I was upset that my precious time was waylaid by the tour agent at Cameron Highlands but this didn't stop me from signing up the Sunrise Spectacular Tour at RM 65 per person.
Now, i never have much luck with prearranged plans to catch the sunrise (read: Hehuanshan Sunrise) and had in fact a bad omen about this. However, it was the only one out of the four basic packages that i have yet to take up.
Leisure Tour was taken in 2011 (you may click here for the information), as with the Nature Discovery Tour (check out here). Agro Delight Tour was later in 2013 (click here) in my road trip with my parents conquering Ipoh, Cameron Highlands and Kuala Lumpur.
Coming back to the Sunrise Spectacular, i was up at 5 am and the mini passenger van was punctual in picking us up from Copthorne Hotel at 6 am. Driving in the darkness along the mountainous road, we arrived at our destination in less than 15 minutes!
Our spot next to a dilapidated building; even though it was chilly, it couldn't compare to the near-zero temperature encountered at Taiwan's Hehuanshan where i almost literally died from hypothermia.
The sight in front of us which was unblocked by towering trees with mountain peaks peeking from the clouds that enveloped them.
Waiting for sunrise was like almost like fishing without a bait and with plenty of time to spend, i took like a hundred over photographs; many of which turned out blur due to the lack of lighting.
And unlike this gentleman in this photograph, i am too lazy to bring along a tripod and don't have sufficient money to upgrade my camera to a full frame one.
A box of light breakfast was provided together with hot tea / coffee. Curious to know what's inside the box? I would share the "insides" at the end of this post.
Road we came from; my fuzzy memory told me i had been on the road before and it's only on my way down that i realised it's the same road bringing us to Mount Brinchang and Mossy Forest!
The waiting game as the sky slowly brightened up; the guide cum driver shared the photographs he had taken using his phone in the numerous trips he had made for the tour and they were indeed spectacular. The question then was; would we be as lucky?
Standing on farmland; i was mindful not to tread on working fields that had lettuces waiting to be harvested later in the morning.
It was too cloudy and almost the same scenario at Hehuanshan; on one hand, i wasn't hopeful while on the other hand, before the last minute, who can accurately predict nature?
To be sure i am directly in front of the sun when it pops out, i even activated the compass app to ensure i am right in the east! Well, the sun rises from the east and i am guessing it would be true east.
Two orange hues appeared and i can literally feel the heart dropped from everyone's stomach. All the time in wait for the perfect moment and it failed to materialise.
Thankfully, the guide had managed out expectation beforehand; hence, we had kind of prepared for it. Instead of lamenting over the misfortune, why not make use of the time to take goofy photos! I like the THEIR spirit!
Blaring loud music, the pickup with over ten persons at its back zoomed up the road to Mount Brinchang; disregarding the fact that they were creating a disturbance to humans and wild animals residing on the mountain.
Like him, i couldn't believe my luck. By the way, Alex didn't give two-hoot about the sunrise and was happily snoozing in the van! This was exactly what he did at Hehuanshan too!
Last look before we boarded the mini passenger van.
Driving past this humongous strawberry park known as the Mountain Strawberry Farm where you can pick strawberries and harvest fresh vegetables! I recalled seeing the signboard for the farm in my trek to BOH Sungei Palas tea centre!
Vegetable farm that was jutting out of the hillside, just like the iconic cafe at BOH Tea Centre!
As a consolation, there was a stopover in the middle.
With a view that literally took my breath away - coupled with the refreshing mountain air, it would have been perfect if the sun were to push its glaring face out!
On our way and spotted a familiar sight; the jutting out cafe that i mentioned two paragraphs before! To assist you in identifying the location, refer to the red arrow.
Yes, we were driving on the same road that we walked on the day before to BOH Sungei Palas tea centre! Memorable indeed and definitely not something we would be keen to try in the future!
Before 7.40 pm, we were back at the lobby of Copthorne Hotel; time taken was only about 1 hr and 40 minutes although the itinerary had indicated 2 and a half hours. Well, there wasn't a spectacular sunrise and personally, i don't see the point of wasting my time just to meet the duration which was also an estimation.
Curious to know what's inside?
Ta-dah! Sandwiches, biscuits and two pastries; hardly a light breakfast in my opinion but they were okay tasting. I needed a more satisfactory meal; somewhere along the line of nasi lemak, carrot cake, wanton mee etc.
=====
Price of Sunrise Spectacular Tour
Adult - RM 65 per person
Children - RM 55 per child
For the summary of my short 2 days, 1 night trip to Cameron Highlands, please click here.