The Spectacular Seminyang Fall

Week 10 - 7 March '99

The Spectacular Seminyang Fall.

The weather had been rather unfriendly for last couple of days and we were rather concerned about our chances of this week's outing. The Cycleflex group had persuaded Khong to do a maiden ride with them at Sungei Buaya this Sunday!

On Thursday, it was raining cats and dogs. Friday evening, the rain came small but never ending, right into the nights. Saturday was beautifully bright and sunny. Looked good but what about Sunday?

We had arranged with our friends Ekam and Sarif, that we should meet up with them by 8.00 am to start the trek. That morning, looking at the cloudy sky while having our usual at Karak, we were disheartened. It is dangerous to trek into a waterfall area and get caught by flash flood, we resigned to take it easy . The Karak/Ulu Serting road was totally deserted except for a couple of early risers to sell the few durians they had collected from the night's falling. Very soon, we were at our meeting place at about 8.30 am. Our friends were still there. Then, they among themselves started a long series of haggling.

They were not concerned about the weather but reluctant to move all the way to Lata Chongkoil, it is about 10 kilometers from the place that we had parked our car.

In our last visit we located this house and the tenant. This day we got not one but two guides to take us to the Waterfalls. Ekam and Sarif

1 Orang Asli's home

2 Start of the River trekking

OK- a last minute change of plan we would go to the nearer fall for this week, Lata Seminyang!

Passed the familiar Mini Hydro station and than up a few slopes, maybe 4 of them short, only 30 meters long and gradual.

Without realizing the time, we had quickly covered 4 kilometers of jungle track and time for us to leave the 4X4 track. From that point, the main track started to move really uphill, now I understand their reluctance. We followed an alternative path into undergrowth towards the direction of the riverbank. It was a clear leveled track but appeared not very much used. This surroundings around the track was very damp, and we had walked for about 500 meters from the turn off point before sighting the river again.

3 Off the river hike up the river bank to avoid boulders and down again

From that place, we slipped into the river to negotiate a huge boulder that stood in the way to make a small detour.

Back on to "dry" land, we move along the bank over slippery and mossy boulders.

4 Strong current at the rapids

Both Ekam and Sarif were both trying frantically to find a firm footing for me and my camera!

5 The Seminyang Waterfalls

Right after a bend and behold there was a complete white wall in front of us. The mist spray was so strong that there not much opportunity in setting up the camera stand.

7 One more shot - Seminyang Waterfalls

This picture is not doing any justice to the fall. It gives a different perspective as all pictures of tall falls. To give a truly fair image, the picture has to be taken from the air at the appropriate angle. See the mist in the air!

8 Enough of Seminyang Waterfalls and trek down stream

There were times the river bank was impassable. At those points a small detour inland was inevitable.

9 Looking down into a ravine

On forest trail

10 Another fierce Waterfalls

The real Lata Nyangung has fallen so far down that we could hear the sounds of the fall at all.! This is not a cascade but a body of water gushing down a narrow trench.

The hostile terrain, rushing water, deep river bed and slippery rocks restricted the chance of choosing a good site to do any photography.

New energy came back. "Now, we must climb down to the bottom".

11 Hugging the slopes and sliding down

Our friend enlightened us that what in front was not the fall we were after and if I looked back I only realized that the river had disappeared after moving away from the spot where I was standing. My enthusiasm for new falls had betrayed me as I was standing on top of what seemed to be the top of a cliff. Moving over a boulder to my right, I saw the river dropping vertically down a narrow channel.

While the side is a stone cliff, there were good foothold and no lack of creepers to assist in the descend.

12 Looking back at the Cascade

It was just too much for me, . The final blow came when I realized that I had forgotten to bring new roll of film. So we forgo the chance to climb the next step, a place just beside the upper vertical fall. I must say the wet slippery rock was a deterrent to that prefect setting. You could see evidences of tracks among the cliff walls of climbers having reached half the height of the fall.

Very soon after having our quotas of limited photographs, we moved back and down the same way we came. A kilometer or so later, Ekam stopped and showed us the way down. Very short trek down a ravine and we saw the fall.

As we did not have films and Khong's chest was uncomfortable for the whole morning, we reaches the second vertical fall and did not reach the bottom to check the view. The water pass through this second fall with such fury that it is totally concealed beneath this blanket of white spray.

13 Further down stream \, another more civIl cascade

The trip was treacherous as we descended clinging on to vines and roots. At one point Khong lost his foothold and involuntarily swinging like Tarzan.

It is broad fall but only 2 meters high.

The very good impressions assured us that we would return for some good photograph sessions for both the falls.

The trip was really satisfying, as we had seen a beautiful falls and knowing that such huge falls existed. We concluded our outing by eating an equally good meal at the tourist food court at Genting Pass.