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By the beginning of the second hour, our longboat had overtaken the 4 that had left before us from Jerantut. All we saw was river, mountains and jungle. At 160 million years old Taman Negara is the oldest rainforest in the world and going into the National Park is like watching time slip by. So, here’s the drill to get there: the jungle train from Gemas (7am to 12pm), bus transfer to Jerantut (1 hour), then a 3 hour longboat trip up Tembeling River to the sleepy little village of Kuala Tembeling. From there, we had to wait 2 hours to take another 5km longboat commute further up the river to our lodge which was called Nusa Camp (it was so out of the way “NASA Camp” would have been more apt). By the time we got settled it was nightfall and Nusa is a dry camp. Agonizing does not even begin to describe how our bottoms felt after a day of Malay travel motocross. |
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The Canopy Walkway is a network of long hanging bridges that are constructed out of ladders fastened end to end with wooden planks thrown on top and suspended by rope 45 meters above the jungle floor. When we neared the first walkway the guard insisted we stay 15 feet away from each other. When we got on it was obvious why: the rope ain’t that thick and the ladders ain’t that strong. We bounced up and down, swayed back and forth, and tilted left to right with every step while the aluminum walkway groaned and the wood cracked as it strained to hold us. I loved it. The views were really beautiful, but it was too much fun bouncing around to take serious note. The last row is the construction of the walkway...if that's what you want to call it. Being from America all I could hear is the word "lawsuit" echoing through the valley. |
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Those of you who remember Helen as the high fashion power stylist to the stars please take note of the manner in which she has cleverly stuffed her pant legs into her socks. This is not the first time she's done this, in fact it's becoming a habit. Is this a fashion statement you ask? Will we see it on the runways of Paris and Milan? When asked about this frightening fashion faux pas her justificatiion is that prevents leeches from munching on her tender little ankles. Just thought I'd point it out. |