Visit to Kukup, Taman Negara and Tanjung Piai @ 15th April 2007 - Part 1

After driving for almost an hour and a half from JB, we finally reached Kukup town in the district of Pontian. We then assembled at a local restaurant for a quick seafood lunch before boarding a boat and headed towards Taman Negara which is situated on an island known as Pulau Pisang.

During the boat ride which took several minutes, we were treated with views of numerous buildings, old dilapidated as well as modern structures constructed on stilts and floating kelongs used for fishing purposes.

Soon after, we were greeted with a majestic jetty which Mr Ho, our guide for this outing promptly announced our arrival at the Taman Negara. Taman Negara is known for its intensive mangroves cultivation which is one of the largest in the world approximating more than 1,500 acres. We walked along wooden planks listening attentively to Mr Ho’s explanation on the various aspects of mangroves cultivation. We also learnt that mangroves are effective resistance to tsunamis which swamped the shores of several parts of our country several years ago. Trunks of mangrove trees when burned will be used as charcoal. In the early days of construction, the trunks are also used for piling purposes. There are several places of interest on the island such as the suspended bridge and the viewing tower. We also took the opportunity to try the sampan ride from the inner of the island all the way to the river mouth. The bird enthusiasts will love this place too as the island is also a haven for migrating birds. Too bad we weren’t armed with binoculars for close-up view of the island from the wooden tower.

Before we returned to the mainland, we stopped by a kelong to watch the process of fish rearing. Some of our members also took the opportunity to shop for dry seafood products such as ikan bilis, keropok and etc. Those more adventurous tried carrying life turtle, cray fish as well as feeding fishes with bare hands.