A visit to a bakau charcoal factory and a boat ride to watch fireflies

Last Friday, my wife actually suggested taking Stuart and Sarah to Mossy Forest in Cameron Highlands. But I had to discourage her because of the highland drive and then further up to the highest point after Mossy Forest because I was feeling tired of the frequent long distance driving. So a compromise was made to go to Kuala Sepetang instead, but this time to visit a charcoal factory and Kg. Dew to watch the fireflies at night.

Just before reaching Kuala Sepetang town, we turned right into a mangrove swamp forest which was meant for visitors, with car park and walkways into it. We took some pictures with the oldest bakau tree which was stated as 64 years old! The major parts of the walkways were under reconstruction, so it was a quick visit.

Just opposite the entrance to the park, we found a big charcoal factory with a few kilns. We asked for permission to visit and was directed to look for a specific person. But we were lucky when a slim Malay man (who I mistook for an Indonesian) offered to take us round. Because we asked some relevant questions, we managed to extract informative answers which gave us a good idea of the processes in the making of bakau charcoal.

We were taken to different kilns which were at different stages of smoking. For instance, we were shown inside a half-filled kiln (shaped like an igloo) where we saw bakau logs with diameter of a foot and a height of 5 ft. placed standing upright. We were told some 15 tons of logs would probably get less than 5 tons of charcoal. After filling up the kiln, the opening would be made smaller for a fire to smoke the logs into charcoal. Here, the initial fire would be big, using rubber wood and discarded bakau logs. It would take a month before the process is completed. We were told that the temperature of the kiln has to reach 240 degrees F, but an experienced worker could tell just from the smoke and smell! The fire has to be watched and controlled, otherwise the logs would catch fire and instead of charcoal, they would turn to ashes. A constantly big fire at the small opening is necessary to prevent the logs from catching fire.

The charcoals are sold to exporters who will cut them to sizes according to buyers' requirements. Almost all the charcoals are exported to Japan! Uses of charcoal include filters, masks and pills to control diarrhoea.

Our next item on our itinerary of the day, after dinner, was to watch fireflies in Kg. Dew. Here, the right time should be around 8 pm. SP actually got the details from The Echo which is distributed free in Ipoh. She called the number provided and got directions on how to get there. At the jetty, we waited for lifejackets and the boatmen. There was a big poster with details of Exco member, Hamidah Osman's recent launching of the project. It seems Kg. Dew is getting popular because it is better for watching fireflies than Kuala Selangor which must have been affected by faster development in Selangor.

We hired the boat for the four of us at Rm120, and the journey to and fro along the river, took more than an hour. For those who have not been, it is worth a visit because seeing the fireflies on some specific trees is fascinating... just like small lights on Christmas trees! I cannot remember the local name of the tree but the boatman plucked an unripe fruit which looked like persimmon! It was dark as we moved along in the boat. The fireflies would shy away from torch lights shone on them. The other thing to note is that they will not come out when it is raining. So such a trip depends on fair weather to start with.

On our return boat trip, the boatman stopped next to a fisherman in another boat, who showed us his catch of the night - some 'udang galah' or fresh water prawns, which from our recent dinner in Tg. Tualang, costed Rm70 a kilogram! It was the same restaurant our PM recently went to, and which required new woks and other cooking utensils to cook his meal! Of course the fisherman's price would be much lower when sold to local restaurants. In fact, the lady boss of the restaurant in K. Sepetang actually told us that she bought mantis prawns ('lai liu har' in Cantonese) at Rm28 from the fishermen and charged us Rm32 per kg.

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