Visit Malaysia Year 2014 - Cherating River Cruise, Pahang

To support Visit Malaysia Year 2014, I will be writing on various tourist attractions in the country. Let us work together to bring in tourists to our lovely Malaysia.

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This article first published in The Daily Roar.

Cherating, a quaint little beach town off the coastal side of Pahang, has more to offer than just sea and sand. Instead of the regular swimming, sunbathing and beach walking, we went for a river cruise expedition, courtesy of Hafiz's Cherating Activities. Hafiz, an affable man with strong knowledge on fireflies, also offered fireflies expedition which we went for the night before and were amazed by his skills in "communicating" with these insects. Another must do when in Cherating.

All on board for an adventure

With the strong sunlight brighting up our day, we have a good view of Cherating River and its surrounding mangrove trees along the riverbanks, something we missed out during the fireflies adventure. Our boat guide, which was also the nature expert working under the agency, gave us a thorough tour of the river. He was very informative and always more than happy to share with us his knowledge on the many species of mangrove trees growing in the area.

The boats stopped when the guide saw some animals hiding behind the mangrove trees

He also has a good eyesight for often he was the one pointing out the animals hiding deep in the forest. His hands would raise up and point at the snakes he saw curling up on the tree branches, telling us to look for the yellow stripes on their skins. Often, cameras will be flickering away at the direction the guide pointed at, hoping to capture a good photo of it. Some of the wildlife we saw were mangrove snakes, macaques, blue kingfishers and monitor lizards.

The mangrove trees on both side of the riverbank

All of us were keeping an eye out for some hiding animals

Halfway through the cruise, we chanced upon a Malay uncle, alone in his boat. He was looking through the traps he set this morning before dawn, trying to see if there is any catch for today. Apparently, lady luck herself was feeling rather generous for the uncle has a few crabs inside the basket all tied up, ready to be sold to restaurants around the area.

Uncle showing us his catches of the day

Besides these animals in their natural habitat, the best asset of this cruise has to be Cherating River itself. Growing up in a city, I don't really have a strong connection with nature and it is usually through these expeditions that I get to experience and see with my own eyes the beauty of Mother Earth. This is definitely a trip not to be missed when in Cherating.

Info Box

Hafiz's Cherating Activities,
7/1156, Kg. Cherating Lama, 26080 Kuantan, Pahang.
Open daily from 8 a.m. onwards.
Entrance fee is at RM 25 for adult and RM 15 for child.
For more information, you can go to its website here or call Hafiz at 017-9789256 or 017-9406898.