Hiking and Stuff: Gunung Gereh, Bliah, Bieh

Distance: 65km

Elevation Gain: 3,800m

Gunung Gereh, G11 - Gunung Bilah, G14 - Gunung Bieh, G16, aka, Gunung GBB, a very long hike and typically take hiker up to 4 days to complete the whole route. This route is not known for its view but it beautiful mossy forest and this route actually shared the same trailhead as Gunung Ulu Sepat, so yes, you will be sitting in the same 4WD from Masjid Bawong all the way to Pos Kemar.

To get to the 4WD pick-up point, use "Masjid Bawong Perak" or "4.996597, 101.140228" to get here. We parked our car outside the mosque. There is basic public facility in the mosque but since it a mosque, please respect the area. For the hike, a permit is definitely needed but a guide is not mandatory. It is still preferable to bring someone who knows the route as the trail is not marked clearly.

Around 60km into Pos Kemar from Masjid Bawong
GPX File link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/1ffjlmnh2e1t18j/Sg%2C%20Siput%204WD%20to%20Pos%20Lelar.gpx?dl=0

We parked our car at Masjid Bawong but left the fresh cloth in the car for after the hike. Why not bring it in and change in Pos Kemar? The reason being as you will have to sit back the same 4WD to Masjid Bawong, you are bound to get dirty in it, so why bother? But we did bring in stove and gas and food for after hike makan.

After roughly 2:30 to 3:00 hours of bumpy ride, we reach the trailhead and left some of our stuff at the kampung, pack our bag and start our journey. Also note, at the trailhead do have some basic facility like toilet but as always, please respect the orang asli around the area.

The starting point of GBB

If some would notice, yes, it exactly the same route like starting Gunung Ulu Sepat. In fact, the same route goes all the way for 7.2km before you will reach a junction separating GBB & Ulu Sepat.

https://www.strava.com/activities/2342652562
GPX File: https://www.dropbox.com/s/o4hhjxw6l7079c6/Trans_GBB.gpx?dl=0

Before the junction, the trail is mainly quite flattish upward and it actually quite similar to Yong Yap first 6km and just like Yong Yap route, you will reach a campsite after 6km. I forgot the name of the campsite already but it has a nice river to the side of it. You will have to cross this river to continue your journey. There actually plenty of rivers you will need to cross but it won't be as much as the Yong Yap trail.

A Camp Site (6km)

Camp Site at 6km (Camp Sungai Y??)

After the campsite, not too far ahead or 1.2km later, you will finally reach the junction for Ulu Sepat & GBB. Here, turning left will bring you to Ulu Sepat, so turn right up to GBB and start your steep climb up your first huge false peak, Puncak Bongok...

7.2km into your hike, this is the junction that separate GBB & Ulu Sepat.

The climb to Puncak Bongok (8.5km) can be quite tricky as there is quite an amount of fallen tree. One really have to take note when coming down in the dark on this part of the trail. After 1.3km of steep climb, you will reach the peak and you will walk along the ridges until you come to a steep downhill at 9.5km. It a very steep downhill and can be slippery when wet. This downhill is something you will have to take notes as to when you come back, you going to have to climb 300m in 2km... Can be hellish after a long climb....

Puncak Bongok

After the huge false peak, you will reach Camp Sungai Agek (11.5km). You can choose to refill your water here or hold up for the next water point which is 5.5km away.

Camp Sungai Agek

Camp Sg. Agek

[Note: Pos Agek has been updated recently, go to the end of the page for the update.] Right after Camp Sungai Agek, you will pass by some overgrown lalang and you may have to watch where you go as there are some small junction in between. After that, you will hit a big junction where your left will be a wooden gate. Turn into the wooden gate and you will see a orang asli hut.

Wooden Gate

Around the orang asli hut

Around the first Rumah Orang Asli

One of the very few views along the hike, the second Orang Asli Hut is here

If the path is correct, you will see the view as like the picture above

The trail around the two huts can be a little bit confusing and it will be worst during the night. One has to really take note of where he/she is going during these two parts of the hike.

After around 2 hours, you will reach Camp Perodua (17km), this will be sort of your last waterpoint. We refill full bottle here and start our push to Gunung GBB.

(You do have another waterpoint which is on the way to Gunung Bilah but it far and yes, you can go Bilah first, but if you are day-packing, it much less mentally tiring if you do Gunung Gerah and Bieh first)

Camp Perodua

Some view along the way

Do take note that after 2km from Camp Perodua, there is a junction where you need to turn right. (This is also the trail where you will start hiking along the boundary state.)

Junction point 2km after Camp Perodua

There is one more campsite in between Camp Perodua and GBB-Junction but since there no water-point here, we did not stop here and cause of that, I have completely forgotten the campsite name

(Now I remember is Camp Sarsi, nearby has a Last Water Point which is before you reach Camp Sarsi but it a distance just to get to it).

(Note: if you are using the attached GPX File, you will notice we took a wrong turn at roughly 22km. The path toward both ends was clear and it did look like a proper trail, but one was going downhill all the way whereas the correct path is supposed to be flatter as you are walking along the mountain ridge here.)

There is a false peak "campsite" at around 26.4km, walk down to your right and head to GBB-Junction.

False Peak

After all that nonsense and 9 hours later at 27.8km, you will finally reach GBB-Junction. The signboard is will not be in your line of sight when you come up but there is a very clear split path where one goes down toward Bilah and another is more flattish toward Gerah-Bieh

GBB-Junction

You can choose to do Bilah first and get your water here, but if you did carry enough water up, it definitely better to do the double mountain combo first as we found this path more tiring than just Gunung Bilah. [Huge note: the water between Bilah and Junction Point is very brownish when it is not raining. Can't judge whether is clean to drink or not. During the 2019 daypack, it was raining so the water was cleared.]

Gunung Gerah (28km)

This is Gunung Bieh in the daylight.

Gunung Bieh (30km)

Gunung Bilah (34.2km)

If you can time your hike correctly, it would definitely be much better to reach these three peaks during the daytime. Even with just our headlamp, we can definitely tell the mossy forest is very beautiful, it just a shame that the daytime didn't last very long.

Overall, the hike may not have a lot of up and down as to compare to Trans-Titiwangsa trail but it is very long and can be mentally torturous especially when you are coming back since you have to climb back up the steep Puncak Bongok just to get home... Time it nicely and you can definitely witness GBB beautiful mossy forest.

Time Log for this hike:
4th May 2019
9:10 - Start
10:20 - Camp Sungai Y? (The first campsite)
11:20 - Puncak Bongok
12:00 - Camp Sg. Agek
13:45 - Camp Perodua
16:50 - False Peak
17:45 - GBB-Junction
18:16 - Gunung Gerah
19:05 - Gunung Bieh
21:10 - Gunung Bilah
22:00 - GBB-Junction

5th May 2019
2:00 - Camp Perodua
5:00 - Camp Sg. Agek
8:40 - End of hile

Food I brought along:

1. 7pcs bite size snicker
2. 4pcs hutanration choc. bar
3. 2pax Extrajouss mix with river water
4. 2pcs Salt Pill Chew
5. Apple
6. 4L water (2L river water)

Other info:
4WD SOS: +60 13-487 8380 (Kay) or +60 12-531 7141 (Muzs)

Last update:

22/5/2019

Update on 22/5/2022

From Camp Sg. Agek, following is a new rough map around the kampung: