Despite the rapid development within Kuala Lumpur over the years, there are still pockets of green sanctuary where KLlites can go to rather easily within Kuala Lumpur for a ‘back to nature’ rejuvenating moment and respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. One of these is FRIM (Forest Research Institute of Malaysia), located in the suburbs of northwest Kuala Lumpur, adjoining the Bukit Lagong Forest Reserve, and popular among the urban KL folks over the weekend for a walk, jog, picnic, trail biking, etc. or just to do nothing and relax.
I enjoy walking and exploring the walk trails at FRIM, especially in the morning after a rainy humid downpour the day before, when it is likely to be foggy, cooler and the green landscape looks more vibrant and lively, mysterious and ethereal under a cloak of fog in the early morning. There are a number of walking trails (a couple are closed at the moment), and most visitors go for the the trails which are easier to access and walk without having to worry about leech bites, mosquito bites, etc. As for myself, I prefer the ones which are less frequented for the tranquility and solitude it offers (hate coming across walkers blasting their smartphones along the way), and where nature is more ‘pristine’.
My favorites are the Bike Trail and Keruing Trail which is about a 5-6km walk (round trip) with the tall and majestic kapur and keruing trees overlooking and accompanying me along the way. The greenness all around, the tranquility, the freshness of the morning air amid the surroundings is just therapeutic and invigorating for my tired soul. The trees all look so lovely, growing tall (to a height of 50-60m), strong and proud over the years, forming part of the FRIM ecosystem and delighting visitors exploring the trail keen to view them and their unique ‘crown shyness’ characteristic.
All photos are panoramas, stitched together from 3-4 photos taken with a Pentax SMC M-Series 35mm f2.8 lens in Lightroom 7.5 .
Ken and Agnes Photoworks 