Hiking in Singapore – Kampong, Durian and Chestnut

Hiking in Singapore, fellow trekkers walking along Belukar Track this morning. Our total trail covers a few parks, lasted 4 hours, around 10km, 20k steps.
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The interesting invite from Meetup SANL group 🙂
The Kampong, Durian, Chestnut trails were all new to me, and I never knew hiking in Singapore could be so much FUN!
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This is the rough direction, Springdale (along Upper Bukit Timah Road)-> Kampong Trail (near to BukitTimah Hill’s slope) along Serapong Link -> Rifle Range Road -> Murnane Reservoir -> Belukar Track (mountain bikes and huge water pipes) -> Dairy Farm for toilet break -> ZhengHua via Hillview Park Connector -> Chestnut Avenue (walk under Bukit Timah expressway) -> Chestnut Nature Park (South) -> Bukit Panjang lunch
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Kampong Trail map (GPS 1.346183, 103.775870) entrance is very near to Bukit Timah Hill (slope).
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Map below, follow the Red Line for the first Kampong trail ->, Pandan, Rifle Range, Nangka, finally Durian loop.
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Old kampong, we can see remnants of the old inhabitants. Steps, wall, ceramic floors etc. It sort of remind me of Bukit Brown trail.
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Enjoying the greens, we are still walking on tarmac. Hard to find one nature spot in Singapore which is unexplored yet.
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I still prefer tramping on mud paths and trails over hard tarmac any day 🙂
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We encountered some fallen trees, walking inside rainforest carpeted by dead leaves. You will also come across a lot of trail runners, some with dogs.
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Hard to lose yourself, as there are always signs and direction clues.
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Proceed parallel along Rifle Range road, which is very popular with trail runners and cyclists. Atas Temasek club spotted.
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In case you are wondering, Durians trees are real but you have to wait for the season. We heard regulars would have already “chope” book their favourite harvesting spots.
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We exit Durian Loop next to Murnane Service Reservoir (I have never heard of this reservoir before).

We were informed about Rambutan season, might not be a bad idea to pluck some to enjoy along the hike.
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The water pipes and mountain bike trails are along Belukar Track (Nparks Mountain Biking map, refer point 17 and 18).
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Have seen the pipes in Instagram, could not resist a selfie. Mountain bikers were happily chasing the contours and trenches.
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GPS for pipes estimation 1.352517, 103.784233
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.. but PUB and Nparks (signage) always emphasized safety-first hee hee.
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Along the trail, we walked under expressways, short bridges and along narrow slopes. It was a wonderful feeling to feel LOST in Singapore 🙂
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We pop by Dairy Farm Nature Park for toilet and water break. This park is ideal for family and it is less congested than Bukit Timah Hill.
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For once, it was pure bliss to enjoy the serene surroundings. I did not have to worry about navigating for family or finding the next water point.

Just enjoy the Greens, fresh air and scenery.
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Hey, hiking in Singapore can be happening too!
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We are never far from the main roads and motor sounds, that is how small Singapore is :p
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We linked up with Zhenghua Park.
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Part of the hiking or treking fun is to explore our surroundings, observe the flora and fauna. We do not get to see this plants or flowers everyday. I am not sure whether they are edible, just follow the birds, monkeys and squirrels.
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Follow Chestnut Avenue (slopes warning) to reach Chestnut Nature Park (South). Many Mountain Bikes use Chestnut Nature Park as a pitstop.
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Chestnut Nature Park (North) is still under construction, we can look forward to more hiking and cycling trails.
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Chestnut Nature Park sights. I only know roasted chestnuts (Gao3 Luc4) are delicious, have not seen the real chestnut yet.
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Interesting is an understatement for our trail this morning. Have you counted how many parks and trails we walk across 🙂

There is a sense of satisfaction, perhaps to pander to my craving for hikes. Although the adrenaline is not as high as Gunungs, but you still feel good.
My boys (girl maybe) would definitely be keen to follow me down this trail again.

More tips :
– Follow Singapore Adventure Nature Lover (SANL) group (and Facebook) to book your next Fun adventure (some activities are free)
– Follow Nparks for more hiking and trails recommendations
– Be careful bike and hiking trail differences, children should not wander onto bike paths
– Leave the pokemons catching to the urban areas, pay attention to the path ahead

More photos have been uploaded on our Fanpage album.
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Pop by our hiking adventures here –> https://sengkangbabies.com/tag/hiking

*note, photos above might not be in order

Fun OCBC Cycle 2016 for family and friend

[ Media Invite, videos will be uploaded later ]

Fun OCBC Cycle 2016, I loved this photo.

