Ulu Muda Expedition, July 2014

[mphil]

This was my second trip to Ulu Muda located in Kedah. We decided to be more adventurous and explored a couple of places more than our last trip. The weather was better this time but it rained on a few evenings while we were there.

So, our main objective was to shoot the Plain-pouched Hornbills as well as any other birds we encountered there. In addition, we also wanted to visit a hot spring saltlick as well as some caves nearby.

The Plain-pouched Hornbills are said to be found in only 2 areas in West Malaysia. Ulu Muda is one of them and the other is in the Belum-Temenggor area in Perak. They usually appear from June to September each year. During this period, they can be seen flying in flocks from 2 to as many as 64. While we were there we were able to see them flying overhead in the early morning as well as evenings and counted as many as 24 in one of the flocks. Besides these hornbills there are also many other birds that can be found here.

#1 Plain-pouched Hornbills flying past in the morning

#2 Rhinoceros Hornbill being attacked by a drongo

#3 Stork-billed Kingfisher - they are commonly found by the river hunting for fish

#4 Lesser Fish Eagle perched on a dead tree trunk

#5 Black and Red Broadbill

 

[mphil]

Next, we visited the Sira Air Hangat (Hot Springs Saltlick)

My first time visiting the famed Sira Air Hangat (Hot Spring Saltlick) which I heard so much about. I was not disappointed. The best time to visit is in the morning when the sun's rays meet the rising steam from the hot spring to create a very unique misty atmosphere. A small stream flows from the hotspring carrying the hot water down to the river. We walked from the river following the steamy hot water stream carefully avoiding to step into the hot water to the hot spring.

#1 Our transport from Earth Lodge to the saltlick

#2 Trekking a short distance from the river upstream to the saltlick

#3 Steam rising from the hot spring.

#4 Many animals visit this saltlick. The pic below shows the prints of a tapir

#5 Our surprise of the day was seeing a lone Barking Deer at the saltlick. It did not notice us at first as we were quite far away and in the shadows and the steam also made it difficult to see us from where it was feeding. We managed to get a few shots of it before it heard our camera clicking loudly(time to change to quieter cameras) and off it went into the jungle behind.

 

[mphil]

Visit to Gua Labu Caves
We walked to the Bukit Labu Caves along a jungle trail from Earth Lodge. The hike takes approximately 1.5hrs to 2hrs each way with a brief stop near a stream. The hike alone is quite interesting with lots of observations to be made on plants and animals that are found in the forest. Probably the only 'inconvenience' is the presence of leeches as they are found all along the trail. Use of leech socks and insect repellents will go a long way to reduce the number of leeches 'picked up' along the way.

#1 Jungle trekking

#2 The entrance to the caves is found on a small limestone hill

#3 Lantern Bugs seem to favour certain trees. Some of these trees are found at the Earth Lodge as well as along the trail to Bukit Labu where the caves are located.

#4 Trap Door Spider web found at the entrance of the cave. There are several trap door spiders just at the entrance of the caves. They hide inside their nest and springs out to grab its preys when they touch the web.

#5 The caves consists of 2 chambers. The upper chamber is larger than the lower chamber. There are many interesting cave formations in the caves due to the action of water on the limestone and calcium deposits found there. The tour of the caves begins from this entrance and exits from the rear entrance. Many interesting formations and cave animals are found inside.

 

[mphil]

[Continued from prev post]
#6 The caves have more than 1 entrance. The rear entrance is facing the other side of the small hill where the caves are found. The way down the hill from this entrance is steeper but shorter as we need to climb down the rocks.

#7 A hole in the hill where the sun shines down to the caves. During noon, the sun light shines down directly into the cave floor and throws a spotlight on anything that is under it.

#8 This white formation is taller than our guide and is found along the path in the cave.

#9 We scratched our heads to figure out how those holes in the wall were formed. No idea!

#10 Another interesting formation found in the cave due to the deposition of minerals brought down by water into the cave.

For more information on my previous trip to Ulu Muda, please see here.

 

[redlavita]

thanks for sharing!

 

[sinner]

What an adventure. Kudos

 

[eng60232]

Actually was me talking excitedly after getting this shot that scared the Barking Deer... Hee hee

 

[mphil]

Actually was me talking excitedly after getting this shot that scared the Barking Deer... Hee hee

Show more pics leh.