Pantai Kerachut

Recently I'm feeling rather hyped up for outdoor activities, especially on the weekends. Maybe because I'm used to going out every weekend at Korea. Or maybe the weather and stress combined just makes me feel like breaking out into a good sweat. Anyway, I hope this enthusiasm continues, if not I'll get fatter and fatter from sitting in the office and lazing on the couch after work............

Last weekend I decided that my leg felt good enough for a hike. My first hike, after the surgery! Actually my leg has been getting better with twice-a-week physiotherapy and swimming. One day while walking around in the office I heard some cracking sounds inside my knee (good cracking sounds, like when your neck is stiff and you give it a good twist), and all of a sudden it felt better and I could straighten and bend it better. Also nowadays less people ask me "how's my leg?", that's good cos maybe it looks more normal now and people don't really notice it. Hehe. 

So I joined my hubby's colleagues to Pantai Kerachut. An easy hike, cos it consists of less steps than Bukit Jambul and takes less time than Penang Hill to reach the end (~1.5 hour). Plus we can take the boat back! :-P

Forgot how serene this beach is

One of the special things about Pantai Kerachut is the Meromictic Lake. This lake happens when salt water from the sea flows and combines with fresh water from rain and inland streams. The different densities of the water forms two levels in the lake, with salt water being at the bottom. This phenomenon only happens two times in a year during the change of monsoon: April-May and October-November. The rest of the time the lake is dry. So I guess we were lucky to see it.

The Meromictic Lake

The second more exciting reason for me to hike there is the turtle sanctuary! The baby turtles are kept in the sanctuary for one year, from the time they hatch from the egg, then they are released into the sea. This greatly helps to increase their survival chance from being eaten by predators like birds and monitor lizards while they are still too young. 

Turtle toddlers

Baby turtles

I just can't get enough from looking at the baby turtles. They look so comfortable and happy swimming around in the pool. Makes me feel like taking a dip too. :-)