Geocaching off the path

 Thanks to Geocaching. A little piece of paradise was found when we wandered off the beaten path while hunting for a geocache. A lovely quiet little spot with "postcard" view, perfect for the kids to explore and enjoy the abundant wildlife. Watching feeding birds (swiftlets i think) skimming over the water surface was truly amazing. We even spotted our first wild Tiger Barb (fish) in the water with plenty of healthy, beautiful aquatic plants. Wow!

Off the beaten path they go... the boys are really getting the hang of it.

East...West...South... Where's the treasure?

Even though we didn't find the geocache, we found something that was no less exciting than finding a cache.

A good walk...a surprise find...a great day out for the family.

DIY Wood Gas Stove

Another DIY stove added to my collection! After a couple of days of fun making it. We went out to play with the new toy on a recce ride, in search of the "Secret Beach" that i saw on Google Earth and been very curious about it.

  ...and to our surprise, we found this...

A wide, fast flowing river with very little traces of human civilization (trash)

 A great place for S240 bikepacking (Sub 24-hour overnight bike camping) or new gear testing indeed.

Back to the subject...

 For those who are not familiar with this type of stove, A wood gas stove differs from a wood burning stove. A wood gas stove uses gas from wood, and not the wood as fuel. It produces no smoke and a clean burn.

Here are some photos of my latest DIY stove i made. I don't go into the details of how to make the stove as there are so many information on the subject available online.

  

This lightweight wood-burning stove is really fun to make and even more fun to use. 

A few sticks, twigs and some fire building skills you're good to go.

 Looks good? Wait untill you smell the burning wood yourself!

This stove produces a real nice camp smell even when not cooking. 

Damn...I love this stove!

Freaking Sunday @ Sungai Lembu

As much as we like to ride, we love the jungle. But cross paths with a Giant Forest Scorpion and a King Cobra ( two of the deadliest creatures in the rainforest ) is the last thing we need on a mountain bike ride, but that's just what happened to us last Sunday. Fortunately the latter one just whizzed past like an arrow, crossing our path and slithered away before we could blink an eye.

King cobra is a territorial reptile like the tiger.They are territorial, and stay in the same area. There have been a number of  un-published reports of king cobra sightings in various parts of Bukit Mertajam ( Berapit Hill, Mengkuang Dam, Bukit Langkap...etc) and this was my third sightings of the 'King' and it happened twice in this particular area. Beware!

Sexy...a beautiful Malaysian Giant Scorpion  in an aggresive posture.

The largest wild scorpion i've seen so far. This fella really does live up to its name.

New Kawanbike logo

Nothing revolutionary, but the Kawanbike family
just got bigger, livelier & merrier...Cheers!

Old saddle

A good saddle is like a good friend that is so hard to come by. Once we find one we like, we stick with them.

This is the saddle that I was riding, down the river... up the mountain. Over ten years of bittersweet memories are deeply carved into it. So deep... Fizik-cally

Something we've been missing...lately

It’s been a long time since we’ve been Geocaching. I don’t think we went at all last year. It's time to put the GPS device into good use. The kids are more ready than ever for their next treasure hunt adventure.



~ Little Indiana Jones at work... checking out the "loot" found hidden in a tree.




No idea what Geocaching is? Check this out!

i-Care

I had never set foot in Kuantan,

I'm just doing my share for mother earth's sake.

"Round Tummy" ride

"It's more fun having a cute beer belly than a 6 pack.
Cause 6 packs make sense only in beer cans!"

Chinese New Year celebration has come to an end, it's good to be back in the saddle again... Cheers!

Camping with kids

Nothing brings family & friends closer together than a fun vacation, especially one in the outdoors enjoying nature away from home. Unlike camping back in those (before children) years, camping with kids is a totally new experience. All it takes is a little extra planning, preparation & patience. Camping with children as young as 3 years old can be fun & produce lots of memories that we'll cherish for a lifetime.

We are all kids at heart when it's time to go camping...

