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    • Abseits vom Hamsterrad 🌏
      7
      Day 136

      Kinabalu Nationalpark

      February 17 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

      Der Halt auf Borneo war eher eine spontane Ergänzung unserer Reiseroute, denn dadurch klappt es endlich sich einmal mit Gabriel zu treffen.😅
      Gabriel wartete bereits seit einigen Tagen in Kota Kinabalu auf uns und empfing uns direkt nach unserer Ankunft. Durch Zufall haben er und sein Couchsurfing Host (Gastgeber) regelmäßig in der Bar rumgehangen, die zu unserem Hostel gehörte. Fiz (besagter Host) war ein wirklich lustiger Geselle, sodass wir eigentlich die ganze Zeit mit den beiden abhingen und abends noch ein paar Drinks in unserer Bar inhaliert haben.😅 Eigentlich wollten wir unseren Ausflug in den Kinabalu National Park planen, aber das ist irgendwie untergegangen.... Wir haben gerade noch in Erfahrung gebracht, wo die Busse fahren sollen und planten den nächsten Tag einfach mal planlos loszufahren. 😂
      Wir haben den besagten Bus zwar nicht gefunden, aber ein Taxifahrer hat den Job für den selben Preis erledigt.
      Im Nationalpark haben wir auch noch keine Unterkunft gehabt, aber auf Booking.com schnell die Günstigste rausgesucht und "et voila", da war die Bleibe für die Nacht.
      Aber wie zu erwarten auch eine der "schabigsten" im Dorf, Kammerjäger Lehmann & Göttert durften nämlich erstmal auf Kakerlakenjagd gehen. 😂
      Da in das kleine Dorf nahe des Nationalparks keine Busse fahren und sogar die Taxi Apps nicht funktionieren war es etwas schwierig sich einen Transport zu organisieren. Auch der einzige Taxifahrer, welchen wir in der Hinterhand hatten, wusste um seine Position und verlangte absolute Wucherpreise... 😅
      Das wollten wir aus Prinzip schon nicht bezahlen, also liefen wir erstmal los und versuchten unser Glück per Anhalter. Es dauerte auch nicht lang bis die erste Frau uns auf die Ladefläche ihres Pick Ups springen ließ. Die kommenden Tage haben wir uns fast ausschließlich so fortbewegt und haben dabei echt nette Locals kennengelernt von einer netten Mutti bis zum Bleifuß-Opi. 😂
      Im Nationalpark selbst haben wir viele der dort angelegten Pfade gemacht und sind bis zum höchsten zulässigen Punkt gewandert. Ab dort muss man leider eine Erlaubnis sowie eine geführte Tour buchen, was mind. 300€ aufwärts gekostet hätte...
      Durch einen Fehler der Unterkunft waren wir anscheinend in einen falschen Raum einquartiert worden, sodass nach unserer Rückkehr aus dem Nationalpark unser Kram in einen neuen Raum geräumt wurde und nunja... ein Upgrade war das auf jeden Fall nicht. 😂
      Abgesehen davon, das es unfassbar dreckig war, sind auch wieder einige Kakerlaken unterwegs gewesen. Da viele Räume nicht belegt waren, versuchte Laura ihr Glück und fragte nach einem anderen Raum. Mit Erfolg, nach einem kurzen Umzug konnte Laura dann doch noch beruhigt schlafen. Allerdings nicht sonderlich lang, denn bereits 5:15 Uhr klingelte der Wecker für die Besteigung des Maragang Hill. Ein Berg, welcher am Morgen einen wolkenfreien Blick auf den Mount Kinabalu ermöglicht. Leider mussten wir uns für diese Tour einen Guide nehmen, was absolut überflüssig war. Der Weg war einfach, eindeutig ausgeschildert und auch nicht sonderlich lang. Wir haben bereits nach einer Stunde den Gipfel erreicht, sehr zur Last unseres Guides, für die wir anscheinend etwas zu schnell waren. 🫣
      Für die Aussicht hat sich das frühe Aufstehen auf jeden Fall gelohnt. Nach 3 Stunden war die Tour auch schon vorbei und wir machten uns auf den Rückweg nach Kota Kinabalu. Dort angekommen haben wir erstmal einen Mittagschlaf gemacht und am Nachmittag mit Gabriel nochmal etwas gegessen, bevor sich unsere Wege wieder trennen. Denn während er in den indonesischen Teils Borneo geht, machen wir uns auf den Weg nach Sandakan.      Read more

