Dave and his Bike

Days 107, 108, 109 & 110.

Day 107.

Last ride of the year today. We have booked a hotel for three nights in Kuala Lumpur, and will be leaving on January 1st. I didn’t make the 10000km that I was hoping for in 2024, but my disastrous start to the year was to blame for that. It’s still been the most annual mileage I’ve clocked in a long time, if not ever.

We were in no hurry this morning as it was going to be a shorter day, however we were still on the road by about 0800hrs. With it being Sunday and early, the roads were quiet, which was just as well because the first 32km of our day was on Route 1, the main road. It was pretty uneventful, other than stopping for rotis and chicken before we turned off onto what we hoped was a smaller road. Disappointingly, it was signposted to Batu meaning that there was still enough traffic on it to keep us occupied. Just after the turn we stopped again for a water refill before the road started to climb.

The climb was a bit different to other hilly days we’ve had, in that it was one long drag for about 10km or so. It started gently, but there were also some 10% sections which, in addition to the humidity, were quite gruelling. We both had to stop a couple of times – me to drink (and breathe), Steve to get his heart rate down a bit. Thankfully the road was good and traffic considerate. We stopped at the top to see the waterfall as shown on the map. The photograph is flattering – it wasn’t very big or impressive. The troop of monkeys hanging around nearby was more so.

The descent was fast. Smooth flowing bends meant I nearly hit 70kph without trying. A little kicker just before the city limits caused us a bit more 10% grief, so as we entered KL we stopped for water and an iced tea. It drizzled for a few short minutes whilst we recovered, and we thought that maybe we’d got away with it. Nope. About 4km from our hotel it bucketed it down. We were on a very busy dual carriageway that interestingly had signed places for motorcyclists (and presumably cyclists) to shelter from the rain, under bridges and flyovers, so it’s clearly a common occurrence. We didn’t bother. I made the executive decision to plough on and get there, with the promise of a shower and dry clothes.

The hotel is great. Big rooms and even a bath. After drying off we set out on foot to explore locally. Next door is a big shopping mall, and in the surrounding streets there are several food stalls / restaurants. We chose one and asked for what we thought was spiced beef and rice (the lady said it was cow). It turned out to be calf liver, but I enjoyed it all the same. When Steve went to pay, they wouldn’t let him, as they were closing and the food would have been wasted if we hadn’t eaten it. Strange reason to give, but kind all the same. I’m in awe of people’s generosity every time something like this happens.

Phone calls home followed, then a little stroll to the supermarket for some bedroom picnic food and snacks for the next couple of days. And some Vanish, in an attempt to make some of our clothes look like they have actually been washed.

We are planning on visiting the Batu caves tomorrow. Looking forward to that.

Mileage so far: 5964km

Day 108.

Day Off.

It was raining when I woke up. I’d had a bit of a lie-in and had managed to go back to sleep for a while, but I was still up and about by 0730hrs. We opted for the buffet breakfast at the hotel as an experiment as it was more than we would normally pay (25RM which is about £4.45, and twice as much), but it turned out to be really good. I opted for breakfast type items – sausage, baked beans, toast; Steve went all native and had spicy chicken and rice. Followed by toast. We may well do the same again tomorrow.

Once the rain had subsided a bit we ordered a Grab (taxi) to the Batu Caves Hindu temple complex. It’s not far, about 5km, but half an hour’s drive due to the traffic. We arrived early enough for it not to be too busy, and after taking the standard ‘guide book’ photos we started climbing the steps up to the main temple.

The caves are clearly ancient, with stalagmites and stalactites, and all that goes with a cave system. The temples and statues are not as old as I thought. The main temple is dedicated to Murugan (he of the massive 43 metre statue), and was first established in 1891. The 272 concrete steps were added in 1940, the statue (one of the largest of Murugan in the world) was only completed in 2006.

Inside the cave system were several small temples and shrines. Somehow we were caught off guard, and managed to get blessed, our foreheads adorned with ash, and a red string (for good luck) tied around our wrists. It cost us 5RM each.

The other notable temple is at the foot of the mountain, and is dedicated to Hanuman. It also stretches inside several caves, where displays and statues depict his story.

There were plenty of monkeys around, no doubt used to preying on tourists. One guy had a carrier bag of food stolen, one lady also had a plastic bag pinched and was screaming about her phone, which it would appear was in the bag. That should make an interesting insurance claim.

Despite being in caves it was still hot and humid, so we went for an iced coffee. Tourist prices, not great coffee, indifferent service.

It was then time for some chores. Every time the back light on my bike gets wet it plays up – either won’t switch on, won’t switch off or switches itself on and off randomly. Time for a new one. We got a Grab to a decent bike shop where I spent some money, also picking up some brake pads for my front wheel. At this point Steve was having a disagreement with his phone, which would not find a signal and when it occasionally did it wouldn’t connect to the internet. Next job was therefore a phone shop who helpfully diagnosed that it wouldn’t connect to the internet. Marvellous. However when we left the shop it was ok again, so hopefully it was just a blip. In celebration, we had some lunch in a local restaurant. You guessed it, chicken and rice.

A third taxi took us back to the hotel. By this time it was 1530hrs. Final chore of the day was washing, so we soaked stuff in Vanish, then Steve took it all to the launderette whilst I changed the brake blocks on my bike. He drew the short straw as it rained whilst he was walking there. Thanks Steve. Some of our stuff now looks a bit more like it was white once.

