Tenom Part 4 is the last chapter of my Tenom trip. The story has a little history of the railway and train, followed by our journey from Tenom to Tg Aru.The main reason why we went to Tenom was because we wanted to experience the exciting, thrilling, dangerous, interesting, train adventure like what we saw in an Indiana Jones' movie😂😂😂
Due to the never ending changes in technology and transport, trains and their stations are included, like in many other countries. Upgrading all forms of transport is essential in this day and age.
We are going from steam to diesel and in future to electrical like KL and Singapore, I hope.😳
A few old train stations in Sabah, were taken down to build roads and building
in places like the Tanjung Aru, Sembulan and KK town ( before it was known as Jesselton) and the wharf area.
We are going from steam to diesel and in future to electrical like KL and Singapore, I hope.😳
A few old train stations in Sabah, were taken down to build roads and building
in places like the Tanjung Aru, Sembulan and KK town ( before it was known as Jesselton) and the wharf area.
I have heard rumors about our old trains, going to be replaced with new ones. So I made the decision to go for this trip. It's now or never...
New Tg Aru train station
The previous Tg Aru train station used to be in the location marked with red arrow in the above photo. It was a simple rectangular building .
It was closed in 2007 and rebuilt to the huge new one almost on the same location.
Sembulan railway station was rebuilt for display only. The tracks are no longer in use.
KK town area. This place used to be a train station with the railway track,approximately where the blue car is, in the photo. But now, the track was converted to road and area for outstation buses/coaches and one of them is to Tenom. This is where we catch our bus on our trip as mentioned in Part 1.
Signal Hill & railway station
The beginning and end of the North Borneo railway station
Photo was taken by my father, Mr Yong Ah Lee, in April 1960
The beginning and end of the North Borneo railway station
Photo was taken by my father, Mr Yong Ah Lee, in April 1960
The building and the trees are still there today ( arrows showing)
photo was taken by me, his daughter 😜😜in 2013.
Our passion in taking photos must have run in our blood😂
End of North Borneo Railway to Jesslton Wharf.
Photo taken by my father in 1960- the arrival of HRH Prince Philip by Ship at Jesselton Wharf
Year 2013, the wharf is now called Jesselton point for passengers to the islands by boat
Look at the photo carefully, the old railway track is still there. Those days the train ends here to transport rubber and tobacco for export.
History of a 1912 train
Initially, this steam train was called "Kinabalu". It was imported from England, bought by the North Borneo Railways (NBR) in 1912 to transport passengers from Jesselton to Papar and vice versa. The service was distrupted during the 2nd World World . In 1952, it was restored and 1953 went back into service with the inaguration of the then Governor, Sir Ralph Hone. Therefore, the train was renamed after him. In 1968, the train had had, its day, due to damage that was beyond repair and so it was handed over to Sabah Museum for custody.
It is now on display at the Sabah Museum, Kota Kinabalu for history purpose
Tenom Train station
This North Borneo Railway (now known as Sabah State Railway) and train station was built in 1903 and was completed in 1905. The main purpose of this railway in those days,were to transport rubber and tobacco which were both in high demand, to Jesselton wharf (now known as Kota Kinabalu) for export.
We decided to take the 7.30am train from Tenom to Beaufort
Train shedule from Tenom to beaufort :
Mon - sat : 7.30am and 1pm
Sun : 7.30am and 12. 30pm
Sister Amy looking at the Train schedule for confirmation
you can't buy ticket online
The location of the train station is still the same as in the 1900's
Picture showed the railway track going to Beaufort.
Track continues to Melalap from Tenom? But the train only ends at Tenom,
Everyone waiting for the ticket counter to open at 7am
Train fare from Tenom to Beaufort : Adult Rm 2.75 Child Rm 1.40
Arrival of North Borneo old Diesel engine train No 5205 with 3 carriages - the same one as seen in the blogger AzuanZahdi.
It's nothing like the one we saw in Sabah Museum but it's still old. A 1971 Kawasaki, diesel engine train, imported from Japan.
Before taking such a ride, I did some reading from other bloggers to get information about it. It did help a lot in the planning and budget. Thank you Azuan Zhadi and WongLC.
Tenom is very interior from the city Kota Kinabalu and not many tourists
have the time to visit this kind of train ride, passing the river Padas and the rainforest, where the roads are impassible.
