Tioman Island

The Island 29.03.09
So off to the Island, the boat ride out was not really much to talk about, the sea was calm the weather was warm and the company was pleasant. The island was two hours boat ride from Mersing to Tioman. Now Tioman has a interesting local story to tell. The dragon Queen headed out from china to travel towards Indonesia, on her way she got hungry so she stopped off the coast of Malaysia to feed and refresh, she enjoyed the waters so much she decided to stay and became Tioman Island. So I was staying on a dragon, how cool is that. Anyway we arrive at our destination on the island a village called Salang. It seemed a sleepy village on arrival and that first impression lasted, I found out later that it can get very busy later in the year, so perfect timing on my part.
My rest stop for the next few nights was right down the end of the bay, Salang Resort, I have to say not the best place I have stayed but good none the less. After exploring the bay which took all of 30 minutes, and then having a swim. Thank the gods the water was warm, finally I could swim without a wet suit on. That night the heavens opened up once more lucky for me I was not on my bike this time.
Later I had dinner with a German couple Paul and Maria, and a Finnish man Markku, interesting considering I could not speak German. But I kinda could make out some of what they were saying. The next day I planned to walk over the hill to Monkey bay so invited the couple and the fin along.
Monkey Bay 29.03.09.
The trek started from the end of the village and headed up for about 45 minutes then 15 minutes down and your at monkey bay.. The four of us headed out, I had my trusty leatherman to slash back any under growth that got in our way.
I knew it was going to be man verses nature and nature always has a way of kicking mans arse. These came in the form of mossies, as big as your hand they swooped in. Luckily it was nothing a bit of bush mans mossie repellent could not stop. About 15 minutes after starting the uphill climb, we lost one of our group, the German fella Paul struggled with the steep terrain and headed back. He was going to catch a boat and meet us at the bay. That’s right you could get to the bay by boat for $10 NZ.
So the three of us carried on, the tracks were slippery and dangerous in places, the mosquitoes still hounded our progress and the forest was closing in more and more. As we moved deeper in the woods away from the village the temperature climbed. As we reached the top of the hill we were all covered in sweet, the track down was no different from the track up, steep and unforgiving.
About ½ an hour into the descent we thought that maybe we had missed the track to the beach, I scouted out in front to check the terrain out and see where the track lead, I was maybe fifty paces away when I heard a noise coming from above, looking up I spotted something that looked like a over grown squirrel, it was wondering through the tops of the trees oblivious to the battles going on below.
After deciding we were still on the right trail we carried on. We could hear the sound of gently breaking waves and knew we were close to our goal. After finally breaking through that last little bit of under growth we emerged out onto golden sands, clear blue sea and sun. The bags were dropped and the swimming started, the water was very clear and warm.
After about half an hour the sound of a boat could be heard off in the distance. The Paul had arrived. It was decided that Maria and Paul would head back in the boat and Myself and Markku would walk back, braving the Moquitoes and the other creatures of the forest. After about another hour we decide to head back stopping at a bay just around the corner.
On the Decent into the next bay after walking about half way back up the hill we realized we were being watched from above by a group of monkey’s. A troop of maybe 10 to 15 makak monkeys hung from the trees enjoying a mid day snack as we trooped passed. As we got closer to the shore we also came across an iguana of a medium size. After it had gladly posed for some shots, it wondered off in to the under growth.

The next bay was not as good as the first so it was a quick stop and then back to the track the mosquitoes and slippery path. Just on the last 100 or so metres the heavens opened up and the track became a bit treacherous. We made it through safe and sound. That night we sat round eating stingray and laughing about the days adventures, Ok so the track was not that bad but it did fill in a few hours and was a bit of a adventure. The Next day was a around the island trip, stopping at a bay, water fall and snorkeling. Now snorkeling was the reason to come to the island.
The day Trip 29.03.09
The day of the trip started with clearing skies and a bit of wind. We went down to the wharf to catch our boat, leaving time 10:30 there were just four of us book through our agent but then it became clear there were more to arrive. After ½ hour delay to our departure waiting for a couple from Singapore we were off. So there was 9 on the trip Two German girls and a German guy, an English couple, a couple from Singapore, Markku the Fin, and me and our two guides. The wind had picked up and the sea was a bit rough, but I knew as soon as we were around the corner it would calm down as we would be behind the island.
The first stop on the trip was a bay called Juara. A very tranquil beach with clear water and a few guest houses. The stop here was long enough for a swim and a drink then it was back in the boat to the water fall. All long the coast we spotted these little villages clinging to small bays with nothing else around, a hermit would be happy in these parts. The island was pretty amazing on this side, cliffs everywhere shooting up out of the ground reaching for the stars, a thick tangle of jungle and golden sand beaches.
As we pulled into the jetty at the water fall we all disembarked for the walk to the waterfall, now what I thought would be a dirt covered track ended being a concrete covered stair case up to a not so impressive water fall, the good thing was it was cool and clear and refreshing. As we made our way back to the boat our guides had got some fish off a local trawler and had cooked this over an open fire. I tried some of the fish which was nice.
After stopping for lunch it was finally time for some snorkeling. Having eaten a bit too much at lunch curtsy of the Singaporean couple we put on our gear and headed over board into the deep blue sea. The snorkeling area was a small island just off the coast, we were not the only tour group here but there was plenty of room.
The fish were incredible, all the colors of the rainbow were present, all different sizes, shapes it was wonderful to see. As I swam about I came across a see snake, now I was told to swim the other way if you see one of these as they can get unpleasant if disturbed, I keep my distance and let it get about it’s business. I then looked up to fined I had swam away from the others so headed back in their direction, that when I saw it, moving out of the shadows, gliding through the water, a shark, my first time seeing a shark that was not in captivity. The shark brought on no fair within me just fascination, I should put here that it was only about 3-4 foot long.
I let the others know what I had seen and carried on my search for more underwater life. I managed to see a stingray as well which was great. After getting out of the water and swapping stories of the deep it seems there were two other bigger sharks out there with the one I had seen, these had probably swam passed me as I was fascinated by the smaller shark which is good because I may have crapped myself if I had seen the bigger ones.
After the snorkeling we stopped at a couple more places of little significance. Our guide then dropped us off for a final snorkel by an island just off Salang bay. It was a shame to see the destruction of the coral reef caused by the big boats that come in between the island and the mainland. It was not until you move around to the sides of the island that the coral comes to life again. The fish seemed more abundant it these areas. I only hope that they do not ruin this great natural resource and can manage it for the future.
Once back on the Island we headed off for showers and then we meet later to have dinner and talk about our day. It was a great day and very enjoyable company. I am now back on the mainland waiting for the day to pass so I can sleep and then head out on the bike again tomorrow, all going to plan it should be a few days of 70 to 80 km before my next break time. About 4 day to be precise, then maybe some surfing if there is a storm off the coast.