Langanan Waterfall, Poring Hot Spring Ranau

My family was in town to visit the Door of Mercy of St. Peter Claver, Ranau so we stayed overnight at the Kompleks Sukan Ranau before heading home the next day. So I thought..ehm..why not go for a leisure hike to Langanan Waterfall, Ranau hotspring..seems like a marvelous idea at that time..with no proper preparation as we thought that this will be just a leisure walk..no lunch..no extra water..NO SOCKS..we headed to Ranau hotspring around 12pm thinking we could complete it by afternoon for lunch. We paid RM3/pax for entrance fee at the Poring hotspring entrance and follow the many signs available to head to the trail. On the way we passed through the butterfly farm and canopy walk. So it was just my brother, sister and myself..the trail was no leisure walk.. At that time I was not yet that fit and I had never been bitten by leeches..So 1.5km to the waterfall, 2 guys passed us while we were resting. One of them chatted with me and asked me how many leeches had I encounter..I remembered answering him "Leeches??" then he showed me the many leeches between his toes. That's when I realized that itchiness I feel earlier on at my leg was not normal. So I pulled up my pants to see my ankle and sure enough there was my first leech.

From that point onwards, we walked faster because it was leech frenzy..It was tiring and we were hungry but the moment we saw Langanan waterfall, the view took our away breath away. Literally the most gorgeous waterfall I had the pleasure to see. Our handphones were low in battery but we took photos until all 3 of us ran out of phone battery. Good thing that the waterfall is located at a tourist hotspot so we could go back anytime for a hike..The trail was close to 6KM in total and was really well maintained. We got back to the parking lot by 5pm and headed to the nearest KFC to eat.

Mount Trus Madi via Sinua Trail, Sook Keningau

So this is my ultimate goal this year..was to hike the Trus Madi trail via Sinua, Sook which people said is one of the most challenging trail after Mount Tambuyukon. I already booked our date since October which is from 16-18 December 2016 for a group of 10.  Payment was made before the trip. We took the package 3 days 2 night which was not inclusive of food and transportation priced at RM245/pax. All arrangement for the trip can be made directly with Dennis or Dennis's wife Veronica at  013 5425415 / 013 5403262.

One can climb Mount Trus Madi from 3 different trail which will take an estimate 2-4 days to complete depending on the trail one pick. Wayaan Kaingaran trail in Tambunan is 4.9km from starting point to the peak, Wayaan Mastan Trail in Keningau is 4.3km from starting point to summit while Wayaan Mannan trail in Sinua, Sook is 11.6km from starting point to the summit.

Excitement and fear all roll into one as we made plans to meet up at Kimanis first on 16 December 2016. Since I was not convince that my petite axia car can make the journey, we decided to convoyed in 2 4wd vehicle which will take 8 of us and meet up with the 2 ladies in Keningau. The road to Sook was actually accessible asphalt road except when we arrived in Kg. Sinua. Then, thank God for 4wd vehicle because the road we came upon was a not so nicely maintained dirt road..we were being tossed around in the vehicle for a few minutes.. Thankfully, we were able to get there by 6 something when there was still some light so the signboard Sinua Trusmadi Tainiskon Camp was still visible to the eyes. We also had some help though from a villager who pointed out which way to go from the roundabout. The 2 gals from Keningau had already arrived 30minutes before us. So, uncle Dennis was not feeling well that night therefore the briefing was postponed to tomorrow morning. I showered and changed to my hiking clothes and we had our dinner at the recreational camp which even had a TV and cooking utilities for our convenience. Veronica who happens to be Dennis's wife was there to entertain our inquiries of the journey and she was really fun to talk to. I head to bed around 9pm and found out the rest of my friends have already fallen asleep.

Sleeping area for hikers at base campsite

The next morning we woke up early around 6am to eat breakfast and pack. Veronica asked us to bring any of our stuff that we would required porter service. I found out the day night before that the kitchen at campsite KM8 was quite complete so we left behind the mini cookers and bought the butane gas only. So food porter is basically service for 1 way trip..meaning you have to carry your stuff for the trip down. Personal porter is a 2 way trip. The porter service is RM6/kg and a minimun of 10kg per trip. So me and my friends, we combined our load to save some money and opted for the food porter since we wanted our food carried anyway. Now I could not stress enough the importance on bringing rice, tin food, maggi and 3in1 drinks if you have opted to prepare your own meals. The stove gas is available on the camp site at KM8 but we still need to bring our own butane gas. The 1st day is considered leisure hiking for 8km..the last 1km to the top was where the mossy forest started and I got excited seeing the beautiful landscape.

Recreational area at the base camp. Also where we had our briefing.

