Gunung Datuk – The Very Beginning

Gunung Datuk

Still under “heavy training” and could still be considered unfit at this point, this mountain was quite a struggle for me. The very first time of exploring a new mountain has always been the ultimate and pinnacle of hiking, subconsciously creating ideas and visuals of what to expect and what’s ahead of us. An average speed of hike would take one to reach the “pre-summit rocks” in around 1.5 to 2 hours.

7 of us agreed to embark upon this adventure, a part of our training for our upcoming KK hike. Ironically, only one of us have hiked this mountain before and was given the liberty to be the guide for our convoy. Everything went well as planned, traveled as a convoy and reached Gunung Datuk safely. Upon arrival, we changed to our proper hiking shoes, put our bags on and got ready without much delay. Off we went to our adventure after the traditional before-group-photo and the compulsory permit payments.

The starting point just adjacent to the car park area houses a few notable buildings such as a reasonably large hall, with basic facilities. I guess it can be rented for any team building exercises before or after the hike.

The first stretch of hike was tough to say the least, as it was steep and quite a long one, especially for a beginner hiker such as myself. Good thing that the stairs and hill training prior to this hike were beneficial in certain ways. All of us managed to stay together in this early stage of hike, although one of us broke from the group and sped off to see how fast he could go.

The terrain was rocky and connected by an array of roots from endless network of trees. Big steps were mostly needed to advance through this part of the hike. Fascinated by the surroundings, the unforgiving terrain and the sounds of unseen wild lives, I pushed on slowly, knowing that to go slow but consistent was a better approach rather than speeding off ahead. Motivated by my inner voice to push forward and very determined to complete this course without much issues, I finally noticed that nature has taken over my senses as no human voices were within the normal radius, making me to conclude that I was advancing pretty much alone.

One of our hiking member ahead of me did stop once in a while to check on the stragglers behind, so I did manage to catch a glimpse of a human figure ahead of me from time to time. Psychologically, this could be some sort of a motivation to push forward as you know that you’re not exactly that far behind. After much hiking, we reached a large boulder, usually a landmark and indication that we have reached the before-summit-rocky-area. We noticed Adam, the one who sped off in the beginning, sitting down at the edge of the rock, basking under the green sunlight, filtered by the leaves of the monumental trees all around us.

The first 3 of us rested a while at this area, waiting for the rest to reach and regroup. The voice and laughter of the group behind us echoed among the trees and rocks directly below us. The light mist and whatever left of the sunlight which penetrated through the thick forest trees created a somewhat ghostly setup for the rest of the group to make an appearance. They did appear shortly after and we welcomed their arrival to this very strategically placed rock. We rested briefly and pushed forward to reached the final destination before the summit.

We reached a clearing, with huge boulders and visible campsites. Ladders were secured among these boulders to provide ways of people making their way up. We went forward and climbed through multiple ladders till we reach the summit. Those suffering with vertigo might find this a daunting section to conquer, but the view at the summit is totally worth the effort.

Once the summit has been conquered, it’s only proper to let the view to take control. Tiredness and breathlessness will melt away, leaving your body and mind with peace and tranquility. The view stretches way over to great distance, with birds and eagles (if you’re lucky) flying around. The breeze and wind, and not to mention the sun above our heads were great additions to our already blissful situation. We chatted further, while munching on our chocolate bars, discussing on our future hikes and what we have done in the past.