It was an adventure of a lifetime. Well, at least for me it was. Never before have I roughed it out so hard but I must say, it was thrilling and
Ming, Amran, Tini, Jiun & I joined the “A Piece of Hope” Charity climb to Mount Kinabalu. Our first night was a relaxing one as we stayed at Sutera Harbor. The next day, we made our way to the National Park where we met up with the rest of the 200 hikers. After an early dinner, and very convincing sales pitch/live demonstration from the guys at Fusion Excel who managed to sell me RM1800 worth of “quantum” pendants and magic thermos, we headed back to our cabins for an early night, each of us anticipating the big climb early the next morning.
After a not-so-light breakfast, we sorted our walking sticks (RM5 each), personal porters/guides Hussein & Clarence, we were taken by bus to the Timpohon Gate where the 6km journey began to Laban Rata (halfway point and also the dorm where we would spend the night).
The first 1-2 km of hike was a very pleasant one. You will see the Carson waterfall within 100-200m from the starting point and one would think, oh what a pleasant and pretty hike this would be! In fact, I must say, it was a VERY pretty climb with plenty flora and fauna that varied significantly at the different altitudes. Some parts of the trail were so surreal – it looked like a set out of “Lost”. The last 2 km before reaching Laban Rata was especially beautiful – the path of rocks was lined by Bonzai-like trees on both sides and what seemed like a Chinese Kungfu movie was actually the hardest bit of the 1st part of the journey. The rest of the trail in between is now all a blur. All I remember is having to climb way too many steps, rocky paths and staring down rock formations, trying to decide the best footing to take. All in all, I found the trail to be a very scenic one, despite hearsay that the other longer route, the Mesilau route which was 2 km longer was a much prettier and more pleasant way. But no thank you to an extra 2km to an already super long climb! I’d rather reach the top sooner than later!
And so we did good timing and albeit the many pit stops we took (it was quite steep for most part of the journey) for re-energizing, re-hydrating or for a short breather, we miraculously made it to Laban Rata within 5 hours! The air up there was thin and poor Amran and Ming were hit with altitude sickness. We had a quick lunch at Laban Rata and headed to our dorm, Gunting Lagadan which was located another 100m, a blessing in disguise because that meant 100m less of a hike to the summit early the next morning! For me, staying at the dorm was an adventure on its own. There were 4 bunk beds to a dorm and in pure dormitory style – they gave you the basics, minus the hot water showers which are obviously a pure necessity at 10 degrees C weather. Fortunately, staying here meant that we had our own kitchen/pantry where we boiled water and bathed out of woks and pans. YAY for warm showers! We napped for awhile and woke up for dinner at about 8. Our cook, Jiun made us super delicious Maggie Mee (boy I haven’t had those in awhile!) and after hanging out in Tini & Amran’s room for awhile over a few warm cups of Milo, we went straight back to bed, considering our 2:30am start to the summit.
We were all awake by 1:30am that morning and our journey to the summit began at 2:30am. It was pitched black and everyone had headlamps on, forming a trail of lights all the way up to the summit. The first km from Laban Rata to the summit was all steps and rocks. And then there comes a part where you hold on to a big white rope, cling on to your life and climb up a narrow path of steep, large rocks. This part, for me, was the hardest and scariest, especially when you can’t see more than 2m ahead of you and dont know what lies on the edge of the cliff. About 100-200m of this and thankfully the rest of the journey to the summit was mostly flat rock. Imagine this – you’re in the middle of nowhere, it’s pitched black. You look up and see a million stars. If you look long enough you can make your wish upon a shooting star or shall i say, MANY shooting stars. I made one. To your left, you see a faint outline of the mountain ridge. You look back and you’ll find a trail of moving lights (from the hikers making their way up). It was cold and the air was thin. The entire experience was the most surreal feeling ever! It was as though we had landed on the moon!