We started our trip around 9am after being briefed by Uncle Dennis with 3 young guides, I remembered crossing a bridge and 2 rivers..We took our shoes off for the first river but the second river was quite a short distance so we just balance on rocks to try and keep our shoes dry. The trails for the first few kilometres was okay but a bit painful to trek on because of all the rocks..they say it used to be a old road for transporting kayu balak. It started to rain halfway so we put on our ponchos and continued on. Initially we wanted to have our lunch anywhere around the afternoon but dummy me packed the rice I cooked for the group in the morning and gave it to the guide/food porter to carry. They were really behind because they were carrying heavy loads and also act as the sweeper of the team. So in the end we just ate what we have with us at the moment which were some candy and buns. The last 1km to the camp site was when the mossy part of the forest started and instantly rejuvenate your eyesight. I took out my handphone and placed it into a waterproof bag and start taking pictures here and there. I could also feel the air becoming colder as temperature starts to drop due to the rain and altitude..We arrived at the camp site around 3.40pm and spotted the first group at the kitchen Camp. The 2 of our younger membersof the group have yet to arrive. We headed to the sleeping tents to unload our bags and instantly I started to shiver because of the cold. We changed into dry clothes immediately. Then, I headed to the kitchen Camp which was just beside our sleeping camp..then to my surprise there were loads of maggi and coffee 3in1 left behind from the previous expedition. Since our food porter have not yet arrived and Burn, the guide gave us the thumbs up to feast upon the food..I went into chef mode and cooked a feast of maggi mee for the group with my friend as my Co-chef. We were starving since the last time we ate was breakfast. The kitchen camp was really complete..with cups, spoons, plates, pots, pans and kettles. We even boiled a kettle of water so to make black tenom coffee. Our evening feast consist of maggi noodles perisa ayam and black tenom coffee..God bless the good hearted souls who left behind all those food. They were life savers.

The camp sie at KM8

The kitchen camp area

The last of the group arrived around 5 something soaking wet and were immediately handed hot black coffee the minute they arrived. Around 6 something in the evening, we prepared our dinner. We used the many pots available to heat up each tin food..I could even add a little spice of onions to the fish sardines in tomato because there were even big onions left behind (Thank you kind souls..) We ratio the rice that was cooked earlier in the morning and thankfully it was more than enough to feed us all..Another pot of kettle was boiled to make 3in1 drinks. Into the night, all 10 of us were at the kitchen camp eating and chatting..the guides came to give us a briefing afterwards about tomorrow's journey. The time given to start the hike was 1am. Lester the guide said he have to see the weather if it continues to rain maybe the timing had to be postponed. We retreated to the sleeping tent around 7 something..The rain was so heavy, Tia's sleeping bag was soaked wet so she & Vet shared a sleeping bag together. Thankfully that night, it stop raining around 9pm..How do I know this? because I could not sleep..at all..Not with a proper sleeping bag..not with dry stoking..not with heating pads..the cold wind just cut through everything and I could not get any sleep so I just listen to music using my earphones to pass the time.

So all of us woke up before 1am, packed just the essentials and headed to the kitchen to eat our breakfast. By 1am we were all ready and informed the guides as well. But well, we only started the journey at 2 something which we assumed was because one of the guide overslept. We prayed together in the tent which was nice. That day we have to cover 4km to reach the final summit of Mount Trus Madi and then hike back 4km to our campsite..Pack our stuff left behind at the camping site and then hike down another 8km to our base camp. 

Our group photo before the summit attack

We took a group photo before heading out with headlights guiding our way..The first summit was 2km away. While the front group marched onwards, few of us opted to wait for the younger members of the group who had Lester as their sweeper. But hiking in the dark was no joke, at times it was peaceful, at times scary because you can only see the very few metres infront of you. The trail was just upwards..Its also actually a good thing that we are unable to see the trail in the dark because come daylight when I was able to see the whole trail, it amazes me how on earth did we manage to climb up some of the places. We arrived in Summit 1 while it was still dark and the stars in the sky was mesmerizing. By this time we had already break into 3 groups..The first group..middle group and the youngest at the group behind. At summit, the 3 of us just took loads of wefies and videos..the scene was breathtaking..no clouds or mist so everything was really clear..We caught glimpse of Mount Kinabalu far off. By this time, you can see the whole landscape of Mount Trus Madi which is so beautiful. The many species of periuk kera or pitcher plants along the way was one thing that I enjoyed seeing while hiking. But, there were few areas where the trail was quite dangerous..But it was a thrilling experience to say the least. 

The trail

Peak no.2 view

To say we looked like hell is an understatement, due to the rain the trail was a bit muddy so our knee high socks were drenched in mud. At 300meter to the final summit, since we were the middle group I came face to face with the guide of the front group.The front group have hike down from the summit so the guide insist that we followed them... to which I would not back down either because it was just a mere 300metres to the top. But I have to applaud the young guide, Burn for bickering with me, he was just merely executing his responsibility but I would bicker with anybody at that point just to complete the hike. The bickering at to the top lasted until Lester, the lead guide/sweeper turned up and said the magic words "I will bring them to the top..".

