A trip to Gua Tempurung

Early in the morning, on 18 June 2011,  the librarians who stayed overnight in the library started to  wake up and the toilet was once again flooded with impatient girls. Other librarians were seen packing their bags in the Access Room and some were just enjoying the scene before dawn. At 6.30 a.m. En. Aidil , the teacher-in-charge, started to hurry us down to wait for the bus to arrive.

We waited some time until the society and club committee members all arrived and we were separated into 2 buses. So we, the librarians had a bus all to ourselves except the 2 librarians who had to ride with the committee members. After all the fuss of settling down and our breakfast was in safe hands, we started our bus ride at 7.30 a.m.

We have just gradually quiet down from the excitement when we stopped for breakfast in Tapah, Perak after an hour. We got down and found ourselves sitting by the road, enjoying the fried rice we brought from the school canteen. We were parked in the heavy vehicles’ bay and the petrol gas station was nearby, so another toilet break for the girls. While we were there, we witnessed a crawler excavator spoiling the fence while doing its job. The fence was bent under its mighty robotic strength. We witnessed how dangerous it was to work with such gigantic machinery. We boarded the bus and soon on the way again.

Another sleepy hour in the bus until a stunning view of giant rock that stood like a solitary mountain woke us up and the excitement escalated. We got down and walked all the way to the entrance of Gua Tempurung. We queued according to our groups under the blazing sun.  Electrical devices  had to be kept at our own risks as the adventure would be wet so some were facing the conflict of bringing along the camera and taking beautiful picture or putting it in the hands of strangers and paying for it. Our group has only 1 camera  and the owner, Fathin, was worried that the camera might get spoiled during the river adventure that teacher had mentioned earlier. So we produced a plastic bag and a rubber band to put her at ease. She can seal her camera in the plastic bag whenever she wants. We took some pictures at the front and the waiting resumed. There were lots of other schools that were also taking part in the tour, so we had to wait for our turn. As we stared at young boys coming out with wet shirts, the tour guide started to give us the safety speech. He mentioned that there would be a lot of steps and a torchlight would be compulsory during the river adventure. Finally, at 10.30 a.m., we can get into the cave.

As we walked the steel walkway which was very congested by the number of students, our group broke up and the teacher allowed us to walk with our friends. So as we continued into the cave, we passed by the cave window and took a glimpse at the last sunlight we will see in the next four hours.  We were combined with the koko girls so there was too little space for all of the students in the first platform. The first batch had a good look at the dark flowing stream below and the limestone wall. The tour guide with a torchlight pinpointed a cat face, a big elephant, a seahorse, a cow head and zorro eyes that seems menacing. Our eyes played tricks on us as the walls with different hues and special shapes combine with our imagination.

We continued walking and from far, we saw a staircase leading into a rock that seems like a snail’s  gigantic shell. We were amazed by the giant jellyfishes that seems to be swimming on the walls of the cave. As the water flowed down the limestone that looks like a jellyfish, we noticed we are in a big and vast cave with a very high ceiling that we cannot even see with the light from our torchlights.

Then the climb began, and we stopped at a lot of platforms as the  tour guide moved very fast and we urban schoolgirls in desperate need of exercise struggled with countless steps.  We lost track of time and the dizzying amount of steps were perplexing. The tour guide urged us on with the promise of cool wind for in the cave, there was no air circulation, so we felt small in the vast area of the cave and were suffocating from the smell of bat guano. We climbed and climbed the steep stairs until we suddenly stopped. The Wind Tunnel was really cooling! We felt the air blowing in from the way we came and it was as cool as the breeze in Genting Highlands. The tour guide explained that we could enjoy this cool wind because this little passage is the only way between the big cave and the another section we were going to explore. So all the air had to go in through this small passageway otherwise we cannot breathe later in our adventure. The tour guide reminded us that we had already climbed 640 steps! Unbelievable!

We went through a small passage and on the wall, some of us noticed a smiley face! After a long flight of stairs, we stopped to rest. Only then we discovered we were facing a vast and dark cave and the air was thick and it was harder to breath. On the ceiling a peculiar giant rock was sticking out. The dark cave was named the Giant Cavern and it holds a huge column that looks like a spaceship. We rested and some of us enjoyed the view, it was so dark and vast, the light cannot even reach the bottom. Some of us noticed a stone that looked like skeletons of pirates just opposite us. We saw columns of moving light at the bottom as the tour guide gave us the last warning for this was the point of no return. Nobody gave up so we continued.

Like just now, the flight of stairs were endless, the only difference was the stairs were going down, not going up like just now. Staring down on the slippery steel steps were worse as the air thickened and the light of torch blinded our eyes. The shadows on the stairs were hypnotic and the fear of toppling over in the steep stairs were terrifying. The crowd behind who were tight on our heels, were not helping us either as we all wanted to end this long journey of stairs as soon as possible. Finally, we reached the bottom and we walked leisurely on flat passageways. The tour guide directed our attention to some small hoe heads that were left behind by the tin mining activities in the old days.