We spent a good hour at the summit, or more like, at the base of the summit, taking photos of the magnificent sunrise, one many hadn’t seen in years. Afterwards, Jiun and I decided to hike up the summit just for the sake of it. Or more so for me to say that I HAVE reached the summit and don’t ever have to go back there again!
The journey down was a tiring and long one. There were some parts from the summit back to Laban Rata that were really scary – the parts where you hold on to the rope and inch your way up by the cliff in the dark seemed 10 times scarier when you could actually see the edge of the cliff and how far you’d fall if you fell. I almost had a panic attack, and I’m not usually afraid of heights! In fact I was so preoccupied with making my way down I hadn’t realized the scorching sun had burnt my unprotected skin. (silly me decided not to bring face cream because I thought the less things on my face the better, considering I wouldn’t be showering for 2 days). That was a big mistake as I came home all burnt and I’m peeling like a reptile!
It was 10am by the time we reached Laban Rata for a quick breakfast, packed our bags and headed for national park. The hike down was an unexpectedly arduous and seemingly endless one. We walked and walked and walked and walked. We passed trails that didn’t even look familiar, trails that I didn’t even think we climbed on the way up, which obviously is impossible. Everything from the day before seemed to be a blur and the hike definitely seemed more pleasant than the descend. Perhaps it was the adrenalin rush, the thrill, the excitement that made it all so easy to get to the top. The way back down was certainly no joke on the knees and thighs. In fact, it took us 5 hours to descend, the same 5 hours it took for us to climb!
The next 2 days were spent in KK, relaxing, and eating before we headed back to the hustling, bustling city of insanity. After 2 foot massages and many days of rest, I can finally feel my legs again and almost have them back to normal.
If climbing Mount Kinabalu is on your list of to do’s, DO IT! It’s a somewhat easy climb (little training needed) with a majestic view. The climb to the summit is a MUST, because it is that part of the journey that makes the entire experience so surreal and special. You must be prepared though, in terms of equipment and what to bring. I can imagine how terrible it would have been if not for the proper clothing and gear. We were also very blessed with PERFECT weather from the start till the end, where it literally poured as we stepped into the Timpohon gates at the end of our adventure. I am so thankful and so grateful for the AMAZING weather, once again.
Special thanks to Jaime and Suat for giving me all the pointers and advise for this climb, all of which came in handy and useful and saved our lives!
Arrival at the National Park – This is the view of the mountain from our room!
Thanks to the guys at Schmidt Marketing, we had the Minox binoculars to bird watch
The next morning, we started our hike at 8:45am from the Timpohon gate.
3.5km in… Most of the trail was like this – rocky but stepped…
Another glimpse of the mountain on our way up…
There were tons of interesting flora & fauna
have you seen the carnivorous pitcher plant?
almost reaching Laban Rata! The view was just amazing and so was the weather!
… after numerous groups of people who kept telling us we were 10 minutes away, even though their “10 minutes” seemed to stretch for an hour… we FINALLY reached Laban Rata!
We slept in that afternoon/evening and started our journey to the summit at 2:30am. This photo was taken just as the sun was about to rise…
That’s Jiun, scouting out a good spot for the perfect sunrise shot!
this view (at the base of the peak) was wayyyyyy better than that at the peak itself
The Ugly Sisters peak
The peak behind us is the highest point of Mount Kinabalu
After all the excitement and picture-taking, Jiun & I decided to make it to Low’s peak at 4095.2m
The peak to the left is St John’s peak. Right in the middle, you will notice a pyramid-like shadow made from Low’s peak
This is the 1-ringgit peak – Take out a RM1 note and check it out!
the two mini spikes on the left are called “Donkey Ears”
on our way down to laban rata… under the scorching heat… (BRING SUNBLOCK!)
This is our 2nd half of our descend down from laban rata…
Meet Li Shan & Li Shen, our roomies at the dorm and Hussein, our amazing porter/guide
the weather held out until we stepped foot unto the Timpohon gate… and then it POURED!