The 3 of us at Peak No.3

My solo pic at Peak No.3

So the first group went down and the 3 of us with Lester made our way to the top. The 2 girls behind successfully reached Summit 1 but were unable to continue the journey. At the final 100metres, there is a big cross erected to honor the life lost from a helicopter crash at the area. I waited for my comrades to arrived so that the 3 of us can step on the final summit together at the same time. Now one might say it's just a signboard..its just a peak. But that feeling of accomplishment that you made it through to stand at all 3 summits was what we were looking for. We quickly proceeded to take photos with Lester's help, in about 10 minutes we made our way down.

Halfway down to our campsite at KM8, it started to rain. When we reached our campsite ,the first thing I did when I arrived was go to the toilet..I just couldn't bring myself to pee in the mountains. My sister rushed towards me with a hot cup of tea when she saw me. Hahaaa. We were soaked wet from the rain. Lester asked us to rest and packed because he will bring us down while the front group could go down earlier since they have finished packing. We decided to leave all the canned foods and 3in1 drinks that we had not used  at the campsite for the use of future hikers. Who knows they might come in handy. There were 5 of us hiking down with a guide while Lester act as the weeper. But after some time, the 4 gals were behind with Lester while I and the middle guide managed to catch up with the first group. That is after 5km of turbo speed without rest..I thought legs would give away..then I saw him slow down and thought "Yess..he wants to rest.." But then he excitedly point out to me some people silhouette upfront..apparently he made me pushed myself so hard to follow his pace, we caught up to the front group before the river. So we re-group with the first group afterwards ..I thought the first river looked dangerous..then when we successfully passed through it I was so happy..I forgotten that there was another river up ahead and that was the longer one. When we arrived at the second river..my heart went into my stomach.. I immediately panicked because I saw the river had waves, turned brown in color and was much much deeper than the day before. All the rain had flooded the river. I knew I said it out loud what I was thinking at that moment "This is my worst nightmare.."  So the 2 guides took 2 bamboo stick and stood there in the middle of the raging river and made like a line so that there was something we could hold on to while crossing..I want to say that everything went well..but No, I actually slipped and fell into the river but thankfully I did not let go of one of my friend's hand...I have no idea how but miraculously they managed to get me up and my face never went under water. But my bag did and it was twice as heavy as I walked slowly to the riverbank. I knew my handphone and wallet was inside but I could care less..I was numb from shocked (Post trip I found out my handphone and wallet safe and sound because they were sealed in plastic ziplock, can't say the same for my earphones). From that point on we used our headlamp because it was getting dark..By this time, I could feel the pain in my legs especially when walking through the simen pavement at the final stretch of road. We finally arrived at the base camp around 7pm. I just sat there at the recreational area for some time, exhausted, in pain, in shock..everything..I remembered just lifting my feet to remove my shoes was painful..no leeches was able to bit my leg (double sock layer) or my body..But one leech bit me at my cheek though and it continued to bleed at the base camp..so I knew I looked like some corpse. After some time I asked about the 4 girls behind..how were they going to cross the river with just Lester. Dennis assured me that a rescue team will be deployed. With the remaining strength I had, I used it to shower and changed to dry clothes..but my hair was wet and the air in Sinua that night was very cold. At first after changing I sat with the other members at out sleeping area of the base camp..Then I got worried so I went to sit at the recreational area where the guides were all assembled..From time to time I asked them whether they have found the 4 gals..Dennis answered truthfully "not yet.." the rescue team was then deployed to locate them since they were not responding through the walkie talkie..and I knew Dennis tried to called Lester through the walkie talkie from time to time because I would not stop asking. At one point it was so cold, I filled my water bag with hot water and hugged it just to keep warm. After some time, 2 of girls in the group joined me and told me they had to go back earlier because they were working. So we bid farewall and I sat there again at the table alone. Afterwards, the other 2 guys came to the recreational camp and said that they had to get going as well. So It was just me and another guy friend waiting for the remaining 4 girls. We never left the recreational area until the 4 of them arrived safely around 11pm. One of them suffered from leg cramps so the team had to walk slowly to wait for each other. Lester and my sister worked together at the river to bring each member one by one across and I heard Lester injured his ankle during the process (God bless you Lester for what you had to go through to keep the girls safe). If I could pick the guide for the trip to Mount Trus Madi via Sinua, Sook, I would in a heart beat have Lester lead again. The dedication he showed during the trip is beyond admirable.

All our bags were loaded at the back of the 4wd vehicle, hoping they would not bounced off during the long drive. We thanked Dennis and his guide for their help, took our certificates and drive out from Sinua at 12am because my friend had to work that morning. I was supposed to be the co-driver but I keep seeing imaginary chickens and cows on the road so I was not much help. I slept on and off and I sleep more during the hours in the car then during the hiking trip. The ride home was memorable as well with occasional laughter due to leg cramps and delusions. Thankfully everybody arrived home safely including our driver who I knew arrived home around 4.30am and had only 2 hours of sleep before work that day.

