Friday, July 01, 2005
CONQUERING MT. KINABALU- with a lot of style
I have a book on mountaineering called “World Mountaineering”. It features all the highest and most challenging mountains in the world. Mt. Kinabalu is the highest peak in South East Asia, rising to about 4,095masl. In contrast, the Philippines’ Mt. Apo rises to only 2,970masl. Mt. Kinabalu is located in Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia. The book calls Mt. Kinabalu a “people’s mountain” as opposed to a mountaineer’s mountain.
Sabah, where Mt. Kinabalu is located, used to be part of the Sultanate of Sulo. The Sultan of Sulo, in the 19th century leased Sabah to the British. When Britain granted Malaysia independence, Sabah was never returned to the Sultan of Sulo and by extension, the Philippines. This issue has always been a thorn in the otherwise excellent relationship between the Philippines and Malaysia. It may explain the whole brouhaha when the Malaysian authorities expelled illegal Filipino workers in Sabah.
To the Dunsun people of Sabah, Mt. Kinabalu with its majestic granite peaks is a sacred mountain. This is where they bury their dead and where the spirits of their ancestors reside.
Sir Hugh Low, a British civil servant from Labuan, first explored Mt. Kinabalu in 1851. Gunting Lagadan, a local guide, guided him. Sir Hugh was not bothered by the steepness of the mountain. He was bothered by the hardships in the lowlands in getting to the mountain.
When Team Leader Mama Menchie (Menchie Barbudo (98)) invited me to join Melody Cruz (99), Eloy Mallari-Gonzales (99), Patrick Gonzales (00), Bernie Calingnacion (98) and Chris Padilla (98) to scale Mt. Kinabalu and to tour Sabah in a shoestring budget, I told her to count me in. The group was comprised of old Ayala Mountaineer friends when AMCI was still known as Ayala Mountaineers. We knew each other quite well and we knew we were going to have FUN. We were scheduled to leave on June 23 via Air Asia from Clark International Airport on board one of those cheapo airlines.
Since we were AMCI trained, we held our pre-climb meeting at Melody’s spacious conference room at Glorietta 4. Based on information given by Eena Nonato (01) and Xenon Walde (93), we planned our meals around canned tuna, Chinese chorizo, maling, pork and beans, instant noodles, bread, cheese and rice. We didn’t need to bring any climbing gear. All we needed to bring are our cold weather clothing and gimmick clothes. Patrick, the ever conservative climber, opted to bring his stove and cook set. Pat, Bernie, Mench, Chris and I brought our sleeping bags. Mama Mench was determined to keep our expenses, including airfare to P15T max.
Menchie is an old friend. She hated me when I was a trainee in 1999 because I was one of those “pasaway” trainees. But after the BMC, we became friends and went to several mountains together. We became closer in 2001, when I was Chairman of the Board of Trustees and she was BMC Director. Melody and Eloy are batch mates of mine and both were involved in the 2001 BMC Committee. Melody is very efficient in getting things done. The only thing she’s still trying to perfect is the quest for a boy friend. (LOL) Patrick courted Eloy in 2001. In the “20 Peaks at 20” climb at the summit of Mt. Apo, Pat got down on his knees and proposed marriage to Eloy. Because this was such a romantic proposal that still brings tears to my eyes, I agreed to stand as a sponsor in their wedding last year. Chris and Bernie are both batch mates and AXN teammates of Menchie. Chris is the bitter half of Astrid, a batch mate of Eloy, Melody and me. I tease Chris that he’s a wimp (he really is not a wimp) since Astrid beats him in running, climbs faster and out does him in any physical activity. Chris has a wicked wit and like me, an Atenean. Bernie is a great photographer and has very funny one-liners.
