MY ADVENTURE HOST TRAINING AND EXPEDITIONS

Hello fellow Adventurers

If you are planning to attempt Gunung Tahan this year you may wish to consider joining our “no-frills” special departure. The date is from 8-12 March 2012.  And here are the details:

GUNUNG TAHAN CHALLENGE PACKAGE
(ROUTE 01: SG RELAU-GUNUNG TAHAN-SG RELAU)
Special Departure: 8-12 March 2012

Package Rate Per Person (Grouping of max 12 persons per guides).
Please note: Your final price payable will be dependent on the number of climbers booked for this date.
Price valid for Malaysia Citizens Only.
• 10-12 persons : RM175.00 per person
• 8-9 persons : RM195.00 per person
• 6-7 persons : RM235.00 per person
• 4-5 persons : RM350.00 per person
• 2-3 persons : RM635.00 per person

PACKAGE INCLUDES
• Park Entry Permit. Camping Fees. Mountain Guide Fees. 4WD Transfer from Kuala Juram to Sg Relau
• Expedition Monitoring. Certificate of Achievement. First Aid Kit

PACKAGE EXCLUDES
> Camera License-RM5.00 per unit. Porter Services Fee-RM1200.00 per porter/maximum carry 15kg
>Tent Equipment During Expedition. Accommodation arrangement at Sg Relau. Meals & Rations
>Travel Insurance. Any Optional Activities Or Arrangement Not Listed in the itinerary

TERMS & CONDITIONS
Open to all fit and courageous adventurers only! Minimum reservation of 02 persons per group. We reserved the right to alter the itinerary or cancel a tour due to inclement weather or unforeseen operational conditions for the safety of our guest. We accept no liability for losses due to failure to connect with other services and cannot be held liable for loss of baggage or personal items, illness, injury or death resulting from activities which is beyond our control. Reservations are subject to guides availability and weather conditions. 50% deposit is required upon confirmation and the balance to be paid 2 weeks prior to departure. Non refundable if no show.

PROPOSED EXPEDITION ITINERARY

Day 01 (Depart from JB/KL/Singapore –Own Transport)
Note: -We advise our participants to arrive 1 day earlier in order that you have adequate rest and time for any last minute preparation before the start of the expedition the following day.

The accommodation can be arranged at Taman Negara Merapoh Base Camp at reasonable rates. For example
• Fan Dormitory- RM15.00 per persons
• Fan Rooms- RM50.00 per night
• A/C Rooms- RM80.00 per night

Day 02 (Base Camp-Camp Kor) (All meals & tents on your own arrangement)
0500hrs Expected arrival at Taman Negara Sungai Relau. Rest and relax / public compound.
• Meet Us | YOUR PACKAGE START HERE
0800hrs Taman Negara Sg Relau
• Programme and safety briefing by us. Meet your mountain guides
• Last minute preparation
• Registration and reporting at the Wildlife Office
0930hrs Gunung Tahan expedition begins. Transfer from Sg Relau base camp to Kuala Juram (13.0km/ 45 minutes-By 4WD)
1100hrs From Kuala Juram to Camp Kor (750m level) (13.5km/ 4-5 hours- Trekking)
1600hrs Latest time to reach Camp Kor. Set Up your own tent. Cook your own meal.

DAY 03 (Camp Kor-Gunung Tahan-Camp Botak) (All meals & tents on your own arrangement)
0800hrs Latest time to proceed trekking.
• Camp Kor to Peak of Gunung Tahan (2187m level) OR Camp Botak (based on group strength)
• (18.5km/ 9-10hrs – Trekking)
1800hrs Latest time to reach Peak OR Camp Botak. Set Up your own tent. Cook your own meals. Rest & refresh

DAY 04 (Camp Botak-Camp Kor) (All meals & tents on your own arrangement)
0800hrs Latest time to proceed trekking. Camp Botak Or Peak to Camp Kor (based on group strength)
• 18.5km/ 9-10hrs Trekking
1800hrs Latest time to reach Camp Kor. Set Up your own tent. Cook your own meals . Rest & refresh

DAY 05 (Camp Kor- Base Camp) (All meals & tents at your own)

0900hrs Latest time to proceed trekking. Camp Kor to Kuala Juram. (13.5km/ 4-5 hours- Trekking)
1400hrs Latest time to reach Kuala Juram. Transfer from Kuala Juram to Sg Relau Base Camp.
• 13.0k/ 45 minutes- By 4WD
1530hrs Expected arrival at Sg Relau Base Camp. Checking by Wildlife Office. Rest and leisure time

• YOUR PACKAGE ENDS HERE
• Depart back to JB/ KL

If you are interested to join please contact us via email.
As places are limited, confirmation is on first come first served basis.

