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Gunung Bintang (1862m) Gunung
Bintang, situated in Sedim, Kulim Kedah , is one of the nearest peaks to Penang.
The trek to this mountain was found again recently by the villagers of Kg. Sedim.
There is another way up this mountain, which is from Mahang, how many days,
it'll
take, I'm not sure. The peak has the surveyor's metal tripod, therefore it is
confirmed as the real Gunung Bintang. You can check by looking at a topographic
map. There are only two metal tripod's on the Bintang range, one is at
Gunung Inas, and the other one is at the peak of Gunung Bintang. I have heard of
another Gunung Bintang which takes about 5 days of hard trekking to reach.
Perhaps it is another Bintang, Bintang Utara perhaps. Gunung Bintang takes
either two or three days for a return trip . Day one Beginning from
the downhill mtb trek, it is old unused logging trek all the way to the
waterfall. The logging road is hot and dry, especially around mid day. The first
part, to camp one, should take about one and a half hour to two hours. The
gradient is not very steep , but the track has got lots of ferns and is quite
rutted. At camp one there is a river, with some fallen logs (old bridge) and
you'll have to cross the river and climb up the other edge to reach the
campsite. The campsite is quite open and can fit quite a number of people.
From the first campsite, it will take about half an hour to the next river,
which is smaller, which also has some fallen logs . The trail from the
first campsite to the second river will take about half an hour to 45 minutes,
and the gradient is similar to the trek to the first campsite. From the
second river, it will take you about one and a half hours to two hours to reach
the second campsite, which is the waterfall. Beware, because this part of the
trek is quite steep and there are some sections where you'll be trekking in the
blazing hot sun. The vegetation will change slightly, from ferns to bamboo
clumps to bushes. About 20 minutes from the waterfall, or the second campsite,
there is an open space which is quite hot. don't bother to wait there, just
proceed straight to the waterfall. Day two
On the second day, From the waterfall campsite, you'll have to cross the
waterfall by walking across the fallen logs. Be extremely careful, as there are
lots of crevices for your feet to get twisted in , plus the logs are VERY
slippery, esp. if wet. On the other side, it is slight uphill through some long
grass. The trail meanders through the old logging road again, for about 1.5
hours. after that, it'll be through the forest. The forest trail will be much
pleasant, not so hot and much more interesting. After about another 1.5 hours,
you'll reach Puncak Bunian, a small peak where people usually stop for lunch.
The peak is quite flat, with many small plants and mosses. Stop here for lunch,
and to proceed, continue behind the slanting tree. The trek will be uphill
again, for about 45 minutes where you'll arrive at the last water point, which
is a small pool of stagnant brown water. Fill up your water bottles and continue
up. The trek now will be among the mountain forest, with chopstick bamboos, moss
covered tree trunks and some brown squishy mud. Day three The trek down will take about 5-8 hours, depending on your speed. Be careful not to go to fast along the logging road, because if the ground is wet, it is also very slippery. Plus there are quit a few hairy eroded parts which you should thread lightly on. The trek down will cover the same way up. Beware at Anak Bintang, because there is another trek there which goes to Mahang. The trek to Mahang is right in the middle, while the trek to Sedim is slightly on the right. It would be better if you marked the trail on your way up, to avoid people from getting lost. Doing it in 2 days If you're traveling in a small group, it is possible to go up in one day, but you'll have to be fast . I went again the following week with 2 of my friends and this is the time we clocked: Mtb
track to first
campsite
-1hr
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