The trip report of the Volvo's first real jungle trip. Some may enjoy this
other will have read the story on a another forum.
Volvo is loaded up - wait a minute a Volvo for a offroad trip - YUP my 31 year old Vovo C304 Military truck on its first jungle trip. Great 3 days away from the rat race of Kuala Lumpur. Wait for Tappa my winchwench for the weekend and he arrives 5pm late due to the traffic then we Head to Karak 70k away to pickup 500 rubber saplings for my CSR project for the blind village 52k deep into the jungle of Kelantan, Malaysia. God its going to take us hours.
Paul in DAFFY with Annuar is some 2-3 hours behind us playing catchup as the Volvo only cruises happily at 71k. Karak 70k away and 90 minutes later at the nursery and 475 rubber saplings are loaded in and we wheel around and head back to the Bentong exit and head North with the sun fading fast. We stop at Bentong for last minute supplies MILO and water and tea bags and dinner (for me its breakfast and lunch also) then back on the road this time Tappa is driving and we test out the newly adjusted 100watt headlights and new spotlights - PERFECT we can see. After 11 months of fixing the Volvo up to a reliable state I hope it will be ok.
loaded up and ready to rock where is TAPPA?
Tappa with cancer stick and loading the rubber plants.
We cruise on alone then the world lights up behind us - damn DAFFY has caught us man he musta been flying. Shortly after the noisy under the engine suddenly goes BANG and then the engine is quieter the noisy BELT has come off DAFFY informs us. I drift in and out of sleep as much as one can in a vehicle which makes 747 Jumbo Jet sound quiet then 40k from Gua Musang the there is a downshift a jerk then the Volvo slows - NO DRIVE ses Tappa - #@#@ I say. A check reveals yup no gears at all - clutch no the truck is stuck in neutral and we decide DAFFY once again has to tow a GeckoAdventure truck - this time DAFFY cannot pull the Volvo without being in LOW range - so its a 35k an hour tow into Gua Musang where they drop me at the workshop it's now 1.30am and I inform them they must continue on and take the rubber saplings and Tappa with them and I will catch them up later in the day. If I not there tomorrow nite then not coming.
Satellite phone is our communication tool as we both have one. I sleep in the back of the Volvo awesome just rollout the US military matress out with a sleeping bag and SLEEP in seconds no putting a TARP up - love it. The workshop comes alive 9.00am and they muck around for hours finally they disconnect the HI/LO lever and the Volvo springs to life shifting manually at the gearbox. I cruise off for food and they fit two new Belts and its 1.00pm. A quick test drive with the mekanik grinning like a chesire cat its good to go refuel wow only 49 liters for 281k good stuff. I get a sat call from Paul they finished the charity work and heading down so they will wait for me at the big "Y" intersection. I finish fueling and tell them 90 minutes I will be there. Later interrogation revealed the Kg Rekom Orang Asli crew made the track so good there was not one obstacle on the trip in and no one got out of their trucks no one got stuck - simply awesome job to clear 10k of track with only hand tools my hats of to them. I was also dissappointed not to get there so I will be taking more goodies up on my next trip.
The Volvo enters the jungle and I cruise in high range stopping at a logging point
The Volvo resting at log collection point.
and Gua Cha which I find now disgustingly dirty since the logging trucks started using it as a resting point. Malaysian's take your rubbish HOME.
Gua Cha
and then when everything in the back moves after a huge hole bounces the Volvo all over the road. Then it's the Sungai Perias log bridge and i'm encountering lorri hantu's the progress is slow in the Volvo most hills taken in 1st and slow but the Volvo is very easy to drive. 4.50pm I arrive at the "Y" and collect Paul and Tappa and Annuar. We cruise off with the other 8 vehicles in the convoy just in front somewhere.
The Broken Miss Bitchy convoy
We find them well 3 of them Miss Bitchy's one a STORM has tossed it's FAN then the radiator mounts break off. A repair is being effected with wire and we wait to escort them. They are stunned a Volvo wow and then it starts raining damn that's not in the plan that's going to ruin a few peoples day's. Then the Vovlo is leading a small convoy of 5 and we reach the watefall turnoff and chat to the village people first and greetings exchanged and some gifts.
At the village and turnoff and yes thats rain clouds in the background.
Into Low range and up the hill 400-500 meters to climb in 3k with 2-3 seriously steep ascents awaiting. The Volvo does it albiet slowly no issue with grip its ponderous 2,700kg ensuring all sneakers stay on terra firma.
It's steep and the track easy then we hear on the radio the convoy is stuck at a climb - I know which one too hahaha then gridlock on the track. Chaos 4 vehicles stuck on the slope. One winching up and almost at the top, the other winching of it and a Ferozza stuck against the bank. The last another Pajero unable to move as it slides backwards each time they move it. We guide this one out the way. I bully past the sticken Ferozza and park behind the Landcruiser II being winched up. 60 minutes later its out of the way and they have two at the top of the first climb. Then I push the Volvo up the slope from dead stop several times up and up 4,000revs or less first gear and lockers engaged front and rear slowly I make it. Daffy is next and it demolishes the hill the Simex XT's providing awesome grip and the 1KZ the power.
The traffic jam
The second landcruiser ahead of me I pull up beside it and park unable to pass the winch cable.
Volvo victorius at the top of the slope 3 more to go.
Yup its a long way down that slippery slope.
Then the problem 1/2 of them want to stay and 1/2 want to leave they have our tarp so Paul goes back down to collect it and back up. Then the Volvo winches down the Landcriuiser 80 Series and then the second Landcruiser II and my PTO jams winding the cable back in #@#@#@##@ Damn. By this time its dark and its raining again upwards we climb in the dark 800 meters to CAMP and the track is a SLIPPERY mess the Volvo sits on 3,800-4,000 revs first gear low lockers engaged engine screaming and slowly crawling up catching DAFFY the track is destroyed someone has bulldozed it what a mess. Then we see lights (wah lights who from) and a camp and we are at the waterfall. The camp is a MUDDY mess and we see the reason an excavator. We pitch camp right in the sea of mud opposite the wonderful Lata (waterfall) Pendat.
Dinner is cooked for me as I relax with a cold beer. 3-4am I am woken by a huge rainstorm pounding our camp and water flows freely under our beds. Morning reveals all the damage to this little paradise is immense a complete bank destroyed and the track which leads to the crashed C47 Dakota all gone and the HUGE bambo plants all ripped out in the name of a temporary shelter. We are camped in 3-4 inches of mud. They are putting a building up for 150 school kids for a research camp for 5 days - unbelieveable damage for a 5 day camp.
The magnicicient first 30 meters of Lata Pendat the rest climbs another 70+ meters up the hill.
Anyway we relax even if the Volvo is leaking oil from the front axles and the whole day is spent sitting at the waterfall or in the shade of camp talking crap and putting up ideas for the customisation of the rear of the Volvo and relaxing and eating.
