The cleanest beach in Malaysia

By the time I arrived, it was late afternoon around 4:00 PM or so. As usual, I detoured to several places along the route to discover new spots and revisit some old ones for food.

​I knew my usual spot, but this time I was thinking of trying a beach further down the road, very near Pekan town in Pahang. Every time this town is mentioned, it reminds me of a popular public figure in Malaysia. Along this stretch of beach, I decided to have an early dinner as I didn’t plan to do any cooking. I spotted a stall and had rojak and a teh tarik. The bill came to RM5 not bad for a meal. Thinking I might get hungry at night, I packed two hard-boiled eggs. I could hardly believe it when the cashier asked for RM4 for two eggs, especially compared to my earlier meal of just RM5.

​I scouted the area once I reached the new beach. The toilet was open, but the man at the counter was missing. I wanted to know what time they closed. Seeing a few men sitting by a gazebo, I asked if any of them was the caretaker. One said yes and told me they close at 6:30 PM.

​With not much time left, I rode around the beach trying to find the perfect spot. It wasn’t quite to my liking. It was too sandy, and I prefer grass. On the plus side, the beach is quite far from the road. Since it was a weekday, there was nobody else there. As it was getting late, I decided to head back to my usual spot.

​There is a nice restaurant across the road from the beach. I used to have dinner there and shower while waiting for my food. Strangely, it was closed today. However, I decided to go in anyway to get some water for my shower later. A tomboy appeared from behind a stall. She had blonde hair and was quite beautiful. She told me they were waiting for the chef to arrive. I asked if I could get some water, and she agreed. I took out my plastic bag and started filling it up.

​Just my luck there was a cactus plant near the basin. It punctured my plastic bag! As I was carrying it back to my motorcycle, water started spilling out, but luckily I had another plastic bag to double it up.

​The wind had been gusty since my arrival. I thought I would hold off on setting up the tent, hoping the wind would die down later. To pass the time, I tried making a simple shelter with my diamond-shaped tarp. I tied one end of a rope to a tree trunk and anchored the other end to the ground. Luckily, my soft ground peg held firm. I draped the tarp over the line and pegged both ends down. It created an opening facing the tree and a closed end facing the sea. It was a bit pathetic, honestly! I had to squat just to get inside.

​After over an hour, the wind showed no sign of slowing. Realizing there was no point in waiting, I pitched my solo tent. It took me 20 minutes or less. I positioned the longitudinal side of the tent toward the wind, which made the setup much easier.

​Once it got dark, it was time for a quick wash. I tied the bag of water to my motorcycle handlebar so it was suspended off the ground. I cut a hole in one corner of the bag and tried to rig a "tap" using a 500ml water bottle cut in half. It turned out to be useless. the water flow was too slow, probably because the double-layered plastic made the hole too small. I went back to my old reliable method using my pot to pour water over myself. I stripped down naked and applied a thin layer of soap. It was freezing in the breeze! I had to be quick, hoping no passing cars would spot me.

​Suddenly, the moon appeared high above, slightly dimming the stars of Orion’s Belt. A silly thought occurred to me, since the wind is blowing non-stop, why doesn't it blow the moon away? Maybe I’ll pose that riddle to the kids next time I camp with them.

​Another question I asked myself how did scientists figure out that gravity causes the high and low tides? Gravity isn't something we can see. After some cognac and reading, I called it a night. I slept well.

​I woke up the next morning to the sound of motorcycles and cars passing by. I was just in time for the sunrise, though it was a bit of an anticlimax. Then came the "ladies in bright orange" sweeping the beach. From previous trips, I’ve noticed they clean the beach about four times a day. They don't just clean the hangout spots, they even clean the sandy parts. It is by far the cleanest beach in Malaysia. The only drawback is that the sea isn't as blue as it is in the northern areas.