The take-off point for the rafting adventure is past the Kuala Betis settlement of natives, through a tropical jungle to the Cha Caves, where early men made their home some 9,000 years ago.

The bone-jarring ride is nothing compared to what‘s ahead.

The Cha Cave on the left bank of the Nenggiri River is where your rubber rafts are readied for the formidable ride down an unforgettable river that is dotted with 30 rapids.

Adventurers are given a quick tour of the cave which is cut into the side of a limestone cliff and measures about 20 metres long and 20 metres high.

It is also a burial site and human and animal remains as well as pottery and tools have been found in the area.

A low limestone outcrop nearby shows signs of having been chipped away, as people believed the limestone powder had medicinal value.

The one constant feature of the entire rafting adventure on the Nenggiri is its signature Grand Canyon-like setting.

At its corners and bends, Nenggiri teases with glimpses of the limestone outcrops before serving a magnificent view of a connected cluster of huge limestone walls forming a tall line along the river.

All along both sides of the river are lush green jungle and creepers with colourful flowers, some drooping into the river.

Though on “paper” the river boasts at least 32 rapids along the 50 kilometre route, the swollen water submerges quite a number of them and, at some points, increases the intensity of the raging rapids.

Kampung Pulat is one of two night stops along the expedition route.

Depending on the time taken for the trip, one can stop over first at the beautiful Kuala Jenera before spending the next night in Kampung Pulat.

The Nenggiri River is one of the major tributaries of the Kelantan River together with the Lebir and Pergau, was part of an old trade route.

It has its source in the Lojing Highlands in southwest Kelantan.

From the highlands it meanders its way through a series of rapids and later joins the Kelantan River at Kuala Krai.

Shooting the rapids on the Nenggiri is also a wildlife safari. You are accompanied by a jungle chorus of exotic birds-a symphony that is occasionally broken by a brown coloured male elephant with long white tusks striding along the river.

The Nenggiri rafting expedition is one of Gua Musang‘s main eco-tourism offerings. Go get it!

By bus: Many comfortable coaches ply KL-Gua Musang route.

By train: From Kuala Lumpur to Gemas and onwards to Gua Musang. The journey will take about nine hours.

By plane: Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia also fly to Kota Baru; from here, it‘s a three-hour drive to Gua Musang where a pre-arranged transfer can be made to the starting point of the rafting expedition at either Kuala Betis, some 40 minutes away, or Gua Cha, about one-hour drive via trunk road.