The trip was a mixture of bitter sweet memories for me. It gave me life lesson about my own strength and human nature especially when put in brutal situation like this. I'm really happy that I was able to complete the whole summit until summit 3 with my close friends and all of us in the group were deemed worthy to received our certificates. The lyrics from a song by Tim McGraw "Humble and Kind" came to my mind when I reminiscent about the whole trip.. "I know you got mountains to climb, But always stay humble and kind"..

With that said,  I would recommend the Mount Trus Madi via Sinua Trail for adventure seekers..those 90 degrees cliff would make any bear-grylls fan proud.

Mount Nombuyukong, Kota Marudu

This hiking trail, Mount Nombuyukong was found through facebook using my ever impressive investigative skills. Its 6.5km one way so 13km totaled and standing at 1603.57meter. When we actually had an outstation trip to Kota Marudu for a few days, me and my hiking friends which happened to consist of some of my office mates as well went to Stesen Serinsim to scout the place. My friend took the number of the officer guarding the entrance to Stesen Serinsim and arranged the trip through the kind lady who was ever ready to answer all of our question. We decided on a 2 days 1 night trip from 19-20 November 2016 where we will camp somewhere along the route.

The fee for this trip consist of;

1) Insurance RM7/pax

2) Permit RM31.80/pax (If 18years old below the fee is RM12.72)

3) Guide RM90/day (1-5pax) (so if like us we did the 2 days 1 night camping the guide fee will double)

4) Certificate RM5.30

Everything was paid on the day at the guard entrance. 

Early morning, me and Fei set out towards Sub Stesen Serinsim, Kota Marudu, picked up my sister and Tia along the way. Meurel and his brothers reached there an hour earlier than we did as we reached there around 12pm. The place had very limited line connection especially if you are a digi user. I had to use Waze to get there because I was unfamiliar with the routes. When we were almost at the entrance, we came across Meurel walking around lifting up his phone. I lowered my window car and asked him what the heck was he doing, apparently he was trying to find phone signal to call out because celcom can still get line at certain area.  It had already started to rain but there was still another person that had not grace us with his present and my friend asked me whether we wanted to wait for the dude. Now this guy claimed he was interested to join us hiking for the first time. The guy lives in Kota Marudu district and all of us lives much further away. We had already set up to meet around 11am and its 12 something already. So I said wait for a while but my gut feeling was that he was a no-show and as we found out much much later on..it was true. He really did not came and gave some excuse about not feeling well. But the thing is, he texted my friend around the afternoon (which he received while hiking halfway to the camp site) and did not picked up calls from the guides. Of course there is also the issue of him uploading photos on Instagram early morning when he was "sick"..hhmmm..its better to just be truthful and informed people earlier on if you suddenly feel like bailing out then to leave people hanging.. 

So enough of that, nearing 1pm the guides advised us to just start early the next day since its raining and its late already. But after a proper discussion among the members, we decided to just start hiking that day and set up camp at whichever KM that is suitable. The guides says that KM1 to KM3 has a decent hut, toilet and water source so our group opted for KM3. All of us carried our on bags which consist of food, sleeping bag, sleeping tent, extra clothes and water. So we all looked like hunch backs with our ponchos on. 

From KM1 to KM3 with all our heavy loads was bearable..we arrived at the camp site of KM 3 around 4 something in the evening. There were 7 of us and 2 guides and the guides were really good. They would rest at every 1KM hut along the way to re-group. We actually had arrived quite early at KM3 but the guide say if we were all dudes he would have continued onwards because KM4 and so on has no toilet. So us ladies were quite content to camp at KM3. We picked our own spot to set up tents and then afterwards prepared our dinner. Good thing we bought our own mini cooker and kettle, Chris help set up the mini cooker and we ate maggi cup for dinner. Our group chatted the time away and looked for leeches. Tia and Evet got bit the most and Tia's toes were still bleeding post leech attack. We finally had to put a plaster on her toes to stop her bleeding. Come night time, us ladies retreat into our own tent. Me and Fei sprayed our shoes and tents with insecticide and almost suffocated ourselves in the process. It was still drizzling but I managed to get some decent sleep despite the noises from hikers that were doing the day trip passing by. The last batch of them to go down rested at out hut for more than 30 minutes. I was awake because the girls were chattering loudly and I looked at my phone and saw that it was 9pm and these people still had 3km more to cover..Kesian..We knew they started at 7am in the morning and they were probably really exhausted.

