Chapter 65 : Gunung Besar Hantu, Negeri Sembilan - The one that got the worst and the best out of us...
Oh boy, where do I even begin? By now, you probably know I try to hike once or twice a week, usually to easier spots. "Easy" here means no permits, no long drives, and definitely no nights away from home. But every few months, we like to challenge ourselves with a big hike.
This time, we decided on Gunung Besar Hantu.
The mountain is in Jelebu, and the drive there felt a little like Fraser’s Hill, twisty and narrow. Siti had booked us a campsite to rest before the hike, and we arrived at around 7 PM.
She told me not to bring any fancy camping gear; we were going "basic." When we got there, I was pleasantly surprised by how beautiful it was. The camp had already set up a flysheet, so all we needed were our rain ponchos as ground covers and our sleeping mats.
We slept under the moonlight, with the soothing sound of a stream right beside us. The weather was perfect, and I found such joy in the simplicity of it all. No tents, no frills....just nature at its best.
We dozed off in our hiking gear and woke up at 3 AM, groggily brushing our teeth, slathering on sunscreen and deodorant, and heading out.
The trailhead was just a 10-minute drive away, and by 5 AM, we were at Kenaboi Park, ready to begin.
The first 5 kilometers were a relentless jalan balak (logging road) leading to Sungai Kering, our first checkpoint. It took us about 2.5 hours, and let me tell you...we all hated it. That road felt like an unnecessary warm-up; we just wanted to start climbing already!
After a quick coffee break at Sungai Kering, we pushed on to Kem Orkid, our second checkpoint, about 3 kilometers away. The trail wasn’t too bad, and we were still in high spirits. By then, my watch had clocked in around 15,000 steps, and we were still only halfway.
When we reached Kem Orkid, it felt like noon. I remember pulling out my umbrella hat, and the team burst out laughing at how ridiculous I looked. But who had the last laugh? Me!!because while they squinted against the sun, I was comfortably shaded.
I love hiking with my group. Dee and Zilla kept us entertained with their antics, Cyn was her usual chill self, Mat exuded calm, Kyro showed infinite patience, and Siti, she’s the glue that held us all together.
The toughest stretch was the final 1.4 kilometers to the summit. It was pure incline, like Gunung Datuk but on steroids!
By this point, we’d already hiked 8-9 kilometers, and every root and branch looked like a cruel puzzle for my soggy brain. Decision fatigue set in, and about 200 meters from the summit, I broke down and cried.
Kinabalu felt like child’s play compared to this.
My legs trembled, my stomach grumbled, and my mind was a fog. Mat had taken my rations earlier, promising to prepare them for me at the summit. A blessing and a curse, because I couldn’t quit....I needed to eat! So, I pushed on, one agonizing step at a time.
We finally summitted. The view was breathtaking, but I couldn’t fully enjoy it with the looming thought: we’re only halfway done. After a brief rest, we started our descent at 3 PM. We were supposed to descent by 1pm the latest to make it out before we lose the sun.
By 6 PM, we made it back to Sungai Kering. Exhausted but relieved, we thought the worst was behind us. And then came the shock!
Our ojek (motorbike ride) wasn’t waiting for us. A miscommunication between our organizer and the local guide, made worse by zero cell service, left us stranded.
That dreaded jalan balak? We had to face it again, this time after 11 grueling hours of hiking. Energy drained, spirits low, and night setting in...it was terrifying.
We trudged in pitch darkness, the silence deafening. About a kilometer in, Siti’s phone pinged with signal. She quickly urged the guide to call for help.
When the ojeks finally arrived, it was a 3-kilometer ride back to our cars. I couldn’t believe we’d even considered walking it, we were completely spent, with no water and no food left.
When we reached safety, I hugged my friends tightly. That hug said everything: thank you for being there, for having my back, and for being rock solid when I needed it most.
Gunung Besar Hantu, you were humbling. You taught us resilience, patience, and teamwork.
You could have broken us, but instead, you brought us closer.
And thank you, Allah, for your protection, for keeping the rain away despite the forecast, and for guiding us through every challenge.
For the love of the outdoors, we lived to tell another tale.
Insha’Allah, onto the next adventure.
RealtorThatHikes
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