The Tanjung Tuan Forest Eco-Park in Melaka is a nice place for hikes and nature walks. — Photos: OH SEONG POR
Tanjung Tuan is a small area extended from Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan and stretched towards the Straits of Malacca. It is located at the narrowest point of the straits.
After having conquered Melaka in 1511, the Portuguese built a lighthouse at Tanjung Tuan to guide ships sailing to the port. The Portuguese named the area Cape Rachado, meaning “broken cape”, and placed it under the administration of Melaka. Ever since then, Tanjung Tuan is considered part of Melaka, even though it is an enclave surrounded by Port Dickson.
Today, it is administered by the Melaka’s Alor Gajah district.
My wife and I recently visited the lighthouse at Tanjung Tuan, said to be the oldest lighthouse in Malaysia.
The lighthouse is located on a small hill within the Tanjung Tuan Forest Eco-Park. There is a narrow road which cuts through the forest, and visitors can hike on this trail to get to the lighthouse. There are many shady trees and bamboo trees along the trail, making the hike more comfortable.
The forest is inhabited by long-tailed macaques, squirrels, birds, lizards and variety of insects. It is known as a “stopover sanctuary” for migratory raptors that fly thousands of kilometres each season to search for food and breeding grounds. The raptors fly all the way from Siberia to either Australia or New Zealand, making a few stops along the way that includes Tanjung Tuan.
Some of the known raptors are Crested Honey Buzzard, Greater Spotted Eagle, Black-Shouldered Kite, Grey-Faced Buzzard, Chinese Goshawk and Black Baza.
Unfortunately, we did not see any raptor while we were there as it was not the season yet.
The Tanjung Tuan lighthouse is also known as the Cape Rachado lighthouse.
When we got to the lighthouse, we saw that it was fenced off and not accessible to visitors. This did not dampen our spirits, though, as we could still check out the outer parts of the building including the compound.
Though the current lighthouse is not the original one built by the Portuguese in the 16th century, it is still pretty old. It was built by the British in 1863 after Britain took over Melaka from the Dutch. It is a circular tower standing at 24m high, equipped with a lantern and gallery.
The base is connected to the keeper’s house, a double-storey building.
Both the tower and house are constructed of masonry (brick layer technique) and whitewashed (camouflaged with white paint). Next to the tower is another independent structure erected in 1990 which holds the MEASAT radar, designed to monitor ship traffic in the Straits of Malacca, among others.
There is a disc antenna at the top of the structure and as it rotates, it creates a humming sound.
The entire lighthouse sits on a fort-like foundation. The building layout is well organised and my wife and I took many photos there.
Before leaving Tanjung Tuan, I drove to the beach to see the area where the “Battle of Cape Rachado” between the Dutch and Portuguese navy fleets took place in 1606. I read about this battle while gathering information about Tanjung Tuan.
The reader and his wife hiking up the hill to the lighthouse.
It was the biggest naval engagement at the straits involving 31 warships (11 Dutch warships, 20 Portuguese).
With luck plus superior fire power, the Portuguese won the battle while the remaining Dutch warships were forced to retreat and seek shelter in Johor.
We left the Tanjung Tuan feeling satisfied. To me, it was an educational excursion. Not only did I learn about the oldest lighthouse in Malaysia, I also found out about Tanjung Tuan being a stopover for migratory raptors. Visiting the area where the largest naval battle was fought at the Straits of Malacca was also a special treat.
The views expressed are entirely the reader’s own.
