SINGAPORE: The sun was blazing down on Sunday (Jun 22) morning but Singapore's largest nature park was buzzing with life.
The car park was close to full, with mountain bikes being lifted off vehicles and rapidly assembled, before their owners mounted them and whizzed off into the forest at Chestnut Nature Park.
There are more than 10 official biking routes, and they appeared far more popular and more heavily utilised than the hiking routes, during the two hours that CNA visited.
Along an 8.2km stretch, divided into two sections, are also entrances to other less official routes. One of these is Woodcutter's Trail, in a restricted area where the public is forbidden from entering.
Media reports have suggested that this could be where a man suffered a gunshot wound last week, while cycling near Nee Soon Range where the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) was conducting a live-firing activity.
The 42-year-old cyclist was taken to hospital by his friends. He was in a stable condition after surgery to remove a bullet slug lodged in his left lower back.
Police said the man had been cycling with friends in a forested area of the Central Catchment Nature Reserve between Upper Seletar Reservoir and Upper Peirce Reservoir.
"The public is not allowed to access that particular area, which has signage warning against unauthorised entry into a live-firing area," the police said.
Authorities later said on Wednesday that the cyclist was now under investigation for wilful trespass.
Those who spoke to CNA on Sunday said it was not uncommon for cyclist to enter restricted areas within the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.
"I'm not surprised because there are some illegal trails that people would go on," said Mr Mike Jayona. "The (trail on the) inside is more challenging ... for more thrill-seekers, and (those) looking for that rush."
CNA understands Woodcutter's Trail is in particular is known for its mix of undulating, rough and undisturbed terrain which appeals to some bikers.
Another cyclist, who requested to remain anonymous, said: "At the end of the day, it's all about personal responsibility, and also a bit of common sense. If you hear that live firing is going on, and they still decide to venture in, then they have to pay for the consequence."
While official trails were teeming with cyclists on Sunday, CNA did not observe any bikers or hikers ignoring the prominent red and yellow signs warning of live firing areas along the Chestnut North Loop.
Chestnut is one of four parks offering mountain bike trails in land-scarce Singapore. The others are Kent Ridge Park, Dairy Farm Nature Park and Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. Offshore Pulau Ubin also has a mountain bike park.
The anonymous cyclist told CNA it would help for the National Parks Board (NParks) to design some of its more challenging trails - such as the Bukit Timah Mountain Bike Trail - to be more "user-friendly".
"If BT (Bukit Timah) is safer, then I guess more people won't be tempted to go on other illegal trails because in terms of thrill factor, BT is also quite challenging," he said, citing the limited number of trails for beginners.
On the mainland, Chestnut Nature Park appears to be the only venue offering a beginner-level trail.
"It doesn't make sense for you to take a drop or a jump and land into a pile of rocks," the cyclist added.
"At the end of the day, we are not idiots and we are not people who want to break the law ... But it's getting very limited in terms of the available trails and it's also very crowded."
Another cyclist who only wanted to be known as Barry also added that he now avoids Bukit Timah Mountain Bike trail because it gets "very, very" congested on weekends.
But he said that opening up more trails would not completely stop people from venturing off the beaten path, he added.
"If you ask me, I'd say yes it would help. But will it deter people from going into unmarked trails? No.
"Even if you have the whole island (with) trails, there will still be some people who want to go in (to restricted areas)."
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The car park was close to full, with mountain bikes being lifted off vehicles and rapidly assembled, before their owners mounted them and whizzed off into the forest at Chestnut Nature Park.
There are more than 10 official biking routes, and they appeared far more popular and more heavily utilised than the hiking routes, during the two hours that CNA visited.
Along an 8.2km stretch, divided into two sections, are also entrances to other less official routes. One of these is Woodcutter's Trail, in a restricted area where the public is forbidden from entering.
Media reports have suggested that this could be where a man suffered a gunshot wound last week, while cycling near Nee Soon Range where the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) was conducting a live-firing activity.
Related:
The 42-year-old cyclist was taken to hospital by his friends. He was in a stable condition after surgery to remove a bullet slug lodged in his left lower back.
Police said the man had been cycling with friends in a forested area of the Central Catchment Nature Reserve between Upper Seletar Reservoir and Upper Peirce Reservoir.
"The public is not allowed to access that particular area, which has signage warning against unauthorised entry into a live-firing area," the police said.
Authorities later said on Wednesday that the cyclist was now under investigation for wilful trespass.
"ALL ABOUT PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY"
Those who spoke to CNA on Sunday said it was not uncommon for cyclist to enter restricted areas within the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.
"I'm not surprised because there are some illegal trails that people would go on," said Mr Mike Jayona. "The (trail on the) inside is more challenging ... for more thrill-seekers, and (those) looking for that rush."
CNA understands Woodcutter's Trail is in particular is known for its mix of undulating, rough and undisturbed terrain which appeals to some bikers.
Another cyclist, who requested to remain anonymous, said: "At the end of the day, it's all about personal responsibility, and also a bit of common sense. If you hear that live firing is going on, and they still decide to venture in, then they have to pay for the consequence."
While official trails were teeming with cyclists on Sunday, CNA did not observe any bikers or hikers ignoring the prominent red and yellow signs warning of live firing areas along the Chestnut North Loop.
Related:
Chestnut is one of four parks offering mountain bike trails in land-scarce Singapore. The others are Kent Ridge Park, Dairy Farm Nature Park and Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. Offshore Pulau Ubin also has a mountain bike park.
The anonymous cyclist told CNA it would help for the National Parks Board (NParks) to design some of its more challenging trails - such as the Bukit Timah Mountain Bike Trail - to be more "user-friendly".
"If BT (Bukit Timah) is safer, then I guess more people won't be tempted to go on other illegal trails because in terms of thrill factor, BT is also quite challenging," he said, citing the limited number of trails for beginners.
On the mainland, Chestnut Nature Park appears to be the only venue offering a beginner-level trail.
"It doesn't make sense for you to take a drop or a jump and land into a pile of rocks," the cyclist added.
"At the end of the day, we are not idiots and we are not people who want to break the law ... But it's getting very limited in terms of the available trails and it's also very crowded."
Another cyclist who only wanted to be known as Barry also added that he now avoids Bukit Timah Mountain Bike trail because it gets "very, very" congested on weekends.
But he said that opening up more trails would not completely stop people from venturing off the beaten path, he added.
"If you ask me, I'd say yes it would help. But will it deter people from going into unmarked trails? No.
"Even if you have the whole island (with) trails, there will still be some people who want to go in (to restricted areas)."
Continue reading...