It was hot and humid but the scenery was worthwhile. I felt like Indiana
Jones, sweating +++, my dangerous adventure 😜😜😂😂
At the start of the journey from Tenom station, I thought ," wow, not bad, its not packed today"
but i was wrong. The moment the train reached Rayoh, more passengers started boarding the train
😕😕😥😥
The old Kawasaki was very loud and rough, but it was exciting and the children and adults loved it. It was a Harvest festival, a holiday, market closed, so we can't see any chickens or ducks on the train 😂😂😂 as mentioned by some bloggers, but we saw most locals putting on their best outfits and dresses for the celebration day.
There were 3 carriages. Let me see if I can describe the carriage in a simple way. Two of them were like iron boxes, they had no windows, just 4 openings each side of the carriages with only a few number of seats. The floor had wooden planks, it looked more like a cargo carriage. The third carriage was a proper passenger carriage, safer with more seats and windows, but the locals still rushed for the ones that looked like cargo carriages. We took the first cargo-like carriage and sat on the left, as advised by the locals, so we were able to have a good view of the scenery. The locals are very friendly and they knew we were not from tenom.
Be careful /take care when popping your head out of the opening, as you may inhale the black smoke every time the train started to leave each station.
But the smoke soon disappears and replaced by the wind and breeze blowing full blast from the momento and rocking of the train .
The journey was rough, loud and the squeaking of the wheel against the track can be heard. Sometime it sounds like the bolts had came off the wheel !!! Oh my Gosh!!😨😨
We were sitting and holding tightly on the handle of the chair, swaying from side to side. There are no safety belts and the old train had a couple of sudden jerks and "brakes" , then, engine went dead, capput, everyone was thrown forward! Then it started again and continued the journey to Halogilat.
No wonder the government wanted to change the train soon. It's going "Capput"!!
Inspite of all these issues, it's still an exciting and interesting ride.
I am glad to have the opportunity to have had this ride before this old train has had it's day.
Passing by Tenom Pangi Dam, which was the one and only hydro electric plant in Tenom.
The hydro electric plant began it's function in 1984 but in 1988, suffered massive huge damage because of flood. The damage was so bad that it took a long time to repair. In 2003, it was back for operation.
Padas River
At Rayoh station...more passengers came on board. I gave my seat to this mother with her cute little child. As if knowing the danger, she held tight to the handle on the chair. She kept looking at me because i sat on the floor facing the open door of the carriage, holding tight myself to the handle of the chair, just in case the train braked suddenly, I could have been thrown out of the train. I can laugh now but at that time, it's staying focused and holding tight.
The wooden floor was more comfortable than the bench. Sitting right in the front of the big opening of the carriage ( though its dangerous) ,a better view of the scenery can be captured with my phone camera while feeling the wind/breeze blowing in my face as the train choked it's way to Halogilat.
There was a train conductor in his green uniform to ensure no one is popping their heads out. I heard him telling someone off in Malay, "Adik, Bahaya tu, kau buat begitu " meaning It's dangerous, you do that ".
A packed carriage at Rayoh station
Train stopping in the middle of nowhere, like a bus stop to these villagers. To them there are no safety rules.
At Halogilat station, we alighted the old train 5205 and boarded on the 2nd train, slightly better but still rough ride until we reach Beaufort. It had more seats and a fan but was not functional. 😵😵
Arrival at Beaufort station @ 10.15am. We have to get off the 2nd train, buy another ticket, to board the 3rd train scheduled at 11am to Tg Aru. (Each train didn't go far, May be it's so old and the engine couldn't cope with the distance of 134 Km railway track)😀😀😀
Train schedule and fares
Lining up to buy train fares.
From Beaufort to Tg Aru.
It was a clean, comfortable seated with AC in a smooth, fast, quiet,moving train, like the MRT /LRT in Singapore and KL. I was able to get good views from the wide window passing by the beautiful beach,sea side, padi field, rubber trees estate, mangroves and swamps. But other than this, there isn't anything impressive, unlike the old train from tenom ...can't compare...the "indiana jones feel"😛😛😜😜😝
Train ticket from Beaufort to Tg Aru
Kimanis old shop houses
Beautiful, unspoiled Kimanis beach
Another old wooden shop houses in front of the train station at Kinarut
Lok Kawi Beach
Kota Kiniabalu International airport
Arrival at Tanjung Aru train station
End of the journey. Tired and exhausted but happy !!😂😂😂
Passengers meeting their families and relatives
Tg Aru train station : from KK to tenom
Overall it was an exhausting journey but very exciting and interesting at the same time. This trip kept us going. A worthwhile local tour
Even though we spend less than 24 hours in Tenom, we enjoyed every minute of it. My sister Amy couldn't forget the trip. It's hilarious at the same time and we had fun. We had never laughed this much on a trip.😂😂🤣🤣
References:
No comments:
Post a Comment