Waiting for the water to boil

Our camp site at KM3

All of us woke up early morning, ate maggi again for breakfast and then set out around 6.30am. We left our stuff at the hut and only bring really important things like water and snacks. The hike up to KM4 was tiring. It felt forever and we find small signage from time to time indicating the KM we have covered but hut KM4 felt like forever to get to. Finally I stop at an area with a long log that had fallen and named the place pondok 3.95KM since we could not seem to reach KM4 hut. We waited for each other there and joke around to ease the tiredness before setting out again. 

We named this log hut KM3.95

Now after passing KM4 hut, we caught a glimpse of a summit among the tall trees. So me and fei stop to laugh at ourselves  because that was the summit of Mount Nombuyukong and we were clearly still at the bottom. When Chris arrived at our spot we "happily" show him glance of the summit among the trees and he just lost some color to his face. So we asked him to just keep going because we wanted to show Tia & Evet our discovery. When the 2 of them arrived, we pointed out to them our future, they thought we were joking and stated to laughed hysterically. But then Evet got serious and asked the guide is it true, the guide just nodded his head which send the 4 of us into awkward laughing mode.. This is the moment which we though "what have we done.."

 

After KM4 hut, we saw the summit among the tree top

Small streams to cross

 So from that point onwards, the 4 of us ladies hike together for support. Every now and then I would glance behind and count the head numbers and then stop to wait for them. Through the few hikes that we have done together, in my humble opinion its not how fast you get there but the memory of the journey itself. Each person have their own reason to hike, for myself immersing oneself in nature and the memories you have together as a group was worth much more than speeding alone towards the summit. Besides, safety first especially for lady hikers..make sure to keep a lookout for each other while hiking in the mountains. There were a few spots where we had to help each other out, like somewhere towards KM5 hut a tree have fallen at the edge of a cliff and blocked the way. When we arrived at KM5 hut where the guys were waiting, my water was almost finished. I just drank the water from the waterfall and even put some in my bottle. I don't know if its because of the rain but the waterfall in front of hut KM5 was really big and mesmerizing to look at. I even took a video of it. We rest there for a while eating biscuits before continued on..

The waterfall at KM5

The trail to the summit was quite challenging and I was sweating profusely because of the heat. For myself, the trail to the summit of Mount Nambuyukong was different from other places we hike..the word that came to my mind was mystical. There were mist among the tall trees which make you feel like you are in a different world. But, the trail does get harder and harder the nearer we were to the summit. 

Beautiful trail

The last spot were we girls re-group was at 6.2KM or 6.25KM. Then I continued on in front of my girlfriends without stopping anymore as my own mentality was starting to break because of exhaustion and dehydration. The last few hundred metres was the worse and that's when I really needed to stay positive by playing uplifting songs in my head. Hahaaa.. Surprisingly that exhaustion vanished the moment I saw the last stairs that I needed to climbed to get to the summit. The guys and the 1st guide were already resting there and I went into top model mode with Meurel as my photographer..one by one the others came up and the final person came up at 11.20am. We had our group photo and then started to descend down after resting a bit.. 

 

Our awesome group photo

Unfortunately it started to rain around 3pm which is about the time me and Fei arrived at our campsite KM3. The guys were just few minutes earlier than us..and they asked if we had any food to cooked. But we were out of food as well.. so our mistake here was not bringing enough food. Bummer..The guide said we had to continue to descend down because the office will close at 5pm and our certificate must be claimed by 5pm. But since Tia & Vet have not yet reached the campsite, I asked the guys to continued on with the guide to get the certificate while we waited for the 2 girls. Almost an hour later their arrived, apparently my sister slip and injured her ankle so she could only walked slowly. So I carried both our tents to ease her burden before heading down with Fei.. we asked both of them to hike slowly with the guide. When Me and Fei reached the hut at KM2 roughly close to 5pm, I remembered that the 2 girls did not bring their torchlight..I had one but Fei's torchlight was just a miniature keychain..so we did the maths and I knew that the 2 of them would not be able to make it to the parking before night. So I turned on my flashlight and hung it on the Hut at KM2 hoping that they would know it was from us. Then the 2 of us speed up our pace despite our aching foot to reach the parking spot by nightfall. Now only God knows how many prayers was recited that day but we managed to reached the entrance of Stensen Serinsim by 6pm something when there is still some light.. The feeling of overwhelmed was definitely there when the both of us finally were out of the woods. The fact was we were both really scared because we had no light and the rain made the trails wet and in some places it had already turned into small streams.. Also the woods quickly became darker by the minute because of the rain and we knew how "keras" Mount Nombuyukong trail was. The first thing we did when we get to our car? Fei took out the bun she left behind to share. The last time we ate was in the morning so we were starving..After changing into dry clothes, I spotted 2 silhouette walking towards the parking lot with a flashlight, the 2 girls made it safely out by 7pm. The 4 of us were overjoyed and after everyone changed into dry attire, I drove us to the nearest KFC for dinner before heading home.. Mount Nombuyukong is highly recommended, the trail is well maintained..there are even resting hut at every 1KM and the toilet at KM3 could even flush to my surprise. But my friend Fei did experienced some puzzling scenario like getting her bag pull while hiking down so I would say like every other mountain, be respectful and pray for protection while hiking. 

