I have been hearing about Gunung Hitam ever since few of my friends did this torturous climb, and was repeatedly told “you should do this, you will love it”

Few days before the climb I was told that Hitam had few landslides and it may not be safe to hike, but the guide who assisted me in getting permits assured me that if the Forestry is issuing permits the forest must be safe. I agreed with her.

After we parked at a parking near an Orangasli village, the leader for the hike Jaya reminded everyone how important it is to warm up before the hike. But I guess we were all too eager to start the hike, we just twisted and shaked our limbs a bit  and hurried to start the hike. I started my garmin not knowing how long it takes till the trail head, and to my surprise it’s a 2km walk.

The previous route seems to be crossing a steel bridge which is now fallen during the latest flood, so we followed the new route where we had to cross a small stream. No one wants to get their shoes wet this early on the hike and Riena offered her hand and gave me clear instructions on where to step . But I ended up getting into the water. So much for following instructions and not getting my shoes wet.

We walked past low ferns and thick lush green trees, enjoying the flat land as much as possible before the incline hits. We came across ginger flowers, if only I knew that these flowers could give you shampoo. sadly I came to know of it from a tik tok video much later after the hike.

The incline started after a little hut, and I could hear Jaya calling “it’s going to get tough from here” . True to her words, the going does gets tough. Thin nylon rope is strung up in places where the slope is particularly steep or slippery. For the most part, the inclines are no less than 40 degrees, and any chance of catching our breath is slim as flats are short and few.

Not too long after the 2/3^rd mark we came across few boulders and the climb started getting easier. It felt like the worst was over, but not without it’s challenges.

Going under and over fallen trees, passing through the trails on all fours, overcoming the obstacles Hitam threw at us, we kept moving. On and off we would hoot to check on the rest of the pack, knowing that all are right behind huffing and puffing we moved up.

Gunung Hitam is a well-marked trail, but it may not be as popular as other trails like Nuang Pangsun or Bukit Kutu or even Datuk. One reason could be the torturous elevation. Hitam is not a trail that you could rush down either if you want to save your knees.

With Jaya leading the pack we kept going, on and off we would ask each other and wonder how far away we are from the summit, when suddenly I heard Jaya says, we are here, and followed by Vivien’s excitement of reaching the summit. I could see tiny white flowers lining the trail, as if to welcome me to the summit.

“After the hardest climb comes the breathtaking view” does not go at Hitam. We were greeted by a group of hikers enjoying their lunch, and suddenly we all felt hungry too.

Summiting was not enough, we had to add an additional km to search for a said cave. Gua Jepun. It was a huge boulder shaped cave. Don’t really know where the name came from, but I had the impression that it was named after the country Japan, until someone pointed out that it has got nothing to do with Japan but Jepun meaning cave.

What goes up must come down. Hence our journey to decent began. On and off we would here a shriek, and someone would say what happened, is everyone ok. Yes all ok, just someone fell on the bum, nothing to worry about.

Everyone seemed to be quiet excited to hear the running stream, which meant we were at the trail head. A stream at the end of the trail means getting into it, though how cold it maybe.

Another hike done, another story to tell during the roughly 16km journey.