We left on June 23 at 11am on Air Asia via Clark. Most of us took the shuttle Philtranco bus at the Megamall. We kept our packs under 14 kilos. The 737 plane had free for all seating as in most cheapo airlines. The seats were encased in leather rather leatherette (vinyl). You had to pay for food. The chicken with sambal sauce that Pat and I had cost P140. Both Pat and I are TALL and we hardly fitted into the seats.
We got to Kota Kinabalu (KK) on time at 1:30pm. Rushing out of the airport, we took a couple of taxis to Centerpoint Mall to change our money into ringgit. Since Air Asia is a cheapo airline, they didn’t have money-changing facilities in their terminal. We got to the mall and ate at the local McDonald’s.
We were getting conflicting times when the buses to Kinabalu Park were leaving. Finally, we just decided to go to the bus terminal and get our tickets. The Pinoys there informed us that the next bus was at 7pm. But he offered a bas mini (mini bus) as an alternative at R15/pax. We grabbed it and headed towards Kinabalu Park 2hours away.
We got to the park at 5pm and were met by a charming lady named Veronica. She speaks some Pilipino because she is a devoted fan of Jericho Rosales (yep, Echo is big in Malaysia!). She informed us of the ranger’s climb briefing at 6pm. She would check us in after the briefing. A ranger named Rai briefed us on the various aspects of the climb. For the Timpohon Trail, expect to pass 7 shelters with flushing toilets and faucets for water. For the Mesilau Trail, expect to pass 7 shelters with toilets and faucets for water. But he added that the Mesilau trail is 2.5km longer and is more challenging than the Timpohon Trail. He does not recommend novices to use the Mesilau Trail. With the typical AMCI flair for arrogance, we ignored his warnings much to our regret. (Lol).
Veronica checked us into a 2-story cottage with hot water, 3 bedrooms, kitchen with cooking facilities, living room with satellite TV, and a beautiful balcony with a view of the granite peaks of Mt. Kinabalu. The lights of Laban Rata guesthouse shone in the distance. We cooked our dinner, heckled each other, watched TV and sorted our things before going to bed.
Most of us were awake by 5 the next day. We had to be at the entrance of the park by 7am to pick up our guide and our climb badges. By 7, we sauntered over to the park entrance to meet Bungin our mountain guide. While Bungin was arranging transportation to the Mesilau jump off (40 minutes away), we stored our gimmick clothes in the luggage room. Stopping briefly at the market in Kundasang, we reached Mesilau at 9.
Amid light banter and humor, we started the climb. In 45 minutes, we reached the 1st shelter, the Bambu shelter. We climbed over 500 meters and Bungin kept on telling us to slow down. Menchie, Eloy and Melody took pictures of the pitcher plant (nepenthes). The trail started to veer steeply down. Chris and I didn’t like the steepness of the descent. We noted that what ever we gained in altitude, we lost through the descent. On our right side, we could see the peaks of Mt. Kinabalu. Then the trail started to steeply ascend again. We noticed that the trails were beautiful maintained. Wooden sticks with metal spikes were used to hold up the trail. But it made the trek tougher. The steps were wider and more physically draining. We learned to trek on the side of the trail so we could use our “baby steps” on the ascent. 2 more times the trail ascended steeply then descended again. The ascent and the descent had an average of 60 to 70 degrees angle. By the time we got to the Layang Layang junction, we were wasted.
The Layang laying junction was where the Timpohon trail and the Mesilau trail converge to form the summit trail. From the junction to the Laban Rata rest house, it would take 2 hours. Because of the challenging aspect of the Mesilau trail, it took us 3.5 hours. On our way up to Laban Rata, we could all start feeling the cold air. Then it started to rain. We didn’t take any chances and we wore our rain gear. Pat, Chris and Bernie; all strong climbers admitted the toughness of the trek. We were not speaking anymore. We wanted to get to Laban Rata to eat and change into our warm clothes. Bungin, our guide, kept telling us that we were near. We passed 2 more shelters and took our breaks there. We couldn’t stay very long because it was very very cold.
