Drive for another 5 minutes or so until you reach a second guardhouse with rolling gates. The guards would ask if you are camping or staying at the resort. If you plan to camp, then your vehicle cannot go beyond their gates. If you've booked yourself a room at the resort, then you can proceed further till you reach the resort's parking bay, which is only another 2 minutes away.

Being the highest mountain in the State of Johor at 4187ft (1276m), Gunung Ledang is a refreshing change for families to have a relaxing weekend by the waterfalls. The waterfalls start from roughly 1900ft (Twin Fall), with many natural pools at various levels. The Gunung Ledang Resort caters for patrons who want a weekend (or more) away and enjoy the great outdoors in comfort, with easy access to 2 of the pools via a short walk and climb up a few flights of stairs. Beyond the 2 pools starts the hike up to the various camping grounds further up on the mountain.

At the resort, there is a ranger's office where as a camper you would have to declare your inventory. A checklist would be given for you to fill up the numbers. This is for the rangers to do a check on whether you have brought enough food, basic kits and prepared shelter for your trip. Also, it is an indicator on how much garbage you should be bringing down with you, especially if you've packed a lot of food and disposable items for the trip.

A fee of RM10.00 per camper and a deposit of RM50.00 per group are levied and to be paid at the resort's reception counter. A receipt would be issued to you for the deposit, which would have to be presented at the end of your camping trip for a refund. Should your amount of garbage brought down look suspiciously little depending on the duration of your trip, the deposit would not be refunded.

You would also be given a very high-level map marking the various checkpoints (or CPs) on the trail. Each CPs altitude would be indicated on the map. Camping grounds are located at Kolam Puteri, CP1, CP4, CP5, and CP7. The midpoint camping ground is situated at CP5, and would be a 3-hour hike on a leisure-time basis. The trail is clearly marked with red-and-white tape on the trees, and signboards have been put up to caution hikers to proceed with caution on the more treacherous sections.

The trail starts at the base of Puteri Waterfalls, up a long flight of staircase which is enough to give you a good feel of what is to come next. Those who want to check out Kolam Puteri (900ft) can also set up camp across the other side of the bridge at that site.

The trail basically follows the streams, cutting across it twice – once at CP2, and the other at CP4. CP1 and CP2 are not so much of a view, just some flat grounds for hikers to take a break or make camp for the night.

A word of caution for those who are not active in sports and / or have health problems if you plan to hike to CP5, it is best to do it with a slow and steady pace, as there is a pretty steep section between CP3 and CP4 which can be a real challenge. At any time before or at CP3 you are feeling fatigued and exhausted, it is best to either call it a day, or camp at the lower CPs.

Nicknamed Kolam Anak Gajah, CP3 (about 1800ft) has a really cool view of a few pools where, if you are looking for a dip, it would be the place to stop and chill out. The water is very clear, although algae on the rocks below would give the observer a deception of sorts. You could even trek up to the higher point of the pools where the waterfalls are visible from a distance. The grounds however are not large enough to accommodate many campers; only a small tent for 2 persons would be the most ideal if you want to spend the night.

Hikers have an option to either cross the wide stream at CP3 to follow another trail, or continue onwards to CP4 on the same trail which would eventually cross the stream at a later section. Either way, both trails would join again at CP4.

Along the way between CP3 and CP4, the ascend becomes much steeper. This is where you could witness the higher waterfalls cascading down on the rocks. At some points of the trail barb wire has been put up to prevent hikers from getting too close to the water, and with good reason one slip and you are on your way down few hundreds of feet non-stop, enough to break your neck.

CP4, also called Kolam Gajah (2050ft), is the last camping ground accessible to the larger pools. There are a few areas to choose from if you are adventurous enough to check out the sites. After CP4, the trail diverts away from the waters and starts getting less steep.

Upon reaching Sungai Segi Tiga at CP5 (2200ft), you would be greeted by a small stream running on one side of the site, with flat grounds for tents to be raised on another. It would not be a place to jump into a natural pool (there isn't any!), but more of a quiet place to settle down, build a campfire and soak your feet in the icy cold water.

The more adventurous may try hiking up all the way to the peak at CP8. The hike in and out takes a total of about 4 hours. Passing Gua Kambing (CP6, 3050ft) and a run-in with bonsai trees, you would eventually reach stone slabs with ropes hanging down for hikers to haul themselves to even higher ground. The ropes are knotted at various sections for easier handling, but nevertheless it requires a little more arm strength than just plain scrambling. CP7 or Botak Hill (3650ft) would be the last camping ground for campers to spend the night. At CP8 (4187ft) after another section of mad scrambling with ropes, you would find the view quite spectacular with a lookout point accessible via a ladder. From there you would be able to view the bonsai trees below.

The hike up the mountain would blow your thighs away, but the trek down may be even tougher if you intend to descend the day after strong knees required! Should it have rained the night before, be careful of the slippery tree roots that have often tripped hikers. That said, it still would take a considerably shorter time going down compared to up, as you would have a tendency to stop less to catch your breath.

At the end of the trip, you would be required to declare your garbage to the rangers. Submit your receipt for your deposit refund at the resort's reception.

And there you have it, your weekend camping getaway!