don't want any scars on the leg, i better get it out fast.
He proceeded on to show us his 10cent scars on his legs.. due to scratching.
This, i can attest to it.
The first bite on the leg near the shin that i had on this trip?
Until today, the little punctured hole is still there and i scratch it like nobody's business but still with a little conscience thankfully. Extremely itchy. Sigh. I wonder when it will stop itching and go away forever... grrr.
Nevertheless, the trip was a good one. Everyone enjoys it and so did i.
If you need more information, go here.
ppssssstttt : the guide is quite a cutie! Reminds me of my Hyun Bin.. hahaha. Sshhhhhh.. don't tell the husband!
For first timer, it's advisable to do the Khamisah Waterfall Adventure first. No kidding. You will need the basics and familiarity before embarking on the tougher trails. I almost wanted to take up the harder trail initially and i'm glad i didn't :P
I've been waiting for this day the longest time, with much excitement and fear.. yep, both at the same time!
This time round, i went with my gfs instead of the sisters.
There were 9 of us + 5 of my sister's friend and herself. This, happened only 2 Sundays ago but now looking back, it felt as though it has been ages already!
Hb was there too! :)
The alarm clock beeped at 5.55am that morning. Personally, an extra 5 mins of slumber matter quite a bit to me. Hence the weird timing. But mostly, it was because we slept just 3 hours ago.
Even after washing the face, i still felt worn out from the Karaoke that we had on the night before with the sisters and hb. For the uninitiated, i don't sing. I go because of the husband and sisters. It was fun albeit me not singing. It was fun watching the 3 sisters battling with the husband for the mic. Ha! Seriously.. i was like FINALLY! Because usually whenever we do go K, it'll be the husband and myself only and the hb sings by himself. No fighting for the mic.
Anyway, back to the rafting trip.
So yeah, we managed to drag our sleepy bottoms out of the house on time, shockingly. Met the rest for breakfast and then, it was rafting time!
After an hour of driving, we reached Kuala Kubu Bahru, a small town outside KL in Selangor. We went in 3 cars but hb and i didn't drive thankfully. For once, we were the passengers :P
Reached KKB at 8.30am sharp as instructed but the guides came only at 9am. To pass time, we slapped on sunblocks and took a couple of photos before going for breakfast again. Second round, mind you!
The gfs and i. From left : Sha Li, Lee Li, me and Carol (my bestie :D)
The guys took photos too but with Carol's camera. Not mine unfortunately. But to wait for Carol to send it to me is like waiting for the sun to rise from the West. Heh :P So no photos of the guys.
Another shot of us
If you're wondering what's that thing on my hand, that's gloves. Driving gloves to be exact. To protect my arms for sunburn and tan.
I got teased mercilessly for wearing that. Grin. The girls called it socks! *slap forehead* And they refused to acknowledge it as gloves, even till now. Heh. Funny gfs, aye?
The weather was pretty nice at first. But half an hour into the trip, the sun was scorching hot!
As a result, check this out. Hb's sunburn.
The photo was taken just 3 days ago. Imagine how it looks like for the first few days.. and mine too!
Even though i had the 'socks' on, it didn't help very much. Neither did the Spf50 which i slapped on earlier. Grrr...
This time round, the rafting was not 'that' fun even though it was supposed to be better. Afterall, the rapids that we went through was grade 3-5! The most extreme ones. So why it wasn't as fun as the one i went before this?
The guides.
Not that sociable. Another word, boring. And half the time, we couldn't quite make out what they were saying. If i'm not wrong, they're Kadazans or something.
The gfs wanted me to go with them on 1 raft minus hb. But i insisted on keeping the husband with me so in the end, there were 5 of us on a raft, hence the big raft we took.
The first rapid was the scariest among all. It was the video that i posted ealier.
The guys' raft got capsized. It was overturned at the very first drop. They were so traumatised by it that one of them actually skipped the grade 4 rapid, known as the 'chicken drop' which was a fatal one that killed more than 10 people this year alone. But i don't see that as 'chickened out' though.
As hb said, to say no to it is more courageous than anything else. It takes a lot of courage and bravery to say no, knowing that there will be so many 'mouths' talking about it, laughing at you so on and so forth.
But like what i told the wife-my gf then after some uncalled for something, it is absolutely OK. Nothing wrong with being scared or feeling uncomfortable. So what if he's a guy. He's human too. At least, i personally feel that he is much braver than the ones who insisted on going through that rapid with a very scared heart but the ego forbids them from doing the same.
