Take The Path Less Ordinary

This trail has enough scenery to take your breath away

Pay good attention once you pass Kea Farm on your right. It’s the cue to look out for a small signage indication BOH Sungai Palas Plantation; some people miss this because the road is windy. Your goal is to get down at the spot where BOH signage stands. Here’s a smart move: Tell bus conductor to give you a holler when the bus hits the spot. Most conductors are helpful and speak smattering English. However, if you see the Tringkap signage - you have overshot (see map above). Swear at the conductor (under breath) if this happens and backtrack.

How much time

The trail head is tucked in a steep uphill lane just off the trunk road. Assuming you are not a hardcore hiker and prefer to make multiple pitstops to enjoy the sprawling scenery, the route would eat up 2-3 hrs of your time, one way. Remember to bring raincoat because Cameron Highland has its own micro-weather and offers no warning on rainfall with dark clouds.

Tea Tale

Some say, people are like tea. You’d never know how strong they are until you put them in hot water.

The story of BOH Tea Plantation started in 1890 when 7 year old John Archibald Russell arrived in Malaysia with his father. It was a time when the country was horded by tin miners.

In partnership with his brothers Philip, Donald and Robert, in 1908, they first ventured into the rubber industry and John became one of the wealthiest and biggest land owner in Perak. Later, in 1927 he saw the potential of tea planting and together with A.B. Milne, a seasoned tea planter from Ceylon, they toiled and worked their way up the 5,000 ft above sea level highland and slowly turned jungle-clad slopes into fertile tea blanketed hillside.

The hardship of pioneering a tea plantation was compounded by the threat of communist terrorism in the 1950-60s period. In those notorious years, John and his crew never go out to work without a rifle as insurance.

The trail ends at BOH teahouse and the first thing you should indulge is its fabulous coconut tarts, besides fresh tea of course

Besides good tea, BOH is also a story of pure grit and perseverance of a small English community who called Cameron Highland home. As years went by, the plantation grew and prospered into what we now know as BOH.

Today, the plantation is managed by John’s grand daughter Caroline Russell who’s Malaysia-born and bred. She took over from her father Tristan Russell. At present, the company produces four million kg of tea annually, translating to about 5.5 million cups of tea per day - and that means 70% of all tea produced in Malaysia comes from the BOH gardens.

Besides tea?

Well, you can try asking permission to take a short stroll inside some vegetable, fruit and flower farms that dot the trail. These are mostly smallholders.

As long as you don’t tramp around like a bull on steroids, we are pretty sure farmers won’t mind your presence around the nursery beds.

More good reads …

1. Other trails in Cameron Highlands