ULU BENDUL RECREATIONAL FOREST/PARK
Today, on the way back from Kuala Pilah, I stopped by Ulu
Bendul Recreational Forest in Ulu Bendul. The view of this area especially at 0700 hours is majestic!
OF LOCATION AND GOLD..?
Oh I forgot to explain, Kuala Pilah and Ulu Bendul are in the state of Negeri Sembilan, and near to its capital, Seremban. From Seremban, it is around 20 km to Ulu Bendul and add another 19 KM, you’ll reach a sleepy small town by the name of Kuala Pilah (Coo - A – Laa - Pee - Lah). Small it is, but this town is quite famous for its affordable jewelleries/gold workmanship (gold necklaces, rings and stuff).
I didn’t make this up okay, this fact was told to me by many people including my grandmother, fellow tourism friend and my ex boss who is a Kelantanese tour guide (mind you, they sell lotsa golds and jewelleries there in Kelantan!). Obviously the price of the gold workmanship here is quite cheap according to many people that is close to me.
NEGRI SEMBILAN FUTURE TOUR GUIDES ?
Actually just recently, I had participated in a small group of tour guides to promote Negeri Sembilan as a tourist destination. Thus it is only fitting for us to study the places first before we bring tourists to these places, right? I will cover other places in Negri Sembilan in my future blogs.
COOL ULU BENDUL
Ulu Bendul Recreational Forest is a beautiful place to relax and especially to swim in a natural river. The recreational park was built in 1972 and located within Angsi Reserved Forest. Categorised as Lowland Dipterocarp and is 200m above sea level, this recreational forest is fun to explore, especially early in the morning.
Sungai Batang Terachi flows along the forest, which makes it a beautiful sight to behold. What is special about this place is, the management of the recreational forest made a man made pool by blocking part of the river stream. The pool is fun and quite deep as well, suitable for fun swimming, especially the kids and adults who still think they are minors.
For those who dislike pool like attraction (although this pool use river water, not some annoying clorine water), they can walk along the clean and crystal clear small river and enjoy the forest view amidst the sound of the river. The trees are huge and some of them have infos written below them on a plaque. We could learn not only the trees’ name and characteristics but also the usage of those humongous trees!
For those who like hiking, register first at the forest management office and hike up until the peak of the Angsi Mountain. The view from 825 meters above sea level is breathtaking (from the experience of a fellow blogger) ! . Indeed, Malaysia has many of these kinds of hiking trails and mountains to conquer!
OF LOCATION AND GOLD..?
Oh I forgot to explain, Kuala Pilah and Ulu Bendul are in the state of Negeri Sembilan, and near to its capital, Seremban. From Seremban, it is around 20 km to Ulu Bendul and add another 19 KM, you’ll reach a sleepy small town by the name of Kuala Pilah (Coo - A – Laa - Pee - Lah). Small it is, but this town is quite famous for its affordable jewelleries/gold workmanship (gold necklaces, rings and stuff).
I didn’t make this up okay, this fact was told to me by many people including my grandmother, fellow tourism friend and my ex boss who is a Kelantanese tour guide (mind you, they sell lotsa golds and jewelleries there in Kelantan!). Obviously the price of the gold workmanship here is quite cheap according to many people that is close to me.
NEGRI SEMBILAN FUTURE TOUR GUIDES ?
Actually just recently, I had participated in a small group of tour guides to promote Negeri Sembilan as a tourist destination. Thus it is only fitting for us to study the places first before we bring tourists to these places, right? I will cover other places in Negri Sembilan in my future blogs.
COOL ULU BENDUL
Ulu Bendul Recreational Forest is a beautiful place to relax and especially to swim in a natural river. The recreational park was built in 1972 and located within Angsi Reserved Forest. Categorised as Lowland Dipterocarp and is 200m above sea level, this recreational forest is fun to explore, especially early in the morning.
Sungai Batang Terachi flows along the forest, which makes it a beautiful sight to behold. What is special about this place is, the management of the recreational forest made a man made pool by blocking part of the river stream. The pool is fun and quite deep as well, suitable for fun swimming, especially the kids and adults who still think they are minors.
For those who dislike pool like attraction (although this pool use river water, not some annoying clorine water), they can walk along the clean and crystal clear small river and enjoy the forest view amidst the sound of the river. The trees are huge and some of them have infos written below them on a plaque. We could learn not only the trees’ name and characteristics but also the usage of those humongous trees!