So yeah, the guys' raft got capsized. As we looked on [we went first], seeing how they struggled, i almost wanted to jump into the river to help 1 of them who was a non swimmer because he didn't surface for the longest time. My heart almost stopped beating that moment. Later, i found out the other gfs felt the same as i did as well. Wanted to jump in and help.
Because we took the big raft, our chances of getting capsized were pretty slim. To be honest, i was both devastated and relieved. Haha. But the gfs didn't feel the same i think. They were much braver than i am. Athletes they are, you see.
Halfway through the rafting, we switched raft with the guys. But still, nothing happened to us! The guys got capsized twice but not us. In the end, the guides (the more sporting ones) secretly over turn the raft twice for us. Shock, yes. Fun, not really. I still prefer to let the nature takes its course :P
Oh, surprisingly.. the husband fell into the water during the last rapid which was a Grade 5. The only person in the entire raft who fell. Lol. How did hb fell? Hb himself also doesn't know. Heh. But the position he was in was the same as my position the previous time. A very easy position to fall in. I drank quite a bit of water though.
But hb managed to get back up into the raft himself in less than a minute. None of us knew he fell actually, until he was half way up and hb actually went under the raft! :P
Overall, i still prefer my other experience. More fun, even though the rapids were only grade 3. I really think it is because of the guides. They do make a huge different. Luckily i've got so very fun friends. Else, i sure fall asleep liao.. :P
Tips : if you don't wanna fall in or don't wish for your raft to get capsized, do go for the bigger raft. Smaller rafts get capsized much easily.
That's us! [boy1 and i ;)]
It wasn't in the itinerary before we went back.
It was an impromptu plan which came about when i met the gfs on Thursday afternoon, chilling out at the bestie's house.
Bestie is currently waiting to start work at the hospital and another close gf has recently started her own company which, is a very good thing because that would mean flexible schedule, and we can practically go anywhere we want during the week days!
So rock climbing it was for us + the elder boy of mine. Didi refused to join in no matter what i say/do. Hehe.. He was pretty scared :P
During the safety talk
It was Laurence (the only guy with us) and my first time doing it. Sha and Carol had done it before. Sha is the experience one as she had done it more than thrice already. And of course, it was the boy's first too..
Me on our 'practise' wall
It involves a lot of arms' strength which i definitely lack of and a bit of the legs' strength too. After doing 3-4 walls, around 9-10 climbs, my arms were shaking and trembling, literally. But the legs were fine.
Me belaying Shuoze
Even though it wasn't exciting, i quite like it. Pretty addictive.
Every time when i fail to climb to the top for certain walls, i get pretty determine to do it again and again till i manage to. However, for other walls which i know i cannot, i just stop. What is also interesting is that sometimes, after your first climb and you somehow didn't manage to complete it, you'll get down, stare and start doing a 'mental' climb in your head before you start your second climb again. Heh. Cute aye?
And for some other times, you'll even stop in the midst of it and start doing the mental climb before continuing :)
For Shuoze, it was a lot tougher as he is still a child. The walls were meant for adults and imagine the difficulty he encountered!
He needed to really stretch and use his legs + arms strength in order to get himself from one step to a further step. After seeing him completing 2 walls, all the way to the top, i was amazed. Seriously, i was so proud. I mean, he's only 5 and he could do a grade 5B wall!
All of us looking up at Shuoze, cheering for him
However, he did stop in the midst of the climb, looked down at me and told me he was scared. Which kid wouldn't right? It was so high! But the friends and i will cheer on for him and tell him it will be ok, and if he's tired, just let go, we'll be there to catch him. Most importantly, do not look down! It's rather scary you know, even for me when i do look down..
The first few times, i was his belayer and the last few times, he actually went to join my friends instead. Heh. And i thought he was pretty cool when i told him to do the 'L' shape when he was coming down and i didn't even teach him about it but thank god he knows.
For the time being, the best i did was a Grade 6A and nothing more than that. The next time i go, i am so gonna tackle that 6C wall which i didn't manage to climb.
Hb is very very keen to join us the next time i go. I wonder how hb will fare... because from what i see, i think girls are definitely better at it! :PppPP [if we have strong arms that is] We are, more agile and flexible :D
Err, but first, anyone has dumb bells to loan me? :P
Continuing from my incomplete entry the other day..
