My last major climb or trek was about 2 years ago where I joined the Ulu Sepat
climb and after a very arduous and torturous time, managed to complete it. If it
was not the rescheduling of the days to reduce it by 1 day, we would had an
easier walk but that was over and done with. This time around, joining the
Penang Hash Walk was a test of our ability and truth be told, I was not very
confident. But this time we could opt out some where if we could not complete
it. The first day of the walk was basically an 8 hour walk, with all 72 of us being
ferried by coaches from our hostel up on a hill in Air Itam to a park in Balik Pulau.
From here the trek starts and the walk over hills and farms wil take us back to
our hostel. Looks and sounds easy but it was not really a walk in the park.
There were never-ending descent which practically made our knees hurt
especially the descent in the farming area which were concrete pavement.In the
end about a quarter of the climbers did not complete the walk on the first day.
They took 4 wheel-drive down the hill and fast-track back to the hostel. As for
me and hubby, well at least we completed the first day walk though we took
nearly 10 hours to reach our hostel, beating another 3 person behind us. Of
course there were some bull-dozer climbers who took just 6 hours to reach our
hostel!
We did not join the second day walk, not wanting to push our creaking bones
further and went sight-seeing around Penang.
Towards evening, we drove to Gertak Sanggul, ending point of the second day
walk, to meet up with the walkers.Celebrating with them, we had dinner in a
Chinese restaurant and cheers to all who completed the walk from the ‘ end to
the beginning of the world.’
T-shirt map showing the 2 day route.
From the oldest (74 years) to the youngest (17years).
Everyone’s raring to go.
Organiser, Brigadier General Datuk LC Soon talking to the press.
If he also ‘boleh’, we must also boleh’.
Thin as a reed also ‘boleh’.
The powerful ones.
End of the walk at Gertak Sanggul.
