CAT stands for Citizen Action for Tigers. Since 2010, MYCAT initiated the CAT Walk programme intended to deter poaching and enhance the protection in the Sungai Yu Tiger Corridor which is a narrow stretch of forest that borders Taman Negara National Park corridor. The CAT Walk is the only citizen action programme in Malaysia (and even in the world!) that allows concerned citizens who appreciate nature to be directly involved in the protection of wild Malayan tigers.
This is my first time I went for a CAT Walk as a volunteer.
source http://mycat.my/
Day 1
After 3.5hour drive all the way from kl we reach merapoh around 5p.m
We end up manage to found the guest house .
Super big petai tree beside the guest house .
First time saw the petai flower
Petai blossoms
We meet one of the group member kk yap for this trip
There is few adorable kitten in the guest house
We feed the cat with some cat food
This is our room at the guest house
Our first meet with our Cat walk guide Alex and some other cat walk member good to know lydia and her husband from sweden ,hamdi , lynn , kk yap and mok from kl .
Day 2
We take simple breakfast nasi lemak and pack our lunch at a small malay stall near the guest house before start our cat walk .
Depart to the forest , a simple brifing by alex the cat walk leader before we start our cat walk
We access from the hutam simpan tanam .This is the FOREST beside taman negara .
The corridors of Sg. Yu no allow public to access CAT Walk organiser will help to apply apply for entry permits to enter the protected forest.
We pass thru mud and sludge in the jungle
After a long way walk
One of our orang asli batek tour guide ,he really help us alot in our trip.
Beautiful natural sunlight in the jungle
We are searching for animal signs in the jungle
Due to last night is havy rain and the mud is still wet and alot of leech is not easy to found the animal signs. have to stay focus and be extra careful .
We got to know alot of useful knowledge to survive in the jungle from Alex
Alex is try to explaining some basic jungle knowledge and information for us to search for the animal signs in the jungle .
We manage to found some sun bear claw marks
Suspected the sun bear try to climb up to the top of the tree
We found some animal signs in the jungle ,the team also record for future data .
We found some animal signs in the jungle
Another young orang asli batek tour guide.
Some bamboo after eaten by elephant
We found some attrective fungus in the jungle
Some fungus grow on the elephant feces
Some fungus grow on the elephant feces
The beauty of fungus
A beautiful tree
A beautiful bees nest grow in the tree
We found alot of small insect in the jungle
We found alot of small insect in the jungle
We found alot of small insect in the jungle
A vary beautiful Wild peony
Wild peony
Fungus
fungus
Fungus
Fungus grow on the tree trunk
Some vary spacial flower fond in the jungle .
After take some rest we cross over this river to end our journey for today .
We finish our walk for today on around 2p.m afternoon .Our shoe is full of Mud .
Day 3
Before start the walk we have our simple breakfast .First try roti cotek recomended by our friend hamdi is delicious .
2 small flog found hiding in the shoe .
We found out the leech sock is vary important in this trip ,it avoided almost 50% of the leech to get in to my shoe .
We start our walk some way near to the corridors of Sg. Yu .
Start walk in to the jungle
The road is alot more hard than yesterday
Need to cross a small river
First time know the pahlawan tree, normally pahlawan tree will grow along the river .
We found a tiger tree in the jungle too
walking tree
Alex is telling us the story of the walking tree
We stop by at a river side to get some rest
first time of my life saw the beautiful ginger flower
we manage to find a Porcupine Quills here
there is alot of fungus grow along the river
fungus glow on the tree
a cute mini cup shape fungus
black fungus glow on the tree
fungus
mini white fungus
fungus grow on the tree trunk
fungus
there is alot of natural seeds grow in the jungle
we also found some beautiful flower along the walk
a cute butterfly on the flower
little bees
finally we finish the cat walk for today around 11.30 a.m . we back to the guest house to pack our thing and go back to kl .
CAT Walk in brief
The CAT Walk offers an opportunity for members of the public to be involved in the protection of tigers, other endangered wildlife and their habitat at the Sungai Yu Ecological Corridor in Merapoh, Pahang. The Corridor, which is the last remaining natural connection between the Titiwangsa Main Range and the Taman Negara National Park, is an area known for poaching, forest encroachment and illegal mining to take place, and volunteers report the finding of such crimes to the MYCAT Wildlife Crime Hotline (019-356 4194) who relays the information to authorities for enforcement action. Volunteers must be above 18 years of age, in good health and physical condition, and confident that they can complete a day walk of about 6km with little assistance. Prior experience in hiking, trekking and camping in the Malaysian rainforest is an advantage.