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    • TravelerBorneo 2024
      1
      Day 4

      Sepilok

      April 9 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C

      Sepilok is about half an hour from Sandakan and was a great start to the jungle part of our trip.

      First up was the Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre, where orphaned young and otherwise deserted animals are nurtured and prepared for life in the wild.

      They are the most amazing animals (mum rears her baby for up to nine years before they go out on their own) and we spent some time watching the juveniles and then the older animals feeding. They are fed only a small amount so that they will go and forage for more by themselves, and possibly become completely independent.

       Next stop was the Bornean Sun Bear Centre.

      Bornean Sun Bears have a few natural disadvantages, chiefly of which is a gall bladder that secretes bile that in some cultures is regarded as a powerful aid for libido/period pain/household cleaning.

      Then they may be captured as pets and have their claws removed, which (as the claws are bone) is excruciatingly painful and (as they rely on their claws to climb trees and dig for food) means they cannot survive in the wild.

      As sun bears eat termites, they also play an important role in keeping the trees healthy.

      In the afternoon we braved the hot sun and humidity and visited the Rainforest Discovery Centre.

      We walked high into the trees on the three hundred metre canopy walkway, constantly on the lookout for animals. For this part of the visit, though, the pickings were slim, with some distant bird sightings, two squirrels and a lizard.

      Then we waited in a large group for dusk, enjoying the slightly cooler air and the peaceful atmosphere high above the ground.

      Everyone was waiting for the red giant flying squirrels to perform their tricks. All eyes were focused on a box fastened to a tree, from where two little eyes peered out.

      Finally, he made his move, climbing out and up the tree before gliding gracefully down about thirty metres to his destination. All eyes were on him, but they had to be assisted by torches, as by this time it was quite dark. Steve was brilliant, his torch tracking the entire flight like a pro.

      Then we were taken along a series of bush tracks in search of night animals. Again, though, animals were scarce. We saw an incredibly vivid blue kingfisher, a scorpion, and a small pit viper that could easily have been stomped on; other than that it was down to lizards and stick insects for our entertainment.

      We’re now heading up the Kinabantangan River to Sukau Rainforest Lodge, for the part of our adventure.      Read more

    • TravelerBorneo 2024
      2
      Day 6

      Sukau

      April 11 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

      It was a two-and-a-half hour ride by speedboat up the Kinabatangan River to Sukau Rainforest Lodge, where have spent the past three nights.

      On the trip up our guide told us he would stop to show us any significant wildlife sightings, but we didn’t need to stop, mainly because he was asleep for most of it.

      We arrived around four in the afternoon, and soon boarded a small boat to look for wildlife. It was oppressively hot and sticky, but peaceful yet fun buzzing around from one side of the river to the other as the guide pursued possible wildlife.

      Africa has its “big five” - the lion, leopard, buffalo, giraffe and elephant, and Australia its “big four” - the kangaroo, emu, platypus and tall poppy. In Borneo there is the orang utan, proboscis monkey, hornbill, crocodile and pygmy elephant.

      We saw our first orang utan in the wild very quickly, shortly followed by a host of proboscis monkeys. The monkeys are apparently quite easy going and will happily help to groom members of other monkey species - this is not surprising, as anyone lumbered with a nose the size of that on the male proboscis monkey would have to be pretty easy going.

      From the right angle the males look like a chubby Mr Magoo without his glasses.