So yup, after our caving and lunch, we continued on to white water rafting. Initially, we were supposed to do the rafting before caving but due to the raining season, the activities got switched.
Our car was parked at the entrance of the Gua Tempurung. To get to Gopeng Nature Resort where our starting point for the rafting is, transportation is provided. We went on the way we were, as in no new change of clothings. Wet throughout. The vans were well prepared though. There were plastic sheets on the seats protecting the cushion. Guess that was the 'tradition'? (for continuing the trip without changing) :P
The weather was surprising fantastic that day. No sun and the water level was just nice. In fact, it drizzled a little but stopped after a while. There were 5 of us. Just nice for 1 raft plus 1 guide. Exactly the way we like it. Our guide picked us though. Think he likes us. Haha.. Got to know him before the start of our caving, chatting and joking happily with him. A very sporty person i must say.
We were made to carry our raft from the resort right to the river bank. It wasn't an easy task mind you. The raft looks light but i promise you, it wasn't!
Very heavy actually.
Waiting for our turn to go into the water. We were the last to go even though we arrived first
Safety talk was given before starting. Listening to the talk somehow made me sweat all over. Literally.
Very scary. My heart really went thump thump thump F.A.S.T!
Especially when we were told what to go IF the raft gets capsized. Or when we accidentally fall into the river at the rapid part of the river. Or the way we must remember to let go of the raft line and not hold on to it but apply body rafting to save ourselves.
Without realising it, i felt myself shaking a little.
I was scared.
Moreover, hb was not around to save me if anything were to happen. My husband my protector. My protector who coincidentally happens to be a certified life guard too. And he was not around.
How not to be scared right?
I silently prayed for our safety. Funny but i was excited at the same time too! :P
Right before our raft gets pushed into the river. Can't tell that i was scared right? :P
This is exactly how our rafting looks like during the rapid. That exciting
I fell twice.
Or rather 1 and the half times?
The first half fall was a shocking one. Didn't expect it to happen that fast. My guide who arranged me to sit next to him made me fall on purpose, at the rapid part.
The raft moved forward and down a little 'waterfall' diagonally backwards with me being the most high risk to fall in and i did, half of me did. My first half got plunged into the river but my hands were still holding tight to the raft line and my paddle.
So how did i fall? Or maybe i should say, how to not fall? The raft line i was holding was on my left and i was going left and down. So how to not fall in yeah? (if u get what i'm saying that is :P)
Somehow i couldn't get back up no matter how i tried. I was that deep in. And i couldn't go whole body into the river as well. I was practically stuck.
To save me, my guide lost his paddle which the raft in front of us managed to retrieve it for him. He was very quick to pull me out again. The very cold water certainly managed to jolt the shites out of me. Lol. Both my elder sisters (who sat in front of me) were frantically shouting my name and helped me get back to my position again. Think i got everyone panicked for a moment. Heh.
But i was fine. Didn't drink any water nor did i hurt myself either. I was really fine. I still managed to have that silly grin on my face whilst i got pulled out. The only thing that was not fine was the cold water. Brrrrrrrrrrr...
Guess i was the winner for our trip.. for being the first one to fall in to the river :P
All rafts stopped halfway during the rafting. Mainly for us to have some fun, splashing and taking pictures
After that, i fell in again. This time, a total fall. But i was not the only one though. Everyone on the left did. My sister's bf, my eldest sis and me. And again, it was done on purpose. Didn't i say my guide was a real sporting chap? Heh.
When we reached a slightly calmed part, i was asked by my guide if i was game to go to the chamber (guide calls it chamber, which means the very front of the raft) and do a 'Rose' (Kate Winslet in Titanic at the 'you jump, i jump' part) but a sitting Rose.
I sat at the chamber with my legs dangling out in the water and 1 hand up in the air. You cannot imagine how many countless times my sisters shouted for me to be careful man.. Grin. Later on when our raft got stucked, we were asked if we wanna continue on with body rafting and we were all game for it!
Basically, we took turns to jump into the river and float on our back, moving forward with the help of the current.
It was indeed the best trip i have ever had for a long long time. We really enjoyed ourselves to the very max. Fun and exciting. A must do for everyone, at least once in your lifetime :D
But please, do not be put off by this entry of mine. It is really quite an experience. As for safety concerns, let's just say if a 5 years old kid could go on it, how dangerous could it be aye? We have kids as young as 5 and elderly as old as 50 something.
