Surrounded by lush pristine tropical rain forest, it is part of the biggest remaining block of virgin forest in Peninsular Malaysia.  It is approximately 130 million years old, older than the Amazon and the Congo, and much more complex in their biodiversity.  Home to thousands of species of plants and animals, Temenggor has one of the highest species diversity in the world.

        The lake is spread over the northern part of the Main Range of mountains, which at their highest altitudes support a specialized montane flora and fauna.  The predominant geological feature of the area are rugged granite mountains of the Main Range.  Dated at around 220 million years old, the highest peak is more than 2000 metres high.  Several limestone islands at the southern part of the lake are believed to be much older, dating back to about 400 million years and these outcrops are among the oldest rock formations in Malaysia.

        The northern part of the lake is part of the Perak state park, the Royal Belum.  Unlike the more established Malaysian forest reserves of Taman Negara or Endau Rompin in Pahang and Johor, Royal Belum State Park is comparatively unknown and was only recently gazetted in January 2003 and officially launched in August 2003 by the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Azlan Shah. The Park stretches over 117,500ha of an area referred to as Upper Belum which sits north of the East-West highway.

        In the 1970s, construction began on a highway across the region and at the same time the Temenggor Dam was built for hydroelectric power generation, creating a man-made lake spanning 70 kilometres up the Perak River and 30 kilometres up its tributaries. The flooding of the area created many islands out of what were once hilltops.

        Scientific expeditions to the area carried out by the Malaysian Nature Society have made many interesting discoveries including the rare Rafflesia, the world’s largest flower. Two species of Rafflesia, R.hasseltii and R.cantleyi, and intermediate species can be found here.  They also found the greatest concentrations of hornbills anywhere on Earth. More than 2000 Hornbills have been recorded on several occasions.  Elephants, tigers, black panthers, clouded leopards, rhinoceros, sun bears, seladang, tapirs and more than 250 species of birds and insects are known to live here.

        Virtually untouched by mankind, relatively unknown and largely unexplored, Belum State Park is slowly exposing its well kept secrets to the outside world. This last bastion of virgin rainforest in peninsular Malaysia beckons the adventurous and those wishing to experience nature at its most pristine state.