      Hornbills were also plentiful, although a little harder to see in the tree tops. Of the rhinoceros hornbill variety, however, there was only the briefest of sightings.

      Then there was the crocodile, which was also plentiful, both large - very large, in fact - and small.

      Of the pygmy elephant, though, there was no sign whatsoever. Our guide kept promising that there were elephants in the area, and each boat excursion included the enticement that they were “waiting for the word” that the elephants were down by the river. What rot.

      In all, we spent eight hours numbing our bottoms on the slightly padded seats of the boat, and came away very happy with the animal sightings and the experience. Especially in the early mornings, the air was cool, the mist was rising from the still river and there was a sense of anticipation about the day - and the big breakfast awaiting our return.

      One of our boat trips was at night. No pygmy elephants, funnily enough, but we saw lots of small crocodiles, (luckily) small snakes and some incredibly colourful kingfishers and other birds of different varieties. It was a bit surreal zooming across the blackness of the river, with the guide using the only light on the boat to scan the bank for animals, rather than watch where he was going.

      And it was peaceful. We stopped the engine (deliberately, I hope) and drifted for some time under a canopy of stars and in the enveloping silence. The waxing moon, in its last nights, shed a tiny reflection on the otherwise dark river.

      With this peace and tranquility in mind (and the multitude of animals out there waiting to poison and/or eat us), we move on to the Tabin Conservation Area, and… the leeches.      Read more

    • skip's retirement travelSoutheast Asia
      Day 68

      Mount Kinabalu

      February 11, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      Mountain considered holy by the local people. It towers over everything here at 4,095 meters at the summit. The trail to the top is 8 km with a vertical climb of about 2,200 meters. That's more than 1 1/3 mile up. Or a 27.5% grade on average, triple the grade of a steep road. All that is to say that these old legs didn't make the summit. I got to the lodge at about 3200+ meters but couldn't make the final climb. I barely made it back down.
      In the pictures, #1 is the whole mountain from a distance. #2 is a look at a small part of the trail to give an idea of the difficulty, and that isn't even the worst part. I was too drained, both physically and mentally, to think of pictures at that point. #3 is the climber's lodge where we stayed. The rest are various views from the the lodge and/or trail on the downward hike as it was raining during the hike up.      Read more

    • TravelerWorld Tour 2019-2020
      Day 106

      Gomantong Caves, Kinabatangan River

      February 18, 2020 in Malaysia ⋅ 🌧 28 °C

      We woke up early & Hadi had a surprise for us. He walked us to the beach & let us each hand release a hatchling turtle. Unfortunately Hadi didn’t fully press the video recording button on the iPhone, but it was a cool experience just the same. We boated back to Sandakan. This time, we were in 6-8 foot seas, so it was a little “bouncy”... Hadi drove us to Gomantong caves, where we walked along a boardwalk through the rainforest (jungle) in a light rain towards the cave entrance looking for signs of primates, native birds or insects. We did see some butterflies & a Pygmy squirrel which was about the size of our thumb. It was impossible to get a decent pic of that little guy! An orangutan was spotted in the cave yesterday escaping the rain, but we weren’t so lucky today. The cave is famous for having millions of swiftlets & bats. We saw millions of swiflet nests which are harvested 4 times a year by locals to sell to the Chinese who use them to make Birds Nest Soup. Hadi told us that depending on the quality of the nest, it can fetch up to 3000 ringget an ounce, or about $1000 Cdn. The nests are made of swiftlet saliva, & their own feathers (black swiftlets) & just swiftlet spit by white swiftlets, which is more sought after. The cave was also home to billions of cockroaches, spiders, & poisonous centipedes that were quite big! We walked on a boardwalk around the cave perimeter. In the middle was tons of guano, which is left there so that the scent will attract the swiftlets back to the cave. Next, we drove to a small dock to take a 5 min boat ride to our accommodation, which was also the take off point for our 2 hour river cruise. We saw a couple of crocodiles, one over 10’ long, lots of long tailed macaque monkeys, several silvered langur monkeys, & lots of proboscus monkeys in the trees lining the river. Several species of birds, including egrets, purple herons, and kingfishers flew around us.Read more

