My recent visit to the Lower Peirce Reservoir filled me with a sense of ambivalence. Feeling that as Singaporeans, we should be so blessed to have such a beautiful venue within our increasing congested city, our “city in a garden” notwithstanding. And the flip side that accessibility to such lovely place can be really daunting. There’s no MRT to facilitate your visit here, the taxi fare can be cost 2 lunches or more and the public bus circuits getting here can be tortuous.
My advice for “unfettered” enjoyment of the Lower Peirce Reservoir (or to most nature reserves in Singapore) is to arrange outings with friends or relatives who have cars. That way, it makes the trip more palatable (please don’t flame me, I am just really sharing an honest opinion (^_^).
The red arrow indicates the section most (especially those who drives or take taxis) are likely to visit. Map source : NParks.
This reservoir is Singapore’s 2nd oldest reservoir, being built in 1912. The thick forest that lined its banks are a matured secondary rainforest. You will spot numerous rubber trees and oil palms – visible remnants of the past when vast areas of Singapore were covered with plantations.
The reservoir is usually quiet on weekdays, had to get my photo buddy to “accessorize” the pic here as a point of interest. My personal philosophy in photography is to use editing software as little as possible and let my pictures speak for themselves.
But the scenes at Lower Peirce Reservoir are so lovely and lend itself to “mood creation”, that I can’t resist tweaking a little here and there. This would be a lovely location for bridal photography, for couples looking for tranquil setting.
Memories with families and loved ones are made of this. A picnic by the reservoir or a spot of fishing? What do you say ?
Shelters with sitting benches dot the reservoir. But I doubt it’s sufficient to during weekends or public holidays . First come first served. Go early and “Chope” 🙂
On quiet, windless spells, makes for great “reflection shots”. But it’s usually balmy at the enchanting venue. So take the chance to take such shots when the chances arise.
Bring your kids bicycles here for a spot of cycling, perhaps a light jog? or even kites – low carbon footprints activities that don’t hurt mother nature.
It’s no Sun Moon Lake in Taiwan, or Milford Sound in New Zealand but it’s still a lovely place to feast your eyes on.
When you slow down and observe nature at the reservoir, you may perhaps get poetic with the lovely fauna and flora by the lake, like this freshly curled ferns.
Busy bee making hay while the sun shines. Loads of nature on display if you care to observe. It’s the reservoir of life , after all.
Amazing venue, especially for macro photographers. The plants along the water hold many gems for all, at no extra charge, of course.
If you like to shoot pictures of damselflies, then you will find this lake a damselflies galore. But much patience required. Can be daunting task to shoot these very active residents.
Perhaps the family planning authority might like to adopt the damselflies as mascot ? Look to nature for solution and inspiration 🙂
A macro shot of the colourful damselfly. Really, really beautiful.
I was attracted to the vibrant hue of this dragonfly. Glad it co-operated for a few seconds before it scooted off again. Are you are aware that dragonfly (or most of them) can’t walk although it has 3 pairs of legs? It’s just for support and landings.
A dragonfly coming in for landing. Simple everyday happening, simple nature life. But never take it for granted. Respect it. Treasure it.
I hope the pictures motivate readers to visit the lovely place soon. But other than transport arrangement, the following things to bring along would make the visit more pleasant –
- Drinking water (there’s a water cooler at the restroom facilities)
- Sun block
- Mosquitoes repellent (not much mosquitoes when I visited the place, just to be on the safe side)
- Rain gears & ground sheets (picnics?)
- Binocular (if you have it and a birds lover)
Have a superb catch up with peace and tranquility soon, thanks for joining me on the pictorial journey (^___^)//
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