AhPek Biker - Riding Adventures
Selangor-Pahang: Cycling Genting Sempah & More!!
Setiawangsa to Bukit Tinggi : 3rd April 2016
Cycling Distance - 91.35 km. Level: Very Hard (up one notch due to very hot weather)
Time : 7:30am to 5:30pm
Time Taken : 10hrs (inclusive of stops for rests, breakfast, lunch, coffee and photo opps).
Route Recommendations :
1. The road from Gombak to Genting Sempah is quite shady and cooling. Start riding early in the morning (around 7:00am) to avoid the heat on the return journey. We started from Setiawangsa and by the time we hit Gombak it was mid-morning and getting hot. Our return was in the afternoon and it was even hotter still as Malaysia was then facing the El Niño Effect which brought a hotter hot season.
2. From Setiawangsa to Gombak the roads are quite flat, with only some moderate slopes at the Setiawangsa and Wangsa Maju locality. But after Gombak's Hospital Orang Asli (HOA) there is a continuous climb for fifteen km. till Genting Sempah and slightly beyond. After that it slopes down to Bukit Tinggi village. Of course the return route is the reverse, a bit of climb and then whooshing down slope after that.
3. The Gombak to Genting Sempah road (called Jalan Gombak or Federal Route 68) can be quite busy during the weekdays, so it's better to cycle here during on a Sunday.
4. Points of Interest:
- Generally there is no particular points of interest, the route itself is of interest as it wends through secondary jungle. At a couple of spots along the way there are good view points overlooking the Karak Highway.
- At Bukit Tinggi village (GPS: 3.34955, 101.82138) there are many stall selling fruits and the renown Bentong Ginger. If buying, bargain for the best price as many stalls charge touristy pricing.
5. Food
- Breakfast was at a Nasi Melayu shop along Jalan Gombak (GPS: 3.26594, 101.72694).
- Lunch was very good wantan noodles & roast duck at Restaurant Zheng Ji (GPS: 3.35461, 101.82768) in Bukit Tinggi town.
- Pretty decent coffee at Mun Chan Mee Stall at Bukit Tinggi village (GPS: 3.34955, 101.821388).
PRELUDE
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| Group photo near HOA, at my first time riding to Genting Sempah. |
How time flies! And it's flies even faster when one is having much fun in life!
More than four years have passed since I rode to Genting Sempah. Back then I was a green-horn, a newbie to cycling; and taking on the slopes up to Genting Sempah was a challenging milestone. Fortunately, Rivern and Kookkeong accompanied me on the ride up, chit-chatting with me almost all the way. And the rigours of the slope seemed to lighten and vanished as we talked; before I realised it we were at Genting Sempah.
I frequently send my Brompton to Felix for some servicing (he's quite good at that actually), and often when I go collect my bike a few days later, we will go for a good spin. What better way to test the bike after the servicing than a good ride?
This time round, he casually mentioned riding to Genting Sempah. "Why not?" I replied, "it's been a while since I rode there." But as usual, surprises always come to this AhPek. Normally, a ride to Genting Sempah would start at Gombak, near the HOA (Hospital Orang Asli); so that morning I collected my bike from Felix's place in Setiawangsa and was about to load it up into my car for the drive over to HOA.
That's when surprise numero uno came in.... "Hold on to your horses, AhPek", Felix casually mentioned (he always talks in a soft, calm casual manner), " we are starting from here!"
Gulped.... HOA is 20km away, meaning a 40km additional to the usual 30km Genting Sempah loop. Okay, okay.... 70km is not that bad and the serious climb is only for 15km.
SO LET'S GO!!
(Hahahah! But there would be more surprises to come.)
THE RIDE
The route starts off passing through the residential suburbs of Setiawangsa and Wangsa Maju; and continues through rural kampogs and secondary jungle from Jalan Gombak. After the Hospital Orang Asli (HOA) the road is a continuous until Genting Sempah before sloping down to Bukit Tinggi.
The elevation graph shows a climb of close to 600 metres from the start up till Genting Sempah. Then it was dowards to Bukit Tinggi before a return climb with an elevation of about 300 metres back to Genting Sempah before rolling down almost all the way back.
7:30am - We rolled off from Setiawangsa riding down the pavements along the Setiawangsa LRT Station. It's a Sunday and the station was surprisingly quiet, no hustle and bustle unlike the busy weekdays.
From here we cut through Wangsa Melawati and Wangsa Maju along some mini dragonbacks to reach the main thoroughfare Jalan Genting Klang; it was still a relatively cool morning and I had thought Felix would be stopping over here for breakfast at our usual makan joints, but know we just sailed along.
Across from Jalan Genting Klang we rode passed Kolej Tengku Abdul Rahman riding below the elevated tracks of the light rail transit. Further on the scene changed from modern housing to that of kampong village housing.
Far ahead, we can see the white limestone cliffs of Batu Caves. But we would not be heading there and veered right towards Jalan Gombak which was somewhat busier than the residential roads. Somewhere along that road we finally made our first stop, one for breakfast of Nasi Melayu and Roti Canai at one of the road-side lean-to shops.
9:30 am - We are at the Hospital Orang Asli, the usual kick-off point for cyclist riding to Genting Sempah. We see many cars parked at the road shoulders, but their owners were not around, as most would start from this point at around 7:30am at the latest when it is very much cooler. AND here we were two hours behind the usual, and the morning was starting to get warm!
It was from this point that the real fun begins as the road slopes continuously onwards for the next fifteen kilometres. It was not a very steep slope, but the unstopping climb tax many and a helping hand was most welcomed to warm up for a more vigourous ride ahead.
The place had not changed much, but I was surprised to see an Art Village here at Batu 16 (16th Mile). I love art (.... see my art blogs) but we were on the roll and did not stop for any aesthetic appreciation.
Warmed up, Felix was in top-form taking on the slopes easily ...
But others did not fare that well and we saw several riders stopping for rest; they were new to this route and under-estimated the difficulty of it. A bit of rest and they will feel good to continue on, after all it's a beautiful place surrounded by much greenery of secondary jungle.
Cyclists were not the only ones who like this place, many motorcyclist with their big and super bikes love to ride here too - the sharp bends along the winding road gets the adrenaline pumping!
Don't be surprised to see many monkeys along the way, they are usually tame but do get aggresive at times so it's best to steer clear of them.
Finally, half-way up the climb, a short stop for a breather and to enjoy the scenery.
Rejunevated, we pressed onwards. Ahead some had come down to push, it was getting hotter and the heat had zapped them (probably like us they had started out late). In fact, we were not surprised to see many cyclists heading downslope, already on the return leg.
Out of the blues, I heard a shout "Hi AhPek!" from one of the riders coasting downhill ..... Heh! Heh! Seems like my reputation precedes me.... and with a quick wave I shouted a greeting back.
This old Gombak Road at times run quite high, at some stretches one can look down onto the Karak Highway.
11:00am - We reached Genting Sempah. This is not the driving R&R, it's a point below the fly-over leading to the R&R. This is a watershed point for cyclists doing this route, the point where most will turn around after a brief rest and head back to the HOA.
Interestingly, this point also mark the border between Selangor and Pahang; beyond it will be Pahang.
This guy has taken advantage of the location, setting up a small stall selling drinks and snacks to the cyclists. He has even put up posters to promote himself, calling the place "Underbridge Genting Sempah". Catchy name yah?
This was when Felix popped up with Surprise #2. "Let's head onwards to Bukit Tinggi!"
Bukit Tinggi is not far away, just another ten kilometres and it's rolling downhill.
BUT THEN.... the climb back in this hot weather 😨😨😨😰😰😰!
Nevermind, just take it in stride and there's a reward there - very good roast duck and wantan mee at a shop called Restaurant Zheng Ji.
The duck was very good, tender meat with crispy skin.
And the wantans here was super big, filled with lots of meat.
