January 6, 2012

Bukit Timah Bike Trail

The Bukit Timah Bike Trail follows approximately the boundary of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. The total trail distance is 6km. This walk would include side trips to the Hindhede quarry in the Hindhede Nature Park, the Singapore Quarry and the Wallace Education Centre.
Bukit Timah Nature Reserve Visitor Centre
Hindhede Quarry
We started the walk after lunch at the Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre at Pei Wah Ave off Upper Bukit Timah Road. It has a wide selection of food to choose from. We headed for the visitor centre at Hindhede Road via Jalan Jurong Kechil and Jalan Anak Bukit. We accessed the track next to the toilet at the visitor centre that led to the Hindhede Quarry in the Hindhede Nature Park. After that we followed the trail that led us to the carpark from which we began walking along the bike trail. The start of the trail was steep and filled with rough granite stones. The bike trail consisted mostly of dirt track with steep portions clearly designated on mapboards.
Hindhede Quarry

Singapore Quarry
Just before the track went under Jalan Asas through a tunnel, there was a path on the left that allowed one to reach Jalan Asas. This road would end at the Singapore Quarry where one could rest and admire the quarry cliff and the wildfire and plant life. On some occasion one could see see the white bald headed eagle.

Tunnel Under Jalan Asas

We spotted some immature durian on the ground leading us to look up to check on the durian tree.
Singapore Quarry

Near the MOE Adventure School we could hear students going through their training. At the Dairy Farm Pass was an open field between two cliffs. We came across film crews doing location shoots. At one time an Indian film crew with artistes in period costume were filming some Indian epic and on this trip another crew with modern theme busy doing their makeup. We also came across a guy in full backpack training for a trek to Nepal.

Filming at Dairy Farm Pass

Wallace Education Centre and Wallace Trail
After some steep climbs, the track crossed a road that led to the Wallace Education Centre. It had clean toilet facilities and drinking water, an information hall and a training hall. It was a dairy farm in the colonial days hence the names of the surrounding areas such as Dairy Farm Trail, Dairy Farm Pass, etc. Beyond the Wallace Education Centre was a small trail called the Wallace Trail that looped back to the access road. There was a sign mentioning the last tiger being spotted there.


Wallace Education Centre
We returned to the bike trail and moved on until we hit the Belukar Trail where we turned right. Here we had a choice of staying on the Belukar Trail or the open Pipeline Trail which was parallel to it.

Bukit Timah Pipeline Trail

Just before Rifle Range Road there were two sets of exposed pipelines. Between the two sets of pipelines we looked for the trail on the right that would lead us to the Senapang Trail. Senapang means rifle as this trail was beside the rifle range below. When we reached a junction we followed the sign that pointed us to the visitor centre. The other trail would continue on to the Kampong Trail and MacRitchie Reservoir.

See Also:
Exploring Bukit Timah Hill  

Route

View AroundBtTimahHill in a larger map

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