Kapas Island is a small island located off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
Jungle Trekking
There are a couple of treks through the jungle that can be done. Both start on the beaches on the western side, where all the accommodation is located and end up in Berakit, which is a small rocky bay with a pebbly beach. One of the tracks starts between the jetty and Kapas Island Resort and the other starts at the Turtle Valley Resort at the far southern end of the main beach area. It makes sense to take one of the tracks to Berakit and the other one back, thus making a circular trip out of it and not covering the same ground twice.
The Track Between Kapas Island Resort and Berakit
The start of the track, next to the Kapas Island Resort is clearly signposted from the path, which runs alongside the beach. The sign reads ‘To Berakit (Jungle Tracking)’. It is then a bit confusing, as it is necessary to walk through part of the resort, past some chalets until you find another sign, this time the sign gives the distance as well, being 720m. This leads you into the jungle. Later, there are additional signs at 500m and 300m from Berakit. The track is easy to follow, as there is a white rope along the whole route. At times it may be necessary to use this to pull yourself up, or lower yourself down. There is a small stream along part of the route. The track criss-crosses this a few times. Towards the end there are some rocks that you must step across. This part of the walk, from Kapas Island Resort to Berakit, should take about 30 minutes to one hour. You will know when you have arrived as you will see a sign reading ‘Welcome to Berakit’, though it should be obvious anyway.
The Track Between Berakit and Turtle Valley Resort
To get back, look for another track from Berakit, which leads very steeply up into the jungle. This is probably the hardest part of the walk. Once you have got past this initial steep phase, the track is not too difficult. The route back is about 1.25kms according to the sign at the end, near Turtle Valley Resort. For this part allow between 45 minutes and an hour and a half. It is likely to take a bit longer than the other route. Eventually, at the end, the track leads down to the Turtle Valley Resort and a small beach if you take the steps on the left, or Captain’s Longhouse and the main beach if you take the steps on the right.
What to Wear and Take With You
It is best to wear proper walking shoes as opposed to flip flops as the track can be uneven, muddy, slippery and very steep in parts.
Bring plenty of water, as there is nowhere to get any along the route. Similarly, with food - bring anything you might need with you.
There can be a lot of mosquitoes in the jungle, so bringing mosquito repellent is a good idea.
Other things that you might want to take are sunscreen and for when you reach Berakit, swimming kit and snorkelling mask and fins if you have them.
Richard Milnes - Richard was born in London, England, but has since spent much of his life travelling the world and has visited nearly 50 ...