For those who like hiking, register first at the forest management office and hike up until the peak of the Angsi Mountain. The view from 825 meters above sea level is breathtaking (from the experience of a fellow blogger) ! . Indeed, Malaysia has many of these kinds of hiking trails and mountains to conquer!
 |
| How I wish they have English translation as well. Good info though! |
 |
| Such a huge tree, maybe million years of age! |
 |
| Batang Terachi River - still clean, still crystal clear |
 |
| Walk along this river and hike up until Angsi Mountain |
 |
| More big trees |
 |
| Simple 'A' shape chalet |
 |
| A more elaborate 'A' shaped chalet |
 |
| These are the built in inside toilets chalets, no need to find outdoor loo! |
 |
| A short 30 m suspension bridge |
 |
| The deadly python - reminds me of one of my malay martial art (Silat Gayong) moves: the Sinking Python! (ular sawa berendam) |
 |
| Excuse the quality of the image taken - a small local snake on display |
 |
| The Python Park also has a mini gallery for some info - too simple for me though.. |
I noticed some chalets, both a simple ‘A’ shaped type chalets and a full, built in toilet type of chalets. The former’s design is simple, just enough to accommodate at best 2 persons with a small mattress, a simple wall fan, electrical socket and a ventilation fan. The toilets are outside though. The latter is definitely bigger and toilets are inside, so there is no need to by shy, by having to take shower outside the chalet. All chalets have a place to dry clothes and all are near the river and public toilets.
Today was also the first time I walked up north until the Python Park (Taman Ular Sawa). It doesn’t live up to my expectation though, with only 3 big cages/confinements for both Pythons and Anacondas and 3 smaller confinements for smaller and thinner snakes. The anacondas live in a big confinement, well equipped with a water heater ! When I asked Mr Wan, the park’s officer/snake trainer, he said it is due to the location being slightly on a hill and because of cold rocks around there, so a heater is necessary to heat things up for the South American Anacondas. He lamented that this place could be the first snake park ever made on a hill ! (and I still question why).
I took several photos of the reptiles but made sure I didn’t switch the Flash open, as it would startle and disturb the poor snakes. FYI, snakes can only see clearly what is within 6 feet radius from it, and further than that, the snakes had to depend on their excellent extra-sensory reflex to hunt possible prey.
 |
| Some info by the authorities |
Ulu Bendul is also an excellent place for camping as they have many large campsites. The sites are clean and well equipped with public toilets, BBQ making stations, outdoor/training gears, a watch tower and a rather big musolla. Near the camp site, I noticed a Tourism Malaysia signboard that explains Ulu Bendul in brief. This place was actually founded by the famous Tuan Tulis Ismail, a revered religious figure in the whole Kuala Pilah area.
The ruler at that time (1920's) was so pleased with this place, he made it his recreational retreat, with a small villa erected on it and a stable with horses for His Majesty’s horse riding session ! Sadly, there are not even a single stable present in this beautiful and potential area, what more of horses! Must be fun, riding a horse in the jungle !
The information signboards state there are Taman Herba, and Taman Rempah Ratus too, but upon inspection, the places were in bad condition. These parks need a major revamp and the state need to address this issue very urgently if they are serious in making Negeri Sembilan a tourist destination!
In conclusion, I liked the ambience of this place. The clean river. Cool pool. Big musollas. Nice camping area. But the parks turned me off. Some dilapidated state of public facilities also irked me. The food choices at the newly erected café area also doesn’t do justice to this potential touristic area.
If you come here, I would advise you to arrive early. Maybe as early as 0700 am and try out the delicious Nasi Goreng (with a big piece of chicken) and Teh Tarik at the café area. After stuffing lotsa food, feel free to walk along the river while wonder at the scenery of this age old reserved forest.
Dip your feet in the river and feel the coldness of the river water. Rejuvenate yourself at the river pool and after all the swimming is done, read mystery novels either by the river, on the Wakaf area or in a rented chalet, in the middle of the forest area.
 |
| This beautiful plant caught my eyes - at the Herbs Garden/Park. The Herbs garden is in need of a major upgrade! |
 |
| This looks like the tail of a cat, right? The name given is also - 'Ekor Kucing' |
I personally find reading books at places like this to be very calming and a stress reliever. For those coming in big groups, don’t pass this opportunity either to rent the chalets or just simply camp out at the camp sites. Make special dinner by BBQing your chicken wings and chuncks of red meat at the BBQ station. For those thrill seeking adventurers, hike up to Gunung Angsi or just simply climb the watch tower for a higher view of things.
Thanks for reading and appreciate you could leave some comments for me to improve :)