Liwagu Trail, Sabah Park Kundasang

I have already by October book a date to hike Mount Trus Madi via Sinua Trail in December. So as preparation for the trip, I made sure I keep myself active by hiking whenever I can. The lower the cost the better. Hahaa..to my surprise while researching for trails in Sabah, I just found out that in Sabah Park itself, there area a few trails any any nature lover can give a go. Kiau View Trail, Pandanus Trail, Bukit Ular Hillside Trail, Bundu Tuhan View Trail, Bukit Tupai Trail, Bukit Burong trail, Mempening Trail, Silau-silau Trail and Liwagu Trail..We went for the longest trail there,  which is the Liwagu trail estimated at 5.6km one way on 30th October 2016. All these trail are accessible to the public at only RM3/head entrance fee..

Joining my entourage for this time is just a handful of us comprising of the ever faithful Fei, photography enthusiast Aldro and my always-excited-to-comment-whenever-i-post-a-hiking-pic friend Eydah. Eydah was skeptic about the idea at first because she claim that we were probably very fast to which I replied we would be doing a leisure hiking. So early morning I went to pick up Fei and Eydah, we had our breakfast together and take away packed lunch for the trip. We headed to Sabah Park and made our first mistake by parking outside the park at the bottom of the entrance stairs. Then the 3 of us made our way up, paid the entrance fee of RM3/person. I asked for the trail map and was a give a black and white photocopy of the trail outline in the park. Once Aldro arrived, we made our way to the starting point according to the trail map I obtained, which is to the right from the entrance. But then when the others started questioning the route, I went into the transport office and asked the gentleman inside, which one of the explained to take the left road towards Timpohon gate..so we change our route and starting walking..and walking up the road..that's when we started to asked ourselves, why didn't we just drove one of the car inside the park to find the starting point.."duh.." Once we passed the Grace hostel, Rock hostel, Kinabalu lodge then finally infornt of Liwagu restaurant.. we started to wonder where on earth is the starting point of Liwagu trail. Eydah went inside the restaurant to asked but the workers there were confused, guess not many people have come in and asked for direction to the trails in Sabah Park.Hahaa.. We just started to make a u-turn when Fei spotted an important looking fellow just exiting the back area of the restaurant so we just asked him about the trails. He said to no surprise that we had taken the wrong route, we were suppose to take the right turn from the entrance and would have seen the starting point not far off. But now he advised us to just go ahead to near Timpohon gate, which was supposed to be the end point of Liwagu trail and start from there so that we will end up finishing near the entrance.. So blessing in disguise, we did make a wrong turn but we ended up doing a circle route altogether. We thanked the gentleman and make our way up towards Timpohon gate on foot ya..could have just drove 1 car there and left another near the entrance. But what done is done so we make the best of it. Funny thing is.. Aldro said that we were talking to a Bos..to which I replied how would he had known that then he said..the guy was wearing a Rolex watch. The 3 of us just let out the sound "ooooo..."

Because we walked all the way up, with me as the sweeper because like the cars I have to change gear every time there is an uphill, we passed by some places that were unnoticeable. Like the monument they put up for the lost lives during the earthquake tragedy in June 5, 2015.

Monument for the lost lives, many were still children

The singage for Liwagu trail was almost unnoticeable because cars were park everywhere along the Timpohon gate. So we really had to keep a look out for it. But still I had to walk up the road more than I needed to in order to catch Aldro because he was too damn fast and far to hear us calling his name when he walked passed the signaga trail.Hahaaa..

Entrance to Liwagu from near Timpohon gate

As we were having a photo-shoot session before starting, I notice a few eyes just staring at us then when we went down the trail a tourist couple soon followed suite.. We let them passed us after a while because me and Fei want to spray adequate insecticide on our stockings. Now if we had started from the real starting point, this would have been a bit tiring because the trail is a bit steep but since we were starting from high grounds to low..it was quite an enjoyable hike.enough to make you sweat but not scream.. The trail itself is really pretty with moss and wild flowers here and there. We had to crawl over a few big pipes though..by afternoon we wanted to take our lunch but were not able to find q good spot. Up to this pint we were still within the tourist couple view sight since they were busy taking photos as well. Finally we got to a place near the river stream with a small wooden bridge and few rocks which was perfect for an eating spot. So, us 3 gals were busy chatting and eating while Mr.photographer was busy doing his own thing there setting up camera and jumping from rock to rock. Eydah finally lose it asking what is he doing back there and launched into reporter mode to investigate while me and Fei casually continue eating our lunch.This therapeutic moment was disrupted when Fei suddenly scream leech..a leech the size of a pea was making its way up my shirt..so the 2 of us went into mad women mode spraying ourselves. This time Eydah was the one casually sitting down cross leg asking us to calm ourselves down..

