Nearly 17 Meters tall and open to public since June 2003, Mahua Waterfall (local name: Air Terjun Mahua), which is 26 KM away from Tambunan town, is one of the top destinations of Sabah interior. I strongly recommend this beautiful waterfall to those who drop by Tambunan. The GPS Location of Mahua Park is 5.796761, 116.408407 (see Location Map or Street View)
To go there, you need to drive 1.5 hours from Kota Kinabalu to Tambunan. Before Tambunan town, you will reach a roundabout with a ginger and machete statue on it. Turn left to Jln. Ranau Tambunan (Ranau Tambunan Road), Mahua Waterfall is only 13 KM away. You will see a brown signpost to Mahua Waterfall shortly. Driving for about 6 KM, you will see the Mahua signpost again at a junction at the left, which leads to a 6-KM small road in Kg. Patau (Patau Village). The road is nicely paved so you don’t need a 4-Wheel drive.
In the beginning, you will pass by the beautiful paddy fields of the village. Drive slowly and keep an eye on the roaming dogs, buffaloes and kids along the road. You would find village dogs sleep on the road and don’t even bother about approaching cars.
Then you will enter a hilly road with forest view of Crocker Mountain Range. I saw many Yellow Wagtail birds, the common winter visitors called “Beras Beras” (rice) in local Malay language, and some Ashy Drongo and Pacific Swallow birds perched on power lines too.
Ticket counter and office of Sabah Parks
At the end of the road is the Mahua substation (of Crocker Mountain Range National Park) managed by Sabah Parks, where you buy entrance ticket. The opening hour is 8am-5pm daily. The following are the ticket rates for visitors to Mahua:
Age
Malaysian
Non-Malaysian
18 years & above
RM3
RM10 (≈US$2.50)
Below 18
RM1
RM6 (≈US$1.50)
Below 16 (student)
RM0.50
RM6
The start of 500-Meter walkway to Mahua Waterfall is just behind this building. You already can hear the sound of thundering waterfall at this spot. Mahua Waterfall receives about 1,600 visitors a month, making it the most popular attraction in Tambunan. Besides locals, it also attracts foreign tourists from Canada, USA, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Norway, Australia, Japan and Brunei.
Lacewing on orchid
Crocker Range is an important water catchment area. Water means life, so Mahua is a magnet for variety of fauna and flora. Like the 3-inch-big lacewing in photo above is new to me. Seeing my camera and tripod, the park janitor asked if I took photo for National Geographic. Haha.. if I answer Yes, not sure if they will charge me thousand$ for commercial filming.
Only a few Meters inside I found big mushroom to photograph. Mahua Park is more than just waterfall. I am so glad that I discover a natural eco-garden.
The walkway is under a mossy, shady and moist secondary forest, and such dim and damp environment promotes the growth of mushroom and fungus. The fungus above look like the skin of Chinese Bun (Bao) and Dim Sum. Edible?
Another type of fungi, they are very tiny.See if you can spot this “Smiling Rock” near 10th Meter mark of the walkwayConcrete walkway to the Mahua Waterfall
Despite the hot day outside, the shady forest and running stream make the surrounding very cooling and refreshing. The temperature hovers around 23 degrees Celsius, as if I am in an air-conditioning room.
Normally I need to walk a long away on rugged jungle trail to see a waterfall. But the 500-Meter walkway to Mahua Waterfall is so short and easy, I didn’t even sweat.
The trail is quite flat and paved with cement. Watch out for the slippery mossy surface.
There are some hut shelters, benches, trash bin and toilet along the trail, very well-facilitated for picnic. But sorry, BBQ and fishing are not allowed here, as these activities are bad for the conservation. Most visitors come here for swimming, picnic, camping and other nature-based activities.
Daddy longlegs (Harvestmen)
Not only human likes waterfall, you also can spot many insects and bugs wandering among the undergrowth, ferns and shrubs along the trail.
Finally I saw the majestic Mahua Waterfall from a distance.
Closer view of Mahua Waterfall. It is about as tall as a 6-floor building. I went there in weekday, so there was no swimmer around.Viewing platform of Mahua Waterfall
There is a ladder leads to a viewing platform.
