Bukit Melati hiking trail has a combination of routes that will take us to Bukit Helang (Eagle Hill), Bukit Lipan (Centipede Hill), Bukit Monyet (Monkey Hill), Cobra Hill, Bukit Melati (Melati Hill) and Bukit Nyamuk (Mosquito Hill).

The trail passes through old rubber and palm oil plantations. The trees surrounding the area are a secondary forest, an old rubber and palm oil plantations.

A leisure walk in the park as this place is properly maintained. A few steep slopes in some of the paths but overall the trails are easy to handle, good for beginner hikers or for a family with young children. Knotted ropes are available at most routes, to help us beat the steep trails.

Be extra careful as cobras are spotted in some areas along this trail.

Trees provide a balanced ecosystem to our earth. The deeper we were in a lush forest the colder the air should be. But, I am not sure if it was just me or if the weather was hotter on that particular day at Bukit Melati. As we walked further along the trail the air felt hot and drier maybe because there are not enough big trees to absorb the surrounding heat.

If you want to hike here make it very early in the morning until 10am to avoid the unpleasant heat.

What did I pack for this short walk in the jungle?

• Insect repellent
• 1 liter of water
• A walking stick
• A good hiking shoe
• A fully charged handphone with the Komoot App installed
• A small camera
• A small towel

A good thing about this hiking spot is that it has stalls of vendors selling varieties of foods, fruits, and drinks along the foothill entrance.

After we completed our 1 hour 30 minutes walk, the vendors greeted us with many choices of food and drinks. As always, we rewarded ourselves with some cold coconut water straight out of the young green coconut. Very refreshing.

Starting something new is difficult.

Trying to consistently stick to a new thing or routine is even harder. “Humans are a creature of habits”.

Our automatic nature of habit makes trying new things hard. If exercise is not your habit, walking several km under the sun might make no sense to you. You become overthinking on all the hassles that you have to go through to complete the trail.

Start with some small steps first.

1 km walk at the park every day then add more km each time during your next walking session. Train your brain to accept the new activity by introducing an additional extra km at a time. The aim is to create a habit of long walking under the sun. Yes, it is not easy but after a few sessions, you will realise the changes in your body strength. That positive change is the reward.

Bear in mind that adopting a new hiking habit requires time (at least 44 days of consistency) to ensure that you can stick to it.

It is a matter of HABIT.

And … old habits die hard. Self-discipline helps to expedite the process of adapting to a new habit and mental strength helps you to endure challenges faced during the adaptation of the new habit.

Enough talking let’s do the talk.

Hikers who stay near Nilai and the ‘curious ones should try this easy-peasy trail. Don’t forget to bring some money for food and drinks at the foothill entrance. Support the local vendors, be kind … as all of us are trying to make a living and at the same time we are trying our best to have a balanced lifestyle.

My dear readers who wanted to start the ‘hiking habit’

Let’s do the TALK.

Cheers

Sallymatsuda