LITTLE GUILIN ROCKS STEADY!

The Gammon Quarry before its conversion as
 Little Guilin. Photo taken in 1983 by Peter Chan

Magma chamber sticking out as a result of the last
vulcanicity activity millions of years ago of years ago.



The real Guilin in China - a karst landscape



The placid pond where the rock surface juts out

The  scenic spot that has fooled many

 

The park and Little Guilin covers a size of 70 ha.

 

Granite as the main geomorphology rock structure of
Little Guilin.



Rocky outcrop which resembles the real Guilin
in China

 

With my students and colleagues

THE ROCKER IN ME

Who would believe that these glorious photos are taken at our own backyard? The picturesque and scenic shots have fooled many into thinking that no such place could be found in Singapore. Actually they are rightfully ours. The magma chamber of granite sitting within a placid pond is found at The Little Guilin of Bukit Batok. Why Little Guilin? Because it looks similar to the real big Guilin in China.  The only difference is that while Little Guilin is made of granite, the Big Guilin is a limestone area of Karst landscape, sitting within a lake.

Our Little Guilin was originally a disused granite quarry at Bukit Batok. I learnt that the name ‘Bukit Batok’ has been suggested to be derived from the noise made by the blasting in the granite quarry that now form the natural surroundings of Little Guilin. The Housing Development Board (HDB) had intended to fill the quarry and build a road on it. The idea was discarded and the place was converted to a pond as the existing quarry had rugged outcrops and exposed rock surface against a backdrop of lush vegetation and green hills.

Together with Bukit Batok Town Park and the neighbouring Bukit Batok Nature Park, it occupies 77 ha of land in the planning area of Bukit Batok. It encompasses Bukit Gombak, Hong Kah, Brickworks, Hillview, and also Bukit Batok itself. Before being designated as a park, in 1984, the Housing and Development Board had originally intended to fill the quarry up and build a road on it.

However, the pool was converted to a pond instead when HDB realised that the existing quarry had rugged granite outcrops and a contrasting backdrop of green hills that gave it a pleasant look. Soon, the surrounding areas were also beautified and made accessible by placing granite blocks on the retaining walls and adding footpaths, lights and seating.

From the perspective of a geography teacher, Little Guilin offers a site for the study of geomorphology and has the potential of a field-work inquiry on plate tectonics and the rock cycle. I am prepared to get may hands on the rocks and play dirty on all fours just to be a 'rocker' and know more on Singapore's geology. I want to come up with a lesson package for my students to be more rocky and outdoorish than just sit down and be a passive learner.

How can you get ready yourself for a successful fieldwork study on rocks? A pair of observant eyes is essential to study the colour and the grain size of rocks.  Feeling for texture, smoothness, roughness and testing the hardness of the rocks are some geoography investigations that could be done for a rock study. For this, a little hammer can be a useful tool.

Pack along a magnifying glass if you can't  depend on your eyes for a closer detailed observation of the rocks for you might want to know the mineral content of the rock. A clip board for writing and note-taking is a must too.  A pen or other similar objects can be used as a scale marker. And be handsfree wherever possible - a backpack to store your bottle drink, a towel and wet tissues should give you a lot of manouvre and freedom around the fieldwork location is recommended.

My cousin said that Little Guilin is haunted.  I am giving that a hoot. Let the ghost busters do some research on the para-normal activities there. For me......I am just glad to be a 'rocker.'

NB.
I credit all the beautiful photos to the photographers who have taken them.  The websites where the photos are taken from have been added on the pictures.