Here you go, the photo of Mahua Waterfall. The force of water is so strong that it pounds the pool and create a mini storm and earthquake around it. Even though I was more than 10 Meters away, my camera and I was bathed by wind of misty spray.
Mahua Waterfall is nearly 17 Meters (55 feet) tall. But don’t try to jump from the top to the pool, as the water is only about 1+ Meter in depth (I never swim there, it can be deeper during wet day so just be careful).
You can swim around the waterfall, but be cautious of the falling rock from top.
Huge Tree in Minduk Sirung Trail
If you are a tree hugger, you will thank me for telling you that there is a gigantic tree hidden in Mahua Park.
Starting point of Minduk Sirung Trail
About 120 Meter before the waterfall, you will see a hanging bridge at your right, which leads you to a signage that reads, “Minduk Sirung Trail. Mahua ke Gn. Alab 12 KM”.
Interesting tree in Minduk Sirung Trail
Minduk Sirung Trail is a jungle trail that connects to Mount Alab (Gunung Alab) substation about 12 KM away, another park in Crocker Range. Some avid hikers use this trail for jungle trekking from Mt. Alab to Mahua Waterfall (mostly descending trail).
Other big trees next to the Minduk Sirung Trail
Anyway, the big tree that I mentioned is only 1.5 KM away from the starting point. However, there is no clear signage along the trail. You will see many big trees on the way and wonder which one it is. But, when you see it, you know that’s the one, as it is SOOooOOoooo…. BIG!
Huge tree at KM 1.5 of Minduk Sirung Trail
The trail is a bit steep in first 1 KM and lurked with blood-sucking leeches, so you better wear proper hiking shoes and anti-leech sock.
Accommodation & Meals
If you want to overnight in the park, you may book a room with Mahua Rainforest Paradise (located at park entrance), which has 12 bedrooms and a restaurant. Camping and meals are also available. The accommodation fees range from RM30 to RM95 per night (≈US$7.50-24), you may Click Here to check out its rates.
Hostels, bedrooms, common bathroom, camping area and BBQ gazebo of Mahua Rainforest Paradise
The owner of hostel also runs a restaurant near the park, which sells common food (e.g. fried rice / noodle, noodle soup, bread) and hot & cold drinks from 9am to 5pm every day. The prices of food are about RM5 to RM10, drink is RM1.50 to RM4, and they serve no pork. If you want to picnic there, BBQ gazebo is available for rent in full-day (RM45), half-day (RM30), and quarter-day period (RM15).
Finally I saw Bridal veil stinkhorn, one of the fungus on my photography dream list. By looking at its beautiful appearance, you can understand that why I like it so much. This fungus is girdled with a net-cage and lacy structure called the indusium, or “skirt”, which hangs down from its bell-shaped cap.
Bridal veil stinkhorn has many other common names such as Crinoline stinkhorn, Long net stinkhorn, Veiled lady, bamboo fungus and bamboo pith. I have no idea what is the function of its “skirt” which earns it these names. As its name implies, it is stink. The scientific name of the most common Bridal veil stinkhorn in Sabah is Phallus indusiatus, a fungus in the Phallaceae family.
We didn’t see this stinkhorn the previous day, so it must be very new. Though sighting of this fungus are recorded in hilly forest of Kinabalu Park, Kionsom (Inanam), Bukit Padang, and Kampung Kiau Nuluh (Kota Belud), you need a bit of luck to spot it, as it is short-lived. The fungus would be almost gone after 2 days.
At first, it seems like many ants were busy running on the fungus. When I took a closer look, those insects are not ants. Can anyone tell me what they are?
Bridal veil stinkhorn is different from other fungus. It doesn’t use wind to spread their spores (seeds). Instead, it produces a sticky spore mass on its tip which smells like carrion, to attract flies and bees to come and disperse the spores.
Fashion inspired by Bridal Veil mushroom. Just for fun.
Despite its foul smell, Bridal veil stinkhorn is edible. In fact, stinkhorns are cultivated in China and considered as a delicacy which is rich in protein, carbohydrates and dietary fiber.
