When I first heard that my friend Azam wanted me and my other friends Luca and Loon to meet him to explore his backyard, I was a bit skeptical. On iNaturalist, the location seemed like a black hole, with few species observed. Plus, this was uncharted territory behind the busy and popular tourist destination, the Batu Caves.
When we met early in the morning, rock climbers were already scaling the towering cliff face. Just looking up gave me vertigo.
Azam led us to a side trail, and we were already sweating, swatting at mosquitoes, stepping on used tires repurposed as steps, and dodging clay and rock to hike upwards. With some bushwhacking, we met large boulders and ropes that seemed secure enough and climbed up and over.
While the hike was short, we surprisingly managed to find many new-to-me species. The most prolific were small purple mushrooms growing from twigs. I’m still unsure what they are, but their appearance reminds me of some fuzzier Crinipellis sp.
The most exciting find for me was a leaf covered in white mycelium with a lone Mycena sp. growing. This type of Mycena reminded me of one I’d found before where only the stipe glowed.
I had a hunch that the species would glow. To my surprise, the mushroom itself didn’t glow, but the entire network of mycelium did. I had long been wanting to capture a photo like this:
In the end, the sweat, mosquitoes, and steep climbs were all worth it. By the time we made our way back down, I couldn’t help but feel glad Azam had shown us his backyard. It’s proof that even the most overlooked spots can hold something special if you take the time to look.
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