On the 3rd and 4th of April 2017, Abram and his family invited me, and Samuel, along for their Pulau Ubin camping trip. It was a brand new experience for me as I have never been to Pulau Ubin before, let alone talking about camping. Okay, I've been to school camps, but none of them are legit "camping". I was pretty mosquito-resistant so I figured this would be a fun trip! And it was! Read on to find out!
3rd April 2017
Woke up at 7:30am to pack for the camping trip. Left house at 8:30am and arrived at Abram's house at 9 sharp. I helped them carry all the gear downstairs, into the MaxiCab. There were such a lot of gear that the MaxiCab was filled to the fullest.
We reached Changi Ferry Terminal at around 10:15am, which Samuel was already there. We then went for breakfast at a nearby Malay coffeeshop. We had mee rebus while Abram's dad (Uncle Colin) went to buy some bread.
Then we headed back to the Terminal for departure. The bumboat ride costed total $36 because we didn't want to wait for the whole boat (12 pax) to fill up. It was a short 15 minutes ride and we promptly reached Pulau Ubin.
We immediately hired a van to fetch our gear to the camping location. We chose a flat sandy ground at the Jelutong Campsite and laid everything out. Took us about 30 minutes to set up the two huge tents.
We also went to the bicycle shop and rented 3 bikes for the whole trip. These 3 bikes are for me, Abram and Samuel. It costed $15 for the entire day and overnight too!
We then cycled to find lunch after setting up the tarp (orange shelter). We ate at this seafood restaurant. They had very nice food!
We ate fried rice and kangkong and sweet&sour pork. We then packed the remaining fried rice and ordered a little more meat for Abram's parents, who were waiting at the campsite. Then we went off to find the mountain bike trail.
We decided to take on the Black Diamond trail, second toughest difficulty in Ubin. Along the trail, we had to dismount and push as the terrain was too much to cycle properly. Regrets happened when slippers have a life of their own.
Unfortunately the Double Black Diamond was closed to we were stuck with Black Diamond all the way. Halfway into the trail, after 30 minutes of tough journey, there was this super steep downwards slope. Samuel went first and Abram followed. I told them to keep distance so they won't crash into each other at the bottom of the slope.
Samuel just had to fall down there and then. Me and Abram then rushed down and found him in the bushes. He was filled with mud and bitten by tons of mosquitoes.
After that incident, both of them were desperate to find a way out. And so we did. We exited onto a gravel path as soon as we see one. Then we headed back to camp.
Uncle Colin had already started the campfire so I was tasked to find more wood. Abram and Samuel went to help out with pumping the beds and sorting out the kitchen stuff while I went to look for fresh wood. I used Abram's portable saw to cut down many trees. Albeit fresh, the wood is thick enough to produce a good fire. I kept the fire burning bright all the way till dinnertime.
Dinner was prepared by Aunt Ivy. There were macaroni, broccoli and chicken. She used a portable stove to cook all that. Then, I went back to attend to the fire till 10pm. I was quite tired so I just left the fire alone; I also ran out of wood and it was too dark to get more.
Went back to the tent and prepared to rest for the day at around 10:30pm.
4th April 2017
This morning starts at 4am. Here's why. I slept at around 10:30pm and was awakened by flashing lights at 2.12am (checked my phone at that time). It was boss Abram guarding the area, chasing away wild animals if any. Went back to sleep shortly. At 3:30am, I woke up to sounds of thunder and flashes of lightning. Abram was asleep in my tent at this moment.
At 4:30am, I was completely wide awake because I needed to pee. Just a few minutes later, it started raining. Chaos ensued. The wind was so great that water came seeping into the tent from below. Half of the tent is exposed to the heavy rain. And Abram is still sound asleep! Samuel and me immediately stood up and stepped on the tent's foundation to prevent the whole thing from flying away.
Abram slowly woke up and realised the situation. Since Uncle Colin and Aunt Ivy knew this was gonna happen, they set up their tent right and theirs was dry throughout the night. The 3 of just enjoyed the chaos in our tent. Soon, our bags were on the air-filled beds while we were in the puddles inside our tent. I don't know how but Abram managed to fall back asleep.
Due to the dark of the night, I couldn't take any pictures. But it was legitly fun to see chaos and laugh about it. I stayed awake all the way. Played phone games to pass time. At 6:30am, the rain stopped and I stepped outside to walk around.
Caught the sunrise at 7am sharp and didn't regret staying awake. I waddled around in the sea before deciding to cycle around to take some pictures.
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| This was right beside our campsite. |
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| Our campsite |
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| Public jetty |
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| The last stage still standing in Ubin |
Then, I went back to the campsite at 10:30am to prepare for tear down. We dismantled the tents first before dismantling the tarp.
Everything was still wet so some parts were left to dry first. We then had breakfast prepared by Aunt Ivy also. It was luncheon meat and some nuts, and the yucky cherry tomatoes. We then continued our tear down.
We finished tear down just before noon.
We then called a van to ferry our gear back to the main village, with the 3 of us cycling behind. We returned the bikes while Uncle Colin unloaded some of his gear to have his friend safe-keep them in his yard till he returns one month later. With the lighter load, it was more manageable for the return trip. This time, the bumboat was almost full so we only needed to pay $2 per person.
Promptly reached Changi Ferry Terminal at 1pm. Samuel called a GrabCar and he left first. Me and Abram's family took a normal taxi back to the West. On behalf of Samuel also, special thanks to Abram and his family for sponsoring the entire trip. Thank you Uncle Colin and Aunt Ivy!
And here's a photo of Abram texting you-know-who:
Brought to you by: Edwin Ang :)
