In February 2020, I followed a casual photography group to do a Pulau Ketam Photowalk, as it has been almost 30 years since I last visited this fishing village in Selangor.
Surprisingly, very little has changed since my visit in the 90s, but there were significant noticeable ones, including the new jetty and other smaller buildings.
Pulau Ketam Photowalk
Before you continue, let me share what Pulau Ketam is about - It is an old Chinese fishing village that has been around for many years.
The fishing village is also built on stilts due to the in and outgoing tides and is surrounded by a massive mangrove system off Port Klang.
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| The beautiful Pulau Ketam fishing village. |
In the good old days, before air travel, locals came here to get away from the city or take a short break. Seafood was the primary produce here and still is.
The locals mainly deal with the supply of fresh or processed seafood to the mainland, and in the last 20 years, the island has seen some growth in local tourism.
So, when the opportunity came up for this Pulau Ketam Photowalk, I immediately signed up to attend this half-day trip, which started at 8.30 AM and ended at 1.00 PM.
I also wanted to test my FujiFilm X-S10 for bird photography, as mangroves are always marvellous for shorebirds, waterbirds, and raptors.
Therefore, I had my Fuji and Samsung Galaxy S10+ for this trip, using the latter for landscape and general photos.
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The South Port Pulau Ketam Jetty in Port Klang.
 | This huge golden crab is spotted just before you board the ferry to Pulau Ketam.
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| Once you are ready to board the ferry, you will walk along this new jetty. |
The group was decent, with 12 people meeting at the Pulau Ketam Jetty in Port Klang and then taking a speed boat (RM12 one way per person), a 40-minute journey.
Once we reached Pulau Ketam, we had a quick briefing about the dos and don'ts here and went on our way.
The island is relatively small, with two main streets occupied by shops and restaurants on both sides, while several hotels and homestays are available.
The rest of the island is mainly dominated by the local fishermen's homes and a couple of temples; therefore, it takes work to get lost here.
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| Sitting at the back of the ferry shows you this scenery. |
The locals are quite friendly, as long as you do not intrude into their lifestyle, just like anywhere else. But they smile at visitors, provided you don't show arrogance or attitude when there.
Pulau Ketam is well known to be electric-friendly for those who prefer not to walk, as there are no cars or motorbikes here, just electric bicycles.
Therefore, you can easily rent an electric bike for RM10 and hour, RM20 for three hours or RM50 for the whole day. I chose to walk as I wanted to see the details of the island.
Photos of Pulau Ketam
Below are random photos taken with my Galaxy S10+ using mostly ultra-wide-angle to capture the full beauty of the Pulau Ketam fishing village.
Each photo is resized for web publishing and minimally edited here; therefore, they are not high-resolution. This is just for the viewers to understand what can be photographed here.
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Arriving at the Pulau Ketam jetty.
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As you walk along the jetty, the scenery when the tide is out.
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Once you enter the island, this is the first thing that greets you.
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| And for those who prefer to take things easy, electric bikes are available for rental. |
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| Life in Pulau Ketam is simple and easy. |
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| The local Balai Polis or a police station. |
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| One of the few Chinese temples at Pulau Ketam. |
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| An arch that was done for the Selangor Silver Jubilee in 1985. |
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| Locals call this 'Kedai Runcit' or provision shop. |
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| A 'Tuck Shop' sells souvenirs, sweets and junk food. |
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| The only photo studio which doubles as another business. |
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| The post office is shared with another old-style shop. |
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| Electric bikes are the primary mode of transport on the island. There are no cars here. |
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| This is the largest building in Pulau Ketam. |
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| A lively main street awaits visitors on the weekend. |
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| Low-angle shots at Pulau Ketam town. |
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| One of the local houses at Pulau Ketam. |
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| The famous Pulau Ketam bridge connects the other part of the island. |
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| A private water gazebo. |
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| Beautiful river landscape photos. |
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| Shops sell a variety of items. |
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| Jalan Besar Pekan Road is the main shopping street of Pulau Ketam. |
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| A Chinese temple from across the river. |
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| Several hotels and homestays are available at Pulau Ketam. |
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| At least they have a little amusement centre for kids here. |
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| Electric bike rentals are available at the entrance to Pulau Ketam. |
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| I managed to also do some smartphone bird photography. |
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| Several street art murals are seen around Pulau Ketam. |
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| The beautiful landscape of Pulau Ketam. |
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| On route back from the island, I passed Northport. |
Where is Pulau Ketam?
This could be a question for those who have never been here or non-Malaysians who work here. Pulau Ketam is an island located just outside of Port Klang in Selangor.
From the main jetty, it takes about 40 minutes to get to the island via ferry from the Port Klang jetty and from Kuala Lumpur, it will take about one hour to drive here.
Alternatively, you can take the KTM Kommuter from KL Sentral, which ends at Port Klang and just walk one minute to the jetty.
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| Google Maps shows where Pulau Ketam is located. |
My Gear For the Pulau Ketam Photowalk
Usually, I focus on my smartphone photography, using a Samsung Galaxy S10+ for my overall photos, including landscape photos in the ultra-wide-mode and standard lifestyle and street photography settings.
But this time, I also brought my FujiFilm X-S10 mirrorless camera fitted with an XF 70-300mm lens and a 2.0 TC. My sole purpose was to capture bird photography and test the telephoto landscape shots.
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| That's me during the Pulau Ketam Photowalk. |
Conclusion
The Pulau Ketam Photowalk brought back some of my early day memories, namely the friendliness of the older people here.
It is also a great place to explore for a day trip, provided you come here early and leave just after lunch, as it can get really hot and humid.
You can also check out some of my other Photowalks in Malaysia, as I have been documenting them over the years. And if you're interested in attending my photowalks, look me up on my Facebook or Instagram.