Mossy forest

We were so high up

 

Where we stop for lunch

The small waterfall we found near our lunch spot

So apparently Mr photographer have set up a photo shoot area with a small waterfall as our background. The 4 of us went into top model mode. After lunch we continue our hike but the weather started to change and we had to put on our ponchos. The trail is a bit slippery because of the rain and we rushed to finished it. But we did stop to take some photos when we spotted a tree looking like elephant trunks on the way. The river turned to a brown muddy color because of the rain though, all in all it was a good hike and we laughed at how near the real starting point was to the entrance gate. But I caught a cold after the hike because it was soo cold and our extra change of clothes was in the car. So we drove home shivering in cold and had to stop for hot drinks in Kota Kinabalu. So yeah..must remind myself change of clothes is a must every time. I would definitely be back to try out the other shorter trails. 

Tinorindak Hill, Kundasang

On 3rd October 2016, a group of us (12 person) consist of my long lost school friend, Emily who I reconnected because of hiking..hahaa..and my usually group of hiking buddies. Now our group was quite late to get to the starting point, sorry for that Emily..

Now how did we arranged this? Just go to their facebook page Nulu Tinorindak Kundasang and get in touch with one of the handphone number advertised and set a date.
The fee consist of ;
1) Entrance fee which is RM15/person (Sabahan)
2) Guide fee which is RM50/group of 5
3) Certificate RM10 is optional.

So since we are a group of 12..Entrance fee RM15 per person + guide fee RM12.50 (RM50 x 3 / 12) + RM10 for certificate, which give a total of RM37.50 per person.

When you get there, you can park your car at the area allocated and get a simple briefing from the guides who happens to be local youth there (kudos to them).

Parking dulu..nasib ada toilet dekat sana

The guides will then take you to the starting point..have to walk for some a bit to get to the starting point, which is a good body warm up. Then we did the whole body stretching we learned while hiking in Kawang while waiting for my sister vet to catch up near the starting point. Now my sister usually end up being the sweeper, slow and steady but you have to give her credit that she always, always reaches the top of any hike. Hence her endurance and heart to finish any trail..So when we waited for her at the starting point, soon as she arrived..she babble on  about sticking a stick up some guy's axxxxxe. So actually we did passed by a group of guys who were descending down and I didn't even looked up to them when they start giving sarcastic remarks about this is just the beginning, you guys haven't reach the starting point,etc.. not worth my eyesore, ketara lahir tidak hensem itulah gaya macam kerbau. They passed my sister and actually have the audacity to laughed at her she said. These are actually quite pathetic type of people which I hope will never reproduce offspring.

Walk to starting point

Ini baru the real starting point

The trail here is really enjoyable, you know that the youth there have put many thoughts and efforts to make the trail. Since Kundasang is naturally cold, the hike for me is enjoyable and the scenery is breathtaking especially when you get to the top. Mount Kinabalu seems so near that you get lost in thoughts just staring at it.

The trail up

Choose left or right?

Breathtaking view

Wait til you reach the top!view is amazing

 

At the top, the guide asked us do we want to descend the normal route which is where we came from..or the newer route which has not been opened officially to the public and hence much more adventurous. So Emily's group wanted to go for the new route and we follow suite after..the new route was much more fun (and at times dangerous since it's not quite safety proof yet..hahaa)

New trail that we tried

The last signage to the finish point

We even pass through someone's garden I think because there were dogs and all. Luckily the weather only started to change when we were almost towards the finishing point but the wind was so strong that all the pictures we took at the last signage was really funny to look at. Good thing for our habit of bringing extra change of clothes so that we can change in the toilet nearby. This was a fun hiking trip for me and I could definitely see myself going again.

Bukit Bongol, Pirasan Trail, Kota Belud

Well, we decided on a moment notice to try and hike up Bongol Hill, Kota Kinabalu on 23 October 2016..Me and Fei though that it was a sign when both of us happen to be checking out the same picture of the hill that was viral on social media at exactly the same time. So we made an impulse decision to go there during the weekend..I saw the info stated roughly 3km..so in my head it was 3km to and fro..boy was I wrong..it was actually around 3km 1way