This is another species of Bridal veil stinkhorn that I saw in Danum Valley. It’s Phallus cinnabarinus with a cinnabar red skirt. The cap is covered in a sticky, foul-smelling, spore-filled gleba that attracts flies and other insects to carry its spores.
(Picture source: Hat Veils – HatVeils.com) To you all, this fungus really looks like a shy lady in bridal veil.
(Picture source: Romina Lopez Photos | Myspace) Well, to me, it looks like a lady in fishnet shirt, oh… sexy mama, LOL. 😀
Photos taken in Kota Belud, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo
Palm Oil is one of the most used vegetable oils in the world. You can find it in food, soap, bio-diesel, washing powder, cosmetics,etc. so everyone is consuming palm oil. Anyway, oil palm is an ugly tree to me, and I have little interest of learning it. However, I was intrigued by its “by-product”.
Pic: oil palm plantation
One day I was in a ride from Kudat back to Kota Kinabalu. I felt sleepy seeing rows and rows of boring oil palm along the way, a common sight in Kota Marudu. Then a friend asked everyone to keep an eye on the roadside stalls as she was looking for Cendawan Kelapa Sawit (Oil Palm Mushroom in Malay language).
I know villagers normally sell their farm produces such as BBQ corn, peanut, fruit and vegetables at the roadside. Oil Palm Mushroom is something new to me. According to her, Oil Palm Mushroom is not available every day so we need some luck, but it sounds like a must-buy to her. After scanning a few stalls, we stopped at a stall that looked promising.
And yes, this stall was selling Oil Palm Mushroom at RM2 (≈USD0.60) for each small pack. Look yummy..
Oil Palm Mushroom comes in different size and shape (and species?), it looks more like fungus though. I think Oil Palm Mushroom is just a general nickname for all types of edible mushroom collected from oil palm.
Oil Palm Mushroom is a delicacy and you can just cook it like normal vegetable. I never find Oil Palm Mushroom for sale in city market. Guess you have to look for it in countryside that has oil palm plantation nearby (and probably better chance during wet season).
The same stall was also selling edible oil palm for the same price. Interesting, I think it is the soft core of oil palm trunk. As banana trunk is edible too, it makes sense.
Pic: girl villagers return from oil palm plantation, probably with harvested mushroom in their baskets. Some mushroom species are poisonous, so I advise you not to collect it yourself. 🙂
If you want to buy, next time just pay attention to the roadside stall when you are in Kota Marudu (somewhere near SMK Bengkongan high school, approximate location).
Have you seen Oil Palm Mushroom sold in other location? Please share with me.
Photos taken in Kota Marudu, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo
Here are some updates of the new upgrade of Sepilok Laut Reception Centre (SLRC) in Feb 2012. If you plan your trip to Sepilok Laut based on my earlier blog about SLRC, you may need to read the following changes.
Pic: Sepilok Laut Reception Centre (SLRC)
1. New Boardwalk of SLRC
Sabah Forestry Department has constructed a 700-Meter Belian (Ironwood) boardwalk to connect existing SLRC to camping ground in Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve in early 2012.
The new boardwalk will allow you to explore the pristine mangrove forest of Sepilok Laut, without walking in this muddy swamp.
Pic: Mangrove Discovery Centre and the new boardwalk
Pic: This 700-Meter boardwalk is built 2 Meters above the ground.
I visited the new boardwalk a month ago and found that this new boardwalk is great for bird-watching, as you can enter deep into the mangrove forest to look for mangrove bird species.
During my 1-day birding tour there, I spotted the following birds along the boardwalk.
The boardwalk is also a nice way to see mangrove ecology and wildlife upclose. You would see proboscis monkey, macaques, monitor lizard, crocodile and mangrove viper here, depends on your luck.
Pic: Mangrove Reception next to SLRC boardwalk.
The main mangrove species in Sepilok Laut are bangkita (Rhizophora apiculata), tengar (Ceriops tagal), nyireh (Xylocarpus granatum) and geriting (Lumnitzera littorea).