To convince you further, we were the only raft that did the body rafting and we were the only ones who fell into the river out of 7 rafts in the trip. It all depends on you and your guide. If there are kids or elderlies, the guide will be more careful and avoid all the more rapid parts. No stunts will be pulled.
For ourselves, our guide and us kinda have a mutual understanding before starting. We were all very game for a more exciting ride and he was game enough to give it to us. One thing that we didn't do was to ask to do a capsized raft. We totally forgotten about it! Arghh..
My youngest sister who didn't fall into the river was pretty disappointed. Falling into the river was really the highlight for the rafting. If you didn't, it would only be half the fun. Serious!
So, what's next for me?
Rafting at KKB (Kuala Kubu Bahru at Selangor) and caving at Gua Kandu in Perak in December. A more challenging one for both. I can hardly wait!
And you know what else i realised?
I feel equally safe with my sisters as when i am with my husband. I never knew our love was up to that level. I can really tell how much they care for me especially when i had my first fall. The panic look on their faces, their reactions and them calling my name frantically like a mad man were priceless.
As for the husband, i don't need you anymore, darling! Hahahahahahaa... Just joking hor! :P
I was away for a week, from Wednesday till 2 days ago with my 3 boys and helper.
It was an impromptu trip actually. Everything was done last minute. What prompted this trip was all because of me, myself and i. Grin.
The main reason for me to go back to KL was to go for white water rafting and caving trip in Perak. Initially, it was meant for me and hb. But as usual, hb couldn't make it due to work commitment so my youngest sis replaced hb.
Then when i told my second sis about it, she wanted to go too! Unbelievable.. the girlie, city girl, brand conscious sister was game for it! Lol. After that, my youngest sis' bf insisted on joining as well. If so many are going, why not all then? :P
I went on to tell my 2 other sisters but 1 couldn't make it as she had to attend a wedding that day plus she has gone before. For a moment, my mother wanted to join too! But we didn't allow coz she doesn't know how to swim. Heh.
For this trip, i was the organiser but the reality is, i didn't do much. Just a couple of emails and 1 phone call and off we go :)
Sisters and i at Gua Tempurung's entrance
Ha! My sis gonna kill me for this! Hahahaha.. haven't gone into the cave and yet already this expression! :P
In the cave
Again, in the cave but can't see much though
The cave was quite a huge one (top right). The first 1.5 hours was spent on climbing stairs and down of course plus introduction to the cave's this and that. Nothing exciting but got us panting alot though due to all the climbing. If i'm not wrong, there were 400+ steps in total!
The real excitement starts 1.5 hours after that. That was where we need the torchlights. Without it, you can't even see your own hands! That was how dark it is. Pitch black.
Not only the real darkness begins. That was also where the real 'river' adventure began too. I prefer to call it stream however. We needed to go through au naturel tunnels, holes, slopes etc. The most exciting part for me was to move forward like an army thru this tiny hole filled with flowing water/ stream. Crawling wouldn't even do! That was also where i got my bruises from. My entire arms got scratched because of the sharp sands and also 1 big blue back.
The rests were sliding down on the slopes where one of the slopes was 1 storey high and the steepness.. i'd give it 60 degree. That scary!
If we weren't crawling, moving forward like an army or sliding down, we would be moving like a duck or do a hunchback almost all the way. Oh, we also jumped. Jumped into a tiny hole (about 5 feet high) into the stream. No other way but jump. Exciting aye?
After 3 hours of excitement, we were out again. Boy, it felt pretty good to see the sun shines once more after 3 hours of darkness :)
The sisters and i, just came out from the cave. All wet.. from top to toes and inside out too!
A good pair of hiking sandals is a must. I got myself Teva sandals as i would be going for more trips like this. Hehe. But my sisters got theirs from Carrefour. Cheap and okay.
Also, thank god for the helmet! If not for it, i think i would be lying down in the hospital bed right this moment. I knocked my head against the stalactites for countless times, hard. So if you do go, do keep the helmet on at all times.
After caving, we proceeded on to white water rafting but not before our buffet lunch. Food was the only word we could think at that moment. Nothing else :P
All ready to go.. see the big rock? We went round and round around it for more than 30 times!
Hiking time!