    • Fifi flipflopFifi Flipflops Big Adventure
      Day 2,378

      Rainy day

      June 2, 2022 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

      My plan this morning was to go trekking to mount Kinabalu but it's pouring so I've decided to hang around here with the locals in the hostel and get more info. Travelling around Sabah is proving more difficult than I thought and more expensive. I've had a quote to climb Mount Kinabalu and it's over £400 which is 2 day 1 night but with the weather how it is I'm definitely not guaranteed a view and the only thing I am guaranteed is to get wet. The guys suggest we can go to the beach and do some stand up paddle boarding. Ronaldo works here but when he calls they say the wind has really picked up here and that the lifeguard has said none is to go in the water. Instead we venture across the road for pastry and coffee and then onto the Philipino market. They sell all handcrafted items here and strangely it seems to be men that make them sitting outside on there singer sewing machines. I receive a message from Langkawi to say that one of the guys Anand has died this morning at 3am. This shocks me to the core as he was cycling every morning and is only the same age as me. Life is very short and we really dont know what tomorrow will bring so really live for the day . I compose myself but its pouring so We take shelter in The cock and bull where a jug of beer is £15 and play several games of pool. Including 9 ball. Michael suggests for us to go the new night Market that's just opened for food. It's amazing there are so many food stalls with so many choices of food and after a good wander around taking in the smells and aromas we collect a few different dishes and head back to find a table. Tonight is the soft opening but there are so many people here we manage to find a table but then hunt around for a long time looking for a seat. After nearly half an hour we're all sat down and eating. It's delicious and I thoroughly enjoy it as well as the claim to fame I'm the first foreigner who has been here. It's back to the hostel for an early night.Read more

    • Fifi flipflopFifi Flipflops Big Adventure
      Day 2,380

      Snorkeling

      June 4, 2022 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

      I wake early as today Michael and I are heading out to one of the islands just of Kota kinabalu. I amazed at the beauty that Malaysia can bring you from Rainforest to beautiful beaches within 30 minutes. We walk to Jesselton Jetty where within minutes of buying a ticket £35 £7 we are boarding a speedboat to Manukan island. Michael's kindly lent me one of his snorkeling kits so there's no need to hire one and when we arrive a 20rm £4 visitors tax is charged. We find a shaded spot on the quieter side of the beach before heading into the water to do some snorkeling. The water is the clearest I've seen in Malaysia so far and there's lots of different fish although they are all like a transparent colour even in they're different shapes and sizes. After 45 minutes in the water I feel like I've been stung on my back and after getting out there's commotion in the water with people shouting Jellyfish. A guy in a rescue canoe comes paddling along trying to catch it but to no avail. After 10 minutes everyone returns to the water but Michael suggests we should wait a while to see if they come out again and when they don't we go for another snorkel. We cross to the other side of the beach to grab lunch and then head into the water here as its much quieter now. There are optional of doing 1,2,3or 4 islands so people are leaving and arriving all through the day. Once again we have a snorkel and as my go pro is broken I've bought one of the little plastic bags to put my phone in but what I don't realise is the whole time I'm filming the camera has turned around and I'm filming myself rather than the fish. Even still I love it. At 3pm we board the boat back to kk and grab a coffee at the ferry side restaurant where its full of young footballers . There is a 5 aside pitch inside and and after watching for 10 mins book a grab to our next adventure........Read more

