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Tanjung Aru Beach, the Sunset and Lover Beach of Sabah

Tanjung Aru Beach has one of the most beautiful sunset views in the world, and it is also the most photographed beach of Sabah. Situated between Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa and Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA), this 2.3-Kilometre-long beach is divided into first, second and third beach. First Beach is the favourite spot where locals and tourists hang around for the wonderful sunset view and a walk on the sandy beach.

Hundreds of locals and tourists gathered at Tanjung Aru Beach for the sunset

8 Cool Things about Tanjung Aru Beach

Allow me to share with you 8 special things about Tanjung Aru Beach, even some locals don’t know.

1. World-Class Sunset

Before 2014, locals assumed all sunset looks the same in other parts of the world, until a popular blog listed Kota Kinabalu City (KK) as one of the world’s best place to watch sunset. Then this quiet beach is frequented by hundred of tourists, mainly from China and Korea every day. Their exciting reactions confirm that our sunset is truly spectacular.

The famous fire cloud of Tanjung Aru sunset. This photo was taken with mobile phone and not Photoshopped.

Probably KK is located near equator, which receives the most sunlight, and our air is high in humidity but not polluted. Such conditions create fire or flaming cloud during sunset, which is what Tanjung Aru Beach most famous for. The sky, sea and cloud are illuminated by vibrant shades of red, yellow, pink, purple and orange light.

Tips for Hunting the Best Sunset

First, you really need some luck, because you have less than 20% chance of seeing a fire cloud sunset. It’s totally up to the weather. Most of the time you would be disappointed by cloudy or rainy days. Even if the weather is good, sunset with golden or orange hue is more common, but still, they are glorious.

“Sunsets are just little glimpses of the golden streets of heaven.”

Usually a sunny and cloudless day produces boring sunset. For a colourful sunset, based on my observation, it is more likely to happen after a rain that fills the air with more moisture and clean up the dust in air. This rain must stop before 4pm and its cloud thin out and disperses to 30% to 50% of cloud cover. If there is no dense cloud at the horizon that blocks the sunlight to project to the cloud during sunset, the cloud and humid air will act as the canvas to paint a magnificent flaming sunset.

Depend on the day of the year, sunset of KK occurs between 5:56pm to 6:34pm (check sunset time here). This is common sense to locals. But in other countries, for example, sunset of England can start as early as 4pm. Just be there before 5:30pm so you won’t miss anything. It takes time to find parking space there during weekends.

Cloudy sunset at third beach of Tanjung Aru

Don’t leave right after the sun sinks below the horizon. Within minutes, another magic moment called afterglow will appear, it’s a broad arch of reddish or pinkish sunlight in the sky that is scattered by fine particulates suspended in the atmosphere. The colors can be very intense.

Afterglow is a magic moment appears after sunset

Want to have a drink or cocktail while watching sunset? You can drop by the Sunset Bar at Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa. You need to go earlier for the best seat.

2. A Valentine’s Beach

Ask anyone in KK, both young and old generations, I bet 99% of them had a date at Tanjung Aru Beach before. The sandy beach, pleasing sea breeze, soothing sea waves, rustling pine trees, and the nice view of islands compose a sentimental love song played in your heads. Then a stunning sunset will further fuel the fire in your hearts. Thousands of love stories may have started at this beach.

Tanjung Aru Beach is also a “Pak-Tor” (Dating) place

After sharing the romantic moment, the couples could continue their business in the car. Just kidding, but people do see shaking cars at 3rd beach after dark sometimes. Tanjung Aru Beach is also a renowned location for taking wedding photos. The married couples would bring their children to this beach for a family picnic.

Family enjoys quality time at Tanjung Aru Beach during sunset

3. Prince Philip Park

Prince Philip, who is also known as the Duke of Edinburgh and the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, visited Jesselton (now KK) in 1959. The Prince Philip Park at Tanjung Aru First Beach is named after him to commemorate his first visit to Borneo.

Tanjung Aru is named after the casuarina tree. Casuarina is widely used as a bonsai subject and has a life span of 40 to 50 years.

Did you know that Tanjung Aru is named after the casuarina trees (species: Casuarina equisetifolia) there? In Malay language, Tanjung means Cape and Aru means casuarina tree. The seashore of Tanjung Aru Beach is lined with a belt of shady casuarina trees, some are over half a century old. The common names of casuarina tree include beach casuarina, beach oak, beach pine, whistling tree, horsetail tree, and Australian pine.

The tiny cones of casuarina tree will only germinate in full sun, so casuarinas are the pioneer trees of newly formed sandy beaches.

Casuarina tree is the most common tree in Prince Philip Park. It has needle-like twigs and distinctive cones, and is often planted as a wind break and erosion control in the poor sandy soil along coastline. The wood of casuarina tree can be used for roof shingles, fencing, and it is considered the best firewood in the world.

The beautiful trees in Prince Philip Park of Tanjung Aru Beach

You can find many other types of coastal trees in Prince Philip Park. Though this park is under minimal maintenance, tree huggers will be pleased to spot some special trees, for example, fig trees such as Ficus microcarpa, Ficus caulocarpa and Ficus caulocarpa. A Ficus racemosa tree, or Red River Fig (Local name: Tangkol), same species as the Nunuk Ragang tree, the birth tree of Kadazandusun races in legend, grows in the car park of the Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa. Fig tree can fruit throughout the year, so it’s a stable food source for birds and wildlife. To know more, you may visit borneoficus.info (The magnificent fig trees of Tanjung Aru beach).

There are many old trees at Tanjung Aru Second Beach. This is my childhood beach too.

4. Birdwatching Site

You would be surprised to know that Tanjung Aru beach is a great bird watching site for beginners. The lush and dense beach forest there attracts a myriad of birds, especially in flowering and fruiting time. The best time for birding is in early morning.

Blue-napped parrot of Tanjung Aru Beach. They nest in tree holes of casuarina trees.

The most noticeable bird are the noisy Blue-naped parrots (Species: Tanygnathus lucionensis), which make loud and harsh sounds when they see strangers, yes, you. Blue-naped parrots is a pretty green bird that kept by many as pet because of its ability to mimic and repeat common words. They are threatened in the Philippines but find a safe habitat in our beach. About a population of 20 to 30 Blue-naped parrots live in Tanjung Aru Beach, where they can nest in the tree holes of Casuarina trees.

An Oriental pied hornbill attracted by the fig fruit at Tanjung Aru Beach

Another special bird is Oriental Pied Hornbill. Actually they live in Gaya Island but attracted by the fruiting Ficus drupacea. Before the Second World War, Pied Hornbills were common at Tanjung Aru Beach. In migratory months (Sep to Jan), rare visitors such as Chinese egret and Honey Buzzard would land in Tanjung Aru Beach.

Birds of Tanjung Aru Beach. From top to bottom, left to right: Pink-necked Green Pigeon, Copper-throated Sunbird, Long-tailed Parakeet, and Crested Myna

Other birds you could spot in Tanjung Aru Beach are Crested Myna, Dollarbird, Munia, Collared Kingfisher, White-breasted Woodswallow, Java Sparrow, Sunbird, Pink-necked Green Pigeon, Long-tailed Parakeet, Spotted Dove, Yellow-bellied Prinia, Green Imperial Pigeon, etc. Do bring a binocular to the beach for a National Geographic experience.

5. Residents on the Beach

Tanjung Aru Beach is part of wild nature, and parents always have problem to answer their kids what they see on the beach. For those who take a stroll on the beach, it’s hard not to notice millions of tiny sand balls on the wet sand, and dozens of critters running into burrows whenever you approach. This is the work of tiny ball-shaped sand bubbler crab (Species: Scopimera globosa), which is only 1 to 1.5cm in size and commonly seen on sandy shores.

Piles of tiny sand balls made by sand bubbler crabs. The crabs work radially from the entrance to their burrows. The tiny sand balls are processed sand.

The sand bubbler crab feeds on the detritus and plankton in sand grains. They scoop the sand to their mouthparts with pincers, filter the edible particles and discard the sifted sand as pellets balls piled up on both side of its feeding path near the burrow.

Ok, you might not be so interested in sand bubbler crab because they are not food. Time to introduce a delicious seafood buried under the sand of Tanjung Aru Beach. It’s locally known as sapak clam (沙白蚬 or 沙白螺 in Chinese), Kunau, or Dalus. Its scientific name is Meretrix meretrix (Common Name: Asiatic hard clam).

Locals harvest the Meretrix / Sapak clams in the sand of Tanjung Aru Beach. This clam is a delicious seafood.

This clam has smooth and ceramic-like thick shells, mostly in white or brown colour. It is one of the favourite seafood for locals and tourists because of its tender meat and rich flavors. You can cook it in soup, or fry it with ginger and Chinese wine. Meretrix clam is easy to catch. However, it’s a filter feeder, so the one harvested from the polluted shore would contain heavy metals (not recommended for pregnant women), it’s also a banned seafood during red tide (toxic algae blooming).

Left: Tanjung Aru Second Beach during low tide. Right: Excreted deposit from a sand worm (lugworm)

During low tide in Tanjung Aru Beach, you would find marine lives such as octopus, starfish, sand dollar and jellyfish stranded in tide pools, besides anemone and corals.

6. Standup Paddleboarding (SUP)

The islands of Tunku Abdul Rahman Park shield the sea from strong waves so the water is relatively calm at Tanjung Aru Beach. I recommended you to try Standup Paddleboarding (SUP), a fun way to view the sunset. According to a SUP trainer, there is a sand bar out in the sea (near Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa) where you can reach Tanjung Aru Reef, with many good quality corals growing around. Nemo also lives there.

Sunset stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) at Tanjung Aru Beach

The 2-hour sunset SUP session starts at 5pm and cost about RM120 (about USD30) per person. You can contact Borneo Paddle Monkeys to book the session. Below is their contact:
Website: www.borneopaddlemonkeys.com
Facebook: BorneoPaddleMonkeys
Location: Kinabalu Yacht Club, Tanjung Aru Beach, Kota Kinabalu
E-mail: borneopaddlemonkeys@gmail.com
Tel / WhatsApp: +60 17-8172001
WeChat and KakaoTalk ID: nickboura

7. Pokémon GO (Mobile AR Game)

Pokémon GO (mobile game) took the world by storm in 2016. From Aug 2016 to 2017, Tanjung Aru Beach was a hot spot to play Pokemon GO because it’s the best hunting spot for rare Pokémon such as Pikachu, Lapras and Dratini. During peak time, hundreds of players flooded the beach every day until 2am morning. I was also one of the hardcore players. You have no idea how thrilled I was when I caught my first Lapras and shiny Magikarp there. My fingers were shaking when I threw Poké Balls to catch them.