Finally, a little after 5pm, we reached Laban Rata. I collapsed into a chair in the dining hall and Melody handed me a cup of hot soup. I rested for a while and changed into warm clothes. We were so hungry; we kept on going back to the buffet. The buffet cost us RM22. But it was worth it. We talked to some of the climbers there and they were surprise that we took the Mesilau trail.
After a hearty dinner, we got ready to trek to our hut, Gunting Labadan. It’s supposed to be a 10-minute walk uphill. It took us 20 minutes. We were in no condition to trek. Gunting Labadan is 50 meters higher than Laban Rata. Laban Rata is 3,220masl. Mt. Apo is 2,970masl. We were to sleep 250meters above Mt. Apo. We could feel thinness of the air.
The nice thing about climbing Mt. Kinabalu is that a real bed and a hot shower await you at the rest house. Since we were the last to arrive at the rest house, we had the showers all to ourselves. I was just plain tired and wanted to sleep. Bernie still managed to flirt with a couple of Asian ladies (we can’t tell if they were from Singapore or Malaysia). The girls wanted Bernie to wake them up at 2am. The girls were pretty but they have awfully bad taste! (Loll).
We woke up at 1:30am. I didn’t sleep that well. I was hounded by nightmares. I was dreaming that demons were after me at the trail. I told the group of my dream and Chris remarked that he heard dying moans and he was wondering where that came from. It was cold! The temperature read 10C. Rain was steadily pouring. We were wondering if the assault to the summit would push through. I’ll be honest. I didn’t feel much like going to the summit. I wanted to rest and I wanted to sleep some more. The guides from the other groups arrived. They were discussing among themselves whether to allow us to assault the summit.
Bungin arrived and he told us to get ready. At 3am, we left the rest house. We started to climb through 70degree trails. It was like a never-ending upward climb through a tunnel. The vegetation round the trail made it seem like we were in a tunnel. After more than 45 minutes of climbing, I saw the 7km marker. I began to wonder when the edge of the vegetation stopped and the granite slabs began. It’s a good thing though there were a lot of climbers. The sheer number of climbers created traffic. At least we could catch our breath. As the vegetation ended, we saw ropes embedded in the granite slabs. Bungin signaled us to grab the ropes. Little by little we inched forward. We finally reached the 7.5km mark just before the Sayat Sayat huts. The Sayat Sayat huts (3,810masl) were huts placed there by earlier explorers to Mt. Kinabalu. The rangers stationed there inspected our climb passes. Again there were toilets at the huts. I couldn’t believe my eyes. There was TWO PUBLIC TELEHONE BOOTHS PLACED THERE BY TELECOM MALAYSIA! It had a sign saying “THE HIGHEST PUBLIC PHONE BOOTHS IN THE WORLD”.
By now as we approached the summit plateau, we were barely walking. Every three steps I had to stop to catch my breath. There were times I felt like passing out. I could see spots in front of me. At one time I almost fell backward after almost blacking out. I’ve never experienced this lack of air. Finally after an hour, we made it to the summit plateau. There are several peaks at Kinabalu: Donkey’s Ears (4,054masl), Ugly Sister Peak (4,032masl), South Peak (3,933masl), Victoria Peak, St Johns Peak (4,090masl) and the highest peak, Low’s Peak at 4,095masl. We were headed to Low’s Peak. But I was tempted to go to the lower peaks. I couldn’t breathe. The last 200meters was pure torture.
Finally, we made it to the summit. Everyone had a smile on his or her lips. I just wanted to take the pictures and head down. And I needed to pee too! Plus it was freezing cold at 1C. After all the picture taking ceremonies and all that other ek ek, I left the group and headed down. As I descended, I began to feel much better. I had to remind myself to grab hold of the ropes because those granite slabs are slippery. It took me an hour to get down to Laban Rata. A far cry from the more than 4-hour trek to the summit.
