It's tough to put the last 6 days into words ... so many things, so many images, so many drops of sweat pouring out of you. I won't even try to recreate everything in words.
Two days in Bako National Park ... we stayed in a run down national park chalet that almost had a real bathroom, but boy was the food ever good !! Made up for that for sure. Spent most of our time hiking around the trails, followed by a few nice beaches to swim around at the end. Most of the other entertainment centered around three types of monkeys to stare at. One was adorable and not shy, one was a pain in the bum and not shy in the least, especially around our cabins, while the last was ... well I can't say much because he was far up a tree, and with the lighting, it was tough to really see his face. [late edited added on part] But I just went over my pictures just now, and I was surprised how many times I almost got his face.
The fireflies at night were cool too, as well as some of the other insects that only really come out at night.
The short flight from Kuching over to Mulu National Park was a bit depressing and confusing at the same time. You see the huge scars on the land where the forest has been cut down. The palm oil plantations are huge rectangles, side by side in huge tracts of land, so at least it's still green. But the scars made for logging roads, or mining, or just the logging of the area is just depressing. The lungs of the planet are being removed for progress, as many would argue the area needs development just like any other area of the world. I suppose if I flew over areas of Canada, or BC specifically where clear-cutting had happened I'd feel the same. But it's just more depressing knowing that being able to replant a tropical rain forest is just a bit trickier, if not almost impossible. I wish I knew more about it all ... maybe I don't.
But the cottage I stayed at the Mulu National Park was great ... the hostel room had four massive beds and it was just me, my own little castle. Perfect to put all my stuff on all the beds so I could figure out what exactly I should bring me for the following three days while hiking. It took awhile, but the decision to figure out what should be sent ahead of me was easier than I thought .... 8 kg and $40 later ... but not everything could be carried anyway.
The park is amazing ... that's all there is to say. Imagine the most amazing cave system in the world (and the biggest cave opening in the world) it is there. Imagine millions (yes, that's right millions) of bats living in this cave and most of them coming out in swarms at 6pm ... they are all there way up in the sky just like a flock of crows. Imagine suspension bridges over rivers that make the Capilano Suspension Bridge look like child's play and make you seem like you are in the middle of an Indiana Jones movie. There's 5 of them. Imagine the most amazing sounds coming from every direction while walking 20 km in the jungle ... and it's every second. Vines more than frequently dangle from the treetops, as you are waiting for Tarzan to swoop by; but he never did. It's very relaxing despite the heavy pack on your back, as the sweat just saturates all your clothes. The strangest part is, you are covered by the canopy above you from the sunrays, but as soon as you stop, the sweat just keeps pouring on.
The only snag was on the first day of the hike the water level on the river was very low and we had to push our canoe a large amount up the river. The first time I didn't realize we'd have to get out and got pretty much my entire shorts soaked ... but that was ok, I changed after we visited a simple village and had my swimming shorts on the rest of the three days. Then it felt more like an adventure, not like an exercise to keep my wallet and passport dry. Luckily everyone was in good spirits while pushing our three canoes over and over and over, so morale stayed strong, when it could have easily gone south. Luckily day two and three the canoes weren't necessarily to push, as our boatmen were pretty clever guys, and the water levels were just high even so that we weren't needed. We got really rained on though the second day of hiking, so the camera had to be put away. A real shame, there were some very beautiful red bark trees that lined the riverside, which gave us gorgeous contrast with all the greenery. I was hoping for more of the same trees on the next day, but apparently they all went on vacation to Redwood National Park in California. Hope to see them in the upcoming 10 days, but I wont' hold my breath.
The first night at Camp 5 was more than basic, which was ok, but the rooms (well, they weren't really rooms per se) were pretty tricky to get a real sleep. No pillows, just my pack and a mosquito net. Then the good news and bad news. The bad news was we had swarms of wasps in our eyes and ears pretty much the entire time, the good news is they didn't sting. But 5 or 6 wasps at a time around your shoes, hanging clothes, & food got pretty aggravating after a few minutes, let alone the 15 hours we were there.
The second night we stayed at a local house within a Iban Longhouse. I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to look like, but then we got there and it wasn't anything I thought it would be. In former tours they actually went to a traditional longhouse, but the cleanliness and overall practicality wasn't very good. So we stayed at a families house, and all 12 of us were able to fit all our mattress, pillows and bug nets within their living room. And their house was one of 34 houses that were all connected together in one long house. One row of 34 houses on one side, and 34 more on another ....
Anyway, we are in Limbang now, and I'll finish this later ... gotta go to pick up my laundry. First time in about a month and a week I've had it done.
