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Yellow Flame (Peltophorum pterocarpum)
The Yellow Flame grows up to 20m tall. It is a popular tree for roadside planting. It is drought-resistant, which makes it well adapted to Singapore’s sunny urban conditions. This tree has a wide-spreading, umbrella-shaped crown, which provides excellent shade. When the tree flowers, its fragrant, brilliant yellow blossoms cover the entire crown. These flowers are about 3cm in size, and have wavy, crinkled petals that resemble tissue paper. After the flowering season, the flowers develop into woody purple-brown fruit pods that develop on the tree. These pods remain in the crown for several months before dropping off.
Journey Through The West
In the famous Chinese classical novel ‘Journey To The West’, the Monkey God and his companions embarked on an epic quest to bring back Buddhist scripture. Along the way, they fought battles with demons, forged wide rivers, and scaled mountains and volcanoes.
Here in Singapore, you may not find enlightenment on your journey through the Western Adventure Park Connector Network (WAPCN). But as the name suggests, you can still encounter plenty of adventures along the way.
This 23km WAPCN is the second loop of park connectors which has been completed, after the Eastern Coastal Park Connector Network. It combines history, heritage, adventure and nature elements in one seamless route by linking up eight parks in western Singapore. These include Choa Chu Kang Park, Bukit Batok Town Park, and Bukit Batok Nature Park, and Dairy Farm Nature Park.
Pick your own adventure along the WAPCN. Hike through the forests of Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, or take a break from the beaten track of the park connector, and mountain bike through the rugged paths of Zhenghua Park and Dairy Farm Nature Park.
For a less strenuous adventure, keep your eyes peeled for birds at the Pang Sua Park Connector. Or be awed by the majestic views of rock cliffs and tranquil lakes at the Singapore Quarry and Bukit Batok Town Park. The latter is fondly known as ‘Little Guilin’, as the view in the park bears a striking resemblance to that of Guilin in China. If you find that it looks strangely familiar, that might be because it has often been used as a filming location for local period drama serials!
And if you simply love nature, you will be thrilled by the variety of flora and fauna on the WAPCN: over ten species of butterflies and 50 species of birds can been sighted. You may even be able to spot a pangolin on one of the trees along the way!
By Ng Hui Bing
Enhanced PCN Website
To help you plan your route along the park connectors, the Park Connector webpage (www.nparks.gov.sg/pcn) has recently been enhanced with new features, such as pictures, videos and detailed maps. There is even a distance calculator so you can plan the exact distance to cover.
Currently, there are 110km of park connectors which have been completed in various parts of Singapore. By 2015, you can look forward to an even wider variety of landscapes and distances, with a 300km green matrix connecting major parks and nature sites around the island.
Have a great time on the park connectors!
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