Upon reaching Laban Rata, I devoured the buffet breakfast. Climbers were congratulating each other for having made it to the summit. After breakfast, I headed back to the hut. The group wasn’t there yet. I fell asleep in the balcony in one of those plastic chairs. Finally at about 9, they arrived.
Chris, Pat, Bernie and I prepared breakfast. Breakfast consisted of Chinese chorizo, maling and rice. We offered Bungin some canned tuna and bread. We didn’t want to offend Bungin sensibilities of offering pork dishes.
After breakfast, we headed down using the Timpohan trail. We left at 11:45am and the temperature was a cold 12C. It took us 45 minutes to cover the 2km to the Layang layang junction. We were right. The Timpohan trail is a far easier trail. At 3:30pm, we hit the end point of the Timpohan Trail.
In high spirits, Menchie took us to Poring Hot Springs. Poring Hot Springs is still part of the Kinabalu Park area. We are to spend the night here in a hostel.
When we got to the hostel, we saw some climbers from the rest house. We easily made friends with a Slovakian couple and a Singaporean student group. The next day, after trying out the hot springs pool, we transferred to a chalet type unit with 3 bedrooms, 2 toilets, kitchen, living room and satellite TV. Menchie also arranged for a mini bus to take us to the market at Renau. Eloy did the marketing; I bought the Guinness Dark Beers and Pat bought the local Malaysian made brandy. That evening, after a satisfying adobo dinner, we drank ourselves silly.
The next day, Melody, Eloy and Pat went on the canopy walk while the rest of us chilled in the chalet. That late morning we headed into Kota Kinabalu and checked into Lucy’s Backpackers Hostel. For RM18 (P250)/person including continental breakfast, Lucy’s is a bargain. The rooms are dormitory style and the toilets and showers are clean.
That evening we treated ourselves to a nice Nonya dinner at the new boardwalk fronting the bay.
Now that I’m back in Manila, I can still see the granite peaks of Mt. Kinabalu in my dreams. It will be a climb that will remain with me forever.
TIPS: We spent about 15T including airfare. Expect to spend more if you go shopping and if you go to the more expensive side trips. There are lots of Pinoys around so watch your language. Stay in hostels to keep your costs down. The souvenirs are mostly made in the Philippines and in Thailand.
Sabah, where Mt. Kinabalu is located, used to be part of the Sultanate of Sulo. The Sultan of Sulo, in the 19th century leased Sabah to the British. When Britain granted Malaysia independence, Sabah was never returned to the Sultan of Sulo and by extension, the Philippines. This issue has always been a thorn in the otherwise excellent relationship between the Philippines and Malaysia. It may explain the whole brouhaha when the Malaysian authorities expelled illegal Filipino workers in Sabah.
To the Dunsun people of Sabah, Mt. Kinabalu with its majestic granite peaks is a sacred mountain. This is where they bury their dead and where the spirits of their ancestors reside.
Sir Hugh Low, a British civil servant from Labuan, first explored Mt. Kinabalu in 1851. Gunting Lagadan, a local guide, guided him. Sir Hugh was not bothered by the steepness of the mountain. He was bothered by the hardships in the lowlands in getting to the mountain.
When Team Leader Mama Menchie (Menchie Barbudo (98)) invited me to join Melody Cruz (99), Eloy Mallari-Gonzales (99), Patrick Gonzales (00), Bernie Calingnacion (98) and Chris Padilla (98) to scale Mt. Kinabalu and to tour Sabah in a shoestring budget, I told her to count me in. The group was comprised of old Ayala Mountaineer friends when AMCI was still known as Ayala Mountaineers. We knew each other quite well and we knew we were going to have FUN. We were scheduled to leave on June 23 via Air Asia from Clark International Airport on board one of those cheapo airlines.
