Today we're cycling to Taman Alam Kinta via Kinta Riverbank and Batu Gajah. Our route passed through Kampar - Kinta Riverbank off-road from Tg Tualang to Batu Gajah (18km) - Batu Gajah - off road on opposite riverbank to Kinta Nature Park - Kota Bahru - Malim Nawar - Kampar.
This ride was supposed to be a 30 km ride, so said Ganesan our event host this morning. We were to discover for ourselves during the ride later on that this was not so.
It was more like 30km one way . . .
And that became the joke of the day. We would ask the same question over and over again during the ride, "Ganesan, are you sure it's only 30km?" and somebody would reply, "30 km one way . . ."
It turned out to be 56.88km on my cyclometer, tracking the distance from and back to my house.
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| 0805hr Waiting for other riders at WestLake Villas 2.63km |
We started off on our ride shortly after eight o'clock.
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| 0815hr Just crossed the bridge over the railway tracks, rolling downslope towards West City |
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| 0830hr Approaching the intersection to Tg Tualang 6.53km |
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| 0840hr Onwards to River Kinta in the direction of Tg Tualang |
Reached the bridge over River Kinta near Tg Tualang. The 18km riverbank off-road ride starts here. 10.75km 0847hr
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| 10.75km At the bridge over the River Kinta 0847hr |
The following photos give an idea of the conditions we went through along the riverside trail.
Photo Credit: Adrian Wong, Ganesan Raju.
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| Adrian took this snapshot of my very mud choked tyres |
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| Trying to scrape off some of the stubborn sticky mud from the frame and tyres |
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| Another view of my mud choked front tyres |
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| It was a relief when the muddy stretch ended, and stony trail began |
A third of the way into the riverbank section after crossing some very sticky mud stretches at 17.41km 0945hr, the muddy path became a stony trail. The tyres still look muddy after trying to dislodge as many chunks as possible by riding over the gravel.
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| 0945hr 17.41km Pressing on along the stony riverbank |
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| Some mud still remained on the tyre wall despite trying to "rub" it off on the gravel trail |
Two thirds of the riverbank covered and we decided to take a rest. Hanif takes a sip from his hydration pack while Adrian and Leroy have a chat. 21.99km 1015hr
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| 1011hr Taking a riverside break. |
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| 1015hr 21.99km Hanif getting a drink from his hydration pack. |
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| At last Batu Gajah town is in sight . . . |
We reached Batu Gajah for breakfast at an Indian restaurant nearby. Adrian had to break away from us to ride solo back to Kampar for family commitments. 28.17km 1050hr
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| Adrian had to break away from us to ride home on the BG - TT trunk road. I was undecided whether to accompany him. |
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| 1050hr 28.17km Breakfast at an Indian restaurant in Batu Gajah |
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| In the restaurant, I wasn't aware that the colour of my jersey matched the colour of the tables and chairs Ha! Ha! |
After breakfast, we rode to Kota Bahru via the opposite of the Kinta Riverbank passing by Kinta Nature Park. 38.41km 1215hr
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| 1215hr Arriving at Kota Bahru station 38.41km |
From Kota Bahru we headed towards Malim Nawar via the old road through Kg Changkat Belulang. 42.74km 1235hr
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| 1235hr Kg Changkat Belulang. 42.74km |
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| 1300hr Reached Kenneth Sai's coffee shop in Malim Nawar for a break. 46.95km |
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| Happily seated with Hanif, taking a hard-earned break at Sai's Shop |
From Malim Nawar I broke away from Ganesan and Hanif to do a sprint towards Kampar. Reached West City and waited for them here. 53.35km 1353hr
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| 1353hr Kampar West City 53.35km |
At last, I reached home at about two o'clock with a very muddy bicycle after cycling a distance of 56.88km.
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| 1410hr Home with lots of mud from the Kinta Riverbank 56.88km |
