Get ready for exhilarating treks through raw trails in Penang island’s hill range.
About half of Penang island is hilly woodlands – look at a satellite picture of the island and you will see the lay of the land all at once.
Throughout these protected forests are hiking trails.
A popular hiking website (alltrails.com) names 54 trails while the state government’s penanghill.gov.my/hikingtrails provides 26 GPS trail maps along the hill range.
Most trails eventually take you to the top of Penang Hill, but some lead you to sweet spots with breathtaking panoramic scenery.
One trail leads to a particularly special scenery that might be of interest to hikers and perhaps even tourists too.
It leads to what locals call Astro Rock and Rainbow Rock.
This trail is suitable for beginners, with a distance of less than 10km with a decent 550m elevation. It can take two to three hours to complete the hike so do prepare at least 1.5 litres of water.
Dogs in Penang island’s hill range love to tag along with hikers.
You start your journey from Penang’s City Park (formerly called Youth Park), entering from the Sun Gate route located opposite the auditorium (ask around in City Park and people will point the way).
Head up following the cemented path, passing a stream and some steep rocky paths with ropes.
Continue on the trail upwards for about 1.5km and where the path splits in two. Look out for a long stick stuck into the ground with an old, white helmet propped on it.
This is everyone’s waypoint to Astro Rock; pick the left trail, which will bring you about 200m downhill to a gigantic boulder that is gently rounded and faces directly east overlooking the densest part of George Town with the hills of Bukit Mertajam across the channel and Penang Bridge off to the right.
Here is some good news: because this spot is on the eastern side of the hill range, arriving here by around 4.30pm will have the sun starting to lower itself behind the hill, shielding Astro Rock in a cooling shade.
You can bring your hiker’s stove and portable moka pot along to whip up a double espresso and even cook some instant noodles while soaking in the view.
You cannot miss Rainbow Rock on Penang island’s hill range because it has a rainbow painted on it.
There is even a roofed hut with a bamboo bench to rest on.
Almost directly below Astro Rock is the Penang Turf Club, and if it is a race day, you might want to bring along a pair of binoculars to watch the horses galloping around the track.
To continue to Rainbow Rock, return to the white helmet and hike along the other path.
Pick the trail heading up and you’ll reach a cemented path which leads to a flight of stairs going up to Station 39, which is a local hiker rest area with facilities.
There are dogs in the area but don’t be afraid. They are friendly and they love to tag along with hikers. Sometimes, they stay a few metres ahead of you on the trail, behaving like four-legged tour guides or scouts!
Just visiting Station 39 is an eye-opener for first timers to appreciate how passionate Penang hikers are to the point that they could communally built a simple, rustic yet cosy station.
Head to where the washroom of Station 39 is, then pick the path upwards towards the “highway”, which is a wide, common hiking route connecting Moongate to Station 84. Immediately cut across the highway to a path heading up (do not go along the highway).
On Astro Rock, the nickname for a huge, flat boulder offering a view of the eastern side of George Town, the sun swings west behind the hill range by about 4.30pm, giving hikers a pleasant shade while the city down below still bakes under the sun.
Continue upward for less than 1km and you’ll notice the open red earth rocky terrain. Watch out for an open area to your left which has a narrow, short trail to Rainbow Rock.
You cannot miss this rock because, as the name suggests, it has a rainbow painted on it, and in the background is a panoramic view of the northern and eastern side of the island.
Once you are done with your picture- taking, there are a few options. You can go back the same path you came from but if don’t want to repeat it, you may use the highway downhill, passing by the Station 5 rest area towards the Moongate entrance at the foothill.
There are likely to be other hikers romping about so if it is your first time, get social and you might get tips from them on moving about.
If you have the energy to go further, you may head in the opposite, uphill direction of the highway towards Bukit Cendana peak with a decent height of 550m above sea level.
On the way, you’ll pass through the ruins of the Convalescent Bungalows, which British colonists use as a retreat from the heat and threat of malaria in the 19th century.
Head further down and you’ll end up at along Penang Hill Jeep Track tarmac road where you can continue your journey towards Penang Botanic Gardens at the foothill.
