Sunday, August 3, 2014

Chamang, revisited..

Taking the weekend off...

I rang up my trusty kaki Ah Pan who lives in mukim Sertik in Karak, Pahang.
The intention was to tell him about my visit to the farm he is currently residing in.
A night before, I've packed my bike and fishing gear.
This was a "two-in-one" trip incorporating some light cycling and fishing..

Meeting up with Ah Pan in Bentong, Pahang
Rolling out.. 
My plan was to link up with Ah Pan at kedai Basikal Bentong and ride out from there.
So, I drove up to the Karak Highway and got off at the Bentong exit.
It was a short drive to the bicycle shop and when I go there, Ah Pan was already waiting with his Dahon Dash P18.
I quickly set up my bike and rode out with the man.
It took me about 45 minutes to ride up to the Chamang falls, our intended destination.
Been a while since I rode in the area and the road was clear of all traffic.
There were only some motorcycles along the way and Ah Pan was already waiting near the falls.

This way to Chamang waterfalls..

Working our way to the top of the hill
The gradient

At the falls with Ah Pan

The man and his tricked-out Dash P18
Boats, bikes and gadgets..

As far as I've known Ah Pan, he's been a big fan of the Dahon Dash P18.
The model he had was the 2011 edition which is one of the best there is.
We hung out at the falls and a group of tourists started to flock the observation area near the pool.
They spoke in Malay but what intrigued me was the fact that most of them had Chinese features.
Then I asked one of them: "Dari mana Auntie?"
"Kami orang Melaka...," said a lady in the group.
I realized that they were Peranakan Chinese from Malacca who came all the way to have a glimpse of the Chamang Falls.
Their next destination was Raub where a durian party was held.
We decided that it was best roll out and the first thing that greeted me was this steep 1km climb out of Chamang.
It was no sweat on my Tern Eclipse S18.
On the low-gear, I crunched all the way, rolling down towards Bentong where we made our way to a part of town to have some pig trotters noodles.

Rolling along Ah Pan

A large moth

Posing a shot with my old buddy Ah Pan.. 
A fruitful day.. 

We ended up the ride at the Bentong bike shop where I met up with my host, Farmer Wong.

I've known him for nearly 10 years and I've been going to Sin Poh Farm which he owns to chill out
The plan for the rest of the day was to go there to hangout and later fish at one of his ponds.
We set out to Karak town to have some lunch.
I picked up two cans of beers and drove up to the farm where we caught up on lost times.
Having some time alone gave me some time to reflect.
It also made me appreciate the long friendship I had with Ah Pan and Farmer Wong.
At Sin Poh, I am always welcomed.

Farmer Wong checking out my bike

Ah Pan and his favourite pooch: Bob
Farmer Wong and his catch

Batman, Ah Pan's latest pup
Dinner!
We went out to fish at one of the main ponds.
I used to have plenty of luck fishing there, but it was clearly not my day.
Farmer Wong was the champion angler and when dusk started to set in, it was my cue to leave.
I made my way to the new road leading out to Karak town, but had overshot the junction by at least three kilometers or so.
After backtracking to the junction, we ended up having dinner in Karak before I drove back to Subang Jaya.
The Chamang ride was fun and catching up with Ah Pan and Farmer Wong was definitely worth my trip!

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