Since we were AMCI trained, we held our pre-climb meeting at Melody’s spacious conference room at Glorietta 4. Based on information given by Eena Nonato (01) and Xenon Walde (93), we planned our meals around canned tuna, Chinese chorizo, maling, pork and beans, instant noodles, bread, cheese and rice. We didn’t need to bring any climbing gear. All we needed to bring are our cold weather clothing and gimmick clothes. Patrick, the ever conservative climber, opted to bring his stove and cook set. Pat, Bernie, Mench, Chris and I brought our sleeping bags. Mama Mench was determined to keep our expenses, including airfare to P15T max.
Menchie is an old friend. She hated me when I was a trainee in 1999 because I was one of those “pasaway” trainees. But after the BMC, we became friends and went to several mountains together. We became closer in 2001, when I was Chairman of the Board of Trustees and she was BMC Director. Melody and Eloy are batch mates of mine and both were involved in the 2001 BMC Committee. Melody is very efficient in getting things done. The only thing she’s still trying to perfect is the quest for a boy friend. (LOL) Patrick courted Eloy in 2001. In the “20 Peaks at 20” climb at the summit of Mt. Apo, Pat got down on his knees and proposed marriage to Eloy. Because this was such a romantic proposal that still brings tears to my eyes, I agreed to stand as a sponsor in their wedding last year. Chris and Bernie are both batch mates and AXN teammates of Menchie. Chris is the bitter half of Astrid, a batch mate of Eloy, Melody and me. I tease Chris that he’s a wimp (he really is not a wimp) since Astrid beats him in running, climbs faster and out does him in any physical activity. Chris has a wicked wit and like me, an Atenean. Bernie is a great photographer and has very funny one-liners.
We left on June 23 at 11am on Air Asia via Clark. Most of us took the shuttle Philtranco bus at the Megamall. We kept our packs under 14 kilos. The 737 plane had free for all seating as in most cheapo airlines. The seats were encased in leather rather leatherette (vinyl). You had to pay for food. The chicken with sambal sauce that Pat and I had cost P140. Both Pat and I are TALL and we hardly fitted into the seats.
We got to Kota Kinabalu (KK) on time at 1:30pm. Rushing out of the airport, we took a couple of taxis to Centerpoint Mall to change our money into ringgit. Since Air Asia is a cheapo airline, they didn’t have money-changing facilities in their terminal. We got to the mall and ate at the local McDonald’s.
We were getting conflicting times when the buses to Kinabalu Park were leaving. Finally, we just decided to go to the bus terminal and get our tickets. The Pinoys there informed us that the next bus was at 7pm. But he offered a bas mini (mini bus) as an alternative at R15/pax. We grabbed it and headed towards Kinabalu Park 2hours away.
We got to the park at 5pm and were met by a charming lady named Veronica. She speaks some Pilipino because she is a devoted fan of Jericho Rosales (yep, Echo is big in Malaysia!). She informed us of the ranger’s climb briefing at 6pm. She would check us in after the briefing. A ranger named Rai briefed us on the various aspects of the climb. For the Timpohon Trail, expect to pass 7 shelters with flushing toilets and faucets for water. For the Mesilau Trail, expect to pass 7 shelters with toilets and faucets for water. But he added that the Mesilau trail is 2.5km longer and is more challenging than the Timpohon Trail. He does not recommend novices to use the Mesilau Trail. With the typical AMCI flair for arrogance, we ignored his warnings much to our regret. (Lol).
Veronica checked us into a 2-story cottage with hot water, 3 bedrooms, kitchen with cooking facilities, living room with satellite TV, and a beautiful balcony with a view of the granite peaks of Mt. Kinabalu. The lights of Laban Rata guesthouse shone in the distance. We cooked our dinner, heckled each other, watched TV and sorted our things before going to bed.
Most of us were awake by 5 the next day. We had to be at the entrance of the park by 7am to pick up our guide and our climb badges. By 7, we sauntered over to the park entrance to meet Bungin our mountain guide. While Bungin was arranging transportation to the Mesilau jump off (40 minutes away), we stored our gimmick clothes in the luggage room. Stopping briefly at the market in Kundasang, we reached Mesilau at 9.