We reached a dead end and we got out of the passageway and sat on the hills we were not sure what it was covered with. The tour guide demonstrated how to slide down the slope later. The first to demonstrate was our president of the board of librarians, Kak Hasanah. She slid down the hill twice for us to have a good look on the technique needed to land safely. We had to straighten our legs and keep it closed and rigid. We rested while waiting for our turn. The tour  group which came before us hadn’t cleared the area so  we took up a lot of time at this section. One by one, we slid down the limestone slope. The tour guides would help us down the slope. One of them waited in the middle and made sure we had our legs close and straight. Then he would release us and we had to slow down by putting our hands on the hill for it was very steep. The last part of the slope was particularly dangerous for it was a straight drop. Luckily, there were two men there to catch us. Though some of us fell down and may go back with some bruises, other than that, all of us reached the bottom safely.

It was a cramped space at the bottom, there were no visible pathways except a hole in the floor. As the other tour group went down the rat hole, as they call it, Puteri Ampang girls were all gathered around and waiting for further instructions. When the last teacher slid down the slope, the tour guide led us into a hole on the side of the wall that we did not notice earlier. It was so small, we had to crawl on all fours to reach the other side.  Luckily, the passage was short and soon we were on our two legs. The tour guide explained that we were tight on time and needed to take the shortcuts. After walking some time in small and cramped space, we finally reached the water, though it was just ankle deep, it thrilled us. We then had to bend down to pass through the small passage with our feet cold. That was when the real  adventure starts.

On and off, we would be ankle deep in water and on dry land a while later. But as time goes by, the ankle deep water started to become thigh chilling height.  Plus the ceiling of sharp marbles and fragile stalactites that pop out on the most unexpected place were hazardous to us. To make things worse, at one point, we had to crawl on all fours elbow deep in water with the freezing water threatening to destroy our only source of light, the vulnerable torchlight. We struggled to keep up as the tour guide was proceeding very fast and we were not mentally or physically prepared to face such an extreme condition. No wonder  our teacher wanted us to wear gloves because we had to crawl along the way and the riverbed gravel were harsh on our knees and palms. The teachers were also braving the elements with us.

 After getting up on our two legs, we walked through a cramped opening between two rocks and we had to go sideways. The stones in our shoes were very uncomfortable but the rushing river water would not allow us to remove those annoying pebbles. We also could not afford to be cut off from the group, as the shine of light disappeared at the next crook in the river catacombs, we had to shout for them to wait for us, so no dilly-dallying.  When we thought the worse was over, we had to crouch down and had our whole torso wet, dipped in the icy cold  stream water  into tunnel with an opening that looked like a crocodile’s mouth. It was brief but enough to make us shivering cold and numb. We went on, prepared for anything ahead, but the tunnels gradually became wider and the water level maintained at our ankle.

Surprisingly, we walked  under the first platform that we were on hours ago when we first came into the cave. We were so happy for we know soon we will be out of this living hell. As expected, we were welcomed by the lush jungle greenery and rays of sunlight. There were other tour groups there resting on the river rocks. But we proceeded to the front entrance and went on to a nearby porch with food and drinks prepared for us. We were tired , wet and hungry by the time we came out , which was about 2.15p.m.. Some of us decided to eat first change later, while some were not hungry and wanted to get out of the wet and sexy attire as soon as possible. The food was delicious - masak merah chicken, some vegetables and an omelette each. With a cooling drink of orange juice, the food tasted heavenly with a beautiful view of the lake next to the porch. Though there were cats bothering us, we enjoyed ourselves none the less under the warm sun.

There was a problem though, we Puteri Ampang girls had no place to change our wet clothes! The toilets were filled with girls all taking their time to shower and tidy up their looks. Plus we had to pay to get into a toilet or changing room that has barely enough space for privacy. So we took up a lot of time going to and fro between the bus in the parking lot far way to pick up our change of clothes and money. We also had to wait long queues for our turn. Some improvised and changed on the bus. The teachers tried to bargain with the bus driver to allow us on board with wet clothes for we were going to get wet in the next destination anyway. But the bus driver insisted we change our clothes to prevent his bus from getting smelly. It was so ironic for the bus itself had a dripping air conditioning and now they are demanding to keep their bus dry. Nonetheless we finally took off and said goodbye to the gigantic limestone with fringes of greenery that houses the Gua Tempurung at about 3.15 p.m. and proceed to our next destination.

Though we did face problems on the way but this trip really gave us a chance to gain new experiences and knowledge. It was indeed an enjoyable trip where we, the librarians get to foster closer relationship with each other and to maintain the team spirit.

Source: Journal of a student librarian in SMK Puteri Ampang (2011&2012)