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We left KL for Taman Nagara rainforest & decided to start at the most popular entry gate of Kuala Tahan.
We jumped on a bus to Jerantut where we stocked up on supplies for our trekking (not trekking in the true sense, just walking!). Everyone in the town bibbed & waved at us which was nice. From Jerantut we got the bus up to the Kuala Tahan which was a tiny village just the other side of the river from the park entrance. As it was late we checked in & went for some food. It was really chilled & there were a few floating restaurants to sit on the river hearing all the sounds :-)
Day 1
Headed to the rope canopy, with my fear of unsafe heights was a bit hairy, extremely wobbly & really moved when Al was on at the same time (gonna have to put him on a diet!)
We trekked up hill to the viewpoint, so humid the sweat was just dripping off. No large animal spotting yet but forest is amazing & full of strange noises from all the birds & creepy crawlies.
Al suffered his first leech attack... they are much smaller than I thought, can hardly see them, but once they have had a good feed on you they fatten up. They move really strangely too. I thought they would wriggle along like a worm but they move like one of those springs you let down from the top of the stairs!
At the end of the day we chanced upon a hide & sat up there for a bit to wait for that elephant or tiger.... along came bambi!
Headed back to our room knackered, smelly & hungry... time for a wash & some grub :-)
Day 2
Al survived his injury but we decided to hire some leech shoes for today for added protection along with our salt (plus my fake converse boots did not make it through yesterdays trekking!)
Booked in for a tour today to explore a cave & head to the Orang Asli tribe. A long boat took us further down the river where we walked for about half an hour til we got to the cave. It was very dark, smelly from the bat poo & slimy but it was excellent sliding around on our bums, climbing & wriggling through tiny gaps.. Al had brought the backpack which in hindsight was not a good idea as he kept getting stuck in the wrong places! We disturbed the poor bats who were trying to have a sleep... they are so cute with their scrunched up faces. We nearly squashed a poor frog too who was sat in totally the wrong place.. but he survived & seemed unbothered by us.
The tribe village was small with traditional leaf roofed huts. The kids were out playing when we arrived. The tribe people are short & sturdy with curly hair & they provide for themselves, including schooling etc. The chief came out to meet us & show us his tools, he was wearing a towel & bumbag with a dart through his hair. He made a fire very easily & also made some wooden darts so that we could have a go at shooting. Our aim was not trusted enough to let us try with the poisoned darts & poor stuffed Garfield was pinned to the target. Al's attempt was way off target as expected, however mine just missed Garfield.. which was intended of course as I couldnt commit such cruelty!
Day 3
We are heading off to a more remote area of the park at Merapoh where you are more likely to see more animals... lets hope we get there as a bit unsure how & where!
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