Amid light banter and humor, we started the climb. In 45 minutes, we reached the 1st shelter, the Bambu shelter. We climbed over 500 meters and Bungin kept on telling us to slow down. Menchie, Eloy and Melody took pictures of the pitcher plant (nepenthes). The trail started to veer steeply down. Chris and I didn’t like the steepness of the descent. We noted that what ever we gained in altitude, we lost through the descent. On our right side, we could see the peaks of Mt. Kinabalu. Then the trail started to steeply ascend again. We noticed that the trails were beautiful maintained. Wooden sticks with metal spikes were used to hold up the trail. But it made the trek tougher. The steps were wider and more physically draining. We learned to trek on the side of the trail so we could use our “baby steps” on the ascent. 2 more times the trail ascended steeply then descended again. The ascent and the descent had an average of 60 to 70 degrees angle. By the time we got to the Layang Layang junction, we were wasted.
The Layang laying junction was where the Timpohon trail and the Mesilau trail converge to form the summit trail. From the junction to the Laban Rata rest house, it would take 2 hours. Because of the challenging aspect of the Mesilau trail, it took us 3.5 hours. On our way up to Laban Rata, we could all start feeling the cold air. Then it started to rain. We didn’t take any chances and we wore our rain gear. Pat, Chris and Bernie; all strong climbers admitted the toughness of the trek. We were not speaking anymore. We wanted to get to Laban Rata to eat and change into our warm clothes. Bungin, our guide, kept telling us that we were near. We passed 2 more shelters and took our breaks there. We couldn’t stay very long because it was very very cold.
Finally, a little after 5pm, we reached Laban Rata. I collapsed into a chair in the dining hall and Melody handed me a cup of hot soup. I rested for a while and changed into warm clothes. We were so hungry; we kept on going back to the buffet. The buffet cost us RM22. But it was worth it. We talked to some of the climbers there and they were surprise that we took the Mesilau trail.
After a hearty dinner, we got ready to trek to our hut, Gunting Labadan. It’s supposed to be a 10-minute walk uphill. It took us 20 minutes. We were in no condition to trek. Gunting Labadan is 50 meters higher than Laban Rata. Laban Rata is 3,220masl. Mt. Apo is 2,970masl. We were to sleep 250meters above Mt. Apo. We could feel thinness of the air.
The nice thing about climbing Mt. Kinabalu is that a real bed and a hot shower await you at the rest house. Since we were the last to arrive at the rest house, we had the showers all to ourselves. I was just plain tired and wanted to sleep. Bernie still managed to flirt with a couple of Asian ladies (we can’t tell if they were from Singapore or Malaysia). The girls wanted Bernie to wake them up at 2am. The girls were pretty but they have awfully bad taste! (Loll).
We woke up at 1:30am. I didn’t sleep that well. I was hounded by nightmares. I was dreaming that demons were after me at the trail. I told the group of my dream and Chris remarked that he heard dying moans and he was wondering where that came from. It was cold! The temperature read 10C. Rain was steadily pouring. We were wondering if the assault to the summit would push through. I’ll be honest. I didn’t feel much like going to the summit. I wanted to rest and I wanted to sleep some more. The guides from the other groups arrived. They were discussing among themselves whether to allow us to assault the summit.
Bungin arrived and he told us to get ready. At 3am, we left the rest house. We started to climb through 70degree trails. It was like a never-ending upward climb through a tunnel. The vegetation round the trail made it seem like we were in a tunnel. After more than 45 minutes of climbing, I saw the 7km marker. I began to wonder when the edge of the vegetation stopped and the granite slabs began. It’s a good thing though there were a lot of climbers. The sheer number of climbers created traffic. At least we could catch our breath. As the vegetation ended, we saw ropes embedded in the granite slabs. Bungin signaled us to grab the ropes. Little by little we inched forward. We finally reached the 7.5km mark just before the Sayat Sayat huts. The Sayat Sayat huts (3,810masl) were huts placed there by earlier explorers to Mt. Kinabalu. The rangers stationed there inspected our climb passes. Again there were toilets at the huts. I couldn’t believe my eyes. There was TWO PUBLIC TELEHONE BOOTHS PLACED THERE BY TELECOM MALAYSIA! It had a sign saying “THE HIGHEST PUBLIC PHONE BOOTHS IN THE WORLD”.
