The Island of Borneo, located in Southeast Asia, and is the third largest island in the world and is divided between three countries: Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brunei. The beautiful island is known for its raw steaming jungle and insane levels of biodiversity, but perhaps the most dominant feature on this lush tropical island remains elusive and unexplored. Perhaps for this reason, more than any other, I convinced my girlfriend, brother and sister-in-law to go on a 3 day, 2 night tour to the summit of Mount Kinabalu, located in the Malaysian state of Sabah. There are several outfitters that operate tours on and around Mount Kinabalu, but we went with Mountain Trails Tours & Travel.
Reaching the Summit of Mount Kinabalu
At over 13,435 feet Mount Kinabalu stands as the tallest peak in Southeast Asia, higher than anything between New Guinea and the Himalayas. The mountain’s horny crown of granite peaks spread out in a bizarre moonscape that seems to trade in all vegetation for views too beautiful to blink. Of course there is a physical price to pay for such a view and it doesn’t come cheap. The summit trail is a relentless chain of steps that stretch end to end for 9km (but between you me that 9km doesn’t account for the incline). We gathered ourselves in Kota Kinabalu or KK, the Malaysian state of Sabah’s capital city and about a 2.5 hour flight from Singapore. The city is far from breathtaking by itself, but serves as a great launching pad for several different adventure tours around Borneo. Another benefit is its proximity to Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park, a collection of 5 small islands 15 minutes away by boat that offer great beaches, hiking, and snorkeling.
Tunku Abdul Rahman National Park
DAY 1
We leave behind the island life of KK after taking down one last meal of pasta for the adventure ahead of us at Kinabalu National Park. Our driver stops off at the entrance to the park before driving on to the trailhead in order to secure the mandatory permits, insurance, and guide. Our guide Veronica is one of only a few woman guides in a job that demands the endurance to summit every couple of days and the patience to wade through our bad jokes.
Summit Trail to Mount Kinabalu
The trail begins with a few hundred yards of downhill, an ironic joke for those who know the trail ahead holds nothing but up. Seemingly endless steps along the trail have been built out of stones, roots, planks, dirt, and more stones. Frequent breaks are our best friend, and compliment nicely Veronica’s motherly words of “jalan palang palang” which roughly translates to “slow and steady.” A relentless 6 hours of stair stepping brings us to a small cluster of mountain rest houses, our accommodations for the night. The digs are dorm room style with an adjacent restaurant that serves decent grub. The food is made all the more appreciated when you realize that every ounce of ingredients has to be carried up a mountain on foot. The view from the rest house during sunset is incredible as you’re now over 10,000 feet and amidst the dramatic clouds that spread out across Borneo. As soon as the sun went down we crawl into sleeping bags and crash in preparation for our 2am wake up call to conquer the summit.
DAY 2
The sound of a pre-recorded rooster lets everyone know it’s time to wake up. We shuffle out of our dorm room and collect the things we would need to summit: headlamp, camera, snacks, water, etc.. The weather atop Mount Kinabalu can change quickly, with temperatures commonly dipping close to freezing and wind that will blow you off the mountain. The stretch of trail to the summit is a combination of built stairs between large boulders, ropes climb with through the steep sections, and finally an open granite landscape near the summit. Of course all of this is hidden from us under the darkness of night (which can be a bit unnerving at times). As we arrive at the summit there is a faint light growing off to the east and we know the best part of our tour is only minutes away. Each passing minute brightens the vistas around us, which in turn ushers in a fresh round of photo ops and camera clicking. The view as the sun rises over the horizon is unreal. The sky in every direction holds colors of pinks and reds overlaid on a blanket of deep blues. The lush topography of Borneo some 10,000 feet below is laid out in front of us like we’re looking at a map. To witness a complete sunrise from the top of Mount Kinabalu is an incredibly powerful experience, and makes every last strenuous step worth it.
Sunrise From Mount Kinabalu
Once we thoroughly capture the awesome panoramas from the summit we begin the grueling task of reversing our tracks. On our way down we opt for the Via Ferrata (Italian for “iron road”) which is a novice rock climbing route that offers a technical twist to the hike down for an additional cost. To the uninitiated it would seem that the hike up would be the more physically taxing, but there is unanimous consent among hikers that the hike down is far more arduous. Our legs felt numb by the time we reached our transport to carry us off to the Poring Hot Springs, where our legs would begin their slow recovery.
Poring Hot Springs is located further inland from Mount Kinabalu and doubles as a nature research center. There we are able to soak our aching muscles in pools of steaming sulfuric water (fresh water pools also available) while toasting ourselves with several well deserved rounds of Tiger Beer, the proverbial Bud Light of Malaysia. I would strongly encourage the booking of the River Lodge, a luxurious 2 bedroom with living room detached unit, for any accommodations instead of the group dorm rooms. After Mount Kinabalu you’ve earned it!
DAY 3
Canopy Walk Poring Hot Springs
The last day of our tour begins with the much-anticipated Canopy Walk . After a short walk from the Hot Springs up a few switchbacks (uugghh my legs) we arrive at the start of a suspended foot bridge that spans between canopy trees 120 feet off the rainforest floor. At 8am the sounds of the rainforest are alive and thick, giving one the sense that he or she is in a truly wild place.
The transport back to KK takes about 3 hours by car but depends in some part to how much your driver wants to race in formula one. Ours would not hesitate to pass slow moving semis on a blind curve two gears too low. We arrive back in KK in one piece (albeit with a quick blessing under our breath), but with our legs feeling like razor blades. Our 3 day 2 night tour is complete but not without a mountain of memories, accomplishment, advil and great photos!
