If you hike in Selangor, your weekend plans for the next three months just changed. The Selangor State Forestry Department (Jabatan Perhutanan Negeri Selangor, JPNS) will close all Taman Eko Rimba and all hiking areas inside the state's Hutan Simpanan Kekal (permanent forest reserves) from 16 November 2026 until 31 January 2027.
What the notice says
The notice was posted on 22 October 2026 on the department's permit portal, SEFOREST, and on the Selangor Forestry Department website. Its poster uses the words "ditutup sepenuhnya", fully closed. It gives the reason as a precaution "to avoid any risk of accidents to visitors following the monsoon season". SAYS, The Vocket and MalaysiaAktif reported it on 23 October. None of them added a list of exceptions, and neither did the notice.
That timing matches the weather. MetMalaysia's statement of 23 October put the start of the northeast monsoon at 27 October 2026, running to March 2027, with three to five episodes of heavy, continuous rain between November and January. Forest trails flood, slopes slip and waterfall pools can rise suddenly (kepala air) in exactly that window.
Which trails this hits
Since 1 April 2025, every hike into a Selangor forest reserve has needed a SEFOREST permit. The Star reported at launch that the system covered 70 locations, 52 hills and 18 waterfalls, and named Bukit Lagong, Bukit Saga, Bukit Broga, Sungai Chiling, Air Terjun Batu Asah and Jeram Kubang Gajah among the popular ones. Broga sits inside the Bukit Sungai Putih forest reserve, so the sunrise crowd is affected too. Gunung Nuang, Bukit Kutu and the other guided climbs are also SEFOREST sites.
Two places were already closed before this notice:
- Santuari Ikan Sungai Chiling near Kuala Kubu Bharu, shut since 21 September 2026 until "early 2027" for facility upgrades, monsoon safety and the kelah and tengas breeding season. JPNS says it will announce the reopening date.
- Taman Eko Rimba Sungai Gabai in Hulu Langat has been closed since the December 2021 flash floods. MalaysiaAktif quoted the state forestry director, Azhar Ahmad, in May 2026 saying repair costs are very high and there is no reopening date.
What it means for your permit
SEFOREST's help page is blunt about money. Payments are not refunded, hiking dates cannot be changed after you submit, and you cannot add or remove people later. You can delete an application only before it is approved. So the practical rule is simple: do not apply for any date from 16 November to 31 January.
If you already paid for a date inside the window, the FAQ offers no refund route. Contact the SEFOREST helpdesk at 03-5544 7507 or webjpnselangor@forestry.gov.my and ask. The portal's terms also say JPNS may close an ecotourism area without prior notice.
Other rules worth knowing before February:
- Apply no earlier than one month before your hike. The FAQ says at least 48 working hours ahead, while the portal's user guide says at least 3 days, so allow the longer one.
- Pay by 11.59pm the following day or the application is cancelled automatically. The fee is RM5 a person.
- Hikes to 600 metres and above need a licensed Malim Gunung Perhutanan guide, at most seven hikers per guide, with the fee agreed directly. The two guide associations are on 013-495 2933 and 019-919 4471.
- Every hiker carries a copy of the permit (printed or on the phone) plus MyKad or passport.
Is this every year?
Broadly, yes. Sinar Harian reported the same closure in 2024, from 15 November 2024 to 31 January 2025. The 2026 window starts a day later. The permit only covers forest reserves in Selangor, and privately run ecotourism sites inside reserves follow their operators' own arrangements, so check with them directly.
With Selangor schools on their year-end break from 5 to 31 December, the closure covers the entire school holiday. The earliest a SEFOREST hike can happen again is Monday 1 February 2027, assuming JPNS does not extend the closure. Applications for that date open about a month ahead.
*Sources: JPNS SEFOREST announcements, help and about pages (read 8 November 2026); JPNS closure posters dated 22 October and September 2026; The Star (10 April 2025); Sinar Harian (22 October 2024); MalaysiaAktif (14 May and 23 October 2026); SAYS and The Vocket (23 October 2026); MetMalaysia statement (23 October 2026).*
*Cover image: Sungai Tekala Recreational Forest entrance, by Chongkian, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.*