By now as we approached the summit plateau, we were barely walking. Every three steps I had to stop to catch my breath. There were times I felt like passing out. I could see spots in front of me. At one time I almost fell backward after almost blacking out. I’ve never experienced this lack of air. Finally after an hour, we made it to the summit plateau. There are several peaks at Kinabalu: Donkey’s Ears (4,054masl), Ugly Sister Peak (4,032masl), South Peak (3,933masl), Victoria Peak, St Johns Peak (4,090masl) and the highest peak, Low’s Peak at 4,095masl. We were headed to Low’s Peak. But I was tempted to go to the lower peaks. I couldn’t breathe. The last 200meters was pure torture.
Finally, we made it to the summit. Everyone had a smile on his or her lips. I just wanted to take the pictures and head down. And I needed to pee too! Plus it was freezing cold at 1C. After all the picture taking ceremonies and all that other ek ek, I left the group and headed down. As I descended, I began to feel much better. I had to remind myself to grab hold of the ropes because those granite slabs are slippery. It took me an hour to get down to Laban Rata. A far cry from the more than 4-hour trek to the summit.
Upon reaching Laban Rata, I devoured the buffet breakfast. Climbers were congratulating each other for having made it to the summit. After breakfast, I headed back to the hut. The group wasn’t there yet. I fell asleep in the balcony in one of those plastic chairs. Finally at about 9, they arrived.
Chris, Pat, Bernie and I prepared breakfast. Breakfast consisted of Chinese chorizo, maling and rice. We offered Bungin some canned tuna and bread. We didn’t want to offend Bungin sensibilities of offering pork dishes.
After breakfast, we headed down using the Timpohan trail. We left at 11:45am and the temperature was a cold 12C. It took us 45 minutes to cover the 2km to the Layang layang junction. We were right. The Timpohan trail is a far easier trail. At 3:30pm, we hit the end point of the Timpohan Trail.
In high spirits, Menchie took us to Poring Hot Springs. Poring Hot Springs is still part of the Kinabalu Park area. We are to spend the night here in a hostel.
When we got to the hostel, we saw some climbers from the rest house. We easily made friends with a Slovakian couple and a Singaporean student group. The next day, after trying out the hot springs pool, we transferred to a chalet type unit with 3 bedrooms, 2 toilets, kitchen, living room and satellite TV. Menchie also arranged for a mini bus to take us to the market at Renau. Eloy did the marketing; I bought the Guinness Dark Beers and Pat bought the local Malaysian made brandy. That evening, after a satisfying adobo dinner, we drank ourselves silly.
The next day, Melody, Eloy and Pat went on the canopy walk while the rest of us chilled in the chalet. That late morning we headed into Kota Kinabalu and checked into Lucy’s Backpackers Hostel. For RM18 (P250)/person including continental breakfast, Lucy’s is a bargain. The rooms are dormitory style and the toilets and showers are clean.
That evening we treated ourselves to a nice Nonya dinner at the new boardwalk fronting the bay.
Now that I’m back in Manila, I can still see the granite peaks of Mt. Kinabalu in my dreams. It will be a climb that will remain with me forever.
TIPS: We spent about 15T including airfare. Expect to spend more if you go shopping and if you go to the more expensive side trips. There are lots of Pinoys around so watch your language. Stay in hostels to keep your costs down. The souvenirs are mostly made in the Philippines and in Thailand.
