It has always been one of my dreams to climb Mount Kinabalu in the state of Sabah, Malaysia. My first attempt was early April 2005 when I visited my families in Malaysia. But to my disappointment I found out only a limited number of people were allowed to climb each day and I was unable to get in because it was fully booked. So instead we spent some relaxing time jungle hiking, snorkeling and scuba diving on one of the off-shore islands near Kota Kinabalu, the capital of Sabah. Anyway this is another story.

My second opportunity came early 2008 when my son Gary and I decided to go on an adventure trip together. That was like a "trip of a life time". Our itinerary basically covered: Climbing Mount Kinabalu, attending my nephew, Jimmy's wedding, visiting families & friends in Malaysia, attedning my Mum's Remembrance and finally travelling to Japan. Planning the trip was fun and a great experience. The Internet was the real "life saver". Unfortunately disappointment was looming in the air. Few days before the departure we were still on the waiting list for the Mount Kinabalu climb. Luckily my sister, Sam Nooi was persistent and she persevered in following up with the booking. Two day before departure we got in! Now with the peace of mind we left Sydney on the 3rd of March 2008 travelling on the brand new Singapore Airline airbus A380. It was a great flying experience. We arrived in Kuala Lumpur in the evening. In KL we stayed with my sister. This also gave us the chance to catch up with my nephew (Wai Keat) and niece (Yen Theng) who were joining us for the Mt. Kinabalu climb.

Prologue

Shaped like a giant king's crown, Mount Kinabalu is the tallest mountain in Sout-East Asia. It is an enormous piece of granite that juts four kilometres straight up from a dark-green tropical rainforest. It offers an unique climb from tropical luxuriance through montane oak forest to the rocky sub-alpine summit plateau. The climb starts from Mount Kinabalu Park Headquarters, only a couple of hours drive from Kota Kinabalu, but already more than 1500m above sea level. Mount Kinabalu is known to be one of the most accessible peak and no specialized mountain climbing skills are required to ascend it. In geological terms, it is a very young mountain as the granite cooled and hardened only about 10 million years ago. It is still pushing up at the rate of 5 mm per annum.

Significantly, Mount Kinabalu is well-known worldwide for its tremendous botanical and biological species biodiversity, with high levels of endemism (i.e. species which are found only within Kinabalu Park and are not found anywhere else in the world). As examples, it has one of the world’s richest orchid flora with over 800 species, over 600 species of ferns (more than the whole of Africa’s 500 species) of which 50 are found no where else, and is the richest place in the world for the Nepenthes insectivorous pitcher plants.

Day One (4th March 2008)

We left home before the crack of dawn to catch the 6 am early bird Air Asia flight to Kota Kinabalu (fonely refer to as KK by the locals). In KK we caught up with breakfast in one of the local stalls before heading to Mount Kinabalu National Park in a mini bus. The operator was obviously trying to make as much cash as he could in one trip. He managed to pack 13 passengers including luggages into the mini bus. It was hot, humid and suffocating. Luckily the air became cooler as we were ascending the highland to Mount Kinabalu National Park (MKNP).

At the MKNP Head Quarter we registered our intention to climb Mt. Kinabalu, paid the fees and were allocated a Mountain Guide (John Nusip Siur). Then we had lunch at the Balsam Cafeteria before moving into the Grace Hostel. In the afternoon we went for a walk to loosen the muscles and acclimatize to the local environment. The air was fresh and cool. But the fog has moved in and the visibility was so low that we could hardly see beyond couple of meters. Mount Kinabalu was nowhere to be seen. After a delicious buffet dinner we went to bed early in anticipation of an exciting and hard journey in the morning.

Day Two (5th March 2008)

I woke up at the crack of dawn anxious to see the mountain and I was not disappointed. The fog had lifted overnight and the magnificent Mount Kinabalu was in full view from our hostel verandah. I was mesmerized. Wow! That was the only sound I could make at the time. After enjoying the view we quickly got changed and went to breakfast before meeting up with our Mountain Guide, John. We were then taken by a 4 wheel drive to the starting point - Timpohon Gate, to start our climb.

The World Heritage-listed national park that encircles Mount Kinabalu is one of the world's most significant biological sites. Between 5000 and 6000 plant species exist in this 754 square-kilometer park incuding the world's largest flower (the rafflesia, which grows to a diameter of 94 centimeters). There are also 326 species of birds and 100 mammals including the Orang Utan. I am naturally interested in plants but I quickly discovered that there was little time to stop and study the interesting flora in details. Right from the outset it was a challenging slog straight up the mountain. Sweat gathered in places I prefer not to mention. Our Mountain Guide was very professional and caring in his approach. He always walked the pace of the slowest hiker in the group. Before long we all started to get into a regular rhythm. Just as I thought I was on a roll, a local porter ambled past me carrying a huge water tank. We were totally amazed. But our guide said: "That was nothing. Wait till you see someone carrying a washing machine". They're very fit and strong and you get out of their way quick smart. The porters earn approximately RM$7 ringgits (AUD$ 2.50) per kilo they carry. They need the money for their families. For most that is their only source of income.

The terrain, the vegetation and the temperature were changing constantly as we climbed. I stopped as often as possible to look at and photograph the unusual and beautiful flora. It started to get cold and misty as we were starting to approach to 3000 meters altitude. At this altitude the oxygen in the air was getting thin and I was starting to pant continuously. Luckily we saw many insectivorous pitcher plants (Nepenthes) which kept my mind off the lack of oxygen. Following behind the mist was a typically heavy torrential rain. It bucketed down and I decided to quicken my pace as we were quite close to the base camp - Laban Rata Rest House. Big mistake! Within minutes I was down on my knees totally exhausted and feeling dizzy! I could not believe it. That was the first time I experienced altitude sickness. From then on it was snail pace for me. I had to stop every few minutes to replanish the oxygen supply in my body before I could move on.