Mosquitoes are active here during dawn and dusk. Do bring insect repellent. You will be deep in the forest, so there is no shop around to sell you this.
In the past, for tourists who wanted to do a jungle trekking from Sepilok to SLRC, the trail started at Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. This trail is poorly-maintained and turns muddy after rain.
Now the new 7-KM trail starts at Rainforest Discovery Centre (RDC) and passes by two waterfalls. I haven’t tried it but I assume it is better. You may click the trail map above for more details.
Other than what I mentioned above, nothing much is changed in Sepilok Laut Mangrove Discovery Centre. The naughty long-tailed macaques are still around. I miss them so much. But I didn’t see Paul, the alpha male this time.
3. Night Walk at SLRC
Again, I did a night walk at SLRC. I started my walk on a rainforest trail from SLRC to Camping Ground, then return to SLRC via the boardwalk. By doing so, I could see nocturnal animals of rainforest and mangrove forest. Cool huh? Unfortunately, it rained that night so I had to rush back. Anyway, I still photographed some interesting flora.
The new facilities of SLRC definitely made my experience there more enjoyable.
After enjoying the view of misty mangrove forest in the morning, I headed back to Sandakan city by speed boat.
If you love being in touch with forest, Sepilok Laut Reception Centre (SLRC) is really worth a visit, as it allows you to see two ecosystems, i.e., rainforest and mangrove, in one place. Have you been there? Please share your experience with me.
Borneo forest has rich variety of mushroom and fungi, and Mycologists describe Sabah as an El Dorado for fungi experts. Personally I had seen hundreds of fungus species in different shape, size and color during my jungle trekking. Just check out my fungi photos, some may not even have a name.
When I was walking in the mangrove forest of Kinabatangan, I spotted this huge fungus (see photo above) on a tree. Someone calls it Monkey Stool or Monkey Chair Fungus, as it’s big enough for a monkey to sit on. Maybe it is a some kind of Bracket fungi or Shelf fungi.
It’s a parasitic fungus growing on living tree. Look so big and heavy, I’ll be rich if it is a Lingzhi, a highly valuable mushroom used in traditional Chinese medicines.
This is the biggest fungus that I’ve ever seen, so I checked it out closely. I noticed some tip-like structure at the bottom. I have no idea whether they are spore-producing asci or sacs. Anyway, I took a few photos and left and thought that’s.
Later I came back to this place again for a night walk. I scanned every tree with my torchlight, in search for nocturnal wildlife such as slow loris and civet. Then I saw a plume of white mist swirling upward from this fungus, as if it was on fire. A spore dispersal was happening! I couldn’t see the tiny spores, but I knew millions of spores were being spread.
Though it was a windless night, the cloud of spores drifted slowly through the slightest breeze, forming various smoke figures in air. The following is a video of spore dispersal that I found in another location of Sabah.
Pic: I also could see the spore cloud at its bottom.
Spore discharge is not uncommon but rare to be seen. The smoke of spores is almost invisible during daytime. In the dark, I found that I could see the smoke far more better with yellow light than white LED light.
The spore launch didn’t seem to thin out even after 10 minutes. The smoke remained dense and I didn’t dare to breathe deeply, as I was afraid that the spores would fill my lung and germinated into mushroom. Hehe, that is unlikely though.
Last time I blogged that Tawau is an ecology desert and its ecotourism is over. Actually Tawau still has the last remaining natural heritage, Tawau Hills Park (Taman Bukit Tawau). After a few days of exploring this park, it turns out to be one of my favourite sites, and I will go there every week if I live in Tawau, which is so near to the park. Gazetted as a State Park in 1979 and 24KM away from Tawau town, Tawau Hills Park is an important water catchment area consists of five major rivers, i.e. Tawau River, Merotai River, Kinabutan River, Mantri River and Balung River. The park covers an area of 27,972 ha (about 280 sq. KM).
