Singapore Quarry @ Dairy Farm Nature Park

It was a totally unplanned walk - just like my impromptu visit to Kranji War Memorial a week ago.

However, i am not alone this time! Kon, Ms Van and Mr Princess were crazy (and of course graceful) enough to accept my suggestion to visit the Singapore Quarry at Bukit Timah.

We started our walk via this narrow path from Carpark A (which is much shorter from Carpark B) although we realised much later that there is another entrance nearing the quarry!

This Asas entrance is located next to a private housing estate and cut the distance by two-thirds! Next time, i shall be smart enough to park along Jalan Asas; accessible from upper bukit timah road.

The first mammal (besides ourselves) we saw was an active squirrel that froze for a few seconds after sensing our noisy presence. I have a special affection for squirrels but i always believe they should be free and not caged up like its own kind in Thailand.

Look closely to find a Malayan water monitor lizard in the middle of this picture. They are agile creatures and used to be quite a delicacy in Singapore before the 1980s.

Do you agree that this look more like a road than a trail? Guess it's for the NParks authorities to use in times of emergencies and maintenance.

And how could i forget the flowers?! Even though we don't really see an abundance of flowers in rainforests anyway.

The lack of it may not necessarily be a bad thing. A single blossom can brighten up an area that is filled with thick, green jungle vegetation.

A more natural-looking trail. For those who detest steep, muddy slopes, you might be happy to know that the road to Singapore Quarry is pretty gentle and you are mostly walking on tar ground.

This was a pretty sight - like those trees you see in Chinese paintings. The overcast sky did help to create an appropriate backdrop against the trees' silhouettes.

Spotted a mouldy lingzhi-like fungus on a broken tree trunk!

The end (or should i say the beginning) was in sight now! I can just imagine how exciting it was in the past for visitors to forge through an unkempt jungle in order to reach the quarry.

Now's the long missing panoramic view of the quarry.

As with any less popular nature spots (or one that you took a while to reach), it was a scene of peaceful tranquility that seemed unlikely in a fast-paced country like Singapore.

Okay - a bit of history to make my blog slightly more educational. Quarrying activities continued till the 1980s and what you see now is the partial natural development of a wetland habitat.

Bordering the viewing boardwalk is a shallow bed of water where you see fishes swimming in the water (duh), pond skaters jumping on the water and dragonflies fluttering above the water.

I touched on this cluster of eggs before in my post back here. And i am still not sure what eggs they are.

From afar, small birds were 'attacking' the water - for food apparently. It's time like this that i whacked myself on the head for not bringing my 55-200mm lens!

Sightings of white-bellied sea eagles were also reported but we didn't see them in this bright daylight. Just a thought - the path should be accessible at night and it might be a more appropriate time to visit this quarry then! For all you know, we might even catch owls preying for the fishes.

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The full colour map of the Dairy Farm Nature Park. Free admission by the way.

A small shelter is available in case of rain and thunderstorms.