Pikachu and shiny Magikarp caught at Tanjung Aru First Beach

Though the Pokémon fever is fading, I still miss the good old time grinding at Tanjung Aru Beach. Now there are five EX Raid Gym within 500-Metre radius of Tanjung Aru Beach. This turns Tanjung Aru Beach into a war zone for players who want to get an invitation to fight and catch Mewtwo, one of the strongest Pokémon.

PokéStop and Gym of Tanjung Aru Beach. The shiny Lapras is my buddy.

8. Food Stalls

In late afternoon, Tanjung Aru First Beach turns into a bustling places where people shop for local snacks and drink such as coconut juice, lekor crackers, steamed peanut, sweet corn, coconut juice, satay and chicken wing from the makeshift open market, as if they are buying popcorn before the movie, in this case, sunset.

How to get there

Tanjung Aru Beach is only 6 KM away from Kota Kinabalu city and highly accessible. The GPS location of the First Beach is 5.947860267578396, 116.0465472827347 (view Location Map or Street View). You can drive there with the aid of navigation mobile apps such as Waze and Google Map (set Where to as “Tanjung Aru First Beach”). You can hire a Grab driver with your smartphone too.

Tanjung Aru Eco Development (TAED)

Without any amenity, Tanjung Aru Beach looks like an abandoned site now. Sabah government is trying to push the controversial Tanjung Aru Eco Development (TAED), a mega urban tourism project that will reclaim the beach to build a marina, seven hotels, 5,000 commercial and residential rooms, etc. there. The landscape design of TAED won Gold Award at the Singapore Landscape Architecture Awards (SLAA) 2019.

Layout and concept of Tanjung Aru Eco Development project

TAED promises that 25.5% of the total land area (348.14 hectares) will be allocated as free public space, where we can access or enjoy, to list a few, double-sized Prince Philip Park with rainforest theme, Prince Philip Wharf, a larger and rejuvenated beach, cycling track, beachfront park, canal boardwalk, and canal basin. Sound like a good deal. I only don’t like the proposed 18-hole golf course, which has nothing to do with “eco”.

Photos from the Tanjung Aru Beach before food court was removed

Tanjung Aru Beach belongs to everyone, personally I don’t oppose any development that will benefit the locals and environment. Tanjung Aru Beach doesn’t deserve to look like an underdeveloped beach of third world, consider it brings in so many international tourist$. Anyway, hope the facelift will make Tanjung Aru Beach the pride and joy of Sabahans.

Photos taken in Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia

The Tallest Tropical Tree in the World (Updated)

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Higher than the Statue of Liberty of US, the tallest tropical tree in the world is a 100.8-Metre-tall (330.7 feet) Yellow Meranti tree (species: Shorea faguetiana) in Danum Valley of Sabah, the Malaysian Borneo. It’s the second tallest tree in the world, just behind Hyperion, the 115.92-Metre-tall (380.3 Feet) Coast redwood in California’s Redwood National Park.

Climbing Menara, the tallest tropical tree in the world. Photo by Unding Jami

As the first and only recorded tropical tree exceeds 100 Metres, this tallest tropical tree is named as “Menara”, which means Tower in Malay language. Menara is also the tallest flowering plant on earth. In 2014, it’s spotted on a 33 degree angled slope by laser scanner of an airplane that surveyed the rainforest of Rhino Ridge near Danum Valley Field Centre (DVFC).

Aerial shot of Menara from a drone. The tree crown of Menara is 40 Metres wide (131 Feet). Photo by Alexander Shenkin

On 6 January 2019, to get the most accurate height reading, a team of professional tree climbers hiked up to a slope of 436-Metre above sea level to locate Menara. The team leader Unding Jami (Jamiluddin bin Jami) must climb up to the tree top and used tape measure to take the measurement from the top of the crown to the lowest part of the buttress.

Tape measure from tree top. This manual method can get the most accurate height of a tree. Photo by Unding Jami

The long straight stem posed a challenge, so Unding Jami took almost 3 hours to reach the top. The operation can be risky. There was one time Unding Jami climbed another flowering Dipterocarp and got 200 stings by a swarm of bees. Anyway, it made his day to confirm that Menara is the new record breaker of the tallest tropical tree in the world.

Height Comparison with Famous Landmarks

To get an idea of the scale of this towering tree, let’s have some fun to compare it with some well-known objects.

Height comparisons of Menara (100.8 Metres) with New York City’s Statue of Liberty (93 Metres), London’s Big Ben Clock Tower (96 Metres), Tun Mustapha Tower (122 Metres), and the Tallest Tree (115.92 Metres)

Past Record Holders of the Tallest Tropical Tree

All the past record-breakers are Yellow Meranti trees in first class forest reserve of Sabah. In fact, this is the fourth time Sabah broke its record on the tallest tropical tree in the world. Though these trees are no longer the titleholder, they are still ranked as top 20 in the list of highest trees in the world.

May 2018: 96.9M (318 Feet)

Discovered on 28 May 2018, this 96.9-Metre tree is about 9.5 Kilometre (5.9 Miles) from the entrance of Tawau Hills Park, a national park in Tawau. Tawau Hills Park is a popular place for swimming, bird-watching, hiking and hot springs.

Yellow meranti tree (species: *Shorea faguetiana*), is locally known as Seraya Siput Kuning. Photo by Unding Jami

Nov 2016: 93.0 Metres (305 Feet)

Known as “Lahad Datu”, this tree is located near Ulu Purut Research Station (UPRS) Camp, which is about 7 Kilometres (4.35 Miles) east of Danum Valley Field Centre (DVFC). Most media reported its height as 94.1 Metres (308.7 Feet), an estimated height by laser sensor. About 3 months later, an expedition team visited the tree. They carried out more precise measurement by tape and confirmed that the average height of Lahad Datu is 93.0 Metres.

Left: Lahad Datu tree with the people at its bottom. Right: Looking at the Lahad Datu tree from a helicopter. Photo by Robin Martin

Jun 2016: 89.5 Metres (294 Feet)

In April 2016, conservation scientists from the University of Cambridge discovered this giant tree during reconnaissance flights over east side of Maliau Basin (Sabah’s Lost World). However, this record only lasted for four months when another taller tree found in Danum Valley.

Unding Jami measuring the tree. He is too high above to hear anything from the ground, so his team only can communicate with him by phone. Photo by Stephanie Law

Jul 2006: 88.32 Metres (289.8 Feet)

This tropical tree was reported by Dr. Roman Dial from Anchorage Alaska University in National Geographic Magazine (July 2006 edition), and it held the tallest tropical tree title for nearly 10 years. It is also the most photographed by the public because it’s only a 900-Metre walk away from the entrance of Tawau Hills Park, which is managed by Sabah Parks.

This Yellow Meranti tree in Tawau Hills Park is the longest record holder (Jul 2006 – Jun 2016) of the Tallest Tropical Tree in the world. At that time people thought 90 Metres was the height limit of tropical tree until they discovered the 100.8-Metre-tall Menara in 2014.

Another beautiful tall tree in Tawau Hills Park is also worth a mention. It’s a 85.76-Metre-tall (281.4 Feet) Menggaris tree (species: Koompassia excelsa), nicknamed as Pontiankak Putih Cantik (Pretty White Pontiankak in English). It is the world’s tallest legume (its fruit is edible).

Left: 85.76-Metre-tall Menggaris tree (Pontiankak Putih Cantik). Photo by Brett Mifsud, Right: Menggaris tree (species: *Koompassia excelsa) is also a Borneo tree famous for its freaking height. Note the little man next to it.*

Interesting Facts about Shorea faguetiana

Yellow Meranti is the common name of Shorea faguetiana, a native tree species lives in Borneo, peninsular Malaysia and parts of Thailand.
It’s also called Seraya Siput Kuning locally (translated as yellow snail seraya) because of its snail-like exudation of dark brown or black dammar (resin) on the bole.
You can plant yellow meranti tree in Minecraft game.

Left: snail-like resin of Yellow Meranti tree. Photo by Dr. Arthur Chung. Right: Shorea faguetiana is the tallest tree species of Borneo. Photo by John Sugau

There are about 138 Shorea species with 91 of them endemic to Borneo island.
Shorea faguetiana is classified as endangered on the red list of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the world’s most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species.
80% of Shorea faguetiana population is gone in the past three generations due to logging and habitat loss.
Yellow Meranti tree produces five-winged fruits that spin like a helicopter when falling to the ground. This helps the seeds to travel farther away from their parent tree.
The wood from this tree is medium-hardwood suitable for making Plywood, crates and light furniture.
A huge yellow meranti tree can house a mini ecosystem consisting of over 1,000 types of insects, fungi, and plants.

Setting up the rope to climb Menara is difficult because its branches are so high above. Photo by Unding Jami

Next Tallest Tree?

Sabah rainforest is over 130 millions years old but not fully explored. For example, 70% of Maliau Basin is not studied. Therefore, I believe the next tallest tree is waiting to be found in future, most likely inside a fully-protected primary rainforest of eastern and central of Sabah, where trees can grow to ultimate height because of the fertile volcanic soil and abundant rainfall. I will keep the record updated here. Hopefully Sabah can keep singing “tinggi-tinggi pokok seraya” (means so high our yellow meranti tree) until the end, like our Mount Kinabalu in Sayang Kinabalu.

Photos of *Shorea faguetiana* by Dr. Arthur Chung (left), Unding Jami (middle), and John Pereira (right)

However, the height of tree is limited by mechanical, ecophysiological, and hydraulic constraints. The taller the tree, the harder for it to transport the water and nutrients from the root to the tree top (more explanation in this video). The biological limit restricts gymnosperm tree to a maximum height of 122 to 130 Metres (400 to 426.5 feet). Shorea faguetiana also needs some luck to grow super tall. With slender bole and large canopy, yellow meranti tree is “… almost like giant dandelions,” Professor Yadvinder Malhi, said in an interview. “They’re tall and thin, and they’re just trying to catch the wind.” Menara survives being snapped by strong wind because it’s sheltered by a ridge.