We receive plenty of bookings from those who want to come white-water rafting. Most of these bookings are for Sungai Selangor which is located in Kuala Kubu Bharu, Selangor. They could have heard about this river from their friends, or they could have read about it on the net. There are even some who may not care much about which river they raft on as long as they get to go on a white water rafting trip.

Well, Sungai Selangor is but only one of the several rivers available for white water rafting located just outside of Kuala Lumpur. Besides this river there are also Sungai Slim (Slim River) and Sungai Kampar.  Both rivers are located in Perak.  Both this rivers can be rafted and done as a day trip just like Sungai Selangor. For the dare devil rafters there is even Sungai Singor in Grik, Perak. Now this one is considered a Grade 5 white water rafting river.

Most rafting outfitters prefer to promote Sungai Selangor because of the close proximity of the river to the city and also to their home base. Therefore, operating on Sungai Selangor can shave off some of their operating costs. By operating here, there wouldn’t be additional costs such as off-road transportation of equipment, guides, rafters and even food.

With Sungai Selangor, rafters would normally have a great time on the river but unfortunately Sungai Selangor is not without its bad points.  Although this river is considered a Grade 4, often times the flow of the river is very much influenced by the water volume.  The water volume is controlled by the huge dam upstream managed by Splash.  Splash stands for Syarikat Pengeluaran Air Selangor Sdn. Bhd. – a state owned water management company.

Rafting outfitters do not know in advance how much water will be released by Splash on any given day and this makes it difficult for them to know the river condition in advance. After years of meetings and discussions between Splash, the local municipality, the tourism ministry and all those involved, this issue has never been resolved until today.

So rafting outfitters can only hope that there would be sufficient water volume on any given day for them to conduct their rafting runs.  It is always a touch-and-go situation. This does not augur well when it involves conducting white water rafting programs of international scale and quality.

But it is safe to say that over 80% of their rafting runs can be conducted without the need for any postponement, cancellation or change in venue.  In saying so, there would be that small percentage of about 20% of the rafters that may face this inconvenience.

Therefore, our advice is if you plan to come white water rafting choose Slim River. The reason this river is not very well known is that Slim River is a relatively new river for white water rafting if compared to Sungai Selangor or Sungai Kampar.  These other rivers have been on the rafting map for years and therefore with the information available and through word-of-mouth, they would be the more popular choices.

Slim River actually has plenty to offer to novices and experienced rafters alike. To begin with, the location is simply remarkable.  You are actually rafting in a remote setting in some very beautiful part of the rainforest in Perak. So when you raft, it is not just rafting exhilaration but also the chance to be in a peaceful jungle setting.

Do you know that getting to the put-in-point (the starting point) is an adventure in itself? Because of the remoteness of the put-in-point located deep in the jungle, we will transport you off-road using our 4 wheel drive (4WD) vehicles.  The steep ascents and descents, the muddy trails, twist and turn of the single track will get your adrenalin pumping even before the start of your rafting.

And as you pass through some Orang Asli villages along the way and watching their laid back lifestyle, it gives you a feeling that you’re totally away in a remote area away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

Slim River, a Grade 3 rafting river, has plenty of rapids and they come one after the other. So you can be guaranteed of the chance of challenging rapid after rapid on your 2 hour journey down the river.  Believe me, you will get a good work out at the end of the trip.

And the best of all, this is a natural flowing river unlike Sungai Selangor. So we can raft on this river throughout the year. From the years of operating here, there has never been a trip cancellation due to low water volume. You can be assured that when you arrive, there would be a very very high probability your rafting program will be going on as scheduled.

Having read this, when you’re planning a white-water rafting day trip from Kuala Lumpur ask for Slim River by name and we can promise that you will have a fantastic day out with us.

We hope to meet you when you come white water rafting on Slim River!

I have been using this camera for over six months now. I find it handy for taking shots outdoors and doing my field work. I use it more as a back up for my Nikon D40 DSLR.  This is a 12MP camera with Leica lens. Leica is well know not only for their cameras but their lenses too.  This compact camera has AVCHD meaning it can take videos in HD format which is a plus factor.

The things I like most about this camera are:

1. I can take continuous shots with it.  Even Olympus Tough does not have this feature

2. Light weight and easy to carry around.

3. I can take quick snapshots for those not to be missed moments and when taking out the DSLR requires more time or planning.

