Up Malau Hill...

Malau is this place near Bandar Darul Aman in Jitra. It is a hilly area, popular with hill climbing enthusiasts. My sexagenarian friend has been asking me to join her for a couple of weeks already... and yesterday I finally went with her since I've not been to the Malau hills for a couple of years.

This is another rubber estate area. And this is hiking during the dry season... you tend to kick up dust as you go up the trails. Once the rains come, it'll be a different experience again. You've got to hand it to those people who tap rubber in such kinds of hilly terrains. Considering the huffing and puffing that we had to put in; it's definitely more 'tjia-lat' with the burden of rubber latex.

We went up 3 hills... most of those in my group were in the 60s. And they are all quite, quite fit. Of course some did huff and puff a bit more than others but generally, I would tabik them for their willingness to leave the comforts the the parks and climb up these dusty hills.

The slopes are actually quite steep in many areas, with the trails hugging the hill slopes which mean a nasty fall if one were to lose his footing. Some of the trails literally have a straight drop down a couple of metres. So, it's always wise to go in a group. But many were still able to 'fly' down the trails.... very natural with their steps.

There was a suggestion that we mimic the monkey, flay your limbs for balance...legs for the 'footwork' and hands to grab hold of the branches or saplings to prevent you from going off balance. Of course you have to watch what you hold... a couple of years ago, during one of my hikes and in the split moment of trying to prevent myself from falling, I grabbed hold of a thorny plant... the thorn went into my hand... about half an inch. Of course there was quite a bit of blood as I pulled it out in the muddy condition that I was in... 8( I had to get an ATT jab after that!

This was the last hill we did... Managed to go all the way up without stops. Though it seems not that long of a distance, such kinds of slopes tend to be a bit more tiring cos there are no obstacles to slow you down. Hence you tend to pace yourself quicker as you want to get to the goal ASAP.

Anyway, this was a good hiking trip... but my knees are aching now. This coming at the heels of swimming and badminton yesterday.