Island-Hopping through St John's Island, the fabled Lazarus Island, Seringat Island and Kusu Island

The beach on Lazarus Island - a wide C-shape bay and more sand than most beaches in Singapore.

St John's Island, the fabled Lazarus Island and Seringat Island

The three islands are connected - Lazarus to St John's, Seringat to Lazarus. All you have to do is find your way to St John's and you'd have access to all of them! 

St John's Island

The most well-known of the three, the island has holiday bungalows for rent and well-loved beaches of its own to boast.

Partner-in-crime Thamsy in red carrying a foldable chair and food, among other things.

A landmark that you can spot from the boat, hundred meters before reaching the island.

My cousin mentioned that she used to stay in this house during Sec School badminton camp. There was a row of such houses, which we didn't have time to explore, but looked old and worn, like they had a story to tell.

A lookout point on the causeway to Lazarus. Amazing.

Lazarus Island

As with many experiences that people try to sell you, this one is a tad hyped up.

There're nothing (save for one shelter) on this beach, except sand, sea and trees so you're completely immersed in nature, which I was a happy with, but could be a bad thing for some people. It's on you to bring all you need to make yourself comfortable - a huge beach hat, 1.5l of water and sunblock, in whichever combined amount you would prefer (and I recommend equal), a mat, and some snacks.

When we were there the sun was so hot that you'd want to be in the water or under shelter.

If it weren't that hot, it would have been way more relaxing. It's a decent stretch of beach with white, fine sand, a view of the sea not littered with countless cargo ships and very few people. We visited it during the school holidays so there's no doubt that if you visited it on a normal week day, you'd see almost no one.

If you got a boat.

Seringat Island

Not much has been written about Seringat Island. It's even quieter than Lazarus, which has stolen the limelight for having "the best beach in Singapore". I much prefer it actually! There's a nice path that leads you around the island and a couple of picnic shelters facing the sea thrown in for good measure.

Thamsy and I ended up spending most of our time there, looking at the residential estates of Sentosa Cove and enjoying the food that he prepared. The aspiring home cook is a life saver. We'd be living on chips if he didn't have pursuits like these.

Kusu Island

On the way back to the mainland, the ferry dropped us off at Kusu Island for an hour. You could probably cover its perimeter in twenty minutes. We climbed up to Datuk Kong, which appeared to be a place for prayer, and chilled out by the beach. It gives off a bit of East Coast type of vibe, but more zen. 

Kusu Island means "Turtle Island" and there were tales of how the turtle saved early sailors who reached its shores and the island's mystical healing powers. With more time it I would have liked to soak up the cultural heritage of the place.

Iconic Chinese temple in the background, and one of the many homages to turtles on the island.

Thamsy doing his best to be the last picture in Tyra's hands so he would not have to pack his bags and go home.

How to get there:

The ferry schedule as of June 2015.

1. 

Charter a yacht. Waiting for Thamsy to become a millionaire for this. Or more economically:

2.
Singapore Island Cruise will bring you to St John's Island and back for $18, stopping by Kusu Island for about an hour on the way back.

A typical weekday trip will see you leaving Marina South Pier (which you can get to via MRT to the station of the same name) at 10am and coming back to the mainland at 4.15pm. The weekends offer more timings, which you can check out here.

Resources:

Straits Times: Lazarus Island's laid-back charm
Expat Living Singapore: A step-by-step guide to finding Singapore's best beach

Getting closer to wildlife at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve

When it comes to places for spotting wildlife, not many places in Singapore come close to Sungei Buloh. In fact, it's so popular with nature photographers that just before I visited, I came across this disheartening article on their actions stressing animals just to catch the perfect shot. As such, I resolved to stay on the path, not disturb any living things and leave good photos to chance.  

Part I - The Boardwalk

Enter the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve Visitor Centre via Kranji Way to gain access to the new boardwalk which was opened to visitors late last year. The route through this area is full of lookouts, and you'd be able to see the Johor Straits, and the mud levels. 

I enjoyed this part tremendously because of the beautifully designed, vaguely conical lookouts which reminded me of both acorns and birds' nests. The structures blended perfectly with the surroundings and made for some interesting photos.  

This area was also particularly rich in wildlife, with familiar animals such as crabs, mudskippers, spiders, wild dogs, birds, monitor lizards and I've heard that you can even catch sight of a crocodile if you're lucky! We didn't, despite our best efforts, so we might have to go back there to give it another go. 

The red pincers gave it away.

A pretty shy mudskipper.

I spy a spider.

There were quite a few of these lookout points along the boardwalk.

The steps going up and down through the reserve made it a real "Jungle Gym".

The pretty shaky rope bridge was amusing to cross.

Part II - Mangrove

The reserve can be accessed by another entrance, with parking, via Neo Tiew Crescent.

The bridge that links the visitor centre to the reserve.

This part was significantly different. It was no longer a wooden boardwalk structure. Instead, we found ourselves walking on a dirt track that led us round the perimeter of the mangrove.

From one of the lookout towers. Spotted some white birds from here.

