In April this year, fourteen
Rover Scouts from the 70th K.L. went down the Perak River on two
bamboo rafts. The 70th K.L. consists of former scouts of the 1st K.L.
who have completed their Senior Scouting and have left school.
he people had just risen to start another morning when the
thirteen of us arrived at the sleepy town of Kampong Karai which
is situated beside the Perak River and about two miles from the
Iskandar Bridge. Here we spent two days of hard work building
two sturdy bamboo rafts for our trip down the Perak River. At
our construction site, one could enjoy a serene view of the
gentle flow of the Perak River and the mighty Victoria Bridge
which spans the wide river; the banks of the river being bordered
by bamboo clumps and jungle. At dusk on the second day, our task
was completed. Our skins were burnt but our adventurous spirit
stayed undaunted. In fact, the solid look of our rafts elevated
our thoughts of success and further aroused our fighting spirit.
That night we retired with confidence that our rafts - the
Marilyn and Nya-ha-ha - would not fail us.
Monday morning was chilly as we loaded our
equipment and supplies on to the rafts. There was much to carry
from the school where we stayed to the pebble beach below - paddles,
food, water and utensils. By eight o'clock, we secured everything
and bade farewell to the town folk who waved from the top of
Victoria Bridge. As we shoved off, little did we realise that
our first obstacle lay no more than a few yards ahead. The water
was too shallow and we had to drag the rafts forward for some
distance. Finally, we reached deeper waters and started rowing.
The sun was up and began to heat up the day. Slowly we rowed and
at times, we had to get into the water to push the raft in order
to gain speed. All the while the two rafts were always close
together. The Marilyn carried seven while the other six.
On each raft there was a navigator and also the cook-cum-cabin
boy who served us our meals.
Trudging at a slow pace, we finally came in
sight of the Iskandar Bridge. A few miles more and we would reach
Kuala Kangsar, so we thought. But reaching it was not so easy.
There were many sand bars across the river making rowing impossible.
Pulling the rafts across them was no simple task especially
when the bamboos were scraping the sand. After many such
experiences and after passing stretches of silent jungle, we
heard the familiar busy sounds of a town once more, at Kuala
Kangsar.
We did not stop but rowed on. Occasionally,
we came across some kampongs beside the river where the people
stared at us with curiosity. Apart from that, the day was uneventful
and dull with only distant sounds. By evening, we could hear the
awakening of nocturnal insects and animals. But as we could find
no suitable landing site we continued rowing. Then a drizzle
followed, and ahead lay more sand bars. This, however, did not
deter us from venturing on in the darkness till we reached a
fishing village, Manong, at about ten o'clock at night. We
wanted to land there but we drifted past the jetty without
knowing it as it was too dark to see. Finally, we landed at
Pulau Semat, about a mile away, on the edge of a mosquito-infested
swamp. We were too tired to notice the mosquitoes around us as we
turned in for the night.
After a refreshing sleep, we faced another
challenging day. Now that we were to be in deep waters most of
the journey, we tested our navigating skills. Close to the river
banks there were occasional fishing stakes. Instead of avoiding
them, we followed the river current and weaved through them. This
was exciting but not so for the cook who was brewing tea and pancakes
for our breakfast! (If we had collided with one, we might have spilled
the boiling tea.) The river water was always filthy and blackish.
Somehow we pulled through this because of our closely knit
comradeship. At midday we were suddenly distracted by a persistent
rumble that echoed through the air. Then we caught sight of the
Parit Bridge. We temporarily halted our journey here and hitchhiked
to Parit town where we bought some supplies and had lunch It was
certainly good to see the busy town life and the food stalls which
we missed so much. One more adventurer joined us here.
When we resumed rowing again heavy rain descended,
speeding up the river flow. The swift waters enabled us to travel
faster. Slowly, we passed the sites of kampongs, until we were alone
once more in the middle of the river. Such loneliness in the middle
of nowhere could only be broken by our laughter and singing. Mile
after mile, both rafts proceeded side by side down the river.
When dusk came, it was still raining, but there was nothing
better than a hot dinner to cheer up things. By the time we
finished our meals, we had drifted into Kampong Paloh. We spent
the night at the quarters of a water filtration plant. Here we
had a shower, clean clothes and even bunks for a pleasant sleep.
It was luxurious!
After snapping some photographs together with
the plant's personnel we continued towards our next stop - Kampong
Gajah, some twenty miles away. During this day, we had some minor
incidents. Somewhere along the way there was a cable stretching
across the river. Had it not been for a sharp-eyed navigator both
rafts would have run into trouble. Good judgement helped us lift
the cable as we glided under. More villages appeared as we rounded
the wide meanders. The Perak River grew wider and wider as we
journeyed further. Once, we tried to hitch a free tow by a
motor sampan. To our dismay it had insufficient power and the
Nya-ha-ha was pulled sideways rather than forward. This
ended with the Marilyn way ahead of us. Catching up again
was a tiring process - all of us had to row hard without stopping.
Towards evening, whenever we came across villagers, we enquired
about the distance to Kampong Gajah. Each time we received vague
and misleading answers - some replied that it was a few miles
more, some said many more, while still others said that it was
five hours away!
When night fell, we realised that we had left
a village way behind. The rafts were allowed to drift with the
current, near to the banks but always close together. Through the
light from our torches and lamps, we could see trees, plantations
and hundreds of insects. We never could guess where that kampong
was until we saw a distant glow. By the time we came into full view
of it, we realised that the town was already behind us and not in
front. So we had to be contented to stop at a steep slope further
downstream. That night, some of us stayed on the rafts while the
others walked to the Community Hall at Kampong Gajah. (With regret,
we point out here that we missed the opportunity to see the tomb of
the legendary Tun Perak and the James Birch Memorial in the darkness.)
The next day was our final lap and proved to be
most exciting. From here to Telok Anson, villagers warned us of the
Ekor Panjang - the crocodile! But we never encountered any
along the way. Again, along the way, we missed seeing the tombs of
the other Sultans of the Malacca Sultanate era except that of Sultan
Mahmud. After we missed Kampong Gajah, we mainly coasted along mangrove
swampland. The Perak River meanders here are at least half a mile
wide. Moreover, it flows at a very sluggish rate. The main problem
of the day, however, was to beat the incoming tide. The Marilyn
managed to reach Telok Anson safely while the other raft was caught in
the incoming tide. We rowed forward in vain but the tide just carried
us upstream again! We were in danger of being carried into the mangrove
swamps or up into the Sungei Bidor tributary. However, a motor launch
rescued us by towing us to the Telok Anson jetty downstream.
Finally, with our journey completed, all of us
gazed once more at the Perak River and swelled with pride at our
achievement. People have travelled up and down the river on junks
and sampans through the decades, but we made it on rafts. This was
one more successful accomplishment for us, one more chapter in our
life ....
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