Finally we reached Laban Rata totally soaked and cold. Luckily the rest house was heated and we had lunch, rested there and dried up some of our clothing. After lunch, to my surprise I was still feeling the raw effect of the altitude sickness. It was getting late and we had to move to the Genting Lagadan Hut where we would spend the night before the final climb to the summit in the morning. The reception told us it was only 5 minutes walk. 20 minutes later we were standing in a freezing room wondering what we had got ourselves into. The hut was not insulated or heated. The outside temperature was around 6 degrees C and the inside temperatrue was around 6 degrees C. So you got the picture? Inside our bedroom it was "raining" from the ceiling with condensation. Our beddings were damp. I was not too optimistic about sleeping that night.

As the night weared on my altitude sickness was not getting any better. At one point I really thought the possibility of me getting to the summit was very slim indeed.

Day Three (6th March 2008)

I managed to get in a couple of hours of sleep despite the cold and damp condition. I was woken up by people walking and talking outside our room. My watch reminded me it was about 1.15 am - time to get up because our climb to the summit was scheduled to start at 2.00 am. Struggling out of bed I could still feel the effect of the altitude sickness. How could I possibly give up now?

Outside the air was crisp and cold. The sky was clear with millions of stars and they were so bright and clear that they seemed to be within our reach! Our guide John met us in front of our hut, we turned on our head-torchs and started our climb to the summit in pitch darkness. John helped us to climb at a slow but steady pace. We gingerly edged ahead in the darkness not able to see beyond few meters which was the range of our head-torches. Just as well because we found out (on our way down) how steep and dangerous the terrain was. As we ascended I started to feel a lot better. The effect of my altitude sickness was disappearing slowly but steadily. Looking back we could see a train of lights snaking its way up the mountain with the beautiful night scape of Kota Kinabalu in the background.

About 4 hours later, the freezing wind gusts burned my face as I was standing on the edge of Low's Peak, near the sign that told me I had made it. It was still dark and it was freezing. We estimated the wind-chilled temperature to be a couple of degrees C below zero. After we had our photo taken on the summit we quickly found shelter from the freezing wind behind the rocks. It was painfully cold and I could not stop the shivering. I was not well prepared for the cold on the summit. Before the trip I thought: "How cold could it get in the tropics?" Well, now I know!

We waited patiently for the sun to rise and to see what surprises the sunlight would unfold for us. Twilight gave us a glimpse of the amazing and eerie landscape around us. It also reviewed how close we were standing from the sharpened edge of Low's Gully, an almost 2 kilometers deep cleft. Before long the sunlight started to penetrate the morning cloud and mist providing the instant warmth my body was craving.

I noticed there was no vegetation up here apart from a few hardy heath rhododendrons clinging to the cracks between the rock faces. It looked like the surface of the moon. Looking around me I started to get a sense of just how high I was. The clouds were far far below. The landscape was so strange and yet so beautiful and magical. I didn't think I have seen anything like it in my life.

After enjoying the panaramic view from the summit we decided it was time to descend. Not far from the summit I saw the most amazing peak, the South Peak. The South Peak I believe is the most photographed peak on Mount Kinabalu. In addition, my niece Yen Theng also noticed that the South Peak was featured on the Malaysian RM$1 note. How cool was that? On the way down the daylight revealed the true terrain of Mount Kinabalu. It was steep, dangerous and unforgiving. We descended slowly with the help of the guide rope. Unfortunately about half way down the descend my son Gary started to feel the onset of altitude sickness. The going was becoming difficult and slow. I tried my best to help him over the steep and hazardeous terrain. By the time we reached our hut near the Rest House Gary was feeling very dizzy and sick and he had to lay down. At that point we were doubting if we could make it down the mountain that day. After some rest we packed up all our belongings and staggered down to the Laban Lata rest house to take our belated breakfast. After breakfast Gary was feeling a bit better and we decided to descend the mountain. Our guide John was a bit concerned about Gary's bandaged-up knees and he offered to carry Gary's backpack. We were very thankful and grateful for his kindness.

Staying one more night at the Laban Lata rest house was not an option for us because we had to catch a plane back to Kuala Lumpur that evening to attend my nephew Jimmy's wedding the following day. The descend was a lot easier and quicker than I initially thought. Just as well because we found out later they do measure distances differently there i.e. in a straight line. So our 8 km hike was more like a 19 km test of courage and endurance (this, of course, after the 7 km or so return journey to the summit) - a total of 26 km! When we finally arrived at the park office we were exhausted. After some well deserved lunch John organized a taxi to take us to the airport.

Just before we say good bye to John and Mount Kinabalu we were each presented with a certificate of achievement. This certificate didn't come easy. We definitely earned it with our sweat and sore muscles.

Epilogue

Despite the altitude sickness and the sore muscles it was an amazing experience. I would not miss it for the world. The whole journey was unforgettable and there was definitely a sense of achievement and satisfaction at the end. Everyone really enjoyed the climb. I am very thankful and grateful for our mountain guide, John who guided us throughout the journey in a very professional and caring way. I am also very proud of Gary, Wai Keat and Yen Theng for their positive attitudes which made the whole journey so rewarding and enjoyable for everyone. Last but not the least I like to especially thank my sister Sam Nooi for making this journey possible. This experience had awoken something within me - the magic of climbing mountains. May be Mount Fuji is next!

If you like to see more photographs please go Gary's Web Album.

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