Gunung Pulai is a mountain just North-West of Johor Bahru, Malaysia. It is easily accessible from the North-South Highway.

Climbing Pulai is really a walk in the park. Just that this park sometimes goes into the clouds. The main way up is a paved road, that goes on for about 5km and brings you up from 70m to 615m. At the top are 3 Telekom Malaysia towers, so while climbing up or down, expect to see a few of their jeeps drive past and some motorcyclists going up. Expect to take 1.5 to 2 hours to climb to the top, at a reasonable pace with one or two breaks.

At the base, you will find a kampung and you can park your car, just outside a gate that prevents you from driving up. You can however skirt around the gate by foot, to walk up. There are quite a few people who go there for a walk so you can expect to see maybe 20 people to and fro on a weekday and much more on weekends. Officially the park is closed, but it still has its visitors.

In the early part of the mountain, you will notice a stream to the left. 5 to 10 minutes walk in, you will come to a point where it says 'Selemat Datang Kehutanan Lupur Gunung Pulai'. At that point, you could either continue following the road up (easier and faster) or cut across the stream to go on the 'scenic route'. You will also notice quite a few structures (remnants of buildings) left standing, without roofs and starting to overgrow with vegetation.

If you go on the scenic route, you will need to cross the stream to the other side, where you will notice a trail and stairs cutting through the jungle. So just aim for that when cutting across the stream. From what I understand, the flow of the river depends on the weather, and if it rains, its better not to cross, in case you get cut off when the stream gains volume. If you follow along this stretch, you will walk on stairs with the stream to your right. You will go past a point where you can see a waterfall (it is fairly high, maybe 7-8 meters). The path eventually runs out, so you will need to cross back to the other side, once again by hopping on stones above the surface of the stream.

As you continue walking up, you should encounter butterflies, monkeys and birds. The monkeys are not aggressive and mostly will give way to you, so not much to worry. As you climb up the road, you will cross 2 bridges. One of them has a ceramic seat and after that, the route becomes fairly steep. You should climb either in the morning or evening, as much of the route is open and not under tree cover, so if the sun is out, you will feel it. If it is a cloudy day, you maybe treated to a nice mist as you get to the top.

You will see a tower in the distance and as you get closer, you will walk past one of them. You will reach a gate at the top which you can't walk past that leads to the two other towers. And at that point, you are at 615m, at the top of the public section. There are 1 or 2 view points where you can look down over the land, so you can enjoy that view if it is not cloudy.

Overall I would say this is an easy climb, with no worries of getting lost. Any person reasonably fit can tackle this. You could always bring a swimming attire, to enjoy the cool waters of the steam near the base, after you are done with mountain.

How to get there:
You can take the E2 highway and get off at Kulai, or Jalan Sawah. From there, head west on Jalan Sawah. You will see a gateway that has 'Selemat Datang Kg Sri Gurung Pulai' on your left, turn in and go to the end to the start of the trail

An alternative is to drive in from Pekan Nanas. Get onto the Number 5 road to Pontian and take a right at Pekan Nanas town center (KFC is on the right corner where you turn). Follow the J113 and take a right at Jalan Sawah. You will see the gateway, which will be on your right.