Last month I took an express long-distance bus from Kota Kinabalu to Tawau, which was an 8-hour journey (one way ticket costs RM45, about USD12). Taking a flight will only take 45 minutes. But sum up all the fees such as flight ticket, baggage charge, airport tax and transport from airport to Tawau town, it will cost over RM100 one way, too much for a poor traveller like me. From Tawau town, you need to get a taxi to the park, which costs RM30 one way, and there is no bus going there. The taxi driver may offer RM50 to pick you up for returning to Tawau. FYI, you can book such transport for RM30 at the counter of the park. Don’t waste your money.
By the time I reached Tawau Hills Park, it was about 5PM. I saw many long-tailed macaque monkeys were moving from the nearby oil palm plantation to the park. The park became their playground and they were free to loiter around. They screamed, they f**ked, they fought, they chased one another, and they swam in the river. For unknown reason, I hate long-tailed macaque, probably it bite me before.
The photo above looks like a happy monkey enjoying soaking in the cool water. In fact, it was screaming and beg for forgiveness from alpha male, after he lost the fight and escaped into the water.
My late grandfather was used to keep a pig-tailed macaque as pet in his house in countryside. Though also wild, pig-tailed macaque is friendlier than long-tailed macaque. Villagers seldom keep long-tailed monkey as pet as they are more aggressive and tend to bite people. If you are lucky, you will see red-leaf monkey (maroon langurs) in the park. Further inside the jungle, you would see other primates such as Borneon gibbon, grey-leaf monkey and slow loris. Rangers say they spot orangutan very deep inside the hill forest. The rare white leaf-fronted monkey is only found here (too bad I didn’t see any, though a sighting was reported during my stay).
Ok, enough with the monkey, just to let you know you can see them in morning and evening. I was staying in a 4-bed room in a chalet in the park. It was only RM20 a bed/night for a room with 4 beds, 2 small tables and a fan. The toilet and bathroom are at the end of the walkway outside. That time was not peak season, so I could have the whole room, and even the whole chalet! At night you could see many small animals such as frogs and lizards around the area, which is what I like.
During my 4-day stay in Tawau Hills Park, I tried the trails to Sulphur Springs (3.2 KM) and Bukit Gelas Waterfall (2.5 KM). Each trail took only 1 hour+ of walking. Since I walked slowly and looked for photography subjects, I took more than 6 hours to go back and forth (it would take longer if it didn’t rain in the afternoon). Due to prolong drought caused by El Nino, the trails were dry and leech-free. As this park is a water catchment area, the trails could be flooded by rivers during heavy rain. The Park HQ even has siren to warn swimmers, if the upstream station detects any flash flood.
Tawau Hills Park is a mix of primary lowland and hill dipterocarp rainforests, 60% of them is virgin forest and the remaining is secondary forest. Along the trails, you will see many giant commercial timbers such as seraya, selangan, keruing and belian. Some trees have huge buttress roots. I was told that if you were lost in a jungle, just hit the buttress with a wood, and the rescuer can hear you 1KM away. This is more effective than shouting for help. The trails are along the rivers, so it is quite refreshing.
Wildlife you would see here are leopard cats, wild boar, giant tree squirrel, clouded leopard, forest tortoise, giant river toad, etc. Sighting is not guaranteed. Sadly, I didn’t see any of the above. The first bird you will notice is the noisy hornbill. Out of 8 species of hornbills in Sabah, you can find six of them here (black, bushy-crested, helmeted, rhinocerous, white-crowned and wreathed hornbills). Three rare species of pheasants (crested-fireback, great argus, Malayan peacock pheasants) also live in this park. I saw the very beautiful Asian Paradise Flycatcher that has an extremely long tail like paradise bird. At first I thought it was a “flying towel”. When my camera struggled to auto-focus it via the leaves and tree branches, it flied away, sigh…
In the park, there are three main peaks in the form of extinct volcanoes, namely, Mt. Magdalena (1,310M), Mt. Lucia (1,189M) and Mt. Maria (1,067M). It takes 2 days to conquer the highest peak, Mt. Magdalena. The trail is 17 KM long and you will spend a night in Mt. Lucia Hostel (at 10.55 KM). After 1,000 M above sea level, you will enter mossy forest, a totally different vegetation from lowland forest. It is far more challenging than climbing Mt. Kinabalu. If this is too adventurous for you, you may try the 1.9 KM trail to Bombalai Hill (530M), which is a a remain of an ancient crater. The rugged volcanic landscape of the park is abundant with volcano rocks ranging in age from Middle Miocene to Quaternary. I save Mt. Magdalena for the future.
