Review of Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, Singapore
The review focuses upon the trail to the summit of Bukit Timah Hill within the context of the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (‘BTNR’) and the socio-economic value of open green spaces for local communities – everywhere.
Head for the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (‘BTNR’) and you’re in the centre of the island and about 10 km from the country’s commercial district and the popular tourist heartlands of Marina Bay, the heritage buildings in the ex-colonial administrative area and, of course, the Gardens by the Bay. This is where short-term visitors can typically be found – at those well-known international destinations. And why not – this is a comfortable, well-managed and interesting country.
Want to explore the back blocks of the country? Here you’re far more likely to meet the locals; to escape the traffic, high rise, noise, etc. and to enjoy the relative tranquillity of the native rainforest with the flora and fauna that has been carefully encouraged, re-introduced, nurtured and more; to catch a glimpse of the island as-it-once-was before the modern era? That will mean taking a relative subjective view of what you can see and do in the wilderness areas that have been (re-)established over the years.
The parks, reserves, wet-lands and water catchment areas available across the island represent an asset beyond measure to the country – in the preservation of what once was, but also in the way that these lands/forests have been made available to local people – for recreation, access to nature and the personal health/well-being that comes from escaping the built environment.
The lands/forests are well-used by local people. Of a weekend, for example the trails, stairways, tracks and surfaced access roads are the domain of bikes, scooters and walkers – many in family groups with kids in pushchairs or in backpacks. Exercise people can be found everywhere. And why not. We had a couple of hours enjoying the trail in the BTNR – from the enormous Visitor Centre at the base of the summit trail to the rock on the summit that proudly promote it as the highest point in the island at 163.63 m. Stand on the summit rock – as many people were doing for a photo shot – and, for a few minutes, you’re the highest girl/boy/woman/man in the country.
Start with the BTNR then. Well, it’s small at just 1.7 km2. It runs consecutively with the Dairy Farm Nature Park and a couple of quarries to the north and, to the south, two smaller nature reserves and wetlands.
Next to the BTNR, and separated by the Bukit Timah Expressway, is the Central Catchment Area – comprising a mix of nature reserves, lakes, open lands and forestlands with a core area estimated >40 km2. There are additional green lands linking the core with the northern and western coasts of the island. So, lots of walking/biking opportunities.
The history of the island’s timber/land resources during the colonial years has always been one of exploitation – extracting timber and working the land for minerals. Fortuitously, the island’s authorities had sufficient to vision – late 19th century remember – to evaluate land cover/forests and then to establish a series of nature reserves. BTNR was the first in 1883. This did not halt exploitation, but it subsequently led to further protective measures and resulted in the 28 km2 reserves island-wide available today - under the control of the National Parks Board.
Of course, none of this was clear at the time we chose to walk to the top of Bukit Timah Hill. We estimated the walk at 2.50 km one way. It took us about 45 minutes following the tar seal track – four adults and three little kids – the three-year-old with a push chair in reserve. Apart from the first 250 m which were steep, it was an easy shallow gradient for most of the way. The alternative 150 m steps that provide a shorter route to the summit were closed off.
Round the final bend and there’s this surprisingly open platform of land – no point, of course, but simply level/rounded land with a public shelter. Take a seat and look around you. There were an estimated 50 people doing just that when we were there. Perhaps, one of the most interesting features was the historical ‘Summit’ board which described the hill – in words and photos - during the 19th C. The hill was largely denuded of cover. Everything you see today >120 years later is new. There used to be a ‘rest house’ here for the selected few to escape the colony for a few days … at a cost of S$2/day in 1892. (It was not clear if this was in 1890’s or today’s money.) Whatever, it attracted limited interest by that time and, in the early 1900s, it was replaced by a telecommunication tower. Now there’s a choice.
Gorgeous, lush green foliage and endless trees envelope the trail to the summit. Eighty years of protected management? Tropic rainforests grow fast when encouraged. Of the wildlife there we saw a handful of monkeys, some distant/noisy birds; and the people - the majority were middle- to vintage-age, and there were fewer younger people/families. It was decidedly easier when descending, but the addition of more strategically spaced benches would have made the walking easier both ways. At the beginning of the trail the Visitor’s Centre was still closed.
For those interested getting to the trail is easy. Head for the Beauty World MRT station. Through the Mall behind, cross the Upper Bukit Timah Road bridge, then 400 m along Hindhede Road is the Visitor’s Centre. Make sure you get there before it closes.
Peter Steele
04October2023