Malaysia East West Highway (347 km)
Kuala Kangsar to Jeli · one way, about 347 km back to the start
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Why this ride
A one-way ride of 347 km, Kuala Kangsar to the finish - roughly 4 h 43 in the saddle. The stops in between: Gerik and Titiwangsa Rest Area. The highest point is about 1,050 m. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
Roadbook
- Kuala Kangsar
start
Kuala Kangsar is the royal town of Perak, the seat of the sultan, and it carries its status lightly. The town sits on the Perak river, Malaysia's second longest, and about forty thousand people live here. The Ubudiah Mosque, with its golden onion dome and white minarets, is among the most beautiful in the country, built in the early twentieth century after the sultan vowed to build one if an elephant that was unable to walk recovered. The Istana Iskandariah, the palace, stands on a hill, and the Perak Royal Museum is housed in a wooden palace built without nails. It is a quiet, dignified place with tree-lined avenues.
Kuala Kangsar has a surprising place in the history of rubber. In 1877, the first rubber seedlings in Malaya were planted here, brought from Kew Gardens, and a descendant of the original trees still stands in the town. Rubber became the engine of the Malayan economy, and the plantations around still shape the landscape. The Malay College, a school modelled on English public schools, trained generations of the elite. The area is also known for a type of pottery, labu sayong, a gourd-shaped water jar.
For a rider, this is the start of the East-West Highway, which runs across the peninsula to the east coast. The road climbs steadily through rainforest, passing the Temenggor Lake and the Belum-Temengor forest complex, which is one of the oldest rainforests in the world. The highway is well surfaced, with long, gentle bends and a few tight sections, but trucks are slow on the grades and wildlife, including elephants, can appear. Mist and rain are common, and the road is quiet at night, so stay alert.
Fill the tank in Kuala Kangsar or Taiping, since the highway has long stretches with few stations. Local food is typical of the north: laksa Kuala Kangsar, a rice-noodle dish with fish gravy, is a local favourite, and the roadside stalls serve strong coffee. The best time to ride is the dry season, though rain can fall anytime. Take a rest in the town, and walk along the river at dusk before heading for the hills.
- Gerik
scenic
Gerik sits in the far north of Perak, close to the Thai border, on the road that people call the East-West Highway, which cuts across the Malay Peninsula through some of the oldest rainforest on earth. The town itself is small and tidy, with shophouses around a main street, a market, mosques and a few modest hotels, and it exists mainly as the last proper stop before the mountains. West of it the land is flat or gently rolling. East of it the road starts to climb, runs along the vast Temenggor lake, and plunges into jungle that is said to be well over a hundred million years old.
The Belum-Temenggor forest is one of the great wild reserves of Malaysia. It shelters elephants, tigers, tapirs, gaur and the clouds of hornbills that cross the lake at dusk, and the indigenous Orang Asli, among them the Jahai, still live in and around it. You will not see much from the saddle except green walls and the occasional warning sign, but the sense of a huge, living forest on both sides is unmistakable. Bring some patience for the occasional elephant sign: they mean what they say.
The highway was built in the 1970s and early 1980s, partly for security reasons and partly to link the west coast with the poorer east, and it is one of the best rides in Peninsular Malaysia. The tarmac is good, the bends are long and rhythmic, and the climbs and descents give a real sense of travelling through mountains. It is also a road that demands attention: logging trucks and buses run it at speed, landslides sometimes close a lane after heavy rain, and the surface can have loose gravel or fallen branches on the bends. Do not ride it at night.
Gerik has fuel and a reliable stock of everything else, and that is the point of stopping here, because the highway beyond has long gaps with little in the way of services. Top the tank, check your tyres and water, and take food. The local cafés serve good rice and noodle dishes, and the fish from the lake is worth trying when you can find it. Thai influence is visible in the food, and the heat and humidity make an early start wise.
- Titiwangsa Rest Area
scenic · 1050 m
The Titiwangsa Range is the spine of the Malay Peninsula, and this rest area sits at about 1,050 metres, near the point where the East-West Highway crosses it. In a country where most roads run through steamy lowlands, the change is striking. The air is cool and often wet, mist drifts through the trees, and moss and ferns grow thick on every trunk. The sign for the rest stop is easy to miss, but the pause is welcome after the long climb from the west, and the views over layers of forested ridges fading into blue are generous when the cloud allows.
It is a working road, so the rest area works like a roadside one: parking, toilets, a prayer room, a few stalls selling drinks and snacks, and groups of truck drivers sleeping in their cabs with the windows open. Riders come here in numbers, particularly at weekends, and it is easy to strike up a conversation with someone on a big touring bike from Kuala Lumpur or Penang. If you have a hot drink, the cold up here makes it taste better than it should.
The riding on either side of the stop is the real attraction. West of here the highway runs along the Temenggor lake and through the Belum forest, with long swinging curves and small climbs. East, it drops through a sequence of sweeping descents toward Kelantan and the east coast. The surface is generally excellent, but there are patches of damp, moss at the verges and rain squalls that arrive without warning. Keep the speed down in the mist and watch the trucks, which brake late into the bends and swing wide.
Wildlife is part of the story: gibbons call in the early morning, and you may see monkeys by the road. Elephants use the area too, and the signs warning of them are not decoration. Take warm clothing as well as rain gear, because after a long, hot day in the lowlands the damp chill at altitude can feel sharp.
- Jeli
finish
Jeli is a small place on the eastern side of the Malaysian peninsula, close to the border with Thailand, and it marks the end of the East-West Highway. The highway crosses the Titiwangsa mountains and comes down to a landscape of rubber plantations, small villages and rice fields in Kelantan, a state with a distinct Malay culture. There is not much in Jeli itself; the nearest sizeable town is Tanah Merah, about thirty-six kilometres away, and just across the Thai border is Su-ngai Kolok. The Jeli area is known for its Gunung Reng and hot springs.
Kelantan is regarded as the heartland of traditional Malay culture. It is known for shadow puppetry, wayang kulit, and for batik, kite-making, silverwork and the dance and music of the region. The state is conservative, and the pace of life is slower than on the west coast. Food is sweet and rich: nasi kerabu, rice coloured blue with butterfly pea flowers, served with herbs, fish and coconut, and nasi dagang, rice cooked in coconut milk. Roadside stalls sell sweet snacks and fresh coconut water.
For the rider, the highway descends from the mountains with a series of long, easy curves, through forest and then plantation. Monkeys, snakes and the odd elephant are a possibility, and the road can be wet and slippery after storms. The monsoon on the east coast, from November to February, brings heavy rain and flooding, and roads can be cut, so avoid those months. In the dry season, the heat can be strong, and early starts are advised.
Fuel is available in Jeli, but stations are less common than on the west coast, so fill up when you can. Facilities are basic, with small restaurants and some guesthouses, and cash is useful. A short distance away, the Lake Banding area and Royal Belum Park are noted for nature, birdwatching and rafting. The end of the highway offers a calm finish to the crossing, a sense of having moved from one side of the country to the other, from the busy west to the traditional east.