Ciao for now.
Two days in Bako National Park ... we stayed in a run down national park chalet that almost had a real bathroom, but boy was the food ever good !! Made up for that for sure. Spent most of our time hiking around the trails, followed by a few nice beaches to swim around at the end. Most of the other entertainment centered around three types of monkeys to stare at. One was adorable and not shy, one was a pain in the bum and not shy in the least, especially around our cabins, while the last was ... well I can't say much because he was far up a tree, and with the lighting, it was tough to really see his face. [late edited added on part] But I just went over my pictures just now, and I was surprised how many times I almost got his face.
The fireflies at night were cool too, as well as some of the other insects that only really come out at night.
The short flight from Kuching over to Mulu National Park was a bit depressing and confusing at the same time. You see the huge scars on the land where the forest has been cut down. The palm oil plantations are huge rectangles, side by side in huge tracts of land, so at least it's still green. But the scars made for logging roads, or mining, or just the logging of the area is just depressing. The lungs of the planet are being removed for progress, as many would argue the area needs development just like any other area of the world. I suppose if I flew over areas of Canada, or BC specifically where clear-cutting had happened I'd feel the same. But it's just more depressing knowing that being able to replant a tropical rain forest is just a bit trickier, if not almost impossible. I wish I knew more about it all ... maybe I don't.
But the cottage I stayed at the Mulu National Park was great ... the hostel room had four massive beds and it was just me, my own little castle. Perfect to put all my stuff on all the beds so I could figure out what exactly I should bring me for the following three days while hiking. It took awhile, but the decision to figure out what should be sent ahead of me was easier than I thought .... 8 kg and $40 later ... but not everything could be carried anyway.
The park is amazing ... that's all there is to say. Imagine the most amazing cave system in the world (and the biggest cave opening in the world) it is there. Imagine millions (yes, that's right millions) of bats living in this cave and most of them coming out in swarms at 6pm ... they are all there way up in the sky just like a flock of crows. Imagine suspension bridges over rivers that make the Capilano Suspension Bridge look like child's play and make you seem like you are in the middle of an Indiana Jones movie. There's 5 of them. Imagine the most amazing sounds coming from every direction while walking 20 km in the jungle ... and it's every second. Vines more than frequently dangle from the treetops, as you are waiting for Tarzan to swoop by; but he never did. It's very relaxing despite the heavy pack on your back, as the sweat just saturates all your clothes. The strangest part is, you are covered by the canopy above you from the sunrays, but as soon as you stop, the sweat just keeps pouring on.
The only snag was on the first day of the hike the water level on the river was very low and we had to push our canoe a large amount up the river. The first time I didn't realize we'd have to get out and got pretty much my entire shorts soaked ... but that was ok, I changed after we visited a simple village and had my swimming shorts on the rest of the three days. Then it felt more like an adventure, not like an exercise to keep my wallet and passport dry. Luckily everyone was in good spirits while pushing our three canoes over and over and over, so morale stayed strong, when it could have easily gone south. Luckily day two and three the canoes weren't necessarily to push, as our boatmen were pretty clever guys, and the water levels were just high even so that we weren't needed. We got really rained on though the second day of hiking, so the camera had to be put away. A real shame, there were some very beautiful red bark trees that lined the riverside, which gave us gorgeous contrast with all the greenery. I was hoping for more of the same trees on the next day, but apparently they all went on vacation to Redwood National Park in California. Hope to see them in the upcoming 10 days, but I wont' hold my breath.
The first night at Camp 5 was more than basic, which was ok, but the rooms (well, they weren't really rooms per se) were pretty tricky to get a real sleep. No pillows, just my pack and a mosquito net. Then the good news and bad news. The bad news was we had swarms of wasps in our eyes and ears pretty much the entire time, the good news is they didn't sting. But 5 or 6 wasps at a time around your shoes, hanging clothes, & food got pretty aggravating after a few minutes, let alone the 15 hours we were there.
The second night we stayed at a local house within a Iban Longhouse. I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to look like, but then we got there and it wasn't anything I thought it would be. In former tours they actually went to a traditional longhouse, but the cleanliness and overall practicality wasn't very good. So we stayed at a families house, and all 12 of us were able to fit all our mattress, pillows and bug nets within their living room. And their house was one of 34 houses that were all connected together in one long house. One row of 34 houses on one side, and 34 more on another ....
Anyway, we are in Limbang now, and I'll finish this later ... gotta go to pick up my laundry. First time in about a month and a week I've had it done.
Ciao for now.
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