Tour of East Coast - Part 5

Stage 4 - Kuala Terengganu - Dungun

Route map of stage 4

And so it begins: the toughest ride of the tour..

We woke up at 05:00am sharp. 
Didn't take up much time to pack the gear and load them onto the ground floor. We took turns to move the bikes and set them up.
I did a key drop at the hotel lobby and got down to the ground floor to rig up the bikes. The waypoint has been set for Dungun and the GPS has it's moment when it took us further inland.
We were 15km off-course by using a rural road towards Kampung Laut and eventually ending up near Bukit Payung and Marang.
I trusted the GPS to get us to our destination, but the setting was in such a way, it avoided the common route used by cars.
By using the inner roads, we bypassed Chendering which is practically flat. The long and winding kampung roads led us from one village to another and ultimately, detours to route T171 at kampung Undang. 
There was a makan stall at the junction towards Marang. We met an elderly man and asked if the path is correct. He said "yes" and told us that there's a couple of hills ahead before it tapers down to the junction leading to Marang town.
We feasted on a good selection of food and it was a good thing.

Getting ready

Rolling out from Kuala Terengganu

An excellent selection

Good food at daybreak.. 

First hill in days

We pushed on towards Marang after breakfast.
Slowly, the ascend towards Bukit Payung began. We crunched our gears to a gradient of 5% and the highest point was 10%. With a load, it's no joke. If you don't train for this, there'll be trouble.
With an 18-speed bike, spinning the bike at 60rpm was not an issue. You just need to get the rhythm right so that you don't overwork your heart. My heart rate monitor was dead, so, I relied on my breathing technique which works all the time.
I led the way up to a long climb and when I reached the plateau, I took out my Canon EOS M camera to get some video footage of Michelle ascend.
Motorists that were traveling on this route were very sporting, they gave some leeway for us to climb the steep and long hill. 
After a series of climbs, we reached the junction towards Marang and took a break at a Shell petrol station. There, I helped adjust Michelle's handlebar grips that became loose.

Climbing Bukit Payung

Marang-bound

The Death Alley: Kg Kelulut - Kg Jambu Bongkok

When you are traveling on an average speed of 14km/h on the road, you tend to see and smell everything you roll past.
Road kills are no exception. From Kota Bharu to Kuala Terengganu, I've rolled past at least three dozens of road kills. From flattened cats to compacted animal remains lining the road, I've seen them all. The largest of the lot was a Musang or Civet Cat. The oddest road fatality was a Slow Loris that I came across near Kampung Jambu Bongkok. This is a rare and endangered animal and it was stone dead after being hit by a car. Throughout our journey, we spotted a lot of dead animals. From the house cat to birds of all sizes, the road had claimed many lives.

An animal crossing sign near Jambu Bongkok

A dead squirrel

This rare animal's life was claimed by a passing vehicle

Rantau Abang: Turtle paradise no more

We rode past a number of villages before taking a break at a wakaf (shaded shelter) near Rantau Abang.
There, I spoke to a caretaker of the wakaf who told me that Leatherback turtle sightings are very rare these days.
"In the past, there were hundreds of turtle landings here. All but a few are still found here.. It's sad," he said.
The elderly man told me that Rantau Abang is a pale shadow of its glorious past. Human intervention and light pollution were the main causes for the turtle's decline.
I remember watching videotapes about turtle conservation by the WWF officers who visited my primary school back in the 70s. Rantau Abang was "THE" place to visit when it comes to turtles. 
We rode past the Rantau Abang turtle conservation centre and as the day became hotter, I took the liberty of parking my bike to walk across to the opposite side of the road to get some coconut juice and keropok lekor from a stall.
Michelle and I sat in a hut and rehydrated. We were about 20km away from Dungun.

At the Rantau Abang Turtle Conservation Centre

Just passing through

Coconut juice for the soul

The last 20km to Dungun..