On the day of the hike we waited for Aldro in Kota Belud and it happens to be the annual Tamu besar KB so the roads were packed. The only place me and Fei were able to park to eat was a ngiu chap place on a hill..the portion was damn big but anyway Aldro came soon after even before we finished eating so we had to rush gulping down our food since its already 9sumthing in the morning. Why am I babbling about the eating part?because this leads to an important event afterwards. So using waze we drive out to Bukit Bongol which is quite near..around 10-15minutes away from where the Tamu was held. At the junction where Waze app will take you, there is a simen road leading up so we took that road and park nearby the area with a lot of water tanks. So reading through some other people's blog, I had some precaution ready. Sunblock checked, hat checked, umbrella checked, water checked. So we started our hike and it was a really really sunny day..now only just after going up and down 1 or 2 hills..I could already sense something is not right with usually self, I felt slight dizziness and out of breath.At first I though that it was the heat so I used my umbrella but I still felt uncomfortable to which I had to stop few times. Kesian my hike buddies.. Then I drank 100plus thinking maybe I was dehydrated..and I felt like puking.So Thank God for the umbrella, I had my friends just leave me metres apart so I can puke comfortably while shielding them from the devastating scene with my umbrella. I ended up leaving compost @ baja ngiu chap some where in the beginning of the trail..and I felt much better afterwards. So lesson learn here..do not eat and hike directly, bikin sayang duit bayar makanan. 

Now it was such a long hike and a lot of hills..open hills with tall grasses mind you..not exactly what I imagined when I looked at the pictures people posted..I began to have a slight regret and an inkling to turned back by hill no.3 when I realized that there is about 10hills..the heat was overwhelming and the grass was actually sharp and cut through your skin when you passed them. By hill 4 or 5, we stop under a tree to give way to this two dudes, one was nice and the other was a total axxxxxe. I was greeting the nice guy when his friend came from behind and start babbling about how we screw up the timing and directly told us to turned back and try another day because his exact words was, it was a mistake to start hike that late..then something about police/bomba have to be called in to find our bodies..now I don't know who you are buddy tapi betul2 ko bikin panas..should have bought some pepper spray with me for hikes to accidentally spray people like this. So I start answer sarcastically and then when that didn't stop him, gave him mono syllable answer which includes "hmm'.."oo.." and so on..so they went on their merry ways and we continue to hike whenever it became a bit cloudy..we rushed to the next tree. By 12 something in the afternoon, we stop over a hill overlooking some construction. I told them its better to wait out the sun since its not healthy. We relaxed and talked then I saw my phone and another hiking buddy has just arrived in KB. So knowing how fast Meurel  could hike, I asked him to just joined us since I'm not moving from that spot until the sun goes down a bit. By 1pm he has already caught up to us bringing isotonic drinks and snacks. And just about the time, the weather drastically changed and it became cloudy..so the 4 of us started our hike again..

See the grass is as tall as us..

I love this picture of me and fei

Behind the scene photoshoot going on with Fei & Aldro..

I think, I specifically said the first flag is enough then we can turned back..But when we arrived at the first flag and they pointed out the flag after..even Fei wouldn't back me up and wanted to go for the next flag. So I dragged my legs for another hill..then when we arrived at that hill, the guys pointed out the other flag on the next hill, in the end, we ended up finishing all 10hills..the rain started by hill 9 and continued until we hike back to our cars. Now this is a place I would say fit the expression expectation vs reality..what you see in the pictures are not soft grass that you can do bollywood stunts, but they do surely look like that. Haahaa..did we get amazing pictures, well yes. especially in our poncho, the scenery look extra cool.,what with the mist and all..

There's actually other trails to the summit because on hill 10, some boys were on their way hiking up from another route..We ended our trip with a binge eating in Tuaran.

Oh gosh..I have not been updating my trips. Summary of 2016

As 2016 will come to an end in a few days, I took the time to sort out and transfer the pictures from my phone to my laptop..that is when I realized I have had the privilege to hike to a lot of places over the past few months..and I did not realized it. Some of the picture I went through..I even forgotten about and my reaction was "yeaahh..I went there already.." Then I remembered my abandon blog.hahaa..Before 2016 ends, I will try my utmost best to post about each post trip..hopefully with my reliable memory even remember a story or two..Of course, one of my most memorable experience was successfully hike up Mount Trus Madi via Sinua Trail in Mid December 2016. If anyone have told me that I would be fit enough to do that back in early January, I would have laugh. What a difference nearly a year has done for my physical stamina and my mental strength. Around the same time a year ago (2015), I could not even get out of the Cu Chi Tunnel in Vietnam without help from a guy in our tour group. But truth be told, I did not lose any weight (Damn..) but I am fairly confident in my leg muscle ability to kick someone to the corner if I have too. My confidence level has also improve..partly due to knowing that I could definitely kick someone hard if I have too..also my appreciation for nature has grown and so have my faith. In the woods and mountains I learn something..There is no one I can depend on for strength, endurance and resources to succeed but God. So for every hike, especially the harder ones.. I prayed more..reflect more and discover more of myself. I'm happy closing 2016 with all the adventures I had..2016 definitely wasn't boring, hopefully 2017 will be just as exciting. My hiking adventures would definitely continue since I already book a date to hike Mount Kinabalu in August 2017 ;)