Mulu Day 3 -- Part 1

It's Day 2 of our Showcaves and Pinnacles Tour through Borneo Adventure and Day 3 of our time in Mulu.  I gave ourselves a day at either end of the tour because it was such an incredible destination.


Ocean met us at the hotel, his smile as broad as ever.  Starting in the Deer Cave the day before, Anita had tummy upset, and began vomiting at regular thirty-minute intervals for five hours.  Ocean accompanied us to the clinic, found a doctor and stayed with us while the rehydrating IV did its work. He then made sure we got back to the hotel safely.


We had checked out, since we were planning to spend two nights at Camp Six, so we needed to check back in. Again, the hotel took this in stride, and assigned us room 103 in Block 2 because it was less of a walk to the pool, reception (the only place you could get the spotty wifi) and the restaurant. Epau, our always smiling reception clerk, called later to make sure we were settled and to let us know that our room rate was reduced since we were returning guests.


Continuing with Day 2 of the tour. We loaded into our longboat and headed upriver. The sky was partly cloudy, and there was enough sun to warm us as the wind (from the powerful outboard motor pushing us fast) whipped our faces. The river twists through the broad valley, past houses on our left and park on our right. Some houses have semi prone ladders or steep steps down to the river. My favourite was a log notched with stairs. Of course NO ONE has railings. I tried to imagine clambering up with my hands full of groceries.


Our first stop was at a village. Anita had cycled there on Day One, after our Botanical Loop walk. The hotel had bikes in the lobby area, and a guided cycle was listed in the activity guide. She was the only one interested, so guide Phillipe was found and off they went. Here we returned. There was a village Christmas tree at the far end of the village, made from a cone of large poles. The top third (top 12 feet) was festooned with metallic garland. The middle third was also decorated and the bottom third was bare.

At the village, Ocean told us the residents belong to a hunter-gatherer tribe, accustomed to living in the jungle and acquiring all their necessities naturally. The government wished to change that living style and built long houses as incentive to settle down. The first set of houses were wood, and through accident, they burned down. Same story with the second set of houses. Before the third set was built of concrete, many people built their own wood houses on the riverbank, out of wood. The government continues its encouragement to get people to move into the concrete homes.

Many villagers were showing us their crafts, offering wares for sale. There were many stalls of beaded work -- bracelets, five by seven wall hangings with Christian blessings, etc -- and rattan weaving in sizes from placemats to table runners.

There was also a blowgun station, where Ocean practiced his skills while we looked at the stalls. He was really good, getting a bullseye early on, then consistently hitting the monkey outline in the head. We left our money in the boat, so declined the offer of one ringet a try. The Scottish Australian family’s dad gave it a go, and hit the target on his first try!

Did I forget to say we saw the family here too?  Yes, we were living parallel lives.

Borneo Day 3: Fairy & Wind Caves

The driver that took us to Bako National Park picked us up again to take us on our next series of adventures -- to the Semenggoh Orangutan Area and to the Fairy and Wind Caves.

I’ve posted pictures of the Semenggoh Orangutan Area separately, with captions. I won’t add more here.

Our second stop was the Fairy Cave.  I have no idea of where the cave was, other than outside of Kuching, and about half an hour from Semenggoh.  It was in farmland, which in that neck of the woods, means in a light industrial area. I think we passed a lot of cemeteries, but I can’t remember if they were nearer the cave or the orangutans.  

Kuching cemeteries came in many styles. Some were like those in Dili -- tiled memorials above the ground. These, unlike Dili, often had a broad wall, rather like a mantle clock, that would tie graves of family members together.  We also saw some Western Christian cemeteries, with crosses marking graves.

The Fairy Cave was delightful, and required a certain level of fitness that we both possessed. The entrance was atop a tower of 200 steps. Then, inside the cave, there were more steps, windy climbing pathways and various places to discover. It has a wide mouth, so there was plenty of plant life. And there were wonderful formations of stalagmites and stalactites.

At some point, someone planted a three-foot plaster fairy to help cement the name of the cave.

Please take some time to look at the pictures below.

The Wind Cave was entirely different. It had several openings, so it had greater opportunity for air circulation. It was considerably smaller, and therefore much darker. It was also bat habitat, so it had its own smell. Bat equals guano equals smell.  

We met no other visitors in the Wind Cave, making our journey more of an adventure.

Even though the cave itself was smaller, it was still large. Never was there an opportunity to feel the cave ceiling or walls. The walkways never felt like they were a highway down the centre of the cave, nor did it feel like they were hugging walls. The sense of space is difficult to describe. The Wind Cave was more comfortable than cavernous, whereas cavernous barely describes the enormity of the Fairy Cave.