The Tallest Stamp of Malaysia

To feature world’s tropical tallest tree, POS Malaysia issued special new stamps for Menara on 29 Dec 2020. The miniature sheet is 180mm by 35mm (7.09 x 1.38 inches) in size, making it the largest (and tallest?) stamp of Malaysia! The 3-part folder can open up vertically and probably the longest stamp folder of Malaysia too. I love the design so much that I bought a few set.

Left: miniature sheet of Menara is the largest stamp of Malaysia. Note the words “Lahad Datu” in cancellation mark, it’s the district where Menara grows. Right: the long stamp folder for the World’s tallest tropical tree

Sabah has so many big and tall trees. No wonder some West Malaysians ask if Sabahans live on trees. I always answer Yes we do and you need an elevator to get to the top lol. For more fun facts about Borneo trees, you can read the 10 most interesting trees of Borneo.

Left: the front cover of stamp folder of World’s Tallest Tropical Tree (Pokok Tropika tertinggi di dunia). Right: Stamp sheet (10 pieces of 90-cent stamps). The picture in the stamp is the winged fruit of Shorea faguetiana

Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge in Borneo Jungle

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Do you fancy a holiday in Borneo rainforest? The top choice is to stay in Danum Valley of Sabah, which is located inside a 130-million-year-old virgin rainforest. The world famous Borneo Rainforest Lodge is a high-end resort in Danum Valley, luxurious accommodation but comes with 5-star price. Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge nearby offers the similar nature experience at a budget price and is considered as the second best choice.

About Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge (KDRL)

Built in 2014, Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge is a jungle lodge located in the buffer zone (edge) of the Danum Valley Conservation Area and part of 242,000-ha Ulu Segama Malua Forest Reserve (classified as Fully Protected Forest).

The accommodation of Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge

KDRL offers basic but comfortable chalet style accommodation and has 10 standard rooms (fan) and 10 deluxe rooms (air-conditioning) for tourists. 24-hour electricity is available in the lodge.

Dining hall of Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge

Kawag means cursed place. Locals believe that the forest there is resided by Bunian people, the elf-like supernatural beings usually live in remote forest or mountain. People who went there would have weird dream or gone missing. Don’t worry. Nowadays Kawag is a tourist-friendly destination.

Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge is located in the buffer zone of the Danum Valley

The rooms of Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge

One of Kawag’s highlight is good chance of seeing the highly endangered Bornean pygmy elephants. I saw a herd of them at the roadside while I was on the way to KDRL. When our van approached, the adult elephants formed a defensive circle with the calf in centre. Too bad I didn’t see any orangutan, which said to be abundant in Malua forest.

A group of elephants near Kawag. Note there is one with satellite collar for tracking of migration

During my stay I saw a wild bearded boar named Rudy foraged around the lodge, and a Malay civet hunted insects attracted by the light. Everything there reminds visitors that they are in the wild.

Meal served at restaurant of Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge

Nature-Based Activities

Though this lodge is surrounded by secondary forest, the forest is regenerated well and thick enough to house rich variety of flora and fauna. Kawag rainforest is characterised by younger trees and denser undergrowth but have almost everything a typical primary rainforest offers.

Crazy people lol. Photo says it all.

Therefore, you can have fun with many nature adventures such as jungle trekking, night safari, bird watching and river tubing, to fully experience the jungle. I really enjoyed my 3 days 2 night stay with KDRL. Thanks to their in-house guides, Mr. Donny and Ms Hana, for sharing the interesting stories of every animal and plant in Kawag.

1. Exploring Jungle

Birds and wildlife are thriving in Kawag. In day one, after lunch at the lodge, we went for a short guided walk at 3pm on the Kawag trail. We looked at the biggest tree in Kawag, which is a 80 to 100 years old Seraya tree (species: Shorea johorensis), a popular timber.

What we saw in hiking: Lantern bug, pygmy squirrel, Serpent Eagle and 3-color tree

Then we found a 3-in-1 trees, i.e. Kayu Malam, Seraya and Jati trees grow like they are hugging one another. The guide showed us a Bayur tree that produces salty sap, which was once used by villagers for cooking during the World War II, salt was scarce that period because Japanese seized from them. Sometimes deer chews the bark for salt supplement (a behavior called Salt Lick).

Locally known as Belian (means Diamond in local language), Borneo ironwood is one of the hardest and most valuable timbers. There is one that stands over 120 years in Kawag.

Some would be excited to see these, while other probably don’t.

Iconic Borneo wildlife such as gibbon, elephants, banteng (wild cattle), orangutan, deer and leopard cat have been sighted on the Kawag trail.

Herd of elephants in Danum Valley

During my two hiking, I spotted Trogon bird, Black & Yellow Broadbill, pygmy squirrel, giant orchid, Goshen Hawk, Barbler, and long tailed macaques. We also heard Great Argus not far away.

My friend in front bumped into an albino mouse deer (Kancil) before it ran away. Too bad I missed it. I was told that a limestone cave next to the trail has white bat. I didn’t see it but found some white tractor millipedes. This added more sense of mystery to this forest.

After dinner, we climbed up to the back of a pick-up truck for a night safari tour. The car drove slowly along the road. The guide used spotlight to scan the forest and bushes at roadside for nocturnal animals. It’s a very relaxing activity, we enjoyed the breeze and amazed by blue and green light fireflies pass-by occasionally.

Malay Civet spotted in night safari

Our guide did the hardwork of searching and found us sleeping Prinia, Ashy Tailor bird, flying Colugo, slow loris, etc. The jackpot is western tarsier, an odd looking small primate which has eyes bigger than its brain, and can turn its head almost 360 degrees. No wonder locals call it Ghost Monkey.

I saw Western Tarsier in my second visit to Kawag

The next morning, we walked to the higher ground to see sunrise shined over the misty forest. The trail condition of Kawag is ok overall, but a bit slippery after rain. And always watch out for leeches and fire ants.

Climb up to a hill to see the misty forest during sunrise

2. Bird Watching

In the morning you can walk to a 15-Meter-high observatory tower near the lodge. From the top, I saw Bornean Forktail, Serpeant Eagle and leaf bird, and heard loud morning call of Gibbon.

The 50-feet observatory tower in Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge

Based on a Bird Survey 2015 in Kawag Forest Scientific Expedition, over 100 species of birds can be found here. Just to list some cool ones, Great Argus, Scarlet-rumped trogon, fish owl, babbler, White-Crowned Shama, green leaf bird, black and red broadbill, sunbird, bulbul, crested hawk, oriental darter, oriole, and hornbill. 5 species of Pitta, the most colorful birds of Borneo, can be spotted in Kawag.

This observatory tower is a good spot for bird watching

Jason, my professional bird guide friend found Raptors, Hornbills, migratory Dark-sided Flycatcher, and Large Frogmouth in Kawag. You may check out his birdwatching blog.

Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge in the morning

If you are interested in bugs too, you would be happy to see Mantidfly, Hornet / wasp like praying mantis, strange looking goat moth, Rajah Brooke’s birdwing butterfly, endemic Borneo damselfly, and lantern bug. (Thanks Dr Arthur for the info)

3. Ali Baba Waterfall

Borneo forest is a warm and humid place, so a bath at their Ali Baba Waterfall is very welcomed. The 2.4-Kilometre walk to this waterfall takes about 1.5 hours.

Jungle trekking to the Ali Baba Waterfall

Fresh elephant dungs in the forest

We saw some fresh elephant dung along the trail. The trail was quite flat so it didn’t take much effort to reach Ali Baba Waterfall.

The gazebo next to Ali Baba Waterfall

The water of Ali Baba Waterfall is from the unpolluted rainforest

The tea color of Ali Baba Waterfall is from the tannin of rainforest plant

It’s dry season so this waterfall pond wasn’t deep for a swim but good enough for a dip. Do you know gold can be found in river of Danum Valley? I tried to see through the clear water hoping to find a gold nugget or two. The water appears golden color because of natural tannin from the plant rot in water.

Playing Tarzan lol

With me was a friendly European couple. The guy stood in the water and started giggling hysterically. Thinking that he found gold, I walked closer and found that he was actually excited with the small fishes nibbling his feet like giving a fish massage.

Something cute nibbling the feet of tourist

Fish massage in the pond of Ali Baba Waterfall

Different fish species in the water of Ali Baba Waterfall

We climbed up the cascading waterfall and saw two more waterfall ponds. One of them is 4 Meters deep. The handsome man is keen to be my model to play Tarzan in my photos. Thank you friend.

The waterfall pond of Ali Baba Waterfall

The waterfall pond of Ali Baba Waterfall is a bit deep. Note the safety rope in the water.

Tourist enjoys running stream of Ali Baba Waterfall

You can swim in the waterfall pond

How to get there

KDRL is located in Lahad Datu district, east coast of Sabah, Malaysia. No walk-in tourist to the lodge allowed. Without a permit for you and your vehicle, you will be blocked from entering this protected forest. You must book the accommodation with the operator Borneo Refugia in advance. Below is contact information and more details for you to find out more:

Tel: +60 88-267637 (Kota Kinabalu office), +60 89-862451 (Lahad Datu)
E-mail: info@borneorefugia.com, ann.neogia@gmail.com
Facebook: Kawagdanumrainforest
Website: borneorefugia.com
GPS Coordinates: 5.049416, 117.972651 (see Location Map)

Entrance to Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge (KDRL)

A 3-day-2-night full board tour package costs around MYR2,000 per person (about USD480), which includes accommodation, return transfer (between Lahad Datu Airport and KDRL), meals, guiding service, and permit. Check their Facebook before booking, sometimes they have deep discount promotion.

Long boardwalk to Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge (KDRL). Sometimes elephants walk under it.

They will pick you up at Lahad Datu airport, and drive 1 hour 45 minutes on 52-Kilometre gravel road to the lodge. You need to get your own flight ticket (from Kota Kinabalu to Lahad Datu) via MASwings airlines, which is available every day.

