CAR CAMPING AND BIRDING

Date: 14 July 2019
Location: Frasers Hill
Gear: 7D2 + 400mm f5.6



I went to Frasers Hill during the weekend to do some car camping, and birding at the same time. It is a nice thing to do to relax and get away from the city. I find that I do that more often nowadays as the stress level goes up and boredom creeps in.

By car camping I mean pack everything I need - food stuff, cooking stove, pots and pans, clothing, and sleep overnight or two inside my CRV, converted into a camper. I took out the two back seats and put a full size air mattress for sleeping and put a rooftop box to put all my food box, cooking gears, pots and pans, foldable chair, sleeping bag, clothing, camera tripod, camera bag and a tent, to free up my cabin space for sleeping. The cabin is wide enough to sleep three people, albeit a little tight. If I need more space I just erect my tent beside the CRV or underneath the gazebo.

I used to stay in the hotels all the time whenever I went to Fraser Hill, but it is more fun to camp outside nowadays. Furthermore, I am not restricted by the check-ins and check-out time. The best part of all is that not staying in a hotel while birding will save you a lot of money, which you can use to buy your camera gears like lenses or tripods. Of course if the weather is very bad, and you cannot stand it you can always check-into a hotel. I could have saved thousands of Ringgit had I started this earlier and used the money to buy my dream Canon 600mm f4 lens, but it is water under the bridge now. However, it is better late than never. Nowadays, I am more relax about birding because if the birding is bad, I can always enjoy camping and cooking food outdoor, enjoy hot food in cool weather. 

Bring enough food and water supply to last your camping duration..and don't forget the coffee! It is a must especially when it rains and your birding stops. There is nothing like sipping your hot coffee under the shade when it rains and cold.

Car camping is very mobile because if you do not like one spot, or if you feel unsafe or no privacy due to too many people or cars, you can always pack up and move to another spot. Just make sure that if you are alone you do not park too far in isolated places because safety is the utmost importance.

Frasers Hill has a few gazebos along the winding roads which are up for grab on a basis of who arrived there first and they are free. Just keep them clean after you used them for the next users, please.

So, i woke up early in the morning to bathe around 6.30 a.m, and prepare my breakfast - pancake and eggs with coffee cooked on a portable stove. 

Pancakes for breakfast. They are easy to prepare and taste good especially with honey syrup.

After breakfast I heard a repeated knocking sound on a tree trunk nearby and I thought to myself that must be a woodpecker starting his day early as the sun just about to rise. The lighting was poor as the sun rays appear in between trees, and the area was still misty and cold. It took me a while to spot the bird which was just a few meters away up on a tree near my camping spot. It was not a woodpecker but a Fire-tufted Barbet getting up early to create a nesting hole in the tree trunk. It was too busy making a hole in the tree trunk to notice me below snapping a few shots at it.

A Fire-tufted Barbet picking a spot on a tree trunk to make a nesting hole

I stopped my birding during noon to cook my lunch. I used to have lunch at the foodcourt last time but now I prefer to cook my own lunch as it is more fun and relaxing. If you go camping you need to bring all of the essentials like cooking oil, butter, black pepper and salt, onions, garlic , rice and potatoes. For your beef steak and fish, you can marinate and freeze them the night before and carry them in a cooler with ice pack. I use mini stoves with propane or butane gas, and sometimes I used foldable stove with square fuel tablets which are cheap. I like these versus using chopped woods as they are cleaner and fast. Sometimes I cannot find dry wood especially when it rains.

Cut potatoes with onion, garlic and black pepper

Beef steak with black pepper sauce

A salmon steak with black pepper sprinklered on top saute in butter

My lunch was fantastic, i forgot about birding for a while. Later, a female Large Niltava dropped by my camp site to say hello and maybe get some leftover for lunch?

A female Large Niltava dropped by to say hello

After noon a wave of Sultan Tits came over the bushes looking for insects. They were very skittish and difficult to lock on. They made a very distinct tweet sound.

A Sultan Tit with a dried caterpillar

My birding stopped around 5.00 p.m due to rain and heavy mist, but it was fine by me as I could just sit under the shade and sip a cup of hot coffee. I was happy to get some shots of these beautiful birds on Frasers Hill. I took an hour nap in my camper before going back home to the city. The trip cost me almost nothing except for the one tank of petrol, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I look forward to go car camping and birding nowadays every two to three weeks just to relax. You should give it a try too.

Thanks for reading. Till next time go out there and have a great birding...and camping too.