Time for photos.

The new stairs, also known as the entrance to the Fairy Cave

 

On the way to the cave entrance, there were a few trees that seemed like they were growing out of the rock.

The old stairs.  I'm really glad they have been replaced.

Mulu Day 2: Canopy Walk

We started the day with a canopy walk. The brochure says it's the world’s longest tree-to-tree canopy walk, and I believe it.

The route was a large U shape, over some creeks and a river, and near some cliffs. The whole time, we were in moderately dense canopy. Even crossing the river, it didn't feel open or exposed.

The walk was two planks wide; maybe 10 inches/15 centimetres. The railing was mesh, about chest high, with two more strings of wire on top of that, each about a foot apart.  Only two people are allowed on a bridge at any one time, and a maximum of six people on a platform. Needless to say, our eight person group was strung far apart.

Many platform trees (the ones from which the bridges were suspended) had signs identifying them, but the names were all so unfamiliar that I dint recall any of them.

Ashling, our guide, pointed out lizards as she spotted them. The other wildlife stayed far away from us.  However, the flora was amazing and diverse. Lots of broad leafed trees. Some palm; some banana.  One sign talked about a tree that blooms one day a year. That day is not consistent. Ashling was not sure of its trigger. So it's a joy and a surprise when it happens.

Also on this tour was an Australian family (father, mother, teenaged son and daughter) and young American man spending 18 months travelling around Asia. We had seen the Australian family at Bako and the orangutan place. Next, they are going on the headhunter trail hike, so we might see them at Camp 6, where our itineraries overlap.

In the afternoon, we met Ocean (pronounced O'Sheen), Ashling’s brother and our guide for the next three days. Today, our destination was the Deer Cave followed by the Lang Cave.

The Deer Cave entrance is more than 100 meters high, and we went 800 meters in. It got its name from the deer that used to go into the cave to eat bat guano. There are more than 3 million bats living in the cave, or that was the estimate at the last census in the 1990s.  There are at least 52 species of bats, a dozen of which were identified by Ashling's and Ocean’s mother. She’s a researcher from Ireland who came here to study, and met their father, a local guide.

The Deer Cave was astounding for more than its size, although that alone is remarkable. There are boulders bigger than an average garden shed that have tumbled down from the roof. Stalagmites and stalactites line the sides, various caverns within the cave and are sometimes found further towards the centre. Three rivers come out of the cave, and there’s a lot of moisture that drips within. There was one column of water that was easily falling 150 meters straight down.

Further inside the cave, there are two “shower heads”, rock formations that are a couple of meters deep that emit water in the same way as a fancy rainshower bathroom shower head. Only there’s no shut off valve or temperature control.

With that many bats in the cave, even with its enormous size, the ammonia smell from the guano is quite overpowering. In the gully of the walkway, I was wishing for a lavender sachet, or something to neutralize the vapours. It's not bad enough to skip the cave. It's just bad enough to remind you that nature has its own ecosystems, and Disney Imagineers don't copy that particular quality.

We were mostly alone on the Deer Cave, something that would not be possible in April, July, August or September. These months are the high season. Christmas is definitely the low season, and the time to visit if you want to see the sights more than other people.

As we were on our way out, two tour groups were on their way in. It gave us a chance to look across, and see how tint they looked.

Our next stop was the Lang Cave, named after Ocean and Ashling's grandfather. He was guiding an expedition of researchers into the Deer Cave in 1977, and was looking about when they were doing their work, and happened on this smaller cave nearby. Smaller is a relative term. No, you can't land a 747 jet in the Lang Cave, but you could still fit 1000 people in comfortably. The path into this cave is only 200 meters, although the path twists and turns so that the entrance is obscured and the sense of space is escalated.

Here we saw curtain stalactites, sheets of rock forming as the water drips slowly down. There were also jellyfish formations, with a solid head and hundreds of rivulets forming strands of rock.  There was one stalagmite that looked like a giant pine cone and another that resembled a frothy Christmas tree.

The Lang Cave brought us closer to the rock formations. The Deer Cave provided spectacle. All in all, it was a wonderful day.

And now for some pictures

On the way to the start of the canopy walk.

The trail is now bridges, not boardwalks.

There are bare hanging vines everywhere.

And hanging clusters of leaves.