Iwen (ages 3) & Wien (ages 5) on their first camping trip. Camping introduces kids to nature & gives them a feeling of freedom as they safely explore the campsite.

The kids get hungry faster because we're always busy with something, swimming... wild foods collecting... shrimp trapping... bushcrafting... & there is no doubt about it, food just tastes better outdoors.

No iPhone or other electronic toys... Just family & friends hanging out around the campfire until the next meal ready to savour. Good food, great company, good time!

Kayuh Lasak 2011 "KAW RIDE"

"Kaw - Tim"...

with 1,487 participants, only a little over 300 riders got through all nine checkpoints. Some people said this is probably the toughest MTB challenge in Malaysia.

Pre Kayuh Lasak 2011

I'm ready... See you dare!

Survival Kit?

...or a "Recreation Kit" as i would preferred to call it.

In theory, this kit is a must for those who spend any time away from civilization which contains tools & supplies for some basic survival needs such as fire, water & shelter in a survival situation (with knowledge & skills of course)

But how often do we travel to remote places that far away from any mobile phone signal? A survival kit may sound too serious & it seems irrelevant, but somehow i find it quite amusing for another reason...

Starting a fire without matches or lighter (In this case, with Doan magnesium block from the kit) on a wet day is quite tricky. The only dry materials i found was a 3 feet long 2"x3" with nails on it & some fibers from a coconut tree as tinder...

Bon appetit! Nothing beats hot dogs on improvised bamboo skewers over an open fire. With a kit, skills like these can be practiced/used to better appreciate nature & for recreation, not just survival.

S240 Bikepacking... Old Crag Hotel (Penang’s Hidden Heritage)

Initially, it was supposed to be a simple Sub 24-hour overnight bike trip (S240) to experiment a rackless setup by using dry bag as a seat bag. But we ended up doing something really crazy that i could not possibly imagine especially with two newbies (Chen & Polo) joining the madness, riding one of the toughest trail in Penang on a bikepacking setup.

The plan is simple,
Day 1 : Hye Keat trail - Penang Hill - Old Crag Hotel (Camp)
Day 2 : Tiger Hill - back to where we started

Crag Hotel? Where?
A hidden deserted old hotel...on top of Penang Hill...off the beaten track...coupled with a fascinating history. That’s all i know, i needed to know & i do know, less information = more adventure.

With good company & a place we’ve never been to explore. We rode, we trekked & we joked all the way till the next morning comes & back to where we started 24 hours ago.

Stay tuned, more photos coming soon...

DIY Shrimp Trap

It's been a long time since i "play waterfall". As usual, my waterfall outing is more than just a dip in the cool running water & a picnic. It's an opportunity to practice some wilderness skills or Bushcraft.

Penang (Malaysia) is truly blessed with so many natural attractions. Waterfall remains among my all-time favorites. Sadly, the number of waterfalls in the island is falling fast due to the quest to become a "Developed country". It's almost impossible to find a good waterfall spot without the presence of trash. Plastic water bottle is one of them.

As the saying goes, one man's trash is another man's treasure! So i decided to DIY shrimp trap & give it a try.

A shrimp trap can be easily built with a plastic bottle. All i need is a knife, some wire/string & some bread for bait and i'm good to go. The traps were set for less than an hour & here are the results.

A plastic bottle can also be used to keep the catch. At the end of the day, i decided to keep those bottles & release the catch back into the water.

Campaign For A Lane 2011

Anyone who rode on that day will tell you... the rain is the best part of the ride that brings back the memories of younger days playing in the rain. Oh ya! Not forgetting the cool looking medal makes the perfect souvenir of this memorable day too.

More Photos Here:
Baikbike.com

Bye Bye Training Wheels

Do you remember when is your first time riding a bike without training wheels? Wien did it at four & a half of age.

It's all started with a push on a tricycle 3 years ago... Now my little kawanbike has achieved a major milestone in its development by riding a bicycle without training wheels. Way to go buddy!