We have been cycling for more than seven hours, covering more than 75km from Kuala Terengganu.
Our goal, was to reach Dungun, settle our passage home and check-in at a hotel in the area.
The heat, as high as 45C is slowly taking it's toll on our morale and strength. We progressed slowly and as we were reaching the outskirts of Dungun, there were a series of short and long slopes. It didn't bother me much, but Michelle was slowing down drastically.
At the junction of Kuala Dungun, I checked my Google Maps and it showed the location of the bus stop in town. The map led us out of town and since we were also pretty hungry, (it was way past 2pm) I decided to make a call to pull over at a Chinese coffeeshop.
There we had our late lunch and I took the opportunity to ask the shop owner on the location of the bus stop. 
He told me that the ticketing counters and bus station had relocated to Kuala Besut. 
"It's near the Nirvana wholesale mart, you find an open area just opposite the store. They have moved there recently," he added.
The man was really helpful and told us that we could use the beach road from Jalan Melati and backtrack towards Kuala Besut.
Sensing the urgency of the matter, we rode back towards the old town area and found the bus ticketing booth.
There was a service from Dungun to Puchong Tesco, but it was only meant for the Transnasional service. I heard bad things about this company and decided that it was best to get a more reliable company.
We ended up purchasing tickets from Syarikat Adik-beradik that offers VIP seats and plenty of luggage room. 
I asked the ticketing clerk if we can fit our oversized luggage without using the word "bicycle". She said it's okay and knew that we were transporting our bikes. This was at no extra cost, so, with one down, we could focus on getting a place to bunk for the night.

Late lunch

Settling our passage home

At the UiTM hotel in Dungun

A training hotel managed by students of the hospitality industry

Checking-in..

By doubling back, we've added more mileage to our bikes.
Along the way, I checked out a beach motel. No vacancies. So, the next course of action was to head towards the end of Jalan Pantai Sura. The Dungun I knew since my last visit in 1994, has changed drastically.
We fought the heat and fatigue and had finally reached the UiTUM hotel. I walked to the concierge's desk and asked if there are any rooms left.
A student manning the desk told me that all standard rooms were fully booked and only the deluxe rooms at RM160 including breakfast were available in limited numbers.
I was delighted with the news and went on paying for our accommodation for the night.
We pushed the bikes into the room and freshened up..

Tour of East Coast - Part 4

Stage 3 - Penarik - Kuala Terengganu

Route map of the ride

We managed to get a good night's sleep.
And we beat the alarm by waking up ahead of time. There's some packing to do and our laundry's all dry.
The devices are fully-charged and we were ready to roll out.
From Kg Bari, we headed towards Merang. This is the port town for tourists heading to Pulau Redang.
We enjoyed the early morning breeze and the cool air actually helped us to cover more ground. 
By 06:45am, we already reached the outskirts of Merang.
I spotted a stall and told Michelle to stop there. 
The place was serving nasi minyak and nasi lemak. 
Since it was our first meal of the day, we had a hearty one.

Our first halt at Merang

Breakfast!

A very decent meal

Merang was part of the T1 coastal route. We rode towards Batu Rakit and noticed that traffic was getting heavier by the hour. So far, we have progressed well without any issues. 
The Merang stretch was pretty long. 
We reached Batu Rakit and took refuge at a Petronas station.
There, we had a breather before continuing with the journey to Wakaf Tengah. Rather than taking the usual route with heavy traffic towards Kuala Terengganu, we detoured inland, headed to the University Malaysia Terengganu and cycled towards the end of the Sultan Mahmud Airport's runway.

Riding along Merang

Reaching Batu Rakit

Going around the Sultan Mahmud Airport in Kuala Terengganu

An interesting place.. 

Entering Kuala Terengganu town area

After doing more than 55km, we entered the outskirts of Kuala Terengganu.
We rode across the first bridge across the Terengganu river and while waiting at a traffic light, a friendly motorcyclist struck a conversation.
He asked where we were from.
I told him that we came from Kuala Lumpur and his immediate facial expression was a raised eyebrow.
"Wah! Jauh betul!" (Wow, that's far!), he said.
Then, I explained to him how we got from Kota Bharu to Kuala Terengganu.
The man said he had never seen a bike by Tern before in his life. So, I told him that there's always a first time for everything.
We crossed a second bridge and enjoyed the safety of cycling along a motorcycle and bicycle lane on it.
A familiar hill greeted us with three communication towers on it. It's a sign that we have just reached the administrative capital of the state.
I have booked a room at the Felda Residence Inn and as we made our way along the riverside to the hotel, the day was getting hotter.
On the road, we have been doing six hours of solid cycling. 
I left the bike with Michelle to check-in at the reception and was assigned a room. Since we were leaving early the next day, I settled the room payment in full.

