Day 12 - Bako National Park and Kuching

Woke up very early, and took a Grab to Jetty Kampong Bako to register, buy ticket to the national park and take the boat to Bako HQ.
Lucky the night before auntie and Bryan brought me to get supplies: banana, jackfruit, coconut water, nuts and water for the walk.
You have to share the boat ride with others, so thankfully a Spanish lady was already organising something with her husband, and a French couple and so I just joined her. It was rm200 return trip for the 5 of us.
Got to Bako and after registering at the HQ, walked route 9 which was the longest route, with breakaway paths leading to look outs and beaches. But no swimming allowed.
It was an intense hike that started at 9am and finished at 1pm, almost never stopping except to take photos, eat and drink. At around 11am til the end I came to the area they called Padang, which was open and uncovered. The sun was so hot and it burned. I didn't have any sunscreen, just a cap. In the jungle, the environment was oppressive and you could not stop the sweat from dripping and flowing. Tolerance for discomfort had to be very high.
Saw some periuk kera which was my highlights.
Returned to HQ and caught the boat back to Kampong Bako then grab to Kuching. Had McDonald's (a bit disappointing cos of the stale fries and Bun) then back to auntie's house to rest.
Woke up for dinner, auntie uncle and Bryan took me to the town for seafood and mixed pork porridge (very nice cos of the fresh herbs inside), then we got ice cream gula a pong which is a brown sugar from nipa, then walked the waterfront. I'm so thankful for auntie and the family's accommodation and hospitality.
It was a productive fantastic day, one of the best of the trip.Läs mer