As I flipped through the local newspapers on the 18 Sep 2014 (Thursday), I noticed the highlight for the day is the discovery of an abandoned reservoir near Telok Blangah road by a group of NHB researchers. From some older reports, this reservoir is actually known as Keppel Hill Reservoir. I did a few screen shots of the local publications reporting on the discovery of the abandoned reservoir below. After reading about it, I contacted FP and started organizing a trip to explore this abandoned reservoir.
As I was overseas the last weekend, the first possible weekend available is the 27 Sep. The rough location we have was actually from Today's newspaper which has a big red dot near to Wishart Road and Keppel Hill Road.
From Vivocity (Harborfront MRT), it is 3 bus stops away. There are several buses plying along the road. If you are coming in from Vivocity, please alight at the 'opp Chr Community Chapel' bus stop. After alighting, we will need to cross 2 pedestrian traffic lights and we will come upon the bus stop that is along Telok Blangah Road (leading towards Vivocity).
(A) Bus stop along Telok Blangah Road (bef Chr Community Chap)
You can take a look at the buses that ply along this area. There are also shophouses and a 7-11 in the area.
We made a turn into Morse Road which runs perpendicular to Wishart Road. Wishart Road is the road which will directly lead you to Keppel Hill Reservoir.
(B) The junction of Morse Road and Wishart Road
We made a right turn from there and walk along Wishart Road. This is a landed residential area with shophouses at one side of the road.
There is quite a good indian restaurant at Wishart Road. We took a break here and have some drinks. The can drinks are going for $1 each. I could not find this price in most of the coffeeshops around Singapore.
(C) Wishart Road Indian restaurant
We continued our journey along Wishart Road. Do not make a left turn as it will lead to some construction sites. We actually explored the area but the route did not lead us to anywhere. We continued walking straight along the road and we came to a Joaquim Garden and Landscape Pte Ltd. The reservoir is not here and we continue walking along the road.
We finally arrive at the end of the road. Though there is a small gate in front, this is actually to prevent vehicles from proceeding forward. For pedestrians, you can continue walking straight in.
(D) Gate at Wishart Road
We continue walking straight up the road. And came into a junction as seen below. We made a left turn. The route to the right road is gated and there is no thru-access. (After we have explored the reservoir, I heard from FP that the mansion to the right is actually abandoned)
(E) Junction - Turn left to the reservoir
We made a curve turn to the left and came upon a large open area where construction trucks can be seen. Occasionally workers are seen unloading steel sheets in this area.
(F) Open area
The workers look back at us and we just wave and said hi to them. And we continue going straight towards the end of the open area.
As we continue walking straight, we will come to an area with some wooden planks to the right and an altar as seen below.
We turned right and slowly walked along the plank. Along the way, we also put our palms together and give thanks to the local deity for protecting this area. From the altar, we made a left turn as seen below.
There is actually a pathway where we can continue walking. The pathway is quite people friendly and it is not the forest type of pathway.As the Chinese saying goes "路是人走出来的"
There is a small bridge which we have to cross over. As I approach the bridge, I heard a small pop sound. Seems like some animal submerged themselves into the water below as we approached.
And viola! Here is the reservoir. From the open area to the reservoir, it is a comfortable 1min walk in.
It is a very quiet and peaceful place. There are some stairs leading down to the reservoir.
The full view of the reservoir.
There are some old pipes leading to the reservoir. But it seems they are no longer working.
The route we have shared above is actually the direct route leading to the reservoir from the main street. FP and myself spent over an hour searching the vicinity for the location of the reservoir. We tried walking into a forest path a few times but could not locate it.
I hope this guide will help people who are interested to visit an important heritage of Singapore. Please keep the place clean and orderly. I have also created a map below for easy reference (with the alphabets referencing to the photos above). The best attire for this journey are track shoes and perhaps long pants. I was dressed in my regular berms and casual shoes today.
As I was overseas the last weekend, the first possible weekend available is the 27 Sep. The rough location we have was actually from Today's newspaper which has a big red dot near to Wishart Road and Keppel Hill Road.
From Vivocity (Harborfront MRT), it is 3 bus stops away. There are several buses plying along the road. If you are coming in from Vivocity, please alight at the 'opp Chr Community Chapel' bus stop. After alighting, we will need to cross 2 pedestrian traffic lights and we will come upon the bus stop that is along Telok Blangah Road (leading towards Vivocity).
(A) Bus stop along Telok Blangah Road (bef Chr Community Chap)
You can take a look at the buses that ply along this area. There are also shophouses and a 7-11 in the area.
We made a turn into Morse Road which runs perpendicular to Wishart Road. Wishart Road is the road which will directly lead you to Keppel Hill Reservoir.
(B) The junction of Morse Road and Wishart Road
We made a right turn from there and walk along Wishart Road. This is a landed residential area with shophouses at one side of the road.
There is quite a good indian restaurant at Wishart Road. We took a break here and have some drinks. The can drinks are going for $1 each. I could not find this price in most of the coffeeshops around Singapore.
(C) Wishart Road Indian restaurant
We continued our journey along Wishart Road. Do not make a left turn as it will lead to some construction sites. We actually explored the area but the route did not lead us to anywhere. We continued walking straight along the road and we came to a Joaquim Garden and Landscape Pte Ltd. The reservoir is not here and we continue walking along the road.
We finally arrive at the end of the road. Though there is a small gate in front, this is actually to prevent vehicles from proceeding forward. For pedestrians, you can continue walking straight in.
(D) Gate at Wishart Road
We continue walking straight up the road. And came into a junction as seen below. We made a left turn. The route to the right road is gated and there is no thru-access. (After we have explored the reservoir, I heard from FP that the mansion to the right is actually abandoned)
(E) Junction - Turn left to the reservoir
We made a curve turn to the left and came upon a large open area where construction trucks can be seen. Occasionally workers are seen unloading steel sheets in this area.
(F) Open area
The workers look back at us and we just wave and said hi to them. And we continue going straight towards the end of the open area.
As we continue walking straight, we will come to an area with some wooden planks to the right and an altar as seen below.
We turned right and slowly walked along the plank. Along the way, we also put our palms together and give thanks to the local deity for protecting this area. From the altar, we made a left turn as seen below.
There is actually a pathway where we can continue walking. The pathway is quite people friendly and it is not the forest type of pathway.As the Chinese saying goes "路是人走出来的"
There is a small bridge which we have to cross over. As I approach the bridge, I heard a small pop sound. Seems like some animal submerged themselves into the water below as we approached.
And viola! Here is the reservoir. From the open area to the reservoir, it is a comfortable 1min walk in.
It is a very quiet and peaceful place. There are some stairs leading down to the reservoir.
The full view of the reservoir.
There are some old pipes leading to the reservoir. But it seems they are no longer working.
The route we have shared above is actually the direct route leading to the reservoir from the main street. FP and myself spent over an hour searching the vicinity for the location of the reservoir. We tried walking into a forest path a few times but could not locate it.
I hope this guide will help people who are interested to visit an important heritage of Singapore. Please keep the place clean and orderly. I have also created a map below for easy reference (with the alphabets referencing to the photos above). The best attire for this journey are track shoes and perhaps long pants. I was dressed in my regular berms and casual shoes today.
Update (28 Sept 2014): There is a very good YouTube video of the journey from the Open Area to Keppel Hill Reservoir and around the reservoir by Foosoomin. Please search on YouTube "Keppel Hill reservoir" and the first one to appear is his.
