We went for our weekly walk at Bukit Batok Nature Park this morning. The moment we climbed up the first flight of stairs, we spotted several sociable White-crested Laughingthrushes calling out with their distinct trills.
Bukit Batok Nature Park is a 36-hectare urban park in Singapore developed in 1988 on the site of an abandoned granite quarry. Set amidst undulating secondary forest, it combines dramatic geological features, WWII history, and rich local biodiversity.
Just a short 15-20 minutes' walk from the car park, we arrived at the Quarry and lookout points. At this central plaza, we were able to look out over a tranquil quarry cliff and a deep, clear water pond.
Asian Water Monitor Lizard is a common sight here.
Other than nature, this park features well-paved walking paths, a children's playground and fitness stations.
We had originally planned to go on a walking trail up to a World War II Memorial. However, based on a notice on the park board, the trail was closed for maintenance works till end of next year.
So instead of hiking through the trail, we drove up to Lorong Sesuai, which is near to the top of the hill where the World War II Memorial is located.
A memorial plaque and staircase mark a historical site tied to the Japanese occupation and the battle for Singapore.
We climbed up the stairs and it's a dead end at the top. Next to it is the Bukit Batok Transmitting Station.
As we had not achieved our required number of steps for the day, we decided to walk further down along Lorong Sesuai to take a look at the Colonnial Houses. As this is a residential area, there were notices around the vicinity to remind visitors to lower down their volume.
On Google Map, we realized the Former Ford Factory was just nearby. As such, we took a 2-minutes' drive over to check it out. Though the main gate was opened, the security guard told us that the place was closed today (Monday).
We had a Pickleball session this morning at the newly opened ActiveSG Punggol Sport Centre. This was our first time here and quite a few of our friends in the group had difficulty locating the indoor pickleball courts. We had feedback to the staff that the place was quite warm and stuffy. Hopefully they can do something about it. There are also outdoor sheltered courts which we will probably try out the next time.
Next to the pickleball courts is a very big hall of badminton courts.
As this place is new, the basement car park is currently free. :-)