Things to Bring

Clothing, towel, toiletries, swimwear, anti-leech socks, raincoat / poncho, insect repellent, hiking shoes, flashlight, sandal / slipper, backpack, camera, phone and power bank.

Photos taken in Lahad Datu, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

Where to see Orangutan, Proboscis Monkey, Sunbear, Pygmy Elephant and Hornbill of Borneo

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Does Sabah have anything extraordinary on world map? Foreigners would not know your favourite celebrity in Malaysia. But when you mention the word “Borneo”, they would reply, “Oh I know, that’s where orangutan lives!” Orangutan is a superstar in animal kingdom and is featured as much as Kangaroo and Panda in nature channels.

Superstars of Borneo: Orangutan, Proboscis Monkey, Pygmy Elephant, Sunbear and Hornbill

However, orangutan, a.k.a. Man of the Forest, isn’t the only wonder in our 140-million-year-old Borneo rainforest (Amazon is only 60 million). Come and meet the “Borneo version” of Playboy, Teddy Bear, Mini Jumbo and Love Bird, which are Proboscis Monkey, Sunbear, Pygmy Elephant and Hornbill respectively, the other four iconic wildlife rule the third largest island on earth. Allow me briefly introduce these charismatic and must-see animals of Borneo:-

1. Orangutan – Man of the Forest

say Hi to your cousin (just kidding), orangutan, is one of our closest relative, as their DNA is 97% resemble to human. If you look at their eyes and expression, you know they are thinking animal. Orangutan probably inspired the making of first King Kong movie, and you may have seen orangutan in movies such as Maurice in Rise of the Planet of the Apes and King Louie in Jungle Book.

Orangutan is only found in Borneo and Sumatra

Orangutan is smarter than Chimpanzee. They know how to use tools, memorizing the fruiting season of different fruit and pass on this knowledge to their offspring. Orangutan is the only great ape of Asia. So please stop calling orangutan a monkey, that’s an insult to them lol.

2. Proboscis Monkey – Playboy of Borneo

This peculiar long-nosed monkey has an amusing nickname, i.e. Orang Belanda (means Dutch Man in Malay language) because of its big nose and beer belly (don’t be offended ok, if you are from Netherlands). Though you would think the long, pendulous nose of adult males is funny, the female monkey think it’s sexy. And strong male proboscis monkey has dozen of wives.

Never feed Proboscis Monkey with banana. Their digestion system is meant for breaking down mangrove leaves. Anything sweet will ferment and create lot of gas in their stomach, and that could cause death.

3. Pygmy Elephant – Mini Elephant

Pygmy Elephant is the smallest elephant on earth and only a thousand of them left in Sabah, so they are critically endangered and far rarer than African elephant (with a population of 350,000+ and always reported as “in worrying status” by world media).

Pygmy elephant is the most endangered elephant species

Pygmy Elephant looks like Asian Elephant, but both species separated from each other around three million years ago, and Pygmy Elephant evolves into a smaller subspecies that has longer tail and round baby face. Pygmy Elephants love durian and they swallow it as a whole.

4. Bornean Sun Bear – Teddy Bear of Borneo

About the size of a dog, Bornean Sun Bear is the world’s tiniest bear. The baby bear is so adorable and cuddly that some people keep it as pet illegally. For such a beautiful creature, you might imagine that they live a fairytale life in a candy house filled with cookies.

Instead, they live in danger every day. Poachers shoot them without hesitation, for their highly priced gallbladder. And their cute baby bears would be kept as pet, but will be abandoned eventually after they grow too big to be handled. Never live in the wild since young, these bears won’t survive.

5. Hornbills – Love Birds of Borneo

Hornbills are monogamous and a symbol of fidelity. I always see them flying in pair. There are 8 species of hornbills in Borneo, each with interesting characteristics. For example, Helmeted Hornbill is called Burung Tebang Mentua (Chop Mother-in-law in Malay language) by locals because of its long eerie call that sounds like evil laughter.

During hatching period, female hornbill seals herself inside a tree hole, leaving a slit for feeding by her “husband”. The male can come back and forth as many as 70 times a day to feed. This goes on for months until the chick hatched. If this is not love, what it is then.

Best Place to See Them All?

You can see these “big 5” wildlife in only 2 days in Sandakan, the gateway to wildlife sanctuary of Borneo. Sepilok and Kinabatangan will be your best destinations for wildlife sighting in Borneo. For tour and accommodation, I stayed in the lodges of Nasalis Larvatus Tours which are rated as 4+ stars by TripAdvisor.

1. Sepilok

Sepilok is a a virgin forest reserve about 26 KM away from Sandakan City and highly accessible by public transport. Tourists love this place because they can see Orangutan, Sunbear and probably Hornbill in one trip. The following are three parks that are adjacent to one another in Sepilok.

1) Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre (SORC)

Founded in 1964, SORC is the most popular tourist attraction in Sandakan. Orphan orangutan is sent here for survival skill training such as climbing and food hunting. They will be released to the wild after they “graduate” from this orangutan school. The best time to see them is during the feeding time at 10am and 3pm daily. The Centre also has a hall where you can see cute baby orangutan playing in nursery.

Feeding time at Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre

2) Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre (BSBCC)

Located just next to SORC, BSBCC houses and rehabiliates over 40 bears rescued from illegal zoo and pet owners. BSBCC won the Best Nature Attraction in Sabah Tourism Awards 2017 and its founder Dr. Wong is named as one of the CNN Heroes in 2017.

The bears roam in a confined forested area for tourists to observe them from a rised platform. You will be amazed by their tree climbing skill and playful behavior. Some staffs are around to share the story of each bear. Their sad stories could make you cry, but sun bear gets far less attention than Polar Bear and Panda.

3) Rainforest Discovery Centre (RDC)

RDC is a beautiful forest park with tall tropical trees, lake, nature trails and exhibition hall. You can walk on their 15-Metre high sturdy walkway to see everything at canopy level.

Canopy walkway of Rainforest Discovery Centre

This place is also an ideal bird-watching location where you would find hornbill, kingfishers, pitta, and Bornean Bristlehead, the superstar endemic bird of Borneo. If you are a tree hugger, check out the Sepilok Giant, an estimated 800-1,000 years old Ironwood tree in the park.

Nature Lodge Sepilok

For accommodation, I spent a night in Nature Lodge Sepilok (GPS: 5.875559, 117.950068, see Location Map) in Sepilok and able to make a day trip to all 3 parks near the lodge.

Below are some photos of Nature Lodge Sepilok.

Nature Lodge Sepilok is a family friendly accommodation

The lodge is constructed in smaller scale to give more privacy and tranquility to tourists. They don’t want a big lodge with hundred of noisy tourists.

The room is nice and clean with air-conditioning. It is as comfy as a 3-star hotel room. The pictures above shall give you an idea.

The open bathroom of Nature Lodge Sepilok

And the toilet and bathroom is a little surprise. It’s a backyard garden with bath and toilet area partly concealed by plant. There is no tall building around, so don’t worry about your privacy. In fact, taking bath and doing my business in semi-open area is oddly satisfying. One of my friends found bird nest in her bathroom.

Cute & friendly cats at Nature Lodge Sepilok

Every time I walked around the lodge, I always ended up with cat fur all over me. The cats there are so cute and friendly.

Breakfast at Mango Garden Cafe of Nature Lodge Sepilok

The food in Mango Garden Cafe of Nature Lodge Sepilok is delicious and rich in variety. They even look yummy in photos. Every meal time is a happy time for me.

Delicious food in Mango Garden Cafe of Nature Lodge Sepilok

By the way, you can buy almost every necessity in their shop, e.g. raincoat, soft drink, instant noodle, snack, toiletries, sunblock lotion, insect repellent, drinking water.

Nature Lodge Sepilok is really a great place for a relax and leisure vacation. For booking, you can reach them at: www.insabah.com or Phone: +60 16-8302038

2. Kinabatangan River

Let’s keep it short, Kinabatangan River is simply the best place to see orangutan, proboscis monkey, pygmy elephant and hornbills in the wild. You need a bit of luck to see pygmy elephant and orangutan though, as they are always on the move (please note this is not a zoo).

Kinabatangan River is the longest river of Sabah

No matter what, I can assure that you won’t be disappointed with your trip in Kinabatangan, because there are so many other amazing wildlife to look at.

Nature Lodge Kinabatangan

Seeing wildlife in their natural habitat is a more exciting experience, so I visited Kinabatangan and stayed in Nature Lodge Kinabatangan (GPS: 5.494785, 118.204908, see Location Map) at Bilit Village, which is in upstream of Kinabatangan.

We stopped at Kedai Kopi Santa of Kinabatangan Town for lunch. Their Soto (Beef soup) is one of the best in Sandakan.

It took about 2 hours of road trip from Sandakan City to Bilit. The Lodge is located about 30 Metres away from the Kinabatangan River.

Nature Lodge Kinabatangan is a highly ranked accommodation in Tripadvisor

After we checked into our room, we started our sunset river cruise and saw a baby crocodile on the river bank right away.

Kinabatangan River is one of the best bird-watching sites in Borneo

There were many birds along the river. I saw Purple Heron (many!), Little Heron flying next to our boat, Black & Red Broadbill, Lesser Adjutant (known as Burung Botak locally, means Bald Bird), Rhinocerous Hornbill, Oriental Pied Hornbill, Brahminy kite, and Oriental Darter (Snake Bird).

Then we saw a group of Long-tailed macaques in commotion. They stood up looking at a pile of log, probably there was a monitor lizard or crocodile hiding in there. The highlight is a few herds of proboscis monkey on the trees.

Sunset river cruise at Kinabatangan River

After the interesting river cruise, we had our buffet dinner in the lodge. We enjoyed some fresh vegetables planted in their garden.

Buffet dinner at dining hall of Nature Lodge Kinabatangan

The activity didn’t stop there. We went for a night walk in the forest around 8pm. If this adventure is too much for you, you may stay back at the lodge to join some fun activities such as local dance.

With the help of our guide, we spotted a few nocturnal animals in the dark. A jewel-color kingfisher slept like a fluffy ball on a twig, so cute. A researcher put up a white sheet to attract insects with light. We went busybody there and checked out the bug. Near the end we saw a number of big flying foxes foraging on a cotton tree. It’s quite a thrilling experience.