    • Fifi flipflopFifi Flipflops Big Adventure
      Day 2,381

      Sepilok bound

      June 5, 2022 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

      I wake at 6 am to get to the bus station for the 8am bus to Sepilok. I packed last night so its just a case of a quick shower and packing my last minute bits and bobs. I book a grab but he struggles to find me and 30 minutes later after sending photos I eventually get my cab. It means I arrive late to the bus station and the 8am bus is fully booked. Thankfully there is a bus at 1030 so I buy my ticket and sit in the cafe across the road. The lady serving is called Atik and asks if she can get a selfie. Of course I obliged and make my way back to the station. As I board the bus I notice my rucksack keeps getting put on and taken off as I'm getting off at Sepilok its the stop before the main stop at Sandakan so needs to be easily accessible as once again I'll be dropped off at the side of the road. The views on the journey are outstanding floating between jungles and rows of psalm trees. Its absolutely beautiful although the road leaves a lot to be desired. It is more like a track than a road and seeing as its the only road that connects the East to the West its a nightmare. Along the route we pass through a couple of towns. One called Kundasang and one called Ranau, the home of Sabah tea. As we drive along the road there is a lorry with a bunch of young boys in the back all dressed in the same outfits and they look like they are are off to perform somewhere but the journey is bad enough on a bus let alone in the back of a lorry in this heat. The journey takes nearly 8 hours as half way along the route they are doing major roadworks which are highly need. At the same time it's really strange to see these huge diggers in the middle of the Borneo jungle.. Also along the way I see massive clearings of trees as they dig to reinforce embankments. 5 hours into the journey we stop at a roadside restaurant which is pretty big but when I go to use the toilet I'm gobsmacked as the isn't even a hole in the ground. You literally pee on the floor and there's a drainage hole in the back wall. It absolutely stinks. And so do my flip-flops I pour water over the and I'm just glad I didn't need a number 2. Back on the bus I brace myself for the rest of the bumpy journey. As predicted I get dropped by the side of the road and just by chance try and get a grab. To my absolute joy I get one in 5 minutes and it's a massive shock as I didn't think they'd have them this far out. I get another wonderful surprise when I arrive to the hostel. Its absolutely beautiful and I think I've been dropped to the wrong place but apparently not. The only downside is I'm in the dorm on my own but after the crowdidness of my last one I'm going to make the most of it. Its a great place here and the hot strong shower is well appreciated after the journey. Its strange the things your grateful for when you travel. I take a little walk out and there is literally nothing apart from the sanctuaries here so i make my way back before going to the restaurant. I'm surprised at how cheap it is because its the only place open. I have dinner on my own then head back to my room for an early night.Read more

