Old Ampang Reservoir

“Is it true this reservoir quenched Kuala Lumpur’s thirst over a century ago?” a curious voice piped up from the group. Indeed, right here before us lies the Old Ampang Reservoir, a vital piece of Kuala Lumpur’s history. The Old Ampang Reservoir wasn’t built for mining like older dams and pits in the area. It was constructed specifically to supply water to Kuala Lumpur. Imagine a Kuala Lumpur before 1892, relying solely on wells and rivers for water. The idea for the Old Ampang Reservoir began to form in 1888. By damming Sungai Kongsi Lapan, a tributary of the Ampang River, engineers created this long, narrow lake, approximately 100 meters wide and 500 meters long. Construction finished in 1892. The Old Ampang Reservoir sits high in the Ampang hills. From here, 10-inch pipes carried water to a storage tank likely located in Bukit Tunku. Then the water flowed to homes and businesses across Kuala Lumpur. The reservoir was a feat of engineering for its time. Think of it: a network of pipes bringing fresh water from these hills to a bustling city below. A walk around the Old Ampang Reservoir today reveals remnants of its past. You might stumble upon old filtration ponds, corroded iron pipes, and even traces of staff quarters. The reservoir itself is encircled by a level track. This track measures approximately 1.8 kilometers. It’s marked as the “A” trail. Other trails branch off, leading further into the hills. One, the “B” trail, climbs steeply to the peak of Bukit Kembara, a 245-meter hill south of the reservoir.