Nature Lodge Kinabatangan is in the forest of Kinabatangan

After day long of playing, I went back to my lodge to rest. The lodge is inside the rainforest. It’s a special feeling to sleep in a forest, so peaceful and quiet, almost like a therapy.

They also have dormitory if you prefer backpacker style accommodation.

Reading room in Nature Lodge Kinabatangan

My room is quite spacious and comfortable. I love big space as it makes me more relaxing, so I’m really happy with my room, and it has air-conditioner.

The next day we waked up around 6am for a morning river cruise. Though it’s really early and I was sleepy, the sighting was very rewarding. The morning was cool and refreshing with a bit of mist on the river.

We spotted an Orangutan on top of a Durian tree

We were so lucky to see an orangutan waked up from his nest high up on a durian tree. Another trophy is Storm’s stork, which has only around 200 left in the world, and Kinabatangan is their stronghold.

River cruise is the best way for wildlife sighting at Kinabatangan

Wild Proboscis Monkey is quite common here. You can easily see about 20 of them here.

Group of wild Proboscis Monkey in Kinabatangan

If you love to experience this safari trip, you may contact Nature Lodge Kinabatangan via the following channels:
Website: naturelodgekinabatangan.com
Facebook: NatureLodgeKinabatangan
Phone: +60 88-230 534
E-mail: sales@nasalislarvatustours.com

Both Nature Lodge Sepilok and Nature Lodge Kinabatangan are operated by Nasalis Larvatus Tours, a licensed travel agent of Malaysia.

Flight to Sandakan

You can fly to Sandakan City by Malaysia Airlines or AirAsia from Kota Kinabalu City (KK)(50 min flight) or Kuala Lumpur (KL)(2 hours 50 min). Flight is available every day. If you book at the good time, you can get really cheap round-trip ticket like about MYR200 for KK-Sandakan and MYR400 for KL-Sandakan flight. You can use Google Flights to check the fare prices from all airlines. Nasalis Larvatus Tours also can pick you up at Sandakan airport.

Famous Spring Noodle and Century Egg Dumpling of Sandakan

By the way, Sandakan is the second largest city of Sabah and also a foodie paradise, do try some yummy local food such as spring noodle when you visit Sandakan!

Photos taken in Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

The 10 Most Interesting Trees of Borneo

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Most tourists have an impression that Borneo is a tropical island full of coconut trees. As a matter of fact, in only 10 sq. KM of Borneo rainforest, there are more flora than that of North America and Europe combined. Without rich diversity of tree species as a food source and habitat, our most charismatic wildlife such as orangutan would not survive.

Our trees are not boring. Let’s look at 10 of them. You would be surprised that most of them are closely related to your life.

1. Belian, the Ironman tree

Locally known as Belian, Borneo’s ironwood (Species: Eusideroxylon zwageri, Eusideroxylon means sinking wood) is the heaviest, hardest and most valuable timber of Borneo. Belian can live over 1,000 years and it grows extremely slow (mean radial rate of 0.058cm per year), reaching only a diameter of 30cm even after 120 years. That’s why it is so hard and dense that it doesn’t float on water and termites can’t bite through.

Pic: hundreds year old Belian in Imbak Canyon

Pic: 200-year-old Belian coffin in Danum Valley

However, this hardwood can’t fight chainsaw and millions of them are fallen by greedy loggers who see it as a standing gold bar. Now only a small number of Belian trees live in most remote forest of Borneo. Belian is so strong and resistant to decay that it can last 200 years in worst condition, so it’s the best wood for jetty, dock and piling. In history, China emperor used it as the pillars of Forbidden City, Murut (Borneo headhunter) used it to make blowpipe, Dusun ancestors used it to create coffin.

Pic: Murut Cultural Center supported by Belian wood pillars

2. Tongkat Ali, the Viagra tree

Ask any Malaysian what is Tongkat Ali (Eurycoma longifoliam) and note the sheepish smile on their faces. Tongkat Ali is viewed as Malaysian Ginseng and has been used as a traditional aphrodisiac. You can buy Tongkat Ali readily for cheap price at local markets and even tourist souvenir shops (it’s a hot selling item, from what I heard).

Pic: Tongkat Ali tree

Literally Tongkat Ali means “Ali’s Walking Stick.” It can grow up to 5m tall and 20cm in diameter and prefers well-drained forest slopes under partial shade. It looks like a small tree but what under its stem is long and fat root. To harvest its root, you need to tie its stem with a rope then have two men to pull it out of the soil. Tongkat Ali has two types, one with white root, which is more common and tastes really bitten, another is black color, which is better but rarer.

Pic: roots of Tongkat Ali

The root of Tongkat Ali has sexually-enhancing and testosterone-raising effect (its leaves can relieve stomach pain). The decoction of the pounded and boiled root is a popular drink to improve the potency of men hence a happy sex life. Now you even can find Tongkat Ali Coffee on the market (a few friends told me it really makes them “hard”). Hey, why bother about the expensive blue pill?

3. Strangling Fig, the tree Killer

Ever heard of a tree strangles another tree to death? This is not a fiction. The tragedy starts from a seed of strangling fig (Ficus spp) being carried in the poo of fruit-eating animals such as bird and squirrel to the treetop.

Pic: huge strangling fig trees in Maliau Basin

The seed germinates on the big tree and sucks nutrients out of it. Over time, this parasitic tree slowly spreads its branches from the crown of the host tree to the ground, the roots joined when meet, forming a basketwork of interlacing roots around the trunk. Strangling fig tree will grow faster once its roots reach the soil for more nutrients, the roots thicken and constrict the flow of nutrients of its host, eventually the host tree dies.

Pic: hollow left by the decayed host tree

The murder takes many years to happen. At the end, strangling fig wins, flowers and its fruits will attract another seed-carrier which poo on the next victim. Thing gets more interesting after the dead tree decomposes, as it will leave a hollow inside the new tree. Strangling fig sounds evil, but its fruit is an important food source for wildlife. Btw, be careful when a bird poo on your head lol.

4. Menggaris, the Honey Bee tree

In Borneo jungle, even the most casual hiker would not miss the towering Menggaris tree (Koompasia excelsa), a member of the bean family. Menggaris is a beautiful tall and straight tree which can easily exceed 60m in height and grows up to 88m, one of the tallest tree species in Borneo rainforest.

Its cylindrical bole with grey and smooth bark poses a big challenge to excellent climbers such as sunbear and orangutan. Therefore, Menggaris naturally becomes the favorite nesting tree of wild honey bees (Apis dorsata), to keep their honey out of reach to sunbear the honey lover. It is common to see over 10 bee hives under the branches of same Menggaris tree.

Pic: bee nest on Menggaris tree

Luckily, because of its hollow trunk, Menggaris is not a good timber, so you can see them remain standing on a deforested land. Villagers will build climbing aid on Menggaris tree to harvest its honey. Got honey got money. Menggaris is also considered as a sacred tree in Dayak folklore of Sarawak.

Pic: canopy walk allows you to see Menggaris up-close

5. Gaharu, the Perfume tree

Gaharu (Aquilareia malaccensis) is also known as agarwood, incense wood and aloes wood. This intensely fragrant resinous wood is widely used in religions (some even calls it the “Wood of the Gods”), probably it resembles the smell of heaven so its price is sky high too, at least US$1,000 per Kg. There have been local and foreign thieves who trespass our protected forest to collect agarwood illegally.

Pic: Gaharu tree in Tawau Hills Park

Pic: agarwood products for sale

Normally the wood of Gaharu tree is white and has no odor. But if the tree is infected by fungus, it’ll produce dark aromatic resin to protect itself. This agarwood is not only highly prized as an incense, it is an important ingredient for perfume industry. Some farmers include gaharu as one of the crops in their integrated farming.

Pic: Gaharu tree cut by thief

6. Mangrove, the Summer Xmas Tree

Growing in smelly and muddy swamp land, how can mangrove trees (Rhizophora spp) be interesting? In old days, mangrove forest was considered a wasteland full of mosquitoes, and people weren’t hesitant to clear it. Now we know that mangrove ecosystem serves an important role in flood mitigation, prevention of coastal erosion and as a feeding ground for migratory birds.

Pic: note the breathing roots of mangrove trees

Sabah occupies 59% of total mangrove area in Malaysia. Mangrove is the nursery of seafood and that explains why Sabah is abundant in seafood. Mangrove is also the habitat of Proboscis Monkey, our endemic Borneo monkey which attracts a lot of tourist$. At night, hundreds of firefly congregate and twinkle on mangrove, turning the tree into a Summer Xmas tree. Nowadays, the well-being of our seafood and tourism industries depend heavily on healthy mangrove.

Pic: proboscis monkey family on mangrove tree

Pic: vivipary, the spear-shaped seed of mangrove

Living in tidal zone, mangrove tree develops many interesting features to adapt to this harsh environment. It uses stilt roots to breathe and hold itself firm in the mud. Its torpedo-shaped seed (vivipary) may look peculiar, but it helps the seedling to anchor in the soft substrate when detached from mother tree.

Pic: firefly Summer Xmas Tree in Klias Wetland

I would say mangrove tree is the most useful tree because it benefits everyone of us.

Pic: river of mangrove is always a good spot for fishing (watch out for crocodile though)

7. Oil Palm, the Money tree

Well, oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) is not so “Borneo” but this native species of West Africa has blanketed nearly 20% of Sabah, the largest palm oil producing state in Malaysia. Now oil palm is a cash crop so it is quickly turning swaying coconut and banana trees of countryside into ugly palm. Palm oil also enters every corner of our lives, from soap, shampoo, cooking oil, chocolate, margarine, cosmetic, detergent to biofuel.

Pic: forest engulfed by oil palm

To be fair, the yield of oil palm per hectare is 10 times more than soybean and sunflower. The crop itself doesn’t cause any problem, only the way how it is planted is earning it a bad name among environmentalists, for example, open burning, deforestation, hill clearing and encroachment to riparian reserve. Anyway, now the government, NGOs and plantation owners are willing to work together to ensure sustainable and environmentally-friendly practices are in place for this crop.

Pic: elephants (right) roaming near a deforested hill

8. Sago Palm, the Edible tree

You may start imagining that you are ordering a piece of wood off a restaurant menu and then biting it like a white ant, or a starving man chewing tree bark. Sago palm (Metroxylon rumphii & Metroxylon sagu) is really edible but you have to process its trunk first.

