Facing the fear

So a few days since I last wrote and a lot has happened. I've been staying in a couple of National Parks, so will try and fill in the gaps as best I can.

Kubah National Park, near Kuching, Sarawak, Borneo; Sunday 15th August 2010

On Sunday, I spent a lazy morning waiting on my lift out of Kuching. I went to Sarawak Women's Museum which sounds like a great idea in principle. It was quite boring though - just a lot of profiles of elite women. The third point in the write-up is 'husband's name and profession'!

When I got to Kubah NP I checked in to my dormitory jungle lodge to find out I was the only person staying the National Park that night!

I trekked the summit trail up to the highest point in the National Park (2,988ft, just shy of a Scottish munro, but I figure that the physicality of the trek puts it up there). It took me 1.5 hours up, 1 hour down. The view at the top was stunning; they have built a viewing platform above the tree canopy so there are great views around.

The heat was relentless and it was a real slog; thank god for cans of 100 plus! On the way down I got caught in one of the many rainstorms and this started the constant soakings I came to expect at least once a day.

Once down I made myself a frugal meal of noodles, fruit and biscuits (tasted delicious to me) and waited for the sun to go down before trekking up to the frog pond, home of up to 50 species of tree frogs (150 have been recorded in Borneo to date).

I was aware of all the sounds of the jungle; the honk of the hornbill somewhere in the distance, the wind through thick foliage, the crash of a brittle leaf falling to the forest floor. Quite atmospheric.

A strange barking begins around the lodge and I start to get freaked out. Everytime I move around the lodge it seems to follow me. I can't see anything in the half-light. I knew that if I could see the animal I would be less scared, but it remains hidden. I close all the curtains and my imagination runs riot. I try to be rational and tell myself that nothing can kill me in the jungle and I will trek up to see the frogs.

I leave at 7pm to walk thirty minutes to the pond. I feel strangely calmer when I'm outside again. I reach the pond and all is quiet to begin with, just the occasional chirrup. I circuit around the pond a few times shining my flashlight on the various tree leaves.

I spot my first frog in a tree about a metre away from me. It is tiny, irridescent green and maybe 5-10cm across, looking bewildered as the flashlight shines on it. As time passes and my searches become bolder, more frogs come into view. Some are literally at my eye level and huge!

After forty five minutes or so the sound is deafening; a cacophony of frogs calling deep into the night. I leave after one hour conscious that my flashlight is disturbing them.

I walk back down, no need for a torch as the moon is shining so brightly. Stars twinkle in the night sky bordered by the by the black silhouette of the canopy rainforest. I notice lights darting off to my left and right - fireflies; lighting up the sky like diamonds.

As I turn a corner I lose the moonlight and am enveloped by the dark night. The thirty minute walk down seems timeless, like I am suspended in the night.

In the distance I can see a light; I know it is my hostel.

I wander in and slowly begin to process my evening. Tonight has truly been one of life's marvels. And ironically people are paying 1,000s RM (malaysian currency) to stay in luxury resorts here and I have experienced all of the this for a few British pounds. Oh and the price of a pack of super-noodles.

Frog Encounter

A flashlight unfurls the coat of darkness
and it's golden beam reveals:
tiny eyes,
amphibious forms,
Green,
Black,
Red,
Brown
and stripes.
Suspended on a tree leaf,
or motionless on leaf litter,
Mouths opening in unison
to expel a mating cry.

Bako National Park, Monday 16th and Tuesday 17th August.
Today (Monday) I travelled Bako National Park to the north of Kuching. I awoke early having not slept on account of the strange barking in Kubah and banging around the lodge.

My pick-up arrives punctually at 8am and it takes about an hour to reach the gateway to Bako NP. From here you commandeer a boat (if you're a single traveller like me); otherwise it's all part of the package.

The twenty minute boat ride to the park is glorious. Although it has been raining incessantly since the early hours of the morning, the clouds and mist cast a beautiful light across the skyline. Looking south you see the imposing figure of Mount Santubong; the summit visible above a ring of cumulus clouds.

Arrival is a bit chaotic. There is one park attendant and everyone must register on arrival. You also have to decide which trail you are walking and enter it into a log book (all a bit pointless I think because if you get lost or injured in the jungle you probably are done for).

There are many daytrippers and most just hang around waiting to be told what to do. They are almost all dressed in standard issue plastic, yellow ponchos (perfect wildlife spotting attire), looking forlorn as the rain pours down.

I opt for the Tajor trek, through thick, steep jungle at the beginning before opening out into heathy, open forest, then moving to the coast.

After 3.5km you reach a waterfall, which is pretty average really. I trek on for a another 500m through thick jungle, cutting a trail as I go, before a steep descent to a beach at the northern end of the park. The beach is secluded, there is not a soul around, so I strip off (I forgot my swimwear) and go for a dip. Of course I have only been in ten minutes when three French people arrive!

It's a beautiful beach, mangrove sands as far as the eye can see, home to tiny burrowing crabs living in little pinholes. They rummage through the beach mud looking for edible detritus and leave little mud balls in their wake. A monitor lizard slinks around a rock and tries to steal my food. Otherwise all is peaceful.

I arrive back to my dorm room around 4pm totally exhausted. I shower whilst looking out to massive bearded pigs grubbing around on the grass. They are truly ridiculous looking and run on strange hooves that gives the impression they are balancing on stilettos. Naughty macaques are everywhere and if you are not careful they will whip the food right off your plate.

There is one eating place - a communal canteen where everyone gets together to eat food and drink beer. I have an interesting conversation with some Australians.

I go to bed at 9.30pm. There is no electricity, so no light and no fan. It is so hot you can scarcely breathe. I am woken abruptly around 3am when the fan and strip light suddenly come on all blazing at once. I was not impressed.

I get up at 6.30am to try to catch some proboscis monkeys on an early morning feed. Baby macaques are playing on the beach at high tide and bearded pigs chase one another across the grass. I take the Telok Delima trail and see nothing for 45 minutes or so and eventually I hear some crashing overhead and am rewarded with a view of a male proboscis monkey feeding. Proboscis monkeys are native only to Borneo. They have a huge nose and pot belly. They are known as 'Orang Belanda' in Malay which means 'Dutchmen'. I love that blatant bit of racism!

I do a number of treks over the course of the day. I have a stand-off with an adult male macaque on one of the trails - he goes for me with teeth bared, snarling. I was quite scared and unable to move forward until a group came along behind him and chased him off with sticks!

I climb up steep, trails with knarled roots underfoot to be faced with incredible coastal views at the top and shorter jungle trails with diverse botany.

At 4pm I wade out to meet my boat at high tide. Seven of us chug along and get back just in time to take the last bus home.

I am exhausted and reeling from all that I have seen. I feel and look feral. It's good for the soul.

Today I fly to Miri before heading to another National Park - Gulung Mulu tomorrow. It is home to the most extensive range of limestone caves in the world and the rainforest is 180 million years old!! Incredible.