    • Fifi flipflopFifi Flipflops Big Adventure
      Day 2,388

      Phone misery

      June 12, 2022 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

      So after getting my phone wet yesterday and placing it in a box of rice overnight the worst case scenario has become real life. my phone has died. I can't believe how I used to travel without one and have become so dependant on it for booking things, finding places and even writing my blog. The other downside is there are no longer internet cafes. There are far worse things that can happen and I bite the bullet and head out to buy a new one. I always say that behind every negative is a positive and there are plenty I can take from this, the first one being the phones are so cheap here and after shopping around I managed to find a phone with pretty much the same spec as my Samsung even a little better for £200 and I'm also thankful for the fact pretty much everything is backed up on Google. I spend the whole morning installing apps and trying to remember passwords although accessing Google was pretty difficult and online banking was pretty impossible with a lot of perseverance I eventually got there and I'm back up and running. The other downside was all the time I'd spent writing my blog in the jungle, because I was unable to upload it was totally lost but it was such a memorable experience I will catch up on that part of my adventures at a later date.. A little later in the afternoon a new crew of people arrive, Alessandro from Italy, Chloe from Germany and. . They kindly invite me to join them this afternoon as they are heading to swim at the Tampi Tampi resort which when we arrive realise it's where the sea gypsies (Bajau Laut live. They built there homes on stilted huts above the coral bays .The sea gypsies are exceptional free divers. Many have mastered the art of free diving to depths of well over 20m while holding their breath for several minutes. All this as they hunt for fish, lobsters, sea cucumbers ) and other marine life Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they earn their living solely based on the ocean’s resources, the sad part being is that Most are not afforded citizenship status by either Malaysia, Philippines or Indonesia, as they have been deemed to reside in the waters of the Sulu and Celebes Sea, and not strictly on land owned by any of the countries.As a result, most of their children do not have access to a formal education system, as it is a requirement for students to have birth certificates and for both their parents to possess national identity cards. As we walk around these stilted areas I'm shocked to the core as a lady is sweeping out her house and literally brushed all the rubbish including plastic bottles into the sea. We take a seat at a small restaurant away from the crowds of locals that are swimming in little netted areas that aren't occupied by the "catch of the day' and enjoy watching as the use the stilted areas as diving platform but choose not to join them. The area is also used by other local people and as we leave the kids can't stop staring and waving. They use a lot of flat back jeeps as they can cram a lot of people in the back from Grandmas to baby's. We take the grab straight to the street market which is very similar to the one I went to in Kota Kinabalu but has a slightly more organized set up and a stage in the middle for the entertainment. We don't stay around long enough for this but we're heading to the waterfront to see some music there. It's crazy how as we're leaving this area how nice it seems compared to downtown. As we arrive to the waterfront I ask the guy from the restaurant where we can get a beer and he tells us a bar at the end. As we are walking towards the bar we bumb into Luiz the guy I met in Sepilok. We share a few beers in the bar with a band who are really good before making our way back to the hostel.Read more

    • Fifi flipflopFifi Flipflops Big Adventure
      Day 2,383

      Night trek

      June 7, 2022 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

      In the early afternoon I go to the Rainforest Discovery Center to book for tonights night walk and as I arrive I can hear music being played inside the grounds. I ask the lady what it is and if it can go and have a look and she says yes for a few minutes otherwise she'll have to charge me. As I enter there is a group of young guys and as I approach they welcome me in. They are playing Gamelan instruments and are practicing for a competition that will be held at the weekend. Alex the main guy speaks amazing English and asks if I'd like to try, how could I say no. They show me where and how to hit the gong and I get the easy part of playing just 121212 and as I do this they all join in. Maybe I'll stay here and join a rock band. As I say my goodbyes and thank yous I wish them luck in the upcoming competition. In the evening I've invited two girls who are staying in my room Adate and Mauri and even though they've just arrived are keen to join me. When we arrive there are two guides waiting for us and a few other people have joined the tour. We start just after six and walk to a skybridge where we stand and watch as the flying squirrels wake up and poke their heads out of there nesting boxes. As the sun sets the sound of the jungle grows louder and louder and they use this as an alarm call. Flying squirrels are not capable of flight like birds or bats; instead, they glide between trees. They are capable of obtaining lift within the course of these flights, with flights recorded to 90 metres. Further along the trail we encounter a slow loris. They are one of the only poisonous primates and lick there armpits to produce the poison. They are pregnant for six months and will lick their babies with the poison so it deters predators. The next spot is a scorpion and it amazes me how our guides actually spot these things. We are walking through a forest in the dark with nothing but a head torch and they spot things no bigger than 2 inches long. Amazing. We also see a green pit viper, casually wrapped around a tree branch and there's no way I would have spotted it as a snake. Their camouflage is amazing and when I learn they're venomous I'm keen to get out of there. Further into the jungle we have another spot of something I've never seen before. The crazy thing is very little is known about them and even when I Google it there is no information. Our final spot is a lantern fly a beautiful multicoloured insect with a turned up snout they use this to drill into trees where they feed on the sap and then squirt the excess sugar out of their abdomen. One of the prettiest insects I've seen. We leave the jungle and get a group photo before heading back to the lodge to eat. Nick one of the guys on the tour is staying there and joins us for dinner. I bid everyone good night and we arrange to share breakfast tomorrow before I leave for the Kintabagaten river.Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Sabah, SBH

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