Dinner didn’t really happen. More of last nights cheese and bread, with a bit of head scratching over routes through and out of KL on Wednesday.

Day 109.

New Year’s Eve.

Time to explore KL. After a little bit of confusion over which train lines our day ticket was valid on, we took the MRT into KL Sentral station (yep, correct spelling). One of the big reasons why Steve has joined me for this leg as opposed to any other is that in the 1950s his father was posted to Kuala Lumpur when serving in the British Army. It was during the Malayan Emergency (not a war, as that would have affected plantation owners insurance!). Steve has always wanted to see where his dad was posted, so here we are. Our first humid walk of the day was therefore to the National War Memorial at Tugu Negara. It commemorates everything from WWI onwards, and plaques from all regiments involved adorn part of the monument (slightly weirdly, the ceiling).

We located the plaque for the King’s Dragoon Guards, which Steve was pleased to have done. It’s quite an impressive monument, and we got a potted history lesson from a guide there who mistakenly thought that we were part of another group. It would have been rude to interrupt him.

From there we opted to get a taxi to the KL Tower (Menara Kuala Lumpur), as it was hot, sticky and had started to rain. On the way there we passed the entrance to the royal palace, where signs said ‘Trespassers will be shot, survivors will be shot again’. Brilliant!

The tower is mighty impressive. It is actually a communications tower and stands at 421m tall, making it the seventh tallest of its kind in the world. At the moment. It cost the equivalent of £20 to go up, but we thought we probably ought to since we were here. The views didn’t disappoint, despite the rain. The queue for over an hour to get down did. No communication from staff as to why, and absolutely no organisation of the lift system. Abysmal service, which actually spoilt the experience a bit for me.

By the time we actually got down we needed some refreshment. Steve skilfully navigated us through the streets to the Bukit Bintang area of the city, more specifically to Jalan Alor – a street food market where we had some mee goreng and chicken satay.

By the time we’d eaten and taken in the atmosphere time was getting on. We were a couple of kilometres away from the Petronas Twin Towers so set off on foot in their general direction. The bit of parkland next to the KLCC (Conference Centre) was set up for New Year’s celebrations, with a stage for live bands and a compère who loved the sound of his own voice. We didn’t hang around there, but walked to the other side of the towers for a decent view of them. Everything was cordoned off, and the police were out in force.

It wasn’t long before the sun went down and the illuminations started on the towers. Which is what we wanted to see. We hung about for an hour or so, but didn’t want to wait it out until midnight, so had another walk and caught the train back to the station opposite the hotel.

Since it was New Year’s Eve, we got a bit overexcited and decided to celebrate with a beer. I had a small can of 1664, Steve opted for a Guinness. It wasn’t much of a party, but we enjoyed a small drink.

It was a busy day. We saw and did a lot, and walked a long way (over 20k steps). Not really a rest day, but a brilliant alternative to cycling and a nice way to see out 2024.

Day 110.

New Year’s Day. 1st January 2025.

Happy New Year!!

Whilst at the train station yesterday I saw a poster about taking your bike on the train. For a few days I have been fretting about cycling through Kuala Lumpur to get south and back on our route. Avoiding the massive dual carriageways was looking either impossible, or so time consuming as to be impractical. A quick enlightening conversation with the nice lady informed us that since today is a public holiday, bikes are allowed, and there is no charge. It seemed like the obvious solution, although I was then fretting about not cycling. I’m my own worst enemy sometimes.

So after a bedroom breakfast roll and cup of tea we got to the station before 0800hrs, paid our 5 ringgits (less than £1) and off we went. We could clearly see from the train that there was hardly any traffic on the roads through the city, which didn’t help my conscience.

In about an hour we were at the end of the line, at Putrajaya Sentral. There was a bit of confusion over which exit to use (my fault), and still quite a bit of stop start navigation which slowed us down somewhat. But it was good to be out of the city and back on roads where there are monkeys. We soon stopped for a coffee and something to eat our usual rice, chicken and egg combo, and to pose for photographs with the owner, Rusman.

We were then onto smaller roads, the first of which caught us by surprise, in that almost immediately there was a short, steep climb. When I say steep, I mean it. Although it was only a couple of hundred metres long, it was a 21% incline. It almost blew my legs to bits, and absolutely shattered Steve’s morale for the rest of the morning, especially since it was closely followed by three or four more, albeit not quite so steep (still around 15%). The descents in between were pretty good though!

The rest of the ride was hot. The computer said 39°C, and a guy in a café we stopped him said it was hot today, like we needed to be told. We stopped again at Pekan Sepang for more refreshment (chicken and tea) before plodding on. Navigating was easy (except we missed the only turn we were supposed to make) all the way to Port Dickson. We had no idea what to expect. Google maps showed lots of hotels next to a beach. Just outside the town we came across a big petrochemical plant, so maybe it’s not much of a resort after all. We stopped for an iced tea to research hotels, and Steve spotted one almost opposite where we were sitting. I didn’t fancy being on the main road, so we went to a couple of other dingy places before returning to Steve’s choice. It’s relatively cheap and almost clean and the shower is more like a hose, but it’s actually quite a nice comfortable place. It is also opposite a food stall. Nasi lamek ayam (rice and chicken again) and more tea, followed by a 7Eleven cornetto before retiring to the hotel for phone calls and blogs.

I’ve managed to keep up the tradition of a ride on New Year’s Day, and this time it was further than usual. Tomorrow we should be heading down the coast to Malacca, so that could prove interesting.

Mileage so far: 6039km