Now for the return leg. The ten kilometres slope back up to Genting Sempah (GS) was managable, that was until we hit the place called Hamburger Hill (so named as it's a short flyover loop next to the GS R&R where there is a McD burger outlet) which was rather steep. That coupled with the hot temperatures hitting closed to 40° really zapped us, and we did have to do some pushing here.
And after that it was coasting down the slopes back to the HOA and then some pedalling onwards back to Setiawangsa.
All in we had done over ninety kilometres, one which is normally okay but with the hot temperatures we were worn down. A cold shower would be good now 😅.
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7:40am - Although we started from the built up area of USJ, with a short moment we were riding down a road along SS13 (SS - stands for Subang Sungai Way locality). The road separates newer residential area of USJ Subang Jaya (which was on the right) and the industrial area of Sungai Way on the other side.
We rode pass several village houses of Kampong Kenangan, with me being awed that just a stone throw away from those busy high density residential area are pockets of calm, quiet rural life. AND ahead it got more interesting.... ahead was a quiet, long road that seem to run through an unpopulated area. The dense flora had hidden everything away. On the right were kampong houses and on the left, the Klang River. Our route would make a U-shaped loop that skirts the river, but unfortunately we did not get to see the river... perhaps the next round we would explore some more.
In front we took a left across a bridge spanning one of many irrigation canals of this area....
... and Waaaala! We leave the kampong scene and are back at a built-up area, passing by the huge Putera Heights MRT Station which loomed overhead and seemed to dwarf Jason who was riding ahead. We are taking a short detour into Putra Heights for breakfast.
Shriyasz Curry House like many newer mamak outlets trying to meet the challenges of today's younger gastronomic palate, have come out with some innovative creations on their menu; creations which reminded me of the Roti Doll I had in Alor Star.
Jason went for another innovative dish - Ghee Tosai!
Tummies filled and with a short ride we were back on that rustic road that runs parallel to the Klang River. It is interesting how a river can divide different communities; on this side things were all rural and quiet. On the other side was the busy township of Kota Kemuning.
A bit of off-road adventure here, along a narrow earth path that would lead us out from Bukit Lanchong. We could see some factories nearby, these are the ones at the rear section of Taman Alam Megah. But we won't be heading there...
... but instead cut across to another quite kampong called Lancong Jaya. These days the kampong houses are mostly built in concrete and bricks, but there are still a few wooden houses around.
Yup... we are at Lancong Jaya. At the back is one of the wooden houses right next to a huge brick house. I do hope that more of the timber houses will be conserved so that this village will still retain it's old world charm.
We rode pass the fringe of Taman Alam Megah and the were into an industrial area, the Shah Alam Premier Industrial Park. It was a Sunday and most of the factories were quiet and the roads almost devoid of traffic. Yippeeeee!
We hit the Shah Alam Expressway (which forms part of the South Klang Valley Expressway).... now how are we going to get across this very busy highway. Use a pedestrian bridge!
A tip here on easy carrying of the Brompton bicycles - hook the seat over your shoulder, at the soft muscle part midway between the neck and the upper arm (not on the collar bone!). Carried this way, the bike perfectly balances on the shoulder.....
The bridge took us over to the HICOM Industrial Park .... again a quiet and nice place to ride on with some stretches nicely shaded.
Another interesting feature along the way, double round tunnels running below Elite Highway. These tunnels will take us back to the Subang locality. Over on the other side is the Subang Hi-Tech Industrial Park.
Time for eats again, time for brunch at Restoran Wai Kwan. This is a coffee-shop with many hawker stalls; we opted for something light, Chee Cheong Fun (CCF). A stall here also sells a variety of CCF including Ipoh-style CCF. I had this Teluk Anson CCF but drenched in curry; guess I still miss the Roti Float from earlier on.
Anther stall sells very good pau, this one is their Char Siew Pau filled with very tasty mince Char Siew within a fluffy bun.
The pau were so good we pack take-away to take back for loved ones back home (have to score Brownie Points, yah?).
11:35 am - We are back at the Wawasan Station, our cars were parked at a car-park just slightly in front.
