The mossy forest is a natural environment that grows only at the highest elevations of Cameron Highlands and other mountain ranges across Malaysia. At such heights, low-level clouds in the sky driven by winds, blanket the forests with constant mist and moisture - creating an ideal biotope for moss, ferns, lichen and orchids.
This moist tropical evergreen forest is also a rich repository for a varied set of montane creatures, encompassing insects, snakes, frogs, birds and mammals unique to this chilly atmosphere. Visitors may explore the mossy forest through a boardwalk 2km before the peak of Gunung Brinchang, accessible by road from the Boh Tea Sungai Palas intersection.
The series of wooden platforms winds for about 150m through the mossy forest, but is slippery when wet, though there are rope railings for a light measure of safety. In this chilly environment, stunted stumps, wrinkled leaves and gnarled branches of oak trees clump together, forming dense crowns that portrude furiously from the ground like mushrooms.
As you turn around, look at the rich layers of moss that drape the tree trunks and butteresses, infusing them with a soft, green appearance. Meanwhile, vines, orchids, pitcher plants and other fascinating epiphytes hang loosely from the canopy, perched silently on branches and stems in this chillingly quiet labyrinth.
Venturing below the boardwalk to step on the forest floor, visitors will soon discover its moist peat-like texture, each step leaving deep water-filled imprints on the soil. Perched along the walk is also an observation tower that visitors may climb for a spectacular view of the mountain ranges around Camerons. Finally, at the end lies the trailhead to Gunung Irau, the highest mountain in Cameron Highlands.