4. I can pass it to someone else to take shots and it’ll be easy for them.

5. It’s water proof so I can take shots around water, on the water and underwater.

6. Plenty of features and presets – if you love toggling these. (But I hardly use many of these presets).

7. Videos look very nice, especially in HD format.

8. I can activate the histogram which will be indicated on the back LCD screen so I can be sure that I do not overexpose or underexpose the shot.

And, the things I don’t like about this camera are:

1. Sucks up battery like crazy. If I used it, it wouldn’t last a day on a single charge.

2. Poor colour saturation. Pre sets for Natural (too greyish skin tone) and Vivid (too strong on reds and greens) and nothing in between. Needs adjustments to be done on the PC.

3. Water droplets and fogging on the lens when using it around water, snorkeling, rafting, etc.. and has to be wiped.. this is not easy if you are wet unless you can figure out how to carry a dry cloth to wipe the lens.

4. No cover on the lens making it easily scratched.

5. The camera body feels slippery when using it in water.

6. Poor colour rendition in low light conditions.

7. Adjusting certain camera features is quite annoying as it is buried deep in the menu and you’re always clicking on the wrong thing.

8. Tiny buttons on the back and made of steel. Needs really puny fingers to manage this and slippery most of the time.

9. Lumix own USB cable – you can’t use a generic USB cable.. so you better not lose it.

10.  You can’t create your own folders. The camera does it for you.

Do you use this camera too? Please feel free to add your comment.

WHAT’S NEW:

Further to this review, Lumix has already pun on the market their latest model called the Panasonic Lumix DMC TS2. It is now a 14.1 MP unit with a few new features.

Looking around, we found that Amazon carries a very good deal on this model. You can check out Amazon’s offer of the Lumix DMC TS2 here

1. You can start children on white-water rafting adventures as it gives them an excellent opportunity to enjoy themselves outdoors.

2. In Malaysia, there are a few rivers that are suited for children. Sungai Kampar in Perak is one of them. Sungai Kampar is a 30 minute drive from Ipoh and a 2 hour drive from Kuala Lumpur. From Kuala Lumpur, take the North-South Expressway headed north and exit at the Gopeng Toll Exit.

3. We have had some parents bringing their children as old as 7 but we feel a good age to start them on white-water rafting is about 9-10 years old. By them they would have more confidence (hence make them less fearful of the rapids), slightly stronger to swim (if it was required) and would understand instructions better.

4. We enjoy taking children white-water rafting because we know it is not only the adventure of going on the river but there is so much for them to learn – the rainforest that we are in, the different people that they will be meeting, trying different food, immersing themselves in the culture of the locals, etc.

5. We hope to be able to introduce these to children at a young age so they appreciate the outdoors, the adventures they go through, they understand their own capabilities and gain more confidence along the way.

6. Do you think you want to bring your children on an adventure of a lifetime? Get in touch with us. We would only be too happy to welcome you!

2 DAYS / 1 NIGHT GOPENG WHITE-WATER ADVENTURE

Package Includes

• 1 night accommodation
• Meals: 1 lunch / 1 teabreak / 1 dinner / 1 breakfast
• White-water Rafting Sungai Kampar inclusive of transfers and all equipment
• Free flow of hot and cold drinks

Rate: Min 4 Pax

Mon | Tue | Wed | Sun  :    RM250.00 per person

Thu | Fri |Sat | Eve & Public Holidays | Sch Holidays  :  RM268.00 per person

If you are planning to do several adventure activities in one go, the head for Gopeng. This little town in the state of Perak is a 2 hour drive from Kuala Lumpur northbound on the North-South Expressway (exit Gopeng Toll) and only 25 minutes from Ipoh. It’s like the Queenstown of South-East Asia! At least to my standards..ha..ha..

Well, if you want more information on it it’s here:

WHITE-WATER RAFTING IN GOPENG

White-water Rafting is the most popular outdoor adventure program here. You will be rafting on the Kampar River and for those who are planning to stay a day or 2 the our package will suit you well. Kampar River is a grade 1-3 white-water rafting river. So it’s suitable for first-timers wanting to try out this sport, adventurous moms & dads who want to start their kids young (and probably show how cool they are – at least to their kids).

Besides white-water rafting there are several other activities which are very popular:

* water fall abseiling at Ulu Geruntum

* Cave exploration at Gua Kandu

* Trekking in search of the largest flower in the world – the Rafflesia

* Paintball

and many more. So you have plenty to keep yourself occupied during your stay.

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