Pic: the pure carbohydrate from sago palm saved many lives in WW2. Sago Palm is also called The Tree of a Thousand Use. You can use its leaves to make handicraft and roof, and its trunk to build houses, etc.

Sago is one of the staple food for people living in south-west of Sabah (Kuala Penyu and Beaufort) and they even celebrate Sago Festival annually. To extract the starch of sago palm, they pound the soft kernel of the trunk into chips, wash the pulverized pith with water, collect the starch and dry it. Sago can be made into different delicious food such as cake and pudding, and the traditional way to enjoy it is to make Ambuyat, a translucent and sticky sago paste, which is served with fish and sour soup.

Pic: the traditional tool of sago processing. Now it’s replaced by machine.

Pic: Ambuyat.. yummy..

During sago processing, the farmers also pick up some wiggling fat larvae of beetle (Butod) which is well-fed in kernel. Some locals consider this juicy butod a delicacy and love to eat it alive. Are you keen to try?

9. Pelawan, a Naked tree

There is a Chinese proverb says, “Man needs face as much as tree needs bark”, so I was surprised to see Pelawan tree (Tristaniopsis spp), which is a member of the Myrtaceae and quite common in lower montane forest of Sabah highland.

About 20 species of Pelawan are found in Borneo and these bizarre trees are characterized by flaky orange bark. The tree is so beautiful that there is a story which says other trees were so jealous of its fashionable peeling bark that they beat it with branches.

Pic: Tristaniopsis tree in Long Pasia

This phenomenon is just a growing process of Pelawan, the old bark peels off when the fresh bark emerges.

10. Kerosene tree with Petroleum Nut

If your tour guide brings you to Botanical Garden of Kinabalu Park, he will definitely show you a cool trick by igniting the fruit of Kerosene tree (Pittosporum resiniferum) like a candle. Yes, the fruit of Kerosene tree is inflammable and can be used in producing biofuel. This tree is less than 10m tall and grows between 400m and 2,300m above sea level. In old days, locals use the oil of this fruit for lamp.

Pic: fruits of Kerosene tree (Source: Dick Culbert)

Some birds eat this fruit, but it is unclear that if it can help the birds to achieve sonic speed in flight. Just kidding.

The list doesn’t end here. Borneo also has the Tallest Tropical Tree in the World. Please share with me in comment section below, if you know other interesting trees of Borneo.

Photos taken Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

Sunset, Fireflies, Sambah River Cruise

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River cruise in mangrove forest is one of the most popular tours in Sabah. Normally tourists pay about MYR200 to see long-nosed monkey, sunset and fireflies in wetlands of Klias, Weston or Kota Belud.

Sambah River Cruise

FYI you can see these in Tenghilan (in Tuaran district) for about half of the price (MYR80), but without wildlife such as proboscis monkey. Anyway, its advantages are: (1) the destination is less than an hour drive from Kota Kinabalu City (KK), (2) You will have a chance to sample a delicious snack called Udang Salai (Smoked Shrimps).

Udang Salai (Smoked Shrimps) is a special product of Sambah Village

This tour is named Sambah River Cruise because it is based in Kampung Sambah (Kampung means Village in Malay language). Before the river cruise, my group was invited to the house of David (our host) in Kampung Bunga, where welcoming drink and light refreshment were served, and an introduction about the trip was given.

Briefing at Kampung Bunga, Tenghilan

Then we moved to the jetty in Kampung Nouga (GPS: 6.233895, 116.307495) around 5pm to start our first river cruise in mangrove forest.

Jetty in Kampung Nouga, Tenghilan

Mangrove Forest

As part of the Sulaman Lake, this wetland has been a fishing zone. If you are an avid angler, you can request them to include fishing as part of the activities.

Mangrove is the breeding place for seafood.

Technically this swamp is a lagoon as it is directly connected to the sea via a channel. During high tide, fishes such as grouper follow the sea current to enter this mangrove to forage and breed, so it’s not uncommon that you can catch very big fish here.

The river cruises are between 5pm to 8:00pm

Tuaran has one of the best mangrove forest near KK. The area we visited was mostly intact and large. The brackish water may look dirty, but crabs and prawns grow faster and fatter in such environment. The mudflat of mangrove is also the best place to harvest clams.

Navigate in maze of mangrove forest

Located between sea and river, mangrove swamp is one of the most peculiar forest in the world. The trees can grow in the water and tolerant to saline water, and they breathe with roots. Living among the trees are some weird animals such as the walking and jumping fish, mud-skipper and colorful fiddler crabs with huge pincer.

Approaching Kampung Sambah, a fishing village

Our boat navigated in a maze of mangrove forest network. The panoramic view of lush mangrove forest is impressive. Some trees grow over 10 Meters. I think Sabah Wildlife Department can bring in some proboscis monkey families. I’m sure they can live happily here.

Group photo at jetty of Kampung Sambah village

59% of the mangrove forest of Malaysia is located in Sabah. Do you know Sabah has both the smallest (KK Wetland) and largest (Kinabatangan) Ramsar sites of Malaysia? Ramsar Site is a wetland site designated of international importance in terms of conservation, ecology and biodiversity.

Kampung Sambah is a small fishing village next to Sulaman Lake of Tuaran

Udang Salai (Smoked Shrimps)

Around 5:30pm, we arrived Kampung Sambah, a water village next to the lake.

The tour includes a stroll in Kampung Sambah Village

The houses in Kampung Sambah are on stilt to avoid flood and high tide

We took a walk in the village, which has a population of 200 of mainly Bajau people. Most of them live in wooden houses on stilt on the mudflat of mangrove, a typical view of fishermen village in Sabah.

Smoke House for making Smoked Shrimps (Udang Salai)

Only two villages, Kampung Sambah and Kampung Penimbawan, produce Smoked Shrimps (Udang Salai)

However, this ordinary village has an extraordinary snack called Udang Salai (Smoked Shrimps). Believe me. The taste of Udang Salai is unforgettable. Once you try it, you would crave for it occasionally.

The burning wood gives Smoked Shrimps (Udang Salai) very nice aroma

Shrimps are abundant in this area. Only fresh shrimps (no frozen shrimp) are used in making Udang Salai.

Udang Salai (Smoked Shrimps) is one of the tastiest Sabah snack I’ve ever tried

They have a simple small hut with wood burning stove to smoke the shrimps. The small shrimps are placed on mesh wire above the burning wood and being smoked until they are totally dry and cooked. The taste is yummy and crunchy with nice barbecue flavor. Even the shell is edible. You can’t stop once you start eating it.

A small pack of Udang Salai can cost about MYR30

Sambah Village is one of the largest producers of Udang Salai, apart from its neighbors Kampung Penimbawan in Tuaran. Smoked shrimps are sold at tamu (morning open market) of Tenghilan on Thursday and Tuaran on Sunday. It’s always sold out before 8am.

You can buy Smoked Shrimps (Udang Salai) in weekly open market (tamu) of Tenghilan (Thu) and Tuaran (Sun)

Sunset & Firefly

Though I wanted to stay back to eat more Udang Salai, we had to start our second river cruise at 6:10pm.

Departing for sunset and firefly cruise

Waiting for the magic hour of sunset

Soon our boat approached the estuary, where we could see the sun started sinking into the ocean. The blazing sun ray gradually turned into warm and golden beam, marking the start of twilight.

See the love shape cloud?

WOW!!!

The sunset view was hypnotizing. Even though it rained earlier, the extra moisture in the air is the recipe for making of a beautiful sunset. The colors of the sky and cloud went wild and intense, and we were lucky to see the famous flaming sunset of Sabah.

Spectacular sunset at Tenghilan

After the sunset, our boat cruised slowly in the total darkness in mangrove. We saw some congregating fireflies flashing on the mangrove tree like summer Xmas tree. The density and scale of fireflies here are small, but good enough for people who never see firefly.

Dinner at the end of tour, rice with fried chicken, crabs, mixed vegetables and some fruits

Fresh crabs from the mangrove

The river cruise ended around 7:30pm and we enjoyed our dinner at David’s house.

How to get there

This destination is less than 50 Kilometers from KK. The tour operator can pick you up at your hotel. The fee is about MYR80 (about USD$20) per person for this half-day tour (3:30pm-8:30pm).

Below is contact information and more details for you to find out more:
Tel: +60 14-6751256
E-mail: sambahrivertour@gmail.com
Facebook: sambahrivercruise
Instagram: @sambah_river_cruise
Website: sambah.weebly.com

Photos taken in Tenghilan, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

Serinsim, a different face of Kinabalu Park

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A family is having a hard time to plan a holiday trip at a destination that makes everyone happy.

Grandfather: “I want to learn some local history and legend.”
Mother: “How about a BBQ feast?”
Father: “Let’s climb a mountain.”
Son: “Camping and jungle trekking will be fun!”
Daughter: “I love swimming in river.”

Location of Serinsim (Sorinsim) and Kinabalu Park

Finally they decide to visit Serinsim (or Sorinsim) in Kota Marudu, which has all these. There is no second place in Sabah where we can find river, waterfall, forest, cave, mountain and historical site in one park.

Signage to different attractions inside Serinsim. It’s ok if you can’t read Malay. I’ll tell you what they are later.

Serinsim is a substation in northern part of Kinabalu Park, the first UNESCO World Heritage Site of Malaysia. Lies between the Serinsim and Kanarom rivers, the river of Serinsim is straight from the undisturbed rainforest and mountain, so its water is crystal clear and almost as good as Spritzer.

You may be familiar with the mountainous zone in Kinabalu Park HQ in Kundasang highland. Serinsim is at opposite side of HQ, which is dominated by lowland rainforest, shows different face of Kinabalu Park. Most locals only come here to enjoy the cooling river, without knowing that Serinsim has the following special attractions:

1. Mount Nombuyukong (Gunung Nombuyukong)

With a height of 1,603.57 Meters, Mt. Nombuyukong is 976 Metres lower than its sister peak, Mt. Tambuyukon, the third highest mountain of Malaysia. Mount Nombuyukong can be conquered within a day.