A stranger stopping to admire the Flyer, Gardens By The Bay or Marina Bay Sands (MBS), every one an icon. In our busy lives, as we drive around Singapore, we seldom have the opportunity to stop and admire our surroundings.
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On normal days, expressways are off-limits to bikes, stopping to take photo would invite horns, stares and traffic police. Not today, the beautiful stretches of roads were exclusive for bikes, not cars nor motorbikes. We rode without worries, just enjoy 🙂
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Last Sat and Sun, SengkangBabies got to participate at OCBC Cycle 2016.

# Day 1 – Mighty Saver kids Ride

Ready to start, one last warmup in car park rally.
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“Mighty Saver Kids Ride” category, we had dispatched No3 and No4 to race 🙂
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20 minutes plus and minus, we loop Stadium Drive (parallel to Nicoll Highway). We got riders of all capabilities, some fast some slow, and some reckless.
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Kept encouraging kids to go round and round and it was soon over. Some near-misses and road-rage do happen in kids cycling too haha. The smaller the bikes, the faster they can zig-zag!

A good opportunity to teach my kids about road-safety.
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Yeah! We got a medal after cycling round and round for 20 minutes. Adults only accompany the kids, no medals (tough luck for me and Winston).
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(Background musicWe Are The Champions!)
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The cycling carnival was fun for kids and families alike.
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Kids pairing, it gets harder if you cannot decide to turn left or right wahaha!
(A few concerned parents have asked why Ah Xin is Bigger than Ah Yee, it is camera angle)
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Some of the Fun rides from #Bikes4Fun , adults can have a go too. No worry as the bikes are more sturdy and well-oiled (pun intended) then they look.
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Trampolines and arts 🙂
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The medal does not distinguish between children or adults, we are all champions 🙂
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# Day 2 – Straits Times Ride 23km

Good Morning SportsHub! Our Fun OCBC Cycle 2016 continues into Day 2. We arrived around 5.30am and a lot of cyclists were already in full gear.
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At 7am sharp, we headed off into the Central Business District (CBD).
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Total freedom on the roads, no carbon exhaust 🙂
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Love the patches of clouds as sunshine seems to cast different shades.
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Tunnel ride (MCE) was cool, but we got a blast of hot air instead.
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As we cycled towards the Flyer, the dreaded slopes await. Most will struggle, be it lack of gears or fitness, we could walk or cycle to reach the “summit” for selfies 🙂
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The Uncles, fellow Dads (L to R), me, Nick, Winston and David 🙂
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Benjamin Sheares Bridge is definitely the highlight (or meeting point) for most cyclists, catch our Fun boomerang! (link)
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It was nice to enjoy a little bit of freedom with fellow Dads (buddies) without having to worry about my kids (for once). Zooming down the slopes for myself, pure bliss to just enjoy the breeze!

Fortunately, I had a few cycling warmups (blog link) before OCBC Cycle 2016, otherwise I might struggle to complete 23 km (+ slopes).
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Road signs and speed markers up close, your usual expressway acronyms (MCE, ECP, ERP etc). No “TP Volvos” to catch us when we cycled in opposite directions.
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The Dads are all smiling and recharged after finding the “elusive” water point and servicing (Shimano). We need 100 plus after conquering the slopes of Benjamin Sheares Bridge.

A big shoutout to the organiser and volunteers! The route was scenic and orderly. Loudspeakers reminded us about “Safety first”. Medics were very prompt to attend to those who fell (Thumbs Up!)
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Beautiful City landscapes
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On Benjamin Sheares Bridge, the Sun is up early too 🙂
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The whole ECP is ours!
Fun OCBC Cycle 2016
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Love the feeling of FREEDOM! The roads belong to cyclists!
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And we do not get to lay down on a busy expressway everyday.
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More Landscapes and blue skies, love the greens and shades lining ECP, we soon realised that we had to mount Benjamin Sheares Bridge twice.
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The sky threaten to drizzle as we cycled towards the last 5km. Workers were already preparing to let cars roam Nicoll Highway again.
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Yes, we made it, now to wait for the team 🙂
Our only objective was to complete 23 km and have some Fun and photos along the way.
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23km ride, pratas and kopi, we celebrated our sporty morning in style 🙂
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Thank you OCBC Cycle for the FUN invite. It was a wonderful opportunity to hang out with friends and fellow cyclists!
Checkout OCBC Cycle updates on their Website, Instagram and Facebook.

Some of the Fun OCBC Cycle 2016 Instagrams from this morning, the ride would be less fun without these fellow Dads 🙂
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– Nick’s OCBC Cycle review (link)
– Winston’s blog
– David’ blog review

We are all from #DaddyMatters 🙂