Rolling the bikes into our hotel room

A high-angle view of Kuala Terengganu

The downtown area

Guan restaurant in Chinatown

Deep-friend Spanish Mackerel with dark soya sauce

A hot shower was what I needed to wash off the sweat and dirt off my body. And like clockwork, Michelle went to work on the laundry.
Our choice of accommodation was strategic as we were able to walk around the downtown area.
Practically-speaking, there's really nothing much in Kuala Terengganu. I prefer Kota Bharu anytime.
After we have freshened up, we took a walk to Chinatown where we had lunch at Guan restaurant.
This place is famous for their deep-fried ikan Tenggiri (Spanish Mackerel) in dark soya sauce. I had a taste of this more than 15-years ago and it's still as good.

Kuala Terengganu walkabout photo gallery

Lunch was excellent and we walked it off by taking a walking tour of Kuala Terengganu. I remembered this place as a riverine town. But much of it's old charms were gone.
The state reclaimed the river and called it a "waterfront".
In the past, the Chinese houses that are dotted along the river were just a few feet away from the water.
Today, you can walk as far as 500 meters out to where the riverbank was located. There's an ugly LED sign in the middle that reads: "I love KT".
I found this rather cheesy. 
The state tourism department had tried to emulate Penang and Malacca by restoring much of its architectural facade. But the Chinatown stretch was shorter than what you will find in Banda Hilir in Malacca and Georgetown in Penang. Nice try, but no cigar!
We walked towards the edge of town and found ourselves in a new shopping centre. Which is empty. The aircon was strong, so, we didn't complain.
From there, we walked towards a supermarket to buy some drinks and snacks.
Later, we found a coffeeshop and had a few beers there. First in days!

Empty bottles! 

The cooling tonic water

Having a chilled one on a hot day.. 

During the beers, Michelle had decided that it was best to end the ride in Dungun. We have about 78km to cover in order to reach this town.
We continued to enjoy our hard-earned brew and headed back to the hotel. For my wife, her day hasn't ended. She was working throughout the day. I enjoyed two more cans of beers before crashing on the bed.

Sunset in Kuala Terengganu

A night hawker centre

A simple porridge dinner

Night in Chinatown

Selfie at the cheesy sign at the waterfront

Before I knew it, it was already late in the evening. 
We walked down to the riverfront to get some shots of Sunset.
There were some boys rigging up their fishing gear, hoping to strike something from the water.
We made our way to a night hawker center near The Store.
There, I noticed piles of beer bottles. 
It didn't took too long for me to realize that some of the stalls were serving beers with hostess entertaining their "thirsty" customers.
We found a stall selling porridge and settled for this as our dinner. It was cheap and decent. After the meal, we walked along the rows of pre-war Chinese houses and ended up having coffee at a joint called "Trappers".
Now, the funny thing was this: the local staff were being trained by foreign workers. The food outlet is a hit among its local customers. But it didn't impress me at all. Authentic Hainanese coffeeshop dishes are far and few in between these days. 
When we were done, we headed back to the hotel to get some rest for our final stage to Dungun..

Tour of East Coast - Part 3

Stage 2: Kuala Besut - Penarik

Route map of stage 2

We took advantage of the early morning departure from Kuala Besut due to a slightly lower temperature.

After checking-out from the hotel, we took the road to Besut town and made a left-turn towards the coastal road heading to Kuala Terengganu.

Basically, this is uncharted territory. 

Rather than following the conventional Jertih - Setiu route, we took the scenic way which is much more further than expected.

All set to roll from Kuala Besut

Traffic light junction near Besut town

Rolling into daybreak

The big country...

My Garmin EDGE800 GPS led my to the T3 coastal road. There are at least six villages before we hit a roundabout towards the Permaisuri junction.

After clocking-in about 15km, we pulled over at a roadside stall to have our breakfast. The only food we had was half a nutrition bar at the hotel prior to leaving.

Our water supply was enough to last us at least 30km before the next refill.

A hearty breakfast!

The last outing with my touring mitts... 

Michelle adjusting her saddle

Breakfast was cheap and excellent. Two plates of rice with chicken and two cups of tea costs RM7.50.

We observed as the villagers found us amusing. 

So far, the bikes have been working fine.

Except for some brake drag on the front wheel, everything was smooth.

When we reached the coastal route roundabout near Benting Lintang, we took a detour into a fishing village. 

The beach area near Benting Lintang

An estuary near the beach

Animal crossing

From Benting Lintang to Kampung Fikri, there's virtually nothing in-between. Just bare soil, lots of little lizards leaping into their dugout holes on the ground. From a distance, they looked like little dinosaurs. 