>> Read about the challenging climb to Mt. Nombuyukong…

2. Bat Cave (Gua Kelawar)

Gua Kelawar is a small cave about 200 Meters long, and it is for the adventurous you who like the idea of exploring the unknown. *Hint:* many creeping critters in the darkness. I saw rare mushroom and endemic begonia outside the cave.

The rocky wall of Bat Cave (Gua Kelawar) in Serinsim

>> Read my scary story inside Bat Cave…

3. Misumpak Waterfall

Serinsim is more than a park for swimming and picnic only. Do a jungle trekking to visit the 12-Meter Misumpak Waterfall. Soaking in its cooling ponds will be one of the best nature experience, I promise. You would see hornbill, civet, red leaf monkey, orangutan and other wildlife on the way.

>> Read more about Misumpak Waterfall…

4. Gambaliu, the Tallest Man in the World

According to the local legend, a giant named Gambaliu lived here about two to three thousand years ago. With a height of 24 feet, Gambaliu is taller than giraffe. He was a gentle and helpful giant. However, what his people did after he died was sort of… heartless.

>> See the Tomb of Gambaliu…

5. Sigunting Graveyard

Sick of those cliche movies about superheroes saving the mankind? Let’s hear the story of real Sabah hero, Si-Gunting, who fought British imperialism for 7 years.

>> Read more about Sigunting…

6. Deer Farm

About 120 Meters from the hostel (Asrama Kanarom) is a 0.5-Acre of fenced and forested Deer Farm. The best time to visit is the feeding time at 2pm, the time about 10 Sambar deers show up for jackfruit, tapioca leaves, banana, and fruits given by the Park.

Deer Farm of Serinsim. Visitors can walk up to the tower for better view.

Below is the trail and layout map of Serinsim. Please note that for most jungle trekking activities, you are required to hire a guide from the Park, which can be arranged easily one day in advance.

Trail map to different attractions in Serinsim. **Translation:** Pejabat = Office, Galeri = Gallery, Pondok = Gazebo, Pelawat = Visitor, Tapak Perkhemahan = Camping Ground, Tandas Awam = Public Toilet, Dapur = Kitchen, Sungai = River, Sg. = River, Anak Sungai = Small River, Jalan Raya = Road, Jambatan Kerata = Bridge for Car, Air Terjun = Waterfall, Makam = Grave, Puncak = Peak, Kem = Camp, Ke = To

Accommodation

Three chalets and one hostel are available to accommodate three families and 24 people respectively in the Park. Below is a quick comparison of the price. The rate is as of July 2017, and GST tax is included.

Accommodation Type	Rate per Night
Camping	Adult: MYR5.30 (≈USD$1.32) Below 12: MYR2.15 (≈USD$0.53)
Hostel (Asrama Kanarom)	Adult: MYR42.40 (≈USD$10.60) Below 18: MYR31.80 (≈USD$7.95)
Chalet	1 Chalet: MYR318.00 (≈USD$79.50) 1 Room: MYR106 (≈USD$26.50)

Notes: Check-out time is 11:00am. Non-halal food such as pork is forbidden in the accommodation. The accommodation is not well-maintained. Before you unpack your luggage, make sure everything in your room is functioning (e.g. water supply, light, air-cond). Just in case anything is broken, you can change to other room quickly.

Asrama Kanarom Hostel

Asrama Kanarom Hostel is a dormitory-style one storey building which has four bedrooms, common toilet + bathroom and kitchen. Each room has 6 bunk beds, so this hostel can host about 24 people.

Interior of Asrama Kanarom Hostel in Serinsim

The fee for each bunk bed in hostel is MYR42.40 for adult and MYR31.80 for kid (below 18 years old). The room has air-conditioner, and pillow and blanket are provided. It’s an economic choice for budget travelers and student group who don’t mind to share room.

The kitchen has gas stove, cooking and dining utensils for use by the guests. Electricity and water supply are available all time.

However, there is no private bathroom. Guests can share the common unisex toilet and bathroom. Sorry, no water heater for a hot shower, but you can boil hot water in kitchen like what I did.

Toilet cum shower room, cooking area, utensils and refrigerator in Asrama Kanarom Hostel

One nice thing about this hostel is that it’s located next to the starting point of trail to all nature attractions.

Chalets

There are three chalets in the Park. You can book the whole chalet for MYR318 per night, or rent a room for MYR106. Each chalet has three rooms (two of them are single bed). Each chalet is limited for 6 people. For additional guests, you need to pay extra MYR30 per person.

Each room has an attached bathroom cum toilet. Heater for hot shower is not available. Soap and towel are provided for the guest. Every room has air-conditioning.

Chalet of Serinsim (or Sorinsim). At the left is Mt. Nombuyukong

Bedroom, living room and kitchen of Serinsim Chalet

Camping

Camping ground is also available to those who desire a more nature experience. For adult, the camping fee per night is MYR5.30 and MYR2.15 for child below 12. You can rent a camping tent for MYR30/day at Sabah Parks office, or bring your own.

The campsite is just next to the river. There are gazebos, benches, public toilet and kitchen nearby that area.

There is no lighting at night, so you better bring your camping light and torchlight.

There is no TV, karaoke and night life in the park, so you will get bored in the evening. Do plan some fun activities for the night, for example, board games, BBQ party, ~~strip poker~~, watch movies on laptop.

Playing Uno in the hostel (Asrama Kanarom)

By the way, Kota Marudu is famous for its maize. You can buy some along the way and grill it, it’s delicious.

Don’t be impressed by the facilities listed in the map above. Everything in Serinsim is basic, nothing 5-star. For example, the so called soccer field is just a grassland. The restaurant never opens and there is no gallery.

How to get there

Serinsim is about 32 KM from Kota Marudu town and 130 KM away from Kota Kinabalu City (capital of Sabah). This substation is now highly accessible after asphalt highway is complete in 2013. The GPS coordinate is 6.293915, 116.707986 (see Location Map).

In the past you needed a 4-wheel drive to get in. That might be the reason why Serinsim is one of the least explored parks in Sabah. There is no bus goes directly to Serinsim.

You will pass through Marak-Parak Village and Sorinsim Village before you reach Serinsim

You also can go to Serinsim from Poring Hot Springs, the 46-KM road is in good condition.

Signage at the entrance. Translation: Welcome to Kinabalu Park, Serinsim Sub-Station, Kota Marudu

Things to Note

For a better travel experience at Serinsim, please take note of the following:

There is no restaurant in the Park. You can prepare your own food in their kitchen, buy food from villages nearby (The shops are usually roadside residential run by villagers with signage such as Gerai Makan (Food Stall) or Kedai Runcit (Grocery Store)), or drive 30 minutes to Kota Marudu town looking for restaurant.
The mobile line coverage is none or poor in the Park. My Maxis line got 0 bar. Celcom may work. Anyway, let’s prepare to be offline there.
Bring insect repellent. There are mosquitoes in shaded area during dusk and dawn.
There is a grocery shop and cafe outside the park entrance.
Most area in Park has no light. Bring a torchlight if you would move around in the Park at night, especially campers.

Sabah Parks office and car park of Serinsim (Sorinsim)

Entrance Fee

The following is the ticket fee to enter the park. They only accept cash in Ringgit Malaysia (MYR).

Item	Fee / Rate
Conservation Fee	Malaysian: MYR10.00 Foreigner: MYR50.00 Below 18 years old: MYR5.00 and MYR25.00 respectively

Conservation Fee with effect from 1 Jan 2023

Ticket counter at the entrance of Serinsim (Sorinsim)

Serinsim is managed by Sabah Parks. For more information about Serinsim, you may browse www.sabahparks.org.my or call the head office of Sabah Parks in Kota Kinabalu at +60 88-523500.

Photos taken in Kota Marudu, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

Climbing Mount Nombuyukong (1,603.57 Meters)

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In a dreadful climb to Mount Tambuyukon, the third highest mountain of Malaysia, I rested on a high ground where I could enjoy a panoramic view of rolling mountain range. Then I noticed Mt. Nombuyukong (Gunung Nombuyukong), which has a pointy peak like a witch hat. I was bewitched by its beautiful ~~tit~~ tip and wanted to climb it since then, and I did, after 6 years.

View of Nombuyukong Peak from Mt. Tambuyukon

Compared to Mt. Tambuyukon (2,579M), Mt. Nombuyukong’s height at 1,603.57 M is less intimidating and can be conquered within half-day. Since it’s on the same mountain range with higher Mt. Tambuyukon, technically it’s a peak, but people call it Mount Nombuyukong anyway.

View of Mount Nombuyukong behind the chalet in Serinsim park

Managed by Sabah Parks, Mt. Nombuyukong is located in Serinsim Park substation (in Kota Marudu) at north of Kinabalu Park. The park is highly accessible by paved road and about 130 KM away from Kota Kinabalu City (KK), the capital of Sabah, Malaysia. Currently, this mountain is not well-known, and most climbers are hardcore adventurers from Peninsular Malaysia, who would try to conquer Mt. Tambuyukon and Nombuyukong in one trip.

Summary of Mt. Nombuyukong

Height: 1,603.57 Meters (5,261 feet)
Starting Point: Serinsim Park, Kota Marudu. GPS: 6.292631, 116.707422 (see Location Map) (130 KM away from Kota Kinabalu City)
Hiking Distance to Summit: 6.47 KM one way (You will use the same route to ascend & descend)
Time: Return trip (nearly 13 KM) normally takes 9 or more hours

Peak of Mt. Nombuyukong in the cloud

Difficulty: 3.5 out of 5 (I’m a seasoned hiker)
Temperature: about 27�C. On the Peak: 20-24�C
Minimum Cost of Climbing: MYR59.80 (Malaysian) or MYR146.00 (Non-Malaysian) per adult (approximately USD$15 and 35 respectively). More details on this later.
Notes: Register and pay first before climbing. Sabah Parks requires climbers to start climbing before 7:00am, and you must hire a guide from them.

The 6-min video below will show you how the climb looks like:

How soon you reach the summit is depend on your fitness and “style”. For example, I started climbing at 7:00am, reached the top at 1:15pm, and return to the park at 6:20pm (a total of 11 hours & 20 minutes!). I was slow because I stopped a lot to take photos.

The Climb

The following is my climbing log. You can click any photo in this article to enlarge it.

