Tarzan and Jane rock Taman Negara

Before you make assumptions...Tarzan and Jane refers to myself and my husband, who actually does swing from vines. Just ask the camera-happy group of tourists from Tokyo.

We booked a simple package through Han Travel that was basically transportation and a few nights accommodation in a hostel. A six hour bus ride was the necessary first step to reaching the jungle of Taman Negara in the heart of Malaysia. Hundreds of acres of palm oil plantation framed either side of the freeway. Chris spent an unfortunate couple of hours bouncing around like a rag doll in a broken bus seat. Another guy a few rows back was similarly afflicted, and it was like a bizarre synchronized routine when we traversed rocky roads with them both bouncing along to the tune of the highway.

This was followed by a three hour jungle cruise on a longboat following the Sengei Tahan river. Fifty of us patiently waited on a small floating wood dock at Kuala Tembeling Jeti as a line of covered wooden longboats waited to load its passengers. This part of the journey was lovely. I spy a long-tailed macaque, little blue parrots with a red head, young Malaysian boys swimming naked in the river, a few local fisherman checking traps - of which I can only see a dirty old water bottle buoy - and hours of undisturbed heavy ivy-draped jungle backing right onto the river bank.

Taman Negara is 130 million years old, older than the Amazon. There are a startling 200 species of mammal including tiger, jaguar, spotted leopard, golden cat, clouded leopard, spotted civet cat, Asian sun bear, wild boar, and wild elephant to name a few. While my concern lies with the tiger, apparently the elephants are a much more common problem. They are strong, fast, and not afraid to approach humans. There have been no reported killings of humans by tiger in Taman Negara. Of course I'm thinking there is a first time for everything.

We disembark at Mama Chop, a floating restaurant on the banks of Kuala Tahan. There's a fifty cent fee to cross from the restaurant to the sand island via two skinny splintering planks of wood over the river. Ha, surely that's a joke? Our hostel, Liana Hostel, is up a steep hill and is pretty much what you might expect for RM10 per night. No serious complaints, but no redeeming qualities either. Possibly infested with bed bugs.

We wake from a restless night with no top sheet, eager to explore the Malay jungle. We pay a RM5 camera fee and a RM1 entrance fee at the park ranger station before entering. This is worth paying because if caught without your camera permit you face RM10,000 or three years in jail. The canopy walk beckons us first, as it closes at 2pm and gets full later in the day. It is a stealthy 420m walkway comprised of aluminum ladders, wooden planks, and a hammock of rope cradling the whole package all 40 meters off the ground. You are instructed to keep a distance of ten meters from the person in front of you, and off you go - traversing through jungle canopy and pausing for breath at a series of wood tree platforms to enjoy the view you would have as a long-tailed macaque.

The canopy walk takes a quick half hour, so we begin the Bukit Indah trail with plans to enjoy our sack lunch at its conclusion. Tigers and wild elephants aside (not to mention the deer!), we decide to undertake the jungle trail sans guide. We ford a few streams, clamber over thick twisted tree roots and duck under heavy vines, this trail is not well maintained. Every 1/2 km there seems to be a yellow blaze that lets us know we're still on the trail. Thankfully it follows the Sungei Tembeling river, so as long as we can hear the longboats, we're not far off course. The last few hundred feet is a steep ascent aided by ropes in case of mud or fear of heights - there are cliffs on either side. At the top we enjoy gorgeous views of the river valley and layers of jungle-laden hills hiding in fog. Thunder rumbles in the distance. The rapids serenade us from the swift river below. We dive in to our amazing sack lunch, purchased from the expensive and beautiful Mutiara Resort. Fried chicken, boiled egg, an apple, a slice of fruit cake, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (they even cut off our crusts!) and an orange juice box. Wow. The return hike is noticeably slower as we are considerably fuller.

The jungle is peppered with a handful of "hides" for enthusiastic trekkers who wish to spend the night in the depths of the jungle. Bumbun Tahan hide - near the resort, is a good sampling of what we almost spent the night in. It's a kind of tree house with stairs leading up to an a-frame cement platform standing two stories above the snakes, lizards, and insects below. We take a rest and watch a Samba deer eating lunch in the meadow just 20 yards from the hide. They are the best chance you have of spotting wildlife as they are placed deeper in the jungle, away from civilization. And many of the larger mammals are nocturnal.

We round out our long day in the jungle with a slow meander around the swamp loop. It is a nice boardwalk through the underbrush, and we see all manner of birds including black pheasants wearing blue party masks as if they're heading to the ball.

Did we mention it's 88 degrees and humid in here? We are both now (still) dripping with sweat and dying for a swim. There are only two places safe for swimming in this area, so we head to the spot closest: Lubok Simpon. This is one of the most sacred places I have ever had a paddle. Lubok Simpon is a beautiful, peaceful swimming hole deep in the jungle, a slower offshoot of the main river. Great big vine-covered trees shoot up like green walls on either side of the river, reminding you of this precious experience. A German decides to bathe in the nude for lack of a suit and is comically startled when longboats start motoring their way past full of tourists heading back to the village.

On our hike back we see a samba deer making friends with a group of Japanese tourists, rubbing his new antlers across the man's shoe and leg in the same manner as an overly affectionate dog craving a good stroke. The deer seems to get a kick out of the word "hi" which they repeat with great enthusiasm. I have never seen a deer behave this way and it's amusing but also a depressing sign of over-exposure to humans.

This is the jungle as we have found it in just a few short unguided day hikes, and we feel lucky to have witnessed it. I hope it's here for future generations to enjoy as we have.