There are many of these little reptiles dotted along the way.

As the day became hotter, the 10:00am Sun was scorching over our heads.

Near Fikri, we pulled over a Caltex station to rehydrate.

After a good rest, we rode towards Kg Nyatoh, which is very near to Penarik.

I haven't been to this village since 1997 and much has changed in the area.

Taking a break in Fikri

Cycling along Kampung Mangkuk in Penarik

Expect the unexpected..

This stage of the ride was basically an "open book".

We made no reservations and left it pretty much to fate.

At 11:00am in the morning, the heat became unbearable. We took a break at some stalls and had a drink before riding out to Kg Mangkuk.

There's a chalet facility called "Penarik Inn" and I have stayed there before.

To our dismay, the place was in shambles. The inn operator wanted RM120 for an air-conditioned room, but we can only check-in after 02:00pm.

The other choice left, was Pandan Laut Resort, some 3km away in Kg Bari.

Feasting on fried seafood..

Fried fish

Sizable shrimps

I told Michelle that it was best for us to have lunch before moving on to the motel in Kg Bari.

We pulled over at a "sotong celup tepung" (squid fried in batter) stall along the way and ordered some food. 

A piece of squid costs RM12, while four piece of fried shrimp came at RM5. The cheapest fare, is the ikan kembung (Indian mackerel) at RM6 a piece.

Lunch was decent and also on the high side. The stalls here would charge RM30 for a few fried dishes.

After a good fill, we rode down towards Kg Bari and found the resort.

It's shaded under a treeline and is very well-maintained.

I asked it's owner Wan Najmudin if there were rooms available. He told me I could either get a RM50 A-hut for backpackers or the RM80 chalet with air-conditioning and hot shower.

I took option B and had two European backpackers as our neighbours.

After settling-in, Michelle went to work while I engaged in a conversation with Najmudin, the motel owner.

He said not many Malaysians would cycle as a couple along the route and bunk-in at his motel. 

I told him that it would be a shame for me to even claim I am a Malaysian if I have never seen the country -- especially a beautiful place like Penarik.

Najmudin told me that he started dabbling into the hospitality industry from scratch after getting married and things are certainly picking up for the young man.

He also shared a little bit of the area's history.

"My late grandfather was a pioneer at Kg Bari, he literally opened this area," he said.

The Pandan Laut Resort is commendable. It's clean and a real nice place to be. It's also an important staging point if you decide to ride along the East Coast on a tour.

The chalet

The Road Warriors 

Later in the day, we walked across the road to a stall serving coconut water. While I was ordering, someone in the crowd called out my name.

He was my contact in Kuala Terengganu and is employed with Media Prima. We engaged in a conversation and wished each other well.

When it was closer to the evening, we rode into Penarik to purchase some drinking water.

Cycling on an inner road along Penarik

With Simon and Pak Deny from Indonesia..

Nightfall in Penarik

More surprises! 

After capturing some video footage on my Canon EOS M, we rode across the road towards the Caltex station to get some drinking water. While the bikes were parked, I noticed two old Volkswagen combi vans. 

The outline of its driver looked very familiar. 

As soon as the guy alighted from his van, I yelled out his name.

He's Simon Chua, a freelance graphic designer and Volkswagen combi enthusiast.

"Eh Sam! What the fuck????", he said.

I can see Simon's face, he was surprised. Earlier, when I was paying for the drinking water, he spoke to Michelle.

Simon introduced me to his partner and Pak Deny, a Volkwagen enthusiast from Bandung, Indonesia.

They were fresh out from Thailand after a convoy to Songkhla.

After a decent conversation, we parted ways. 

It was time to get an early dinner and we made our way to a restaurant by the roadside.

We ordered a bowl of soup and a plate of fried rice which we shared.

Later, a group sat beside us and engaged in a conversation. They told us that they were on their way to Pulau Redang.

I can see the two couples feasting on plenty of dishes and since they drove in on a 5-series BMW, I think the shop owner will be doing some brisk business.

After the meal, we excused ourselves and rode back to the motel.

There's some chores to do, the devices needed to be charged and we kept in touch with the world with our mobile phones. The data lines in this part of the country was really bad. But it'll have to do.

Kuala Terengganu is next and we had to hit the sack early to take advantage of the cool air in the morning the following day...