Trail Map of Mount Nombuyukong

Start of Climb

I met my guide, Mr. Hendrick, at the starting point of the climb, which is just behind my hostel (Name: Asrama Kanarom) in Serinsim Park. After a short briefing, we started the climb at 7:00am. Please note you will pass through 6 gazebos along the way (about one for every 1 KM)(Pondok is Gazebo in Malay language). I use them as markers here.

Starting Point?Gazebo No.1

We reached Gazebo No.1 (Pondok Damar) at 7:25am.

Junction to the peak of Mt. Nombuyukong after 400 Meters

Gazebo No.1: Pondok Damar, 1,000 Meters to Gazebo No.2. (Pondok = Gazebo)

The trail is mostly flat in the beginning and under the shade of lowland rainforest. Mt. Nombuyukong is a mini version of Mt. Tambuyukon. Whatever hardship you experience in climbing Mt. Nombuyukong, multiple it by 3 and that’s what you will face on Mt. Tambuyukon. Both look quite alike in terms of vegetation and trail condition.

Gazebo No.1?Gazebo No.2

We reached Gazebo No.2 (Pondok Seraya) at 7:45am.

Gazebo No.2: Pondok Seraya, 1,000 Meters to gazebo No.3

The peak looks so far away, even for car. But sorry, no shortcut such as cable car and helicopter.

The peak of Mt. Nombuyukong is about 6.47 KM away

With a few gentle slopes, this trail section is relatively flat and a bit muddy. Next to Gazebo No.2 (Pondok Seraya) is a portable toilet (squat type) with a broken door.

Earthstar mushroom (Geastrum sp.) looks like miniature orange before mature (left). When mature (right), the outer layer of its fruiting body splits into segments which turn outward creating a star-like pattern and reveals a smooth, grayish-brown and egg-like spore sac. Then it waits for rain drops on its central pore to force a jet of spores out through a small opening in the middle. They are generally not toxic but inedible.

Gazebo No.2?Gazebo No.3

We reached Gazebo No.3 (Pondok Gaharu) at 8:36am.

Gazebo No.3: Pondok Gaharu, 1,000 Meters to gazebo No.4

We walked in mixed hill dipterocarp and lowland rainforest in the beginning

There are about 300 Meters of steep trail, and the trail is relatively flat after that.

Second junction to Mount Nombuyukong

The popular version of Kinabalu Park is its mossy and foggy montane forest in cooling Kundasang highland. In Serinsim, you will see different face of Kinabalu Park, which is dominated by lowland rainforest and mixed hill dipterocarp abundant with tall trees under warm and humid environment.

Tall tree is common in Serinsim Park

As we were in higher altitude, we were rewarded by soothing breeze and cooling air.

Gazebo No.3?Gazebo No.4

We reached Gazebo No.4 (Pondok Menggilan) at 9:50am. We were only 2.3 KM away from the summit now.

Gazebo No.4: Pondok Menggilan, 1,000 Meters to gazebo No.5

The trail was getting more undulating, and we started to feel like real climbing.

Trail after 3rd gazebo

Things I saw between 3rd and 4th gazebo

From Serinsim Park, you also can walk two days to the Musang Camp about 18 KM away, the last campsite on Mt. Tambuyukon. The distance is longer but less challenging than the standard summit trail to Mt. Tambuyukon, according to Hendrick.

Gazebo No.4?Gazebo No.5

We reached Gazebo No.5 (Pondok Aru) at 11:03am.

Gazebo No.5: Pondok Aru, 1,000 Meters to the last gazebo

After 200 Meters of flat trail, we ascended on a gentle slope to the ridge. The trail 200 Meters before Gazebo No.5 is quite steep.

Big waterfall next to Gazebo No.5 (Pondok Aru)

As we were deep inside the jungle, we saw the holes dug by wild boar, heard woodpecker pecking the wood, and spot a herd of red leaf monkey on the tree. This is a healthy rainforest, so inevitably there are some leeches. Just put on anti-leech socks and you shall be fine.

Beautiful trees and rainforest

Hendrick said if we were lucky, we would see Orangutan, Pygmy Squirrel, Clouded Leopard and Tufted Ground Squirrel.

Interesting plant along the trail. The water of mountain creek is so cold and fresh to drink

Gazebo No.5?Gazebo No.6

We reached Gazebo No.6 (Pondok Wasai) at 11:48am.

Gazebo No.6: Pondok Wasai, 720 Meters to the peak. (Puncak = Peak)

This section is the most difficult part of the climb. Minimal rope support is available along the steep or narrow trail.

The hardest part of the climb begins

Summit trail with rope support

We started to see green moss, lichen and algae on the tree barks and ground, a characteristic of lower montane forest (cloud forest) in mountain region.

Gazebo No.6?Summit

We reached the summit at 1:15pm!

Steep gravel trail

The last 720 Meters to the summit is mainly steep trail with loose soil and gravel, and flanked by dense undergrowth.

View after the last gazebo

There is a camping ground about 200 Meters before the summit. Some climbers camped there so they could catch the sunrise next morning.

Trilobite Beetle (family Lycidae) feeds on rotten wood. Its bright color warns predators of its distastefulness.

The Summit

Finally we were standing on the peak about 1,603.57 Meters (5,261 feet) above sea level.

Approaching the summit

It’s me on the summit of Mount Nombuyukong

It was windy and cooling up there, with dense cloud passing by the peak swiftly.

You can see Kota Marudu, Kota Belud and Poring from the peak

On the summit, you can have a bird-eye view of Kota Belud, Kota Marudu, and Poring. However, sometimes the peak is enveloped by fog then you would see nothing.

Upper Left: pine tree on the peak, Upper Right: marker of ending point, Lower Left: highest point, Lower Right: Sayat-Sayat flower

View from the peak of Mt. Nombuyukong

After taking enough photos and selfie, we descended at 1:53pm and reached the park at 6:20pm (a total of 4 hours 13 minutes).

How to Climb

Easy, just go to the Sabah Parks office in Serinsim Park, register and hire a guide one day in advance.

Item	Fee / Rate
Climb Permit	Malaysian: MYR31.80 Foreigner: MYR106 Student below 18: MYR12.75
Insurance	MYR7.00
Certificate (optional)	MYR5.30
Mountain Guide	MYR90 (can guide up to 5 people)
Conservation Fee	Malaysian: MYR3.00 Foreigner: MYR15.00 Below 18: MYR1.00 and MYR10.00 respectively

Since the Park requires climber to depart at 7:00am, it’ll be easier if you stay in the park. The accommodation fee for adult range from MYR42.40 (per bed in hostel) to MYR106 (per room of chalet) per night. I leave the math of final budget to you.

Certificate for climber who conquers Mount Nombuyukong

Contact of Sabah Parks

For further info, you may contact Sabah Parks:
Tel: +60 88-523500 (KK Head Office)
Website: www.sabahparks.org.my
E-mail: sabahparks@gmail.com / sabahparks@sabah.gov.my
Facebook: Sabah-Parks-122393837931233

If you plan to stay in the park, you should call in advance to check if the accommodation is fully booked, especially during school holiday.

What to Bring

The most important of all is to wear comfortable hiking shoes that work well for muddy and slippery trail.

Packed lunch
Water
Raincoat / Poncho
Camera & spare batteries
Energy bar
Insect repellent
Anti-leech socks
Toilet paper
Walking stick
Torchlight (in case you come back really late)

When you go back to KK, you may try using the new highway (asphalt road in great condition) that takes 46 minutes to reach Poring. The view is scenic when you pass through small villages and mountain along the way.

Photos taken in Kota Marudu, Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

8 Cool Things about Tanjung Aru Beach

1. World-Class Sunset

Tips for Hunting the Best Sunset

2. A Valentine’s Beach

3. Prince Philip Park

4. Birdwatching Site

5. Residents on the Beach

6. Standup Paddleboarding (SUP)

7. Pokémon GO (Mobile AR Game)

8. Food Stalls

How to get there

Tanjung Aru Eco Development (TAED)

Height Comparison with Famous Landmarks

Past Record Holders of the Tallest Tropical Tree

May 2018: 96.9M (318 Feet)

Nov 2016: 93.0 Metres (305 Feet)

Jun 2016: 89.5 Metres (294 Feet)

Jul 2006: 88.32 Metres (289.8 Feet)

Interesting Facts about Shorea faguetiana

Next Tallest Tree?

The Tallest Stamp of Malaysia

Further Reading

About Kawag Danum Rainforest Lodge (KDRL)

Nature-Based Activities

1. Exploring Jungle

2. Bird Watching

3. Ali Baba Waterfall

How to get there

Things to Bring

1. Orangutan – Man of the Forest

2. Proboscis Monkey – Playboy of Borneo

3. Pygmy Elephant – Mini Elephant

4. Bornean Sun Bear – Teddy Bear of Borneo

5. Hornbills – Love Birds of Borneo

Best Place to See Them All?

1. Sepilok

Nature Lodge Sepilok

2. Kinabatangan River

Nature Lodge Kinabatangan

Flight to Sandakan

1. Belian, the Ironman tree

2. Tongkat Ali, the Viagra tree

3. Strangling Fig, the tree Killer

4. Menggaris, the Honey Bee tree

5. Gaharu, the Perfume tree

6. Mangrove, the Summer Xmas Tree

7. Oil Palm, the Money tree

8. Sago Palm, the Edible tree

9. Pelawan, a Naked tree

10. Kerosene tree with Petroleum Nut

Sambah River Cruise

Mangrove Forest

Udang Salai (Smoked Shrimps)

Sunset & Firefly

How to get there

1. Mount Nombuyukong (Gunung Nombuyukong)

2. Bat Cave (Gua Kelawar)

3. Misumpak Waterfall

4. Gambaliu, the Tallest Man in the World

5. Sigunting Graveyard

6. Deer Farm

Accommodation

Asrama Kanarom Hostel

Chalets

Camping

How to get there

Things to Note

Entrance Fee

Summary of Mt. Nombuyukong

The Climb

Start of Climb

Starting Point?Gazebo No.1

Gazebo No.1?Gazebo No.2

Gazebo No.2?Gazebo No.3

Gazebo No.3?Gazebo No.4

Gazebo No.4?Gazebo No.5

Gazebo No.5?Gazebo No.6

Gazebo No.6?Summit

The Summit

How to Climb