What to expect on a CAT Walk?
While trekking and enjoying the great outdoors, CAT Walk volunteers will look for signs of poaching (i.e. snares, traps) and encroachment (i.e. campsite, illegal logging and mining) as well as animal signs (pugmarks, claw marks on trees, etc.). Some routes are also good for bird watching. Do expect to get: mosquito/insect/leech bites; wet in rain/river/sweat; or sunburnt (a hat and/or sunblock would come in handy). Trek conditions: A CAT Walk route might be one or a combination of these situations: wet/muddy path, flat or hilly trail, gradual or steep climb/descent, walking along/across railway tracks, walking on animal trails, walking along/across rivers with waist-deep water. The route/trails are not on platform boardwalks. Please take note that smoking or vaping is not allowed in the forest area
Fees & itinerary
Accommodation
The accommodation is usually at the Merapoh Adventure Guesthouse . Participants will stay together in this dormitory-style guesthouse and share the rooms with other same-gender participants.
Get to Merapoh
Drive – Search for “Merapoh Adventure Guesthouse” in the navigation applications. Traveling time from Kuala Lumpur to the guesthouse takes approximately 3.5 hours (nonstop). Carpool options with other participants might also be available.
By Bus – Participants from the central region can take a bus from Terminal Bersepadu Selatan to Gua Musang which costs about RM40 depends on the bus operator. As Merapoh is en route to Gua Musang, inform the bus driver that you wish to be dropped off at the bus stop opposite of the Merapoh Railway station close to the junction to Taman Negara in Merapoh. The accommodation is about 200m from the drop off point. If you buy a return ticket, inform the ticket counter that the bus driver needs to make a stop in Merapoh, at the same drop off point for pick up.
By Train – Inform the train attendant that you wish to disembark at Merapoh Railway station. The accommodation is about 200m from the train station across the railway line. Below are the route optionsthe tickets can be bought atwww.eticket.ktmb.com.my. The return ticket details are also available on their website. i. From Kuala Lumpur: The route is KL Sentral – Gemas – Merapoh. ii. From Johor: The route is JB Sentral/Gemas – Merapoh.
Meals
There are restaurants and provision shops in Merapoh Town. For those with specific preferences (e.g. vegetarian) or special dietary needs (allergy etc.), most restaurants here may not able to cater to your needs. It is advisable that you bring along food supplies for the duration of your stay. Costs of meals are not included in the participation fee.
Equipment for a day walk (no camping)
a) Attire:
1. Clothes suitable for walking in forests (e.g. long trousers and sleeves; leech socks or double layer of normal socks; football socks – no ankle socks!) (LEECH SOCK recommended)
2. Outdoor boots, hiking shoes that can get wet or Adidas kampung. Sneakers, sports and running shoes are not suitable.
b) 2 litres of water supply minimum in bottles or hydration bladder(essential)
c) Whistle and day pack (essential)
d) First Aid kit and/or personal medications(essential) e) Torchlight or head torch with spare batteries(recommended)
f) A hat and hiking stick (recommended)
g) Reusable container to pack lunch, fork and spoon (recommended)
h) Insect and/or leech repellent (recommended)
i) GPS, binoculars, camera (optional)
j) Poncho or rain jacket with hood (optional)
k) Swimming attire (optional)
l) Sunblock (optional)
Equipment for overnight camping (if applicable):
a) All equipment in the day walk list
b) One change of clothes to sleep in and spare socks (essential)
c) Mug, small pot/mess tin to cook food in and eat/drink from (highly recommended)
d) Food (packet meals which just need hot water are recommended)
e) 4 sturdy rubbish bags to carry your waste/rubbish out of theforest
f) A hammock, tarp and mosquito net. Lots of cordages g) Lighter, candle, camp knife or Swiss army style folding knife
information from http://mycat.my/
Contact
MALAYSIAN CONSERVATION ALLIANCE FOR TIGERS (MYCAT) Add.: T3-16-15, 3 Towers, Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia T: +603-2715 6701 F: +603-2715 6702 E: mycat@malayantiger.net
Hour MON-FRI 09:00 – 18:00