Tom During our recent trip to Ipoh, we visited the Tempurung Cave (aka Gua Tempurung) cave network and we impressed at how well-kept the entire venue is. Gua Tempurung is just a 30 minutes ride from Ipoh city centre and is definitely worth a visit if you’re visiting Ipoh for the first time.
About Tempurung Cave (aka Gua Tempurung)
Tempurung Cave (aka Gua Tempurung) is located in Gopeng Perak, a short 30 minutes ride from Ipoh. Having visited the Waitomo Glowworm Caves in New Zealand, we were able to see the similarities of the limestone cave networks of both locations (of course without the Glow Worms at Tempurung) and we must say that the Tempurung Caves are very well maintained.
At 4.5km long, the Tempurung Cave network is one of the longest and largest cave network in Peninsular Malaysia. Of the 4.5km, only 1.9km is accessible to visitors with a 1.6km underground river that flows through it. It is these waters that carve out the beautiful cave networks and limestone formations that you will see within the Gua Tempurung network.
There are several caverns that you can visit at Gua Tempurung, including the Golden Flowstone Cavern, Alam Cavern, Tin Mine Cavern, Gergasi Cavern and the Battlefield Cavern. During which, you will be able to see beautiful limestone structures such as Stalactites (that grow from the ceiling downwards) and Stalagmites (that grow from the cave floor up). One way to remember is that Stalactite has a “T” that represents growing from the Top downwards while Stalagmites has a “G” that represents growing from the Ground upwards.
Our Visit To Tempurung Cave (aka Gua Tempurung) from Ipoh to Gopeng Perak
There are a couple tours that you can take at the Tempurung Cave network. The dry tour (self-guided) takes you through tours 1 and 2 and costs 30RM per person. This tour took us about 1.5 hours to and fro, inclusive of a 10 minutes break at the wind tunnel. There are also tours that will take you through the river network that flows through Gua Tempurung – this will be more expensive and requires more stamina (to climb up and down the stairs as well as along the river) as well as more courage (as you will go through dimly lit areas that will require a local guide).
As you can see from this photo above, the climb itself requires ascension and descension, up and down flights of stairs. Some of these stairs can be quite long and a little steep and slippery. However, if you do it slowly and hold on to the railings, there isn’t really a big challenge to most visitors. Our church friends, at the age of close to 70 years old, were able to climb with relative ease – yes, they are actually very fit for their age.
At Platform 2, you’ll not only be able to see a view of where you’ll be eventually heading to, you’ll also see the words “Echo Echo”. Some visitors would attempt to shout and listen to echos. Try not to do that too much because almost everyone along the cavern can hear you say “hello!”. 😅
At Platform 3, you’ll see something unique known as the Golden Flowstones. These are slightly different from the thin, sheet-like flowstones that we saw at Waitomo New Zealand, instead, you’ll some formations that look like curtain drapes, also known as “draperies”. Slight thicker, formations that congregate together. From there, the ascension continues…😩
Platform 4 aka Wind Tunnel, is probably our favourite part of the Tempurung Cave network. At this platform, you can really feel the wind that gets “siphoned” into this small tunnel and the wind that is really cool, cools you down fast. This was also our rest-stop on both the ascension and descension. Feel the cool breeze while you catch your breath from all that climbing here.
At the top of the stairs, you will reach Platform 5 (Top of the World) where you’ll be able to look back and see the trek (and steep stairs) that you had conquered to reach here so far. The views are also quite spectacular here.
At the top, you’ll find a gate that blocks visitors from proceeding further. If you take a look, you’ll find a steep flight of stairs that takes you down to the river network. From here, Tour 3 commences and will require a guide, along with protective gear such as helmets for the trek along the underground river network.
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We actually enjoyed the dry walk covering Tours 1 and 2 at Tempurung Cave. You’ll see the interesting limestone formations at Gua Tempurung as well as the beautiful views enroute. Remember to take a break at the Wind Tunnel – our favourite rest stop along the entire cave network at Gua Tempurung. If you’re visiting Ipoh, remember to do this side trip to Gua Tempurung (Tempurung Cave), you’ll be in for an enjoyable day trip ahead!