Most part of the trail is next to a river. It is an ideal spot for nude swimming, coz I didn’t see anyone tried jungle trekking. The water is unpolluted and is piped to the households in Tawau and Semporna. Ever wonder why the rivers here still flow in dry season? The rainforest serves as a water retention system for the rain water. The forest ground can hold the water and slowly releasing it to the stream, even after month of drought. If the trees in this park are sold by greedy politicians to lumbering companies, the rivers here will be polluted by eroded soil and run dry. Most Sabahans underestimate the importance of rainforest. That’s why whenever there is any serious flood and landslide, the politicians can get away easily by saying these are the Act of God and has nothing to do with the forest clearance that is approved by them. Crocker Range Park and Maliau Basin are under threat now. So, just protect our forest and stop blaming God / Allah.
Pay attention to the small stream and you would find something interesting, like the green sucker fish below. Before that, I thought all sucker fishes were dark in color.
The water volume of Gelas Waterfall was so small during dry season. I lost my mood to photograph it when I also saw two big logs lean on the waterfall, spoiling the whole view. Anyway, my photo album has a few nice close-up of the waterfall. It is very tempting to jump into the clean and cold water under this waterfall. But be warned that there were many cases of drowning here, especially students. Their bodies couldn’t be found until they floated on top. No survivor can live to tell how they were dragged into the water. Don’t swim there alone. As a matter of fact, all waterfall is a beautiful dead trap.
You would find the butterfly below sipping water in the river bank of Gelas Waterfall. They moved so fast and I only managed to get one shot. It looks like a Green Dragontail butterfly (lamproptera meges virescens).
Frankly speaking, I felt very strong presence of spirits in the remaining 400 M to Gelas Waterfall. One of my photo even shows something like a ghost orb. Well, it could be reflection of dust or moist. After I heard the tragedy stories from my aunty later, then I confirmed there were probably unseen entity lingering nearby the waterfall area. I always had such goose-bump experience in certain jungle trails, but I don’t quite bother as I can’t see “them”.
The thing bothers me the most is a flying blood sucker called Deer Fly. Its bite is worse than leech as the wound can stay itchy for week. The itch is under the skin, scratching also can’t help much. I encounter deer fly in almost every jungle trekking. They can follow you a long way, land on your exposed skin to look for opportunity to suck blood. I kept sweeping them away with hand but they never wanted to give up. If I sweated heavily, the smell would overexcite them and even attracted more deer flies, and I ended up having 3 or more of them following me. The only way to stop them is to kill them. I just waited for them to land on my face or hand, then hit them by palm. I don’t want to kill anything in the wild but I have no choice..
Besides tall trees, you will be amazed by the rich variety of fungi, lichens, shrubs and undergrowth vegetation. Despite my visit in dry month, I saw many types of fungus and mushroom in different sizes, shapes and colours. I think this park really can open a Fungus + Mushroom Garden, no kidding. Previous scientific field trips found that Tawau Hills Park has over 150 species of orchid, include the rare elephant-ear orchid. Most of the forest is yet to be explored, and the researchers believe many new plant species are waited to be discovered and given a name.
There are some big fungus that I’ve ever seen. Fungus decompose dead trees and recycle the carbonic substances, so they are very important for the forest. The humid and dim rainforest is suitable for their growth.
Everytime I went to Tawau Hills Park, I saw different lizard. This time I spotted a comb-crested agamid. Later I spotted a gliding lizard. It thought it did a very good job to blend into the tree, so I could go very near for more close-up photos.
Just slow down and observe the surrounding, you will see some interesting bugs in the park. Even cricket can be so pretty. Is it a “tiger cricket” below?
When threaten, pill millipede can roll its body into ball. This time I waited and saw how long it would stay rolled. It opened up bit by bit, kept watchful eyes outside, and started moving after 20 minutes.
