MacRitchie Dawn Trek & Treetop Walk

Duration

3 hours

Group size

Up to 12 guests

Languages

English, Tamil

The take

We start at Venus Drive, the shorter way in, and spend the early cool on the forest trail, so you're up on the TreeTop Walk as it opens and ahead of the day's crowds. There's no Monday walk, since the bridge closes on Mondays except public holidays.

Meet Aravind

Aravind is a former NParks naturalist who leads this walk from Venus Drive. He paces it so the group reaches the HSBC TreeTop Walk first thing, with time along the way to stop for whatever is calling or moving in the canopy. If you'd like to kayak afterwards, Paddle Lodge on the reservoir is a separate booking, made through the Singapore Canoe Federation.

Highlights

The short approach from Venus Drive, rather than 4.5km in from Lornie Road
The 250m HSBC TreeTop Walk, up to 25m above the forest floor
Macaques you're sure to see, and colugos if we're lucky

What you'll do

1
7:15 AM
Venus Drive trailhead
The Venus Drive carpark, off Upper Thomson Road, opens at 7am, and the nature reserve is open 7am to 7pm. Before we set off, we go over trail manners and what to listen for, and everyone zips their food away from the macaques.
2
7:45 AM
Forest approach
About 2.5km through the forest to the ranger station, at an easy pace while the air is still cool, so we reach the bridge just as it opens.
3
9:00 AM
TreeTop Walk
Cross the free, one-way suspension bridge, then loop back through the forest for macaques, monitor lizards and, with luck, colugos. The bridge is open 9am to 5pm on weekdays and 8.30am to 5pm on weekends and public holidays (last entry around 4.45pm), and closed Mondays except public holidays.

Good to know

Naturalist guide

Binoculars to borrow

Trail snacks

First aid and rain cover

Finding it: Venus Drive carpark off Upper Thomson Road, at the TreeTop Walk trailhead, rather than the Lornie Road entrance at the reservoir end, where Paddle Lodge is.

#hiking #wildlife #treetop walk #macritchie #nparks