Hiking Malaysia's Highlands: Gunung Brinchang
A few hours from the rush of Kuala Lumpur, peninsular Malaysia quietens, slows, and, most importantly, cools. The rapid evolution of this stunning country from coastal metropolis to pleasant peaks gave rise to one of the greatest hikes I have ever had the pleasure of setting out on.
Mid-July this close to the equator should have felt different. Decked out in a breathable hiking shirt and zip-off walking trousers, I was even getting a bit of a chill. Temperatures in Malaysia’s colossal capital, Kuala Lumpur, had been pushing 30 Celsius the last few days. Concrete and car engines turned the city streets into somewhat of a blast furnace. Out here in the Cameron Highlands, though, a comparison to a cool English summer wouldn’t be far from the truth.
The mountains surrounding Brinchang. © Matthew Walsh / Finding Earth
Brinchang was an anomalous town. As many places served a pork-free Full English, as served chicken feet soup. A few residential tower blocks scattered a sparse, wide-lane main street which, at one end, was crowned with a quite extravagant fire station. It wouldn’t have looked out of place in a large city centre but almost seemed excessive for a small mountain town. Bounded on all sides by impressive peaks, we were heading north out of town to the foot of Gunung Brinchang.
Brinchang’s odd yet impressive fire station. © Matthew Walsh / Finding Earth
Signs began to pop up from the undergrowth. “Jungle Trek No.1” they all read on bright yellow boards. Their arrows took us first along winding asphalt with small, terraced plantations either side and a Defender that looked like it had just been dragged in from a mishap in Jurassic Park, until they directed us offroad and onto the mud.
For a while, the trek was closed in. The trail tightly hugged by wrestling roots and mossy trees. A gentle incline mostly with a few obstacles to vault along the way. Then came the rope. An almost sheer section of path blocked the way up. I would’ve thought I was lost if not for the thin rope showing me that this was, in fact, the only way up. It was loose dirt, not well trodden like the rest of the path and seemed an impressive task just to get up. The rope was useless. I ended up in some kind of primal scramble clawing at wet soil for some semblance of grip and causing half a landslide in the process. This was what I expected from a forest trek. I loved it.
The ‘Jurassic Park’ Land Rover. © Matthew Walsh / Finding Earth
Adorning a couple of trees on the way up were the most peculiar fungi. Large, flat and white but with a substance on their topside that looked like someone had spilled raspberry jam all over them. We pushed on. The climb became more strenuous, but the mountain became more rewarding. Every few hundred metres it would provide a viewpoint over the hazy tropical highlands. More and more peaks came into view as we got higher and higher until we summitted, more than 2 kilometres up.
At the top was a relatively rickety crow’s nest stood next to a signal pylon. From the crow’s nest could be seen untouched forested valleys, terrace farms, tea plantations, all being gently rolled over by wisps of low cloud. I stood in awe for a while at my first true view of the tropics and sucked in some much-needed breaths of the saturated air.
The surreal view from Gunung Brinchang’s cloudy summit. © Matthew Walsh / Finding Earth
As with most mountain treks, coming down is the hard part. Gunung Brinchang holds the niche title of “tallest peak in the Cameron Highlands accessible by road”, so those wanting less of a muddy scramble and more of a gentle stroll or even the comfort of a taxi ride can enjoy these views. The hike back down the mountain via the road was a tough experience, with the newfound grip of tarmac making each step slightly more jolting than the last. Again, as it had so many times on the way up, the mountain rewarded perseverance with life-affirming beauty. The low valley slopes were all lined with verdant tea plantations being efficiently tendered by pickers. The road remained narrow and at some points quite frightful, especially when having to navigate around drivers on a precarious bend who were, in turn, trying to make their way around a school bus that nearly matched the width of the precarious bend it was on, before finally, our destination of Teringkap came into view.
I never expected a town-to-town walk would be so memorable, but Gunung Brinchang provided everything I needed. A challenge, adventure, views for a lifetime, and, right at the end, a stunning cup of tea.
