Kuala Lumpur : My 1st Ride - Kiara Valley Park TTDI

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Kuala Lumpur - My 1st Ride
Kiara Valley Park, Taman Tun Dr. Ismail,  5th July 2012

My bike on a wooden suspension bridge

Solo Leisure Ride around Kiara Valley Park, Tun Dr. Ismail, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Distance covered : 10 km.
Starting Time : 5:00pm
Time Taken : 1 hour



PRELUDE

I just bought my first Folding Bike (see Buyng My 1st Foldable Bike) and had rode it round my neighborhood streets, nothing special just good for warming up, especially for an AhPek who have not rode a bicycle in umpteen years.

Kiara Valley Location Map  (click for Map Link)

Looking for somewhere to ride other than the neighborhood streets, i.e. to stretch my legs more; I tried the Kiara Valley Park (in local Malay it's call Taman Lembah Kiara) not too far away from my house.

It looked like a nice place to ride with a nice little lake surrounded on three sides by hills. All very green and natural. And all waiting for me.... Odd.... No other cyclist around. Must be too late for them.


THE RIDE

I rode up to the Taman Tun Dr. Ismail mosque and cut into the Haji Openg area.

Riding down Haji Openg, adjacent to the Primary School. Careful here though, some of the man-hole covers are in the wrong direction.

And was soon at the park entrance.

Entering, I was greeted by a nice view of the lake and at the other end of the car-park side were red steps with ramps.
The were strollers and joggers stretching their legs there already.

Kiara Valley Park has three loops of paths. The lowest one run a loop just next to the lake.
Another middle loop, about fifty feet above (and hidden by the foilage) also run round the area.
A third upper loop runs round about another 100-200 feet above (also hidden).
Looking over the lake, I could see a fair number of joggers running there.
So, to avoid them, I better ride the top-most loop.

So to the far end red steps it is then! Surprisingly there were ramps leading from one level to the next and all three loops (lower, mid and upper) joined here. I rode up to the top most steps which is the start of the upper loop.

And was I glad that I did, for up there was a paved and nicely shaded path. Just nice for riding.

Happily I rode along, enjoying the cool breeze. But then suddenly ahead I saw a bright red signage board. ???

It was a danger sign posted to warn people that there is not entry to the bridge beyond.

The large sign hid a 30 meters long wooden suspension bridge over a small ravine. At the other end was a similar signage. INTERESTING .....

But then to one side of the danger sign was a green sign that states that the weight limit for the bridge was to a maximum of 25 PERSONS.
RED means STOP!
GREEN means GO!
Conflicting messages, what should I do? 25 persons max? And it's me and my bike only...
I read it as "PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!"
So let's go, and I proceeded on - but cautiously.

The bridge was stable. At mid span, I took this photo of my bike, looking downwards. It wasn't a deep ravine, probably about 15 feet deep. But there were rocks at the bottom.

I was glad that it did cross over. On the other side was a nice meandering path...

... that sloped steeply but nicely down.

The surrounding is so green all around, even above!
Looking up I saw leaves silhouetted against the skyline forming an interesting pattern.

And trees silhouetted too.

Then there was this tree, its reddish-brown trunk contrasting against the greenery. Standing majestically apart & alone some distance away from the others.
Is it the King here?

The trail even ran next to the Kiara View Condos.
These condo dwellers are real lucky, staying next to the park and enjoying the cool air and nice atmosphere.

Continuing on, the path led me downward back to the other side of the lake.
Some furry friends were there to greet my return.

Each loop of this upper trail was about 3 km. It was such a nice ride that I went round three times, totaling 10 km.
However, on my third loop a lady stroller told me off saying that no bicycles were allowed into the park and the trails. True enough at the entrance of the park, later I found out that there were signboards indicating thus. I had rode illegally.

Such is the lot for cyclist, a nice place but cannot ride there.
WHERE ARE WE TO RIDE?

With that done, I rode back home with a feeling of contentment of having rode somewhere better than the neighborhood streets.

NOTE:
For those keen to cycle in Taman Tun Dr. Ismail (TTDI), the following are parks that allow cycling:
1. Kiara Hills (Bukit Kiara).
    A rather steep route but shady and enjoyable.
    Access is through Changkat Abang Haji Openg (GPS: 3.141217, 101.633583)
    (Click here to see Ride Blog)
2. Taman Rimba Kiara.
    A small park, level road and an easy ride for newbies.
    Access is through a gate at the far end of Jalan Tun Mohd. Fuad (GPS: 3.140617, 101.631801)
    (Click here for Google Street View of entrance)



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