Coast-to-Coast Trail: Detailed hiking guide from Sengkang Riverside Park to Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

Coast-to-Coast Trail (C2C trail) is a 36-km long route that links up various parks and green spaces across Singapore. It cuts through different neighbourhoods and various kinds of landscapes in Singapore. You can complete the entire trail in one long day but we prefer to break it up into 2 to 3-hour blocks and gradually explore the areas. This time round, we took on the stretch from Sengkang Riverside Park to Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park.

Note: We started from Rower’s Bay Park in Seletar and the first stretch we did was from Seletar to Sengkang Riverside Park. This stretch from Sengkang to Bishan-Ang Mo Kio is the second installment.

We had a much easier time doing this stretch as the directions and signages were clearer and we kinda got more experienced with maps. There were long stretches that were unsheltered so make sure you put on sunscreen and wear a cap to shield yourself from the sun.

Detailed Directions from Sengkang Riverside Park to Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

From Sengkang Riverside Park, walk along Sungei Punggol river towards Yio Chu Kang Road > Cross Gerald Drive to Yio Chu Kang Road > Walk along Yio Chu Kang Road > Turn right onto Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 > Turn left onto Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 towards Marymount Road > Continue walking straight until you reach Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

Getting to Sengkang Riverside Park

The nearest LRT station to the park is Farmway. You can transfer to the LRT from Sengkang MRT station then walk for about 10 minutes to get to the park.

Sengkang Riverside Park is a 21-hectare park made up of three land parcels. The land parcels are separated by Anchorvale Street on one axis and Sungei Punggol river on another. On one side of Anchorvale Street, there’s a restaurant ‘O My Kampong’, a fruit tree trail, and a small pond which make for a quick photo op.

On the other side of Anchorvale Street, you will find the park connector that leads out to the next pit stop towards Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park.

Sengkang Floating Wetland

The park connector leads out onto a bridge that cuts across the Sengkang Floating Wetland which is the largest man-made wetland in Singapore. The views here are excellent and you can see the LRTs weaving into the HDBs (Housing Development Board, a Singapore statutory board responsible for public housing; locals simply use the term ‘HDB’ to refer to the public housing blocks built by them). The bridge links to the Sengkang Sports Complex.

This is probably my favourite stretch of this segment.

Walk along Sungei Punggol

From Sengkang Sports Complex, walk along the river with the river on your right. We did this trail on a weekend morning and there were so many people exercising, which was a sight in itself. The views here are pretty good as well.

In about 30 minutes, you will reach the end of the river, where you’ll find a road that allows you to cut over to the other side of the river. From there, head towards your left where you’ll find a staircase up to the main road. The staircase is also fitted with a railing that allows cyclists to push their bikes up.

Getting to Luxus Hills Park

You’ll find yourself at Yio Chu Kang road where you will continue walking down, with the road on your right. This stretch is pretty short and there’s hardly any shelter. You can take a brief break at one of the bus stops though.

You will see Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 in just a short while. At this point, turn right to Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 and cross the road to Luxus Hills Park. This is a pretty small park and we didn’t stop to explore. The next park, Ang Mo Kio Linear Park, is just a stone’s throw away, and we decided to skip it too and trudged on.

Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5 – Warning: Incredibly long stretch!

This has gotta be the most dreary parts of the hike and also possibly the longest straight road. You will have to cross 3 major junctions and countless smaller junctions to get to the next turn and this stretch is mostly surrounded by industrial areas and construction sites.

Along the way, there’s some sort of attempt to beautify the route with small flower plots and I must say this is very much welcomed to break the monotony.

Slightly after the halfway mark of this road, you’ll see the iconic ITE College Central and then the Nanyang Polytechnic. Once you pass by these two institutes, cross another junction before turning left to Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6. This road will take you about 45 minutes.

Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6

You can choose to walk on either side of Avenue 6. If you cross over to the other side, you will pass by Ang Mo Kio Garden West which has these rows of tall trees flanking a flight of stairs. It looks really ceremonial. At the corner of the park, you will find a McDonald’s and you could choose to have a meal here. For shelter, cut through the park and the HDB flats instead of walking along the main road.

If you don’t cross the road, you’ll be walking along Ang Mo Kio Central, first passing by the Ang Mo Kio Public Library, then Courts, then Broadway Mall. There are lots more food options here too if you’re feeling hungry.

Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

It will only take you another 20 minutes or so to reach your destination – Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park! Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park is one of the largest parks in the central area and has many scenic spots. My favourites include:

• The bridges that link to the flats opposite
• The pebbled path across the Kallang River

If you wish to continue to the next checkpoint, check out our next guide: Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park to Botanic Gardens.

Dining options at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park

If you didn’t stop for meals along the way, Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park also has a couple of options for a hearty meal.

Grub

Bistro serving some mean burgers. I’d recommend their mentaiko pork katsu burger which is a really substantial burger with a crispy, succulent patty. Their fries are pretty good too and you can top up to get mentaiko mayo instead of the usual sauces.

Canopy

Cafe which offers a mainly western menu. I haven’t had a proper meal there yet personally but their cheeseburger seems to be a popular choice among diners.

And of course, there’s always McDonald’s. 🙂

Overall thoughts

There were parts of the trail that I really liked, such as the Sengkang Floating Wetland, along Sungei Punggol River, and also Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park itself. But I must say the other sections in between were rather uninteresting. If you fancy a more scenic hike, check out the Marang Trail that brings you through some of Singapore’s most iconic landmarks such as Henderson Wave and Mt Faber.