We hired a car this weekend, a first for us in Malaysia.

We headed out through KL's jumbly but always interesting burbs, bound initially for KKB. The valley road that delivers you there is super-pretty, all trees and chuckling river, and KKB was as charming as ever. We had second breakfast at Sun Sun Nam Cheong (hailam mee for me), and collected some of Teng Wun's renowned kaya puffs for use at our first view stop.

Our main destination was Bukit Fraser, and the road up from KKB is fabulous. It climbs; it twists; and it offers tantalizing glimpses back to the hot flatlands as it threads its way through increasingly high walls of vegetation.

Not surprisingly, the lower reaches, where the road is wide and smooth, are popular with motorbikers, who lean terrifyingly into the corners.

As you go further up, the road narrows, and the traffic thins. We stopped three times. Once for kaya puffs and views of the Sungai Selangor dam. The second time for a pretty waterfall. The third time just because we could.









About eight kms from Bukit Fraser, a one-way road splits off from the main road, and you go in glorious convoy for the rest of the way. There weren't many of us that day, though.

We checked into Ye Olde Smokehouse, which I instantly liked. Some reviewers really diss it. I think it's delightful. We didn't go for the higher-end accommodation options, and yet we had a big room, with a four-poster bed and two comfy armchairs. On offer are the little extras that really lift a place (dressing gowns, slippers, fruit, cookies). And the decor -- not just in our room, but in the whole place -- is wonderfully 1930s. If only our room had had a kettle, it would have been quite perfect... There's something about chintz that demands copious supplies of hot tea.









After briefly absorbing this, we pretty much bounced straight back out again, and spent the afternoon pacing the little town. The much-photographed clock tower; the grey-stone, 1930s-style cottages; the brilliantly green golf course; the still polite tribes of monkeys; the lush vegetation, with tree-ferns galore; the cool air; and the amazing birdsong -- all this was very good.











The absolute highlight of my afternoon, however, was Allan's Water, a small lake on the edge of the town. There are paddle-boats to hire, and fish to feed, but we eschewed all that, and just set off along the side of the water. Incredibly atmospheric. The thunder was rolling overhead, but only light spatterings of rain came our way. Wreaths of cloud drifted in and out. Reflections flickered gorgeously, stirred by the zephyrs that flitted by. The strange, thundery light made the glossy vegetation glow. Away from the active end of the lake it was blissfully quiet, with birds and butterflies and squirrels just going about their business, pretty much ignoring us. Wonderful.







Ye Olde Smokehouse will also serve you a very decent dinner. There was nothing at all wrong with my grilled salmon, but the highlight for me was the bread-and-butter pudding. This wonderful English nursery treat seems to have lingered on in peninsular Southeast Asia in a more sophisticated form (I've seen it served at posh buffets, for example). This one was both pretty and toothsome.



We got up before dawn on Sunday, to walk the mountain roads in readiness for the dawn chorus. Underwhelming. It was raining, and the birds seemed to have corporately decided that they'd stay at home and read the paper until it wasn't. The misty valley views were nice, though.



Fortified by a generous Smokehouse brekkie, we set off down the wibbly-wobbly road to Raub. From time to time the twists and turns afforded views of seas of cloud and mountain-top islands, framed by greenery. Classic.



Raub is a busy little place on a Sunday morning. We grabbed drinks, strolled through the remains of the market, and admired the shophouses.



The roadsides in this part of the world are dotted with durian stalls. Unfortunately, there's a MYR 500 fine for hoisting durian on board our hire-car, so we didn't indulge.

On through Bentong. This stretch was ultra-jammy and very slow.

Eventually we reached the turn-off to Gombak. Route 68. This is a lovely road, with a rushing river, great mountain views, and a generally bucolic air. Then all of a sudden, you hit Kampung Bukit Tinggi, which has obviously taken off as an elevated lunch spot for KLers. It is full of restaurants, and equally full of traffic.

We carried on through, heading for Janda Baik. This is another area that has learnt to exploit its slightly cooler climes to offer dining opportunities. We had a couple of possible lunch objectives, both of which we managed to miss. Never mind. We settled on a riverside resto called Al-Hidayah, where we acquired fried rice and seafood in a tasty sauce, and -- my favourite -- PULUT MANGGA (mango with sticky rice and coconut milk). All delicious. And the whole thing cost MYR 28, including tea.



Then it was the road home. But Route 68 did not disappoint. It continued to be quiet and view-rich all the way back to Gombak.

Great weekend. I love those mountains.