Singapore: The Road Less Traveled (Part 2) - Pulau Ubin

The year was 2017. We went to Singapore to try our luck. While waiting for calls for interviews, we explored Singapore. A friend came with us to spend a few days in Singapore. On one of those days, we decided to try going places that are not often visited by tourists and since we were also tight on the budget. Yes, the road less traveled as I call it. So, I checked on some blogs and found a list. On the list was Pulau Ubin. 

Ferry terminal at Pulau Ubin

Pulau Ubin is an island northeast of Singapore. There's a bike trail, a mangrove walk where birds could be seen, an observation tower and a looped boardwalk. It is known to be the last rural area in Singapore.  The island made us curious and going there didn't need us to rob a bank. We only needed to ride a ferry boat for 3.00 SGD and there is no entrance fee. So off we go.

One of the ferry bumpboats going to Pulau Ubin.

How to get there?

To get to Pulau Ubin, you need to check what's the best route for you, depending on where you are staying in Singapore. For us, we stayed at Bishan, so we have to take an MRT to Tampines East station. From there, we need to get on a bus going to Changi Village Terminal where the ferry for Pulau Ubin is. The ferry plies from Changi Point to Pulau Ubin every 15 minutes. The bumpboat ride from Changi Point ferry terminal is about 15 minutes to Pulau Ubin.

You will know that you have reached the island because you will see the ferry terminal with the "Welcome to Pulau Ubin" sign on it. As you get off the ferry, you will see bicycles lined up near the boardwalk. This is the method of transport here. The easiest and fastest way to get around the island. Past that would be an arch with another welcome sign which is the main gateway to the island itself.

Let's go biking!

Pulau Ubin is just a small island, about 10 square kilometers in terms of area. Walking would be a bit of a challenge so we decided to rent bikes. A bike is for 10.00 SGD. I can't remember if it was just for an hour but I think we stayed for more than an hour on the island and we used the bike for the whole time there. 

The first part of the trail is an asphalted road and there's a section there where there are a lot of wild monkeys. Emphasis on the word "wild." Most of them would stay on the trees but during our visit, there was this one brave monkey who followed us. When it came for us to stop and take pictures, it decided that it was his golden opportunity to try to take my friend's bag that was sitting on the basket in front of her bike. It tried to take the bag and my friend was screaming for me to help her. I, on the other hand, didn't know what to do. I was not sure how to shoo away the monkey because touching these wild animals was definitely a no-no. Fortunately, the bag was too heavy for him so he let it go and run off to the trees. We had quite a trauma after that experience. Wild monkeys are definitely not to be trifled with. We didn't even know what made him want to take the bag. We had food but it was in my bag and they were dates. Do they eat dates? I don't think my friend had any food in her bag. Probably, the monkey wanted a branded bag too. My friend's bag was an authentic MK.

Once the monkey ran off, we pedaled our bikes like our lives depended on it to get away as far as possible from that monkey-ridden place. Once we were sure we were far from them, we relaxed. The path following that was unpaved and a bit muddy because it rained a day before. The trail is both uphill and downhill. There were times we had to get off our bike because the path was too steep. It had been years since I had been on a bike and I don't think we were up for that literal mountain bike ride. We thought the way was going to be just a plain paved road all the way but it wasn't. 

After the land of the monkeys (because they literally own that territory), we reached the Chek Jewa Wetlands. This is the part of the island where there are mangroves and there's a boardwalk. This is also the part where you can see birds if you are lucky. We didn't get to see any birds. From here onward, you would have to walk. You would have to leave your bike here. 

While we were parking our bikes, we met some other tourists and there were also some stray monkeys. One guy mentioned that his mom's shades got stolen by one of the monkeys when they last visited. We then told them about our experience. Yes, bad monkeys.

From here, you can take three different routes to get to the rest of the wetlands. One way is to go through the boardwalk in front of House #1. There's a Tudor style house at the back of the visitor center. Unfortunately, we didn't take that route. We opted for the second one which took us to this vantage point looking over that boardwalk and the water. We didn't know there was something else to see there. 

After our circuit of the island, my friend asked the bike shop owner about that house we saw on the map or on one of the pictures we saw on the blog. He told us it was right at that first boardwalk which we didn't go to. He told us we can go back and see it but we were a bit exhausted. Not to think, we would have to go through the land of the monkeys again. I don't think my heart can take two close encounters with them in one day.

Next is what they call the looped boardwalk where you can see the corals when it's low tide. It wasn't when we were there so we didn't get to see the colorful corals and other marine life which are one of the attractions.

Yes, I seemed to have a habit of making jump shots on any walkways. I did a jump shot also on the Treetop Walk. 

This one-kilometer looped boardwalk will then take you to the part where there are mangroves.

Aside from the mangroves, there are also a lot of nipa palms with fruits growing in the area. During our visit, I didn't have any idea what this jackfruit-like fruit we've seen but when I was writing this post, I looked it up on Google and it was a fruit of a nipa palm.

They also have an observation tower which they call Jejawi Tower. It's a 20-meter high observation deck which gives you a 360-view of the island from above. We didn't get to see much. One part, you can see just the top of the trees.

The other view is where you can see the sea and some mountains. Again, I only found out while writing this post that  those mountains are in Malaysia.

There are some other plants and flowers also. 

One of the highlights of our day, aside from that encounter with the bag-stealing monkey, was we spotted a wild boar. Yes, in the flesh. It was in a hurry to go somewhere. Good thing though because we don't want another close encounter with the wild kind. The monkey really gave us a scare.

Pulau Ubin apparently had five granite quarries which were used to build some of Singapore's structures like the Causeway, Istana and the Raffles Lighthouse. These quarries are now closed and are now a habitat for some birds like herons.

On our way back, we didn't have to pass through the kingdom of the monkeys again. Fortunately, there is another road which goes by one of the quarries and ends at the crossroad going to the monkeys lair. I was so relieved we didn't have to go through there again.

So, here are some of the buildings on the island. They have this structure which had a sign saying they are raising funds to rebuild the temple. 

There was the temple and there was a store right beside it. We wanted to buy drinks from that store but I think the woman who owned it did not speak English or we just changed our minds. I am not sure.

There was also an eatery. No, we didn't try to eat there.

Then, they have about two or three bike rental shops. There are only 38 people living in the island. 

Then, there's the visitor center and the rest rooms.

So, all in all, it was fun. A different side of Singapore. Biking was a good cardio exercise and I missed being on a bike. Walking through the boardwalk was a relaxing way to spend a day with the breeze and the salty smell of the sea. It was true enough, the road less traveled and it was a very memorable experience for us. 

Would I want to revisit Pulau Ubin? Yes, I would and hopefully, no wild-bag-snatching monkeys roaming around just waiting for its next victim. I'd prefer them to stay in the trees. It would also be a chance to see that house #1 which we missed on this tour.

After that tour of the island, we went back to the mainland to eat our late lunch. We were starving and we badly needed an ice-cold coke. We needed to cool down after that excitement with the monkey.

There are other sites and places in Singapore that are not so popular with the tourists. They have a hot spring, a waterfall and some other bike and hike trails. Hopefully, on my next visit to Singapore, I would be able to visit those places and tell you my experience about them.

Some information regarding Pulau Ubin were taken from Wikipedia and Google.