After spending one week in Taiwan, Dave and Jen caught another Air Asia flight to hot and sticky Sabah (North Borneo). We arrived on the tarmac and were instantly dripping with sweat, luckily we both thought to eachother that we were hightailing it to Mount Kinabalu the same day. Jen was very happy to be in a place where she spoke the language like a true local, thank you Indonesian language classes from Whittlesea Primary nearly 10 years ago... (Malay and Indonesian are very similar) And took every chance she could to say Good Morning, use numbers or say pointless vocabulary which randomly came to her. We arrived at the long distance bus station and Jen was instantly reminded of previous trip to south east asia and the experiences of public transportation, very different from the European standard of rail networks and buses we had so quickly gotten use to in Taiwan. Jen set off to use her Malay language skills to get two tickets to our hostel, while Dave was in charge of the luggage. To the local's astonishment, Dave was carrying his day pack and both the big backpacks, muscles bulging, which prompted at least five Malay to grab his muscles, asking him whether he practiced, and how did he get so big and strong... Being told that the 2 o clock bus was full, it was a hair past two, we were told the next bus was half 3 and so looked for a place to escape the intense humidity and rest from a long day of travel. Suddenly, there was a lot of calling and hand gestures to get Jen and Dave's attention, we had no idea what was going on so we just ignored it, until they came up and grabbed us, excitedly telling us that somehow they had created two bus seats out of mid air for us to catch the 2 pm bus. We were both very grateful, packed our bags underneath and set off...
The bus went up the foothills of Mt Kinabalu for 2 hours, and while Dave was watching Collateral Damage on the bus TV screen, Jen, struggling with motion sickness, tried to take in as much beautiful scenery as possible, admist stares at again being the only Western Tourists around. After two pit stops, one to fix the broken airconditioner, and one to replace a flat tyre, we arrived at D'Villa Rina Ria Lodge, ate some much anticipated Malaysian fare, rubbed our still tired legs with Tiger Balm and got to bed in fear for the next day's punishing trek...
Rough Guides and Alicia (my physio) informed Jen that the hike up Mt Kinabalu was to be a relatively easy 8.7km climb that anyone could do regardless of age or fitness level. It is half the height of Everest, 4095m, and it takes two days to climb. Dave and Jen got to the park headquarters very early, too early in fact, because we had to wait half an hour for it all to open, to pay for our Insurance and Mountain Guide, before we set off. Dave and Jen were designated a 4 foot pocket rocket guide named Dana (or so we think). She was loverly, but didn't talk much, and incredibly fit, her best time to the summit was 3 and a half hours, rivalling the 2009 Run Mt Kinabalu champions! Dave was particularly impressed with her ability to tackle steps and rocks that were literally half the size of her with ease... After four and a half hours Dave and Jen made it to the top, exhausted, sore and slightly sunburnt, but very excited at the thought of a buffet dinner and a good sleep. We arranged with our guide to met at half two the next morning to tackle the summit.
The alarm went off at 1 45am, and both Dave and Jen thought what the hell have we gotten ourselves into as we slowly got ready for our remaining 2.7km trek and final 1000m altitude climb. Equipped with the warmest clothes we had brought, which was not much considering we had originally left Australia prepared for 98% humidity and 36 degree weather, torches and some bananas we began the race to the top before the sun rose. Dave, unbeknownst to him, was already suffering from altitude sickness and had been struggling to catch his breath since arriving at our overnight accommodation, but continued on in the hope of some great pictures, in T shirt and shorts. Jen, of course was wearing leggings, and a long sleeve top, and was afraid to put on more layers so instead they stayed in her pack where they would stay dry and warm until she reached the summit. The two and a half hour trek was highly entertaining and consisted of scaling a bare granite rock face for the most part with a rope to stabilise yourself or to help you absail up, which is particularly difficult when you are also trying to hold a torch, and in the dark... Dave and Jen arrived at the summit not in very good shape. Ten minutes earlier, Jen had broken down, scared with feelings reminiscint to that time she got hypothermia in high school, and was comforted by Dave who helped put more clothes on her. We were the Fourth and Fifth person to make it to the top and you could see that the sun was beginning to make it's way into the sky providing the most spectacular sunrise on a beautifully clear morning, however we were unable to bask in our glory for long, if at all. Jen practically collapsed and Dave helped to put more clothes on her, food in her mouth and give her some water. It turned out that Jen was suffering from some pretty bad altitude sickness and mild hypothermia, too sick in fact to realise that there were foot long rats smelling her shoes!
So, just as the sun was breaking through the horizon, that ultimate picture taking opportunity, Jen set off down the mountain, admist stares of shock and awe as hikers were curious as to why we were missing the beautiful sunrise which was not appearing, practically running to get off that god forsaken summit so she could see clearly, feel her extremities and breathe again! Dave, incredibly sore legs and carrying Jen's pack tried to keep up for fear of Jen jumping off the mountain in her dazed and confused state...
Dave and Jen reached the overnight's accommodation, exhausted, and sick, and had a quick nap before setting off for the 4 hour descent to a more reasonable altitude for humans. (Or rather, unfit idiots). Too tired and sore to catch the 6 hour bus to Sandakan to see the POW Camps from WW2, or the orangutans, Dave decided to splurge and booked the most expensive room in the park (and the only one left available) where we spent a good couple of days recovering!