At this point we were probably a tad tired out from the noon sun and the initial exploration at the board walk. However before we left, one of  the inhabitants at this small pond with "deep water", came by to say bye.

Sungei Buloh is huge and if you really want to see it all, it would probably take 4-5 hours. Also, it is no Bishan-AMK park. There aren't any food places around, so you might want to bring along some snacks and drinks for the walk.

Resources:
NParks - https://www.nparks.gov.sg/gardens-parks-and-nature/parks-and-nature-reserves/sungei-buloh-wetland-reserve 
Straits Times - Get closer to nature at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve

Two Sides to the Peirce

I've heard of Upper and Lower Peirce reservoir but I had no idea if they were places you could visit. So it came as a surprise when we found ourselves there for over four hours checking out one of the more hidden spaces of greenery that Singapore has nestled in its central water catchment area.

Lower Peirce 

Thamsy and I kicked off our exploration of the Peirce reservoirs through the Casurina Entrance, which houses some familiar Ban Leong Wah Hoe Seafood and Casuarina Curry Restaurant near by. There are at least two boardwalk routes from Old Upper Thomson Road that lead you through Macritchie-like greenery and into Lower Peirce Reservoir. 

When we were there on a weekday morning, we saw a lot of folks doing their morning exercises and workers cleaning up the reservoir. 

It was nice, but not as spectacular as its "twin", the Upper Peirce Reservoir. 

Upper Peirce

The only sensible way to get to the very out-of-the-way Upper Peirce reservoir is to drive. We didn't, so we ended up walking some 3km down the ridiculously long Old Upper Thomson Road clearly meant for cars. (Let me know if you have a better way in for people who walk!)

Random drain pretending to be a soothing stream passing under the road is somthing Thamsy likes

There weren't many cars passing through so we made good of that by doing things like this

The great part about Upper Peirce Reservoir Park is, when you eventually get to it, its dramatic view is definitely worth the trip. It was my first time there and I've only ever seen it in pictures. Because of how inaccessible it is, we saw very few people. It might be different on the weekends but I'm sure it's way more chill than its counterparts like MacRitchie.

Unlike PM who saw a snake on his recent visit there, we didn't get a chance to see much wildlife. Hence you can be assured that it would  be unlikely that you'd encounter slithering reptiles or crocodiles or other dangerous animals, making the place extremely human-friendly.

The highlight was this strip between Upper and Lower Peirce:

Hiding under the trees for a picnic is something I'd do when I go back

For a different perspective, you could check out this blog - https://mynatureexperiences.wordpress.com/2013/09/26/13-upper-pierce-reservoir-park/  for some bits of wildlife and more pictures, and also, of course, the NParks website.

Where should I explore next?

Strolling the Green Corridor

The Green Corridor is possibly one of the most interesting walking routes that I've done in Singapore and I highly recommend that you check it out! 

Also called the Rail Corridor, it is the path that traces the route connecting us to Malaysia by train. The Singapore portion is about 24km, stretching from Tanjong Pagar Railway Station to Woodlands Road, which would probably take an entire day to complete! Being flexible and to a greater extent, less ambitious, we started at Buona Vista and headed northwards with no fixed end point in mind. It took a morning for us to cover 6km leisurely, bringing us to The Rail Mall, a convenient place to grab lunch. 

The terrain is flat, clearly because that would have been most ideal for a train, making the walk easy and relaxing. The path snakes through swathes of greenery, housing estates and sometimes schools. Often, there'd be interesting landmarks, most commonly bridges and the most iconic, at least along this route, being the Bt Timah Railway Station. 

Parts of the track have been left intact, such as those at the railway station and bridges. The impressive steel structures make for dramatic photos and were the highlight of the trip. 

Walking in the "woods". There's a clear path where the rail used to be.

Off the path, there are spaces to discover.

Bamboo doesn't break. It bends.

A Bangladeshi woman was getting some vegetables that apparently goes well with prawns.

One of the railway stations that is still standing! 

Bukit Timah Railway Station

A bridge overlooking the road, near Jardin condominium, with Bt Timah nature reserve ahead.

The bridge overlooking the road near The Rail Mall

Explore, go your own way. Throw caution to the wind. 

What to bring for the Green Corridor walk:

Unlike other NParks-type of places, there aren't shelters along the way having an umbrella would be helpful if it rains. It's a continuous route apart from when the rail intersects some roads and finding a convenience store would be challenge so bring all your refreshments - chips, biscuits, water - with you. You could even stop and have a picnic at the wide open spaces such as the Bt Timah Railway station if you wanted (I hope it's not illegal) - just whip out a mat!

I read these before the walk, just to get an idea of what I was getting into:

The Green Corridor website, with maps and suggested routes: http://www.thegreencorridor.org/category/maps/ 
Development-weary Singaporeans back Green Corridor: https://sg.news.yahoo.com/development-weary-singaporeans-back-green-corridor-000451690.html
URA calls for proposals for Green Corridor: https://sg.news.yahoo.com/development-weary-singaporeans-back-green-corridor-000451690.html

Since I haven't completed the entire trail, I'd definitely be back to complete the last segment from Buona to Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

Let me know if there are other walking routes that I should explore!