DRB-HICOM Nature Trail – Back to Nature in Taman Negara – Part 1
It sounds strange, but it seems to me that there are more foreigners who have been to Taman Negara than Malaysians. If I were to measure this from the very recent media Nature Trail trip organized by DRB-HICOM, this would be my conclusion, as many of the media had never been there. That being the case, it was a highly educational trip – a 278 kilometre drive in DRB-HICOM automotive group vehicles, including an off-road adventure, a trip up and down the river Tembeling, and a taste of the Orang Asli lifestyle is a trip never to be forgotten.
It all started on the morning of 29th October 2010 from the Glenmarie Golf and country Club in the Glenmarie area, where the media gathered, and the media were allocated SUVs and 4WD vehicles from the DRB-HICOM Automotive Group stables. There were a mixture of Suzuki Grand Vitaras, Isuzu DMax, Mitsubishi Triton and Pajero Sport, and Honda CRV. The icing at the top of the cake was an Audi Q5, and an Audi Q7 supplied by Euromobil, the distributors of the Audi brand here in Malaysia. Also present were a gaggle of Mahindra Scorpios from USF-HICOM, which were received with mixed feelings, but these same vehicles later turned out be a great and pleasant surprise all round.
The plan was simple. After a welcome speech by Dato Sri Khamil, the Group MD of DRB-HICOM, the entire entourage consisting of 35 vehicles moved out in ‘loose convoy’ format form Glenmarie Golf and Country Club, with the next destination being the Resthouse Temerloh – where the proprietor, Mr. Tan prepared a great lunch for the group. It was a traditional Malaysian lunch, with the star dish being not one, but two dishes of Patin Tempoyak and Patin Masak Assam. For the uninitiated, Temerloh, Pahang, is popularly known as Bandar Patin – and the Temerloh Resthouse is known as one of the best places for this fish dish.
All the media cars were supplied with GPS sets complete with the entire route programmed in – and depending on your preference, a nice sounding male or female voice would prompt you on where to turn, and where to stop, and even told you where to stop for a driver change, or a comfort stop. In addition, there were full-colour ‘tulips’ in a route book specially printed and bound, in each vehicle – the result of detailed ‘recce’ trips organized prior to the trip.
After the scrumptious lunch at Temerloh, the drive resumed to Jerantut where, after a short stop for fuel (there are no petrol stations between Jerantut and Kuala Tahan, Taman Negara, which is 66 kilometres away), the entourage proceeded to Kuala Tahan. Just three kilometres short of Kuala Tahan, just a river crossing away from Taman Negara, there is a 4WD track that stretches for 186 kilometres and cuts through the boondocks to emerge on the Jerantut –Maran road. This was the road, a mixture of dirt roads and old and new logging trails that the Nature Trail media took, but we used only a short section that took us to the Nusa Resort, tucked away in the deep forest.
It had rained the previous day, and the roads were still a little wet, so the timber trucks were off for the day. By the time we got there, it was late afternoon, and the roads were drying up. Still, there were wet patches and some mud left over to make it exciting. The main worry was the numerous steep uphill climbs, and descents, with deep ravines on one side, and high slopes on the other, with the ever-present danger of landslides and mudslides that can block off the road at any time. Although the roads were indeed drying up, there were some dark clouds forming, and if it rained, the trail can turn into an instant quagmire that can be treacherous to urbanites not trained in 4Wd techniques. Fortunately, the weather held, and after a ‘kampung style’ tea break at Nusa Resort, the group made it safely back out to the main road.
In the off-road section, the Mahindra Scorpio garnered nothing but praises from the media who were allocated these vehicles. With its coil spring suspension, a six-speed automatic gearbox, and electronically engaged 4Wd system, the Scorpio was one of the most comfortable vehicles to be in, beaten only by the Q5 and the Q7 in terms of creature comfort.
The Q5 and Q7 also drew attention, surprising many who never ever imagined that they could be used off-road. Perhaps it is the price and prestige of these vehicles, but in reality, they are just as at home off the beaten track. The other vehicles such as the Isuzu D’Max, the Mitsubishi Triton and Pajero Sport as usual, just took to the off-road like ducks to water. Even the CRV and the Suzuki Vitara got through without any problems.
It was almost dark when we arrived at the Mutiara Taman Negara – there is no direct access to the resort – you park at the public car park (which is safe), and you have to walk a little to get to the river Tembeling, where you catch the hotel shuttle boat for a 50 metre boat ride across the Tembeling river – the National Park, or Taman Negara border is the river, and once you touch down on the other side, you are officially in Taman Negara. The Mutiara Taman Negara is the only resort in the Taman Negara area. Dinner was a buffet spread in the restaurant.
The night life in Taman Negara is very different form what we know – there are no night clubs, and no mamaks for the tarik – only nature. The Resort organized an eye-opener activity – a walk in the jungle at night by torchlight. Special guides took the media on a tour of the jungle –we saw birds asleep on trees, soldier ants trooping along in search of food, scorpions out hunting, and other denizens of the jungle –a very interesting and fresh experience for many of our city-slicker media, and very educational too. Of course we made too much noise to see anything else, but the highlight of the evening was the spotting of a tapir at a slat lick about a kilometre away. I didn’t get to see the tapir, but I did get to see a wild boar that come right into the hotel grounds foraging for food. Wild life is protected in Taman Negara, and the animals are quite used to seeing humans. END of PART 1
