Mount Irau Trip Report

 

Mount Irau Trip Report

By Amir Che

 

 

Of new friends and chance encounters

Having been deprived of a hiking trip for a while now, I had been trying to look for people to follow me up a famous mountain here in Malaysia named Mt. Irau (Gunung = Mountain in Malay). I had seen photos of it and with a friend from the office having been there I thought it’d be great to get some of the lads together for a hike up. But life has a funny way of dealing you with a curveball, so almost 3 weeks after posting on my own FB status and asking friends if they wanted to go, no offers came through.

I then joined a few FB groups that specialize in hiking (or mountaineering) in Malaysia and I got in touch with a few people who wanted to go to the very mountain that I was looking to go to! Mind you, at this point in time, we were essentially strangers to each other A few (or not so few from me!) FB messages and phone calls later, I found myself driving at 11 pm to Cameron highlands, 150 km away to meet some people who I’ve not met before and have no knowledge of besides the fact that they share the same passion as I do for the outdoors.

After meeting up and introductions with our guide, Abang Li (Abang (abbrev. : Abg = Elder brother; an honorific used to address someone older)  and Ayie, we drove up to Cameron from Simpang Pulai and reached Kampung Raja ( Kampung = Village) at around 3 am and slept there till around 630 am. After a quick morning prayer, we had some breakfast and drove up to meet another group of hikers from Melaka consisting of Syahrul,Herney, Kak Ifa and Ji. Needless to say, these have got to be some of the friendliest people I’ve ever met. From just a few messages and phone calls, we got along famously.

Mt Irau Trail

We then proceeded to the start of the track point, which is a micro station for Malaysia’s Meterological Department, situated at the adjacent mountain peak of Mt. Brinchang. From there on, the trail to Mt. Irau started.

Start of the Mt Irau trail

The first bit of the trail is an easy one. It’s a built wooden platform designed to offer views to those less willing to make the journey to Mt Irau’s summit. After about 100m in from the start of the wooden platform, the track starts in earnest with muddy tracks beginning immediately after the last platform.

Essentially Mt Irau is famous for its mossy flora. Admittedly, this is a bit of a novelty to tropical dwellers such as yours truly. It’s been describe anywhere from “mossy forest” to the oft-used clische of “Lord of the Rings forest”. There were a lot of little holes where the roots of trees have been exposed by the elements which you have to go through, making it quite easy to imagine yourself going into Frodo’s house!

Moss, moss everywhere.

AMIR’S PRO TIP: The weather here can get quite chilly, so be prepared to have your body temperature drop when you stop to rest/eat. Bring a light jacket (keep those arctic sealskins for another day!) and wear them when you stop to avoid getting too cold.

One of the many state boundary stone markers that line the trail. PEK is the abbreviation of “Perak”, one of the states of Malaysia

The track is well marked and quite clear, with the trail markers (the red and white tape much used on trails in our jungles) spaced at most junctions. I also saw two signs that indicated the way for the trail, which provided some assurance that I was heading the right way!

Told ya it was muddy! The mud made it a hard slog going up at times

An interesting thing about the trail is that it is generally VERY muddy, with little pockets between roots to large pools of it. You might try and balance yourself on the roots around these pools, but I wouldn’t suggest doing it too often. The roots get slippery and you might end up face first in a pool of mud at best, or a twisted ankle if you’re really unlucky!

The weather on the day of the trip was cool, though I suspect that the weather here is always this pleasant. Mist can be seen working its way up the mountainside. Its hard to imagine the temperature here as anything but cool, though there are taller mountains than this which are still sweltering hot.

The total length of the journey is 6.56km. Judging by the numbers alone, it wasn’t that impressive of a climb. However, as with almost all mountain trails in Malaysia, one must take into account the rugged nature of the track, with false peaks and steep rise and falls as you hike. One of the hikers we met was very exhausted, and having been left too far by his party decided to trek back to Mt. Brinchang peak. He made the remark that this was tougher than Mt. Kinabalu. Just goes to show that one cannot at any time underestimate the physical fitness and perhaps more importantly, the mental toughness that you’re going to need to tackle mountain trails in the jungle.

It took us 3 hours to cover the distance from Mt Brinchang to the track. Our guide Abg Li, had quite thoughtfully brought with him bananas. Bananas are a good source of potassium and energy, helping to avoid cramps of the muscle and to keep you going as the day wears on.

Elevation along the trail

Map of the route using the GPS markers

The mountain top was pretty crowded on that day itself. It being a weekend, a lot of people were out and about. However, the scenery! Wow, the scenery! You can’t beat the satisfaction you feel when you lay eyes on vast mountain ranges. To have seen yourself what others of a less robust constitution could only dream of.

We spent an hour on the top just admiring the views. As is my tradition upon conquering mountains, it was time to crack the hexi blocks out and start cooking a victory lunch! Which on this occasion was curry and rice. The rest of the group was more than intrigued by the fact that I had hauled up my cooking kit with me, and even more amazed when I had the curry going!

Everyone needs a victory curry

The climb down was along the same trail that we took. Though it should’ve been easier now that we’ve got gravity on our side, we had to be careful not to go too quickly, lest we risk twisting an ankle on the slippery roots, or snag your leg in between the hidden roots/broken branches lying in wait in the mud. There was another large party heading up as we were coming down, which I thought was rather strange as it would’ve meant they were going to come out at night. Try trekking that in the dark!
Soon as we regrouped at the start point again, we drove back to Kg Raja where i had left my car and had a shower before heading to Simpang Pulai for a nice dinner with new friends. Bellies full and feeling very well nourished, we went on our seperate ways home, with new friends and new experiences making it an awesome trip all around

The Lowdown

Start point: Stesen Mikro Gunung Brinchang
Peak point: Gunung Irau Summit
Distance: 3.26 km one way. 6.52 km one way
Time taken: 3 Hour 45 minutes to the peak/ approx. 8 hours round trip
Weather: Cloudy, Cool
Animals: None seen. Perhaps because of the altitude and the weather there wasn’t any leeches. Leech-free hiking in the jungle! What a novelty!
Flora: Moss. Everywhere. Also a few pitcher plants dotted round the place.
Water stops: None along the track. So bring plenty of water
Views: Beautiful!

Special thanks to Abg Li, Syahrul, Herney, Kak Ifa, Ji and Ayie for the trip. Wouldn’t be half as good a trip as it was without you guys!

Till then, stay safe fellas!