The photo below is a feather bug. I passed by a tree and saw a few “bird feathers” on the trunk. A closely look revealed that it’s a bug. A few of them even mimic the movement of feather in the wind. Amazing bug…
The funniest bug of all is the ant-snatching assassin bug (Acanthaspis sp). It collects dust, sand and soil particles, plant parts and even empty ant corpses, and stick those stuffs on their abdomen. Such heavy “backpack” is a camouflage to confuse their predators. Can you see it in the photo below? I spotted 3 of them in the park.
Most animals come out at night, so I joined the night walk (costs RM30) guided by a ranger. We toured around between the forest and a nearby oil palm plantation, also the Bombalai trail for two hours. I hoped to see the king cobra and big ular sawa snake that the ranger told me. Too bad I did not see any, but I spotted Malayan civets, fat porcupine and firefly.
The time between 6:30pm to 11pm is the best time to look for anurans (frogs & toads), especially after rain. There are 64 species of anurans in Tawau Hills Park, 31 species are endemic to Borneo and 3 are endemic to Sabah (research by Mr. Kueh Boon Hee, University Malaysia Sabah). That means for every frog/toad that you see here, more than 50% chance it is found in Borneo only!
Basically that’s all about my trip. Luckily the weather was good. Now I can’t wait to have another trip to climb Mt. Magdalena. Do expect me to blog about Tawau Hills Park in the future. This park has sulphur springs, lowland rainforest, montane forest, mountains, waterfalls, volcano remain, etc. The tour operators should create a package and promote it.
Most Sabah travel agents are still lacking some creativities as they only know to demand more quota to climb Mt. Kinabalu and dive in Sipadan, as if there is nowhere else is worth to visit in Sabah. They only wait for others to develop and promote a new tourism product, when it becomes famous, only then they try to offer the same package, trying to get an easy share of the profit. They should learn more about Blue Ocean Strategy, so we can have both monkey and gold.
Gaya Island is big. If you walk inside its forest, you would not believe that you are on an island.
Below are photos of what I saw along the jungle trail there. The cup fungi is so cute. I am quite curious what function its hair has.
You can find many snails on the forest floor. They seems to be more sensitive than normal garden snails, probably they smell the insect repellent on my skin. It is so warm and humid in the forest. No wonder people call it rainforest, I sweat like rain.
Mangrove forest near the beach area, with some rubbish trapped between their root.
This hermit crab as big as my fist. When I held its shell, it slipped its body out of its shell
and ran away nakedly.
Very often you will hear red skink lizard running on the dry leaves when you approach. They are not only commonly found here, you can see many of them in inland forest too. They have beautiful red skin.
There were about a dozen of bats roosted under a big rock. They kept an eye (or an ear?) on me. The photo below shows them in an alert and ready-to-fly-away mode.
The ranger at Padang Point showed me an antique they dug out from the ground during site construction. It looks like an old machine left behind by British and its function is unclear. Do you know there is another “Gaya Island” in Semporna? Note its mountain looks like the face of an old man.
Sigh… no rafflesia blooming at Tambunan Rafflesia Center, after driving 1 hour to get there. Rafflesia is a weird flower. It does not bloom regularly, and its flower can last only 1 week. Actually I was supposed to call them to check first, but their phone number was not working. No luck… probably next time then.
Since I was there, it was a lost not to walk in their forest. The conservation fee is RM50 (about USD15) per group, so you better go in group to share the fee. I waited and joined a group of students, so I paid only RM10.
The main jungle trail is one-way and about 1KM long. At the start, most of the trail is going downward. That means you have to walk “upward” when you come back from the same trail. The tips are – walking slowly and try to save energy at the begining. It is a beautiful rainforest with a lot of tall trees.
Besides rafflesia, another feature of this forest reserve is a legless lizard that looks like snake. Too bad I didn’t see it. But if you find any fungus, try to look at its bottom and you may find something interesting.
Anyone knows the name of this cute beetle? I read from somewhere that it likes to live under fungus. You can find a lot of them under bigger fungus. I am more interested in the small bug under it. It got many legs and has a pair of “yellow horn.” What is it?
Well… I will come back again if there is rafflesia blooming.
