Our Taman Negara Road Trip

Continued from page 4

On the second day, Angie took us to the Orang Asli campsite, not too far from Kuala Tahan Village . The Orang Asli are nomads by nature and mostly prefer living deeper in the jungle, but the tribe we visited has been spoilt by benefits of tourism. They still live in basic structures made from bamboos and leaves, but have moved closer to Kuala Tahan Village where they are easily accessible by tourists.

Tourists from all over the globe have visited, and stayed with, the Orang Asli of Taman Negara. While staying with the Orang Asli, they learnt to build fire, make darts, learnt the language, hunt, and ate together as a family. We didn't stay with the Orang Asli, but we did learn how blow darts are made, and even got a chance to target shoot. I must say, I was pretty good at it, given that I shot almost a bull's-eye the very first try.

Living in basic structures means no security, so the Orang Asli campsite is quite often visited by hungry wild animals. Tigers have been known to stumble upon Orang Asli campsites at nights while searching for food. When this happens, the Orang Asli will move, fearing the tiger's return. Other occurrences, like illness or death in the family, can also prompt the Orang Asli to relocate.

After the Orang Asli campsite visit, we embarked on the boat again and headed north of the Tembeling River, towards Bukit Teresek, for the Canopy Walkway.

Continue to page 6 >>

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