One such white water spot is the Sungkai River. The Sungkai River without a wild guess, runs through the town of Sungkai in the State of Perak. This little township lies a little more than two hours North of Kuala Lumpur by road if one goes by the North-South Highway. The older trunk roads can be used if one wants to avoid the toll plazas, but unless you love dodging cars to pass slow moving buses or trucks, the team higly advises in using our highways. The white water grades here are not extreme, ranging from 2+ to 3+, with the high end the result of rain the night before. So, if it is a sunny trip day with no significant rainfall the night before, expect a decent day of paddling with a few technical spots without bringing home any severely gnarly experiences.

When in Sungkai, we use the guide services of Nomad Adventure, an adventure outfit based in Kuala Lumpur. Rather than the usual six-man inflatable rafts used by many white water operators, Nomad Adventure uses two-man inflatable soft-hull self draining kayaks (could even fit three!) manufactured by Aire. The use of these kayaks makes the white water experience a whole lot more fun, as now you or your kayak partner are in full control, rather than the river guide telling you which side you should paddle on. However, if you are not a regular in this sport, be prepared to take a couple of spills. Not to worry about hitting the water, the friendly guides of Nomad always set up ahead, and are always prepared to lend a hand with the wedged kayaks or in fishing out their now rather wet clientele. The part that may get to you is the wait in the calm pools whilst the guides position themselves!

The whole experience starts with a meeting up of all the trip participants. Note, it is assumed that the participants have their own transport. But speak to the friendly people at Nomad to arrange for some car pooling alternatives. The meeting normally takes place at the Sungai Buloh Rest Stop on the North South Highway. Here, you can make a quick toilet stop or load up on some supplies. I on the other hand will tend to hit Burger King. There are many food stores there, with something for everyone. From here it will then be a two hour drive to the exit point of Sungkai, where journey will progress from the highway to driving through small rural roads. Eventually, one will reach the Orang Asli settlement, the location of your experience. The cars are then positioned at the start and at the end of the river trip. Which ever position your ride is positioned, remember to bring your much needed gear! Gear prep, with a short instruction on kayaking, water safety, trip briefing, gear check and then you will be on your way!

By the time you are in the water, it would be close to about 10am. The trip will have mini stops for the participants to catch their breath and for the guides to scout the condition of the next rapid. The sound of the water is soothing, and one can always smell the sweet aroma of the rainforest, one of the many reasons to get out of Kuala Lumpur. Don't forget to check out the flora and fauna, while you are at your stops that is.

The trip will end at a shallow pool, where one can wade and even paddle a bit to further familiarize one self with the kayak. A light lunch prepared by your friendly guides will then be unveiled at the stop which should be at about 1pm. Gear removal will take place soon after lunch, where upon some picture will be taken with the fond good byes.

Nomad will brief you on what to bring, but here are some things that you might want to consider:

-Your own water bottle that can be secured to you or your raft with the use of a carabiner.

-A few carabiners, for attaching stuff.

-A disposable water resistant camera.

-Ziploc bags to keep your keys, wallet and phone. Nomad will have dry bags and containers, but the bags will add an extra protection.

-If you wear contacts, wear a pair of goggles. If you want to look extreme, get a pair of Aquasphere goggles. You can get them at Planet Scuba, Bangsar for about RM100.

-If you wear glasses, you may want to secure them, or risk losing them to the river. However, as with most adventure sport, contacts are the recommended alternative to wearing your eye glasses.

Charges:

RM140 per person

Contact:

You can get in touch with Nomad Adventures the same way we did.

Telephone: 603 8024 5152

Fax: 603 8024 1710

E-mail: nomadadventure@yahoo.com

or you can surf over to their website at www.nomadadventure.com