Saturday, 19th
October, 2002 – All worries about the bad, wet weather not unlike the previous
mornings turned out to be unfounded. It turned out to be a glorious Saturday
morning, putting the smiles on the faces of the rag-topers and others alike. At
8.00am, Kevin was the first to arrive, followed by Ghaffur with Dr.Wan as his
guest passenger. Soon everyone made it with Lui arriving last at about 8.30am.
After a quick breakfast we set off at 8.45am, already 15 minutes behind
schedule.
Benny led the convoy through a
few sets of traffic lights when we finally reached the main Ulu Yam road where
traffic was surprisingly light considering it was a Saturday. At approximately
9.15am, we reach the Klang Dam rest area and Benny decided to stop for a photo
session with the breathtaking man-made lake setting as the perfect backdrop.
After about half an hour,
enthusiasm got the better of some of us who have taken this route before. A
long, winding, undulating drive was about to greet us as we prepare to make our
way to our next scheduled stop in Sri Malaysia Hotel at the foothill of Genting
Highlands. The drive did not disappoint us! This was the best route of the whole
journey. Traffic was light and road was supreme, just what the doctor ordered!
Nothing much has changed since we took on the route before and we hope nothing
much will change in the foresee-able future.
We started to encounter a
little traffic passing the Ulu Yam town briefly and then started our climb up to
the foothill of Genting Highlands. As always, the lighter Miatas, with their top
down breezed through the route. At this point, Ghaffur must have felt it was
worth canceling his round of golf and come for the drive instead. Rose in her
ATX Miata found the hilly drive too steep for her liking and Kevin riding last
never let her of his sight.
We reached Sri Malaysia some 45
minutes later. The ladies were only too eager to check out the washroom
facilities of the Hotel. Due to the rather cool breeze, we stayed for about 45
minutes before we decided to continue. It was also only then we decided to give
Bukit Tinggi a miss and proceed to Bentong for lunch instead. According to Sri,
there was nothing much to do anyway and cars are not assessable beyond Col Mar.
At approximately 11.30am, Benny
made an unscheduled stop at the Hot Springs where we broke into 3 groups with
Ghaffur, Dr. Wan, Rose and the kids checking out the place, Julian, Sri and
Benny chatting away at the entrance and Phillip, Lui and Kevin taking shade near
the car park.
After that quick stop, lunch
was waiting for us in Bentong and we weren’t about to miss that. We reached
Bentong town fairly quickly and by 12.15 we were already queuing up at the Nasi
Lemak and Yong Tau Foo counter of that famous restaurant. Hard to believe but we
managed to gobble up everything in less than an hour!
The Chamang Waterfall beckons!
It was only half an hour away and it looks like we are going there un-prepared,
again, unlike the last time. That half and hour twisty route up the waterfall
was extremely therapeutic. It was a very much a one-way route so having eight
cars in line was always an advantage. The locals were only too happy to give us
the right of way. The kids, and there were many of them this time, practically
jumped off the car into the cool waters the moment we stopped. Sri had to
perform his duties as Medic when Kevin’s kid, Kieron cut her fingers on some
sharp edges of rocks while frolicking in the clear waters. Thankfully, nothing
but a few strips of band-aid couldn’t fix.
At about 3.00pm, we decided to
call it a day. With Sri, Julian, Ghaffur and Kevin having plans later that
evening, it was time to go. Furthermore with Phillip red eye after an operation
recently, he was feeling a little groggy. We then decided to take the highway
home. This route we will not enjoy but ……
We were soon on that dreaded,
steep highway. Most of us can only muster about 80 km/h at most stretch as
traffic and the climb was far too steep and long. Some of us were revving up to
5,000 RPMs at certain stretches. After a quick stopover at the Genting Sempah
rest stop for our Muslims friends to perform their prayers, we said our
good-byes and broke off into smaller groups before heading for home.
Total distance covered was
approximately 176 kms.
Next Drive :
Port Dickson
Cars Running were :
Benny, Mazda Miata (Leader)
Ghaffur, Mazda Miata
(Photography)
Rose, Mazda Miata
Julian and Jess, Fiat Coupe
Sri, Hyundai Coupe (Medic)
Phillip, BMW Coupe (Breakdown)
Lui and Winnie, Fiat Punto
Convertible
Kevin, Mazda
MX3 (In Car Cooler and Tail-ender