the mud is my friend..

no, i am NOT kidding.. and i mean it in the truest sense of the sentence (or phrase).. well, for the uninitiated, i mean hiking up Gunung Irau in CH. But let me start from Friday night.. (no, wasnt the 13th, but that would make it more interesting..) anyways..

So we left the office at abt 6+ and stopped for an early dinner at some kfc off sungai buloh. then went on our way, supposedly a convoy but you know lah kan how convoys work when there are 9 cars in all.. took the simpang pulai route and it was almost pitch black if not for the headligths. at one point we were passing a shack or kind of pondok and the first thought that came to mind was that the pondok was missing a lady with long hair clothed in white and carrying a child.. seriously.. it was like the pondok was actually missing this aspect.. oh well, must be my overactive imagination.. ;-)

the worst part was that since we were in a convoy all the way uphill, we were trying to keep up and the petrol gauge just kept dipping and nobody realised til it was almost empty! that was pretty scary cos just imagine being stuck alone in a car in the middle of nowhere with no petrol station around.. first thing - switch off the air-cond, dont accelerate and keep the rpm steady. but there was somebody watching over as always :-) and we reached a petrol station in time.. whew..

so neways, got there.. the lodge was pretty much fucked up (oh mayb there's a nicer way of putting it but what the hell).. and had to wake the next morning at 6 for breakfast so that we could begin the trek early. breakfast was screwed up too - milo (i think, cos i took hot water instead - when in doubt, take water), pale sausages (didnt hv any), banana cake (2 slices), sandwiches (looked yucky), and goodness knows what else (frankly i dont care to remember). was then given hiking food for the whole trip - muesli bars (yaay), cloud 9 (didnt even know that still existed), an apple (prob to keep the doctor away in case of any injuries), some sweets, oreos, chipsmores, julies, raisins, etc. supposedly hiking food which you cant take on an empty stomach.. yeah right, i can swear on muesli bars, i mean, i hv 2 in my car, 1 in my handbag and a few somewhere else at this very moment, so who are u kidding?

so we get to the starting point and everyone's in layers of clothes including cardigans, windbreakers, etc., claiming its windy la, its cold la, they're sleepy la.. haiyoooo.. anyway, yours truly was only in a t-shirt and i actually felt nice.. like it was cool and a bit chilly but not cold that you're shivering.. but i bet everyone else begs to differ and this is camerons we are talking about! oh well..

so we start the hike and its actually ok first. very muddy trail (and i havent even washed my nikes yet), but you soon get used to it - as the title says, the mud is your friend.. so we go up, after a 3 hour climb, we reach the mini peak which is 1 our before the actual peak. rest there for a while and almost dont wanna climb up to the top but went up anyway. got to the peak at abt 12.30 (started the climb at 8), and rested there for a while. totally viewless but the last one hour of the climb was good cos the forest looked like something out of lord of the rings.. almost felt like a hobbit..

so then started the descent at abt 1.15 or so and this is the BEST part. there were a few groups descending and we were bringing up the first group. but i was a bit slow (better safe than sorry lah kan), so the 4 of us (Adam, Ken and Eugene) got left behind. and this is without the guide and the fact that we hv absolutely no idea where the trail is! but thank goodness eugene was in our group (this guy's from palapes, need i say more?) and he brought us back to the trail. but we followed a different trail and instead of descending, this route actually took us UP for abt half an hour. very stressful and was almost giving up at a few points. almost delirious. started saving water in case we got lost.

but as a side point, getting lost would actually be a good experience. with a windbreaker, a raincoat, water, food and a torchlight of course. whats the worse that can happen? hyporthemia mayb but thats it la.

anyways.. squelched mud everywhere and after a while you realise that the tree branches and roots you usually step on are slippery and thats when the mud becomes your friend. squelch.. ;-)

and the most welcoming sound when you in this situation is the sound of car engines cos you know you're close to ending this nightmare. but it was a good experience. tho i wouldnt do it again. kinabalu mayb, but def not an 8 hr trek where there's nothing to see at the top. my whole body's ravaged, but i'm playing futsal tmrw (oh shit, hv to wash my shoes and hope they dry on time)..

Shoutouts from the bottom of my heart: Eugene (thank you for EVERYTHING, for carrying my backpack halfway, for helping me through those nasty rocks, for running up front to check the trail.. in fact, too numerous to mention), Ken (thanks for your never ending "one more step, its easier after this", hope you get your 6-pack back SOMEDAY ;-) and sorry i killed the spider, didnt mean to), Adam (thank you for your Excel and your commando-style instructions "go Kay go" til you made me laugh and Ken asked you to stop saying that, cos laughter would sap my energy).. wouldnt have made it back without you guys.. i mean, would have la finally, but thks anyway, you're a great bunch ;-) P/S: we'll just stick to futsal after this, yah!

More shoutouts: Shi Mien, thks for your glove. Nick, appreciate the safe drive to and fro (see you at futsal tmrw as well), Nell, some good dancing there ;-), and hi to everybody else who i'm too lazy to mention cos i wanna go home ;-)