KL-Kuantan: Muadzam Shah Blue Lake and Gua Kota Gelanggi Loop

This is by far the furthest ride I've taken on a motorcycle just by myself. It's a 1000km journey over two days and one night—riding from central region to east coast on a round trip.

Most rides that I've taken back in 2020 are biased towards off-roading routes—with the notion to preserve the ideology of exploring the less travelled road. Unfortunately, else than off-roading I haven't explore much with my CB500x to other interesting non off-road places. That's why I am getting an RT3 to fill-in what I've been missing.

For this trip I'll be riding across there states in Malaysia with my RT3 by taking the backroads as mush as possible. According to Google Maps, the total distance for this journey is around 931km—starting from Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang and looping back to KL. However, I've actually travelled 1002km at the end of this journey thanks to getting lost, detour and many impromptu stops for taking photos.

For sharing purposes, I will jot down the place of interest I've visited as follows:

KL > Sg Lalang Hotspring Semenyih > Petronas Kuala Klawang > JPJ Cawangan Jempol > Tasik Bera Resort > Tasik Biru Bukit Ibam > Kuantan > Kompleks Gua Kota Geranggi > Jerantut > Titik Tengah Semenanjung > Bukit Mendi > Karak > KL

Day 1 - KL, Bera Lake, Tasik Biru Bukit Ibam & Kuantan

My odometer before the trip: 1709km

I departed at 7.30am which is an hour late from my initial plan. The skies was clear with no trace of rain. The air was rather humid in KL with a pleasant temperature of 25°C.

My first stop was at Sg Lalang Hot Spring which is located in Semenyih Town. It's a natural hot-spring, so naturally it contains sulphur and mineral which is known for its healing properties. I figured a quick hot-spring bath early in the morning would probably rejuvenate the body and energised the soul throughout the day.

The signage towards Kolam Air Panas Sungai Lalang

The main pool

It's hard to say that I'm all refreshed and energised because the hot-spring makes me feel sleepy and my body goes into relaxation mode. Perhaps, visiting hot-spring at at the end of your day is a better choice than a hot-spring bath to start your day. Maybe this is also one of the reason why hot-springs in Malaysia are always crowded at night, especially on the weekend.

I've set my next destination to Petron Kuala Klawang and pass by the town of Kuala Klawang. On my previous ride, I've also visited Kuala Klawang, as it is the largest town of Jelebu district.

Next, I passed by Lenggeng—a small township in Seremban which is famous for their ecotourism. Many mountaineers in Malaysia will definitely know of Mount Broga and Hutan Lipur Lenggeng which both are situated around Lenggeng.

My ride continues until a small waterfall by the right side of the road caught my attention. I did not know the name of this waterfall back then. A little help from Uncle Google revealed this waterfall to be Air Terjun Bunian Jalan Jelebu.

The shallow water wasn't tempting enough in order for me to jump in. However, I think this is a good spot for a refreshing cold bath. You just need a pail and body soap and you're good to go.

I took around 20 minutes to arrive at Kuala Klawang town from the previous waterfall. I cruising at a relaxing speed as I am enjoying the mountainous misty view in the morning.

Clear skies at Kuala Klawang

I then stopped by at a Chinese Temple around Simpang Pertang to mount my GoPro on my helmet as well as a quick break.

Passing the town of Simpang Pertang

The RT3 was powerful to overtake lorry on a long safe stretch with visible exit. However, on a semi-blind corner I dare not to overtake, because the pull is not enough and throttle respond is quite slow in comparison with my CB500X. Of course, I can't compare an apple to an orange, it isn't fair—but that's how I feel subconsciously.

I am lucky because those JPJ officers doesn't stop me.

The sight of palm oil plantation was everywhere along the Jalan Palong 16-Tembangau. The uneven patch on the road does caught my attention, as it could be quite dangerous if I stumbled on it at a high speed.

Another 40km to Bera Town

There is a security post to register yourself as a visitor and check-in MySejahtera before entering the premises. There's no fee incurred to enter the abandoned Tasik Bera Resort.

An impromptu photo session in the middle of a quiet road towards Tasik Bera

As the name suggests, there's nothing much to expect at the abandoned Tasik Bera Resort. Lake Bera is an inland riverine swamp which was supposedly famous for fishing. If you're into fishing, most probably you're aware that you could catch the 'Tapah' fish or also known as Wallago Attu, Snake Head Fish (Toman), Cat Fish (Baung), Arowana and Tenggalan here.

I had to be honest that the jetty was not properly taken care of, the washroom was horrendous and sighting of rubbish is everywhere. However, I had lowered my expectations prior visiting this lake and these stuffs bother me no more. Regardless of the situation, I took out my lunch box and eat my Petai Fried Rice there. It was one of the best fried rice moment in my life.

My next stop is at Muadzam Shah's Blue Lake which is also known as Tasik Biru Bukit Ibam. It is another 85 km away from Bera Lake which was around an hour ride.

The view here is spectacular as I rarely seen this kind of Bluish Lake is Malaysia. It's not crowded during my visit because it's a weekday and thanks to that, I could take nice photos.

You can bring your own food and "dine-in" with a view as there are two set of tables available here. However, it's based on first comes first basis and make sure to bring back your own trash.

A bunch of lady from Ipoh asked if they can take photos with my bike

Other than enjoying the view, there are not much of other activities you can do here. After I had enough with those view and the skies getting dark with a strong sign of possible rain—I proceed to ride to my homestay in Kuantan which I'll be spending the night there.