More drippy bits

The cliff near the canopy walk

Mulu -- Arrival Day

Arriving in Mulu was special and amazing.  The planes to and from Mulu are full of tourists, and there are five flights a day, and each plane is roughly the size of the planes between Vancouver and Victoria airports. There were 18 rows of two pairs of seats.

We were met by the hotel shuttle, an open window trolley style bus with a friendly driver. The bus was functional, and had seen many many miles. I think my favourite part of the three kilometre ride to the hotel was backing over the Bailey Bridge to get onto the hotel property.

The check in staff at the hotel were prepared for our flight, as they are for every flight. They have padded clipboards for each party, with reservation details, room passes and relevant handouts. To help relax guests after their hour-long flight, each person is offered a long-stemmed slender glass of chilled lime and cucumber juice. It was wonderfully refreshing.

Rooms are in two-storey blocks of 20 to 28, dotted along a long wooden boardwalk. We were in room 133, in Block 6, near the gym and spa building. Our part of the boardwalk was close to the river, and hugged a cliff for a short while. As well as lighting the boardwalk at night, the cliff had dramatic lighting to highlight its features.

Our room was wonderful -- spacious, comfortable beds, dark wood furniture and light coloured chairs. The bathroom was separated by glass, and dark wooden shutters.  It was huge, and had both a soaker tub and a shower.  We had a lovely private balcony. Such a restful spot.

Instead of lolling about, we took the shuttle (they leave the hotel at the top and bottom of the hour, and there is the trolley-bus as well as a pair of vans) to the park, to start our adventure.

To show that you’ve paid your park fees, each visitor is given a hospital-style plastic wrist band. Different colours are issued on different days, and the expiry date is written in permanent marker. We initially got orange. Since they have bats imprinted along with the park name, they had a Hallowe’en feel to them.

Our first walk was one of the unguided walks -- the Botanical Loop. It’s almost one kilometre down the main boardwalk, and 1.5 kilometres long.  

We saw marvel after marvel. Anita saw a dozen different butterflies in the first 15 minutes, and I marveled at the hanging vines. It was my first experience seeing the sights that I saw in Tarzan movies in my youth.

Amazed, and intrigued, we signed up for a canopy walk in the morning. 

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Just a few pictures.  First, the hotel grounds

A butterfly that stood still long enough to take its picture

 Something in bloom by the visitor centre in Guning Mulu National Park

 

Borneo Day 3: Semenggoh Wildlife Centre

This wet morning, we visited the Semenggoh Wildlife Centre near Kuching. It's home to 28 orangutang. Visitors are permitted between 9 & 10 am and 3 & 4 pm. 

There's a serene creek near the gathering point.

The orientation instructions were simple: there are 28 orangutan on site. That doesn't meal you'll see any.  If you do, be quiet. Only staff call them. Also, do not point any long thin objects at them. They may interpret your selfie stick as a blow pipe or a gun, and they won't react happily.

The park worker said at least three times to be quiet, and that you might not see anything.  Don't expect to see any animals. It's fruiting season, and there is a lot of fruit in the jungle. 

Oh look, something's happening in those trees

The main feeding platform

The orangutan that attracted all the attention earlier is on the way to the main feeding platform.

Spot the baby.  Both babies in the park are male.

The crowd got pretty big -- at least 300 people.

Here comes one of the older ones.

The crowd moved back t the gathering spot, since Ricky, the 45-year-old male was headed in that direction.

We left before the crowd. Our next stop was the Fairy Cave. 

Borneo Day 2 - Baku National Park

Today, an expedition. Drive 35 minutes to the jetty, pay our Park Admission Fee, wait for a boat, then take it through the rolling waves to Baku National Park.

This park is home to many species of monkey, most notably the Proboscis Monkey. The males have a distinct pendulous nose.

We wanted to see the scenery. Any wildlife was a bonus.  And we arrived at Bonus Time. There were wild boar on the beach

And monkeys in the trees outside of the Visitor Registration Centre. The females don't have a distinctive nose.

The only other wildlife we saw was a four-inch long grasshopper.

The trail we chose for our walk had some steep sections, and some welcome flats.

 

 

Almost there! A fine young man from Limoges France took our picture.

From this picture, you can see a hint of the beach below.  We had it to ourselves, and it was wonderful.

The way back was every bit as challenging as the way there. I was certain some parts of the trail had been lengthened while we were on the beach.  The really discouraging part came when a 40 something woman in flip flops passed me on the final downhill stretch. 




Despite that indignity, it was a truly wonderful experience, and I feel very very lucky to have visited Baku National Park with my daughter.