Jungle Trekking - Kuala Trengganu to Kuala Tahan

After a good night's sleep, we headed to the boat pier the next morning. The German couple (Giovanni and Moni) whom we had met at the restaurant the night before, were already waiting. Together, we boarded the boat to Kuala Trengganu. About an hour later, the water taxi dropped us off at the starting point. We were now separated by 13 km of hiking trail from Kuala Tahan.

The signage at the starting point was promising, so we ventured into the jungle relatively carefree. Giovanni had a mobile phone with the GPS data for safety. Everything seemed to be in order.

Just a few hundred meters later, we encountered our first difficulty - the desired path was not marked at a fork in the road. This is where the GPS came in handy.

Shortly after, we encountered another obstacle. The GPS indicated a river crossing. The problem: the old bridge had collapsed some time ago. Fortunately, there was a tree trunk across the river. However, it didn't cover the entire distance. We had no choice but to wade through part of the water. Giovanni bravely went ahead, slipped, and plunged into the water up to his waist. Unfortunately, he forgot to take the phone out of his pocket. The backpack was also soaked. Thanks to Giovanni's help, the rest of us could cross the lower part without any problems. When we reached the other side, not only were our shoes wet, but we were also covered in leeches. After a "cleaning operation", we continued the march. Unfortunately, we had to give up the GPS from that point on, as the smartphone didn't survive the water bath. Of course, we couldn't rely on Google Maps either, as none of the footpaths are registered. We also had no signal. The initial hike turned into an adventure.

Confidently, we set off without the GPS. As long as the river was in sight or hearing distance, we thought we couldn't get lost. But that wasn't the case. We got off the trail several times and had to rely on our instincts. Luckily, after some time, we always found the right way again. Due to the very steep ascents and descents, progress was slow.

The hot and humid climate made it even more difficult. You would sweat liters with every ascent. Moreover, you would get cuts and scratches from most of the plants. If you weren't careful, you would be bitten by more leeches. The bite of the leech is painless, but it stops blood clotting. That's why the clothes, especially the socks, were covered in blood stains. We looked pretty battered after our trekking.

Back in civilization, we treated ourselves to cold fruit juices (there is almost no beer in the village), a large bottle of water, and a portion of noodles. We were really happy to have reached our destination after a good six hours.

Physically, this trekking was demanding. Nevertheless, the adventure will remain in good memory. Above all, the beautiful nature fascinated us a lot.

Tomorrow we will take it a bit easier.