Sabah 2004

Arrival

We arrived at the Kota Kinabalu International Airport at noon on 22th Feb 2004.  On arrival we already saw a Malyasian dressing in yellow holding a board with our names written on it.  We had bought a package which cost $3100 HK dollors each person from 學聯. It included a return flight and 3 nights hotel Ocean Villa in Nexus Resort.   We got some RM from the exchange agent just at the entrance and then got on to a 6 person van to Nexus Resort. It took about half hour to Nexus. It was quite a long way.

Nexus Resort

Here was the lobby Click here

There were a few 5 stars hotel in Koto Kinabalu, they include Shangri-La's Rasa Ria Resort, Shangri-La's Tanjung Aru Resort ( it was midway between the airport and KK, tooks only a few minute to KK), Nexus Resort Karambunai ( 30-40 minutes travel from KK, but it had a 6 km long beach, and a beautiful Lagoon Park) and also Sutera Harbor Resort & Spa.

There were roughly three kinds of rooms in Nexus. The Ocean Villa has a good view on the beach and the grassland.  The Borneo Villa was like an apartment with a big balcony open to the floor, but they may not face the South China Sea. And the last one was for the people like President.

We lived in the third floor of Ocean Villa, a few trees obscured our view over the beach, but it was already quite scenic. It had a balcony where you can sit down to have a drink seeing the dawn, the sunset and aslo counting stars on the sky.

I think the view  in the upper floor will be better.

Nexus was feeling like an old age home. There were many white people, most of them were around 50-60s, some may even sit on a wheelchair. They were very relaxing, reading their books or burning their skin the whole afternoon.  For us HongKongers, may think it was just ruining our holidays. We are used to plan our journey packed with one activity followed by another.

Here were some picture showing the swimming pools, one of the restaurants aside the beach,  grassland, seashore and of course the beautiful sunset Pic 1 & 2 on the beach. 

Eating in Nexus did not have much choice, they were mainly buffet, quite good. Price ranged from RM 35 to 55. Nexus was really quite big and we had a whole day walking around and swimming. It think it is a good idea to bring your children there and have some joyful gathering.

The Largoon Park

The next day we went to the Largoon Park which was just 5 minutes from the hotel, and our package had included some activities for us. First we drove on a motorboat and had a wonderful trip to see the mangrove. I thought we had used about 45 minutes. It was much bigger then that in Hong Kong. There were some houses built on the sea1 & 2 where the Philippines live. Children saw us were shouting and waving their hands. Some are even naked. We also saw some wood inserted into the sea water, they were used to grow oyster.

The boat driver also took us very near to the mangrove and picked some mangrove fruit for us. He also threw some cages into the sea. When we were on the way back, he pulled those cages up and each of it caught a crab.

Then we got a seat to have some painting and then we play banana. The boat drove very far and was just near the end of the beach, a fantastic view.

Finally we had kayak for 45 minutes. We got the little kayak onto a beach and have a rest there. There were some locals playing around. Water was very clear, and the send is really smooth.

People in Sabah speak quite a number of language, the Malay, Cantonese, Mandarin, English and some dialects. Most of them know a bit English. Communication will not be a problem.

Here is a picture from one of the port for fish boat, again the sunset.

Weather there was very good with blue sky and bright sunlight, so we always got very good view during sunset.

The Island

The third day we went to the Island with coral reefs - the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park.

The marine park is a cluster of five islands - Pulau Gaya, Pulau Sapi, Pulau Manukan, Pulau Mamutik and Pulau Sulug about 20 minutes speed- boat ride from the city. All are popular destinations to relax and picnic, snorkel, and scuba dive. Sea walking on the seabed is available off Sabah Parks Base Camp Jetty on Pulau Gaya. The largest of the islands, at 140 ha, Pulau Gaya is partly private owned and there is a lovely resort of chalets-above the sea, the Gayana Resort. Manukan is the second largest island, it has accommodation and restaurant facilities.

Boats to the Islands: visitors to the islands are advised to utilize only licensed boats form KK Jetty Terminal, located at the Sabah Port , next to the Royal Customs Office; and licensed operators at the Sutera Harbor Marina and the Marina at Shangri-La's Tanjung aru Resort.

The Counter selling tickets in the terminals are run by a few people. Boats to the islands are not regular, you have to wait for at least 6 people going to the same island before a boat leaves the port.  The fees is about RM 15 to 25, depends on which island you go.

Many people went to Sapi, less to Manukan where most of the tour groups went.

We went to Sapi first and then to Manukan on the 2nd last day of our trip.

Sapi was a rather small island with 2 beaches. One was mainly for snorkeling and the beach was larger. The other was for swimming only. You can feed the fish just standing at the seashore. Of course the fish near the seashore were smaller, but there were plenty of them. The coral reefs was not such an attractive one, or may be we hadn't swim very far off shore. I could't see much variety of fishes as I thought.

Here are some beautiful picture 1, 2, 3.

Once you enter the Island you have to pay an entrance fee RM 10 for each person. You can hire the life jackets, the snorkeling tools, blankets and some others at the entrance, also RM 10 each. So you need not to hire them from the boat driver who may play some tricks sometimes.

There were nothing to eat except some drinks and ice-cream, so you have to bring your lunch. And don't forget to bring some bread to feed the fishes.

The Mt. Kinabalu

Then the next day we began our hard journey- the Mt Kinabalu

The Kinabalu park covers a staggering area of 754sq.km. Translated, it is bigger then Singapore.  Established as a state park in 1964, this botanical paradise is blessed with an astonishing variety of flora and fauna that ranges over 4 climate zones, from the rich lowland dipterocarp forest through the mountain oak, rhododendromand coniferous forests , to the alpine meadow plants. And stunted bushes of the summit zone.

We went by hiring a taxi RM 130, which was quite expensive, because it was through the hotel agent. The taxi driver was a Chinese and he had stopped in a place where we could clearly see the Mt Kinabalu at distance, we had taken a photo. 

The car went on to drive towards the Kinabalu Park Headquarters, situated on the southern boundary, at an elevation of 1563m. Most of the Parks modern facilities are located there, from visitors' accommodations, restaurants and exhibit centres, to the Parks offices where overnight visitors and climbers must register.

There are  different kinds of accommodations ranging from dometry to double room, even double room have two class, we lived in the cheaper twin cabin but it was already very nice, it cost about RM 100 for one night.

For accommodation, one have to make  reservations with the Kinabalu Nature Resorts. Call early and ensure your reservations are confirmed as accommodation facitilties are usually fully booked during the peak climbing periods. 

website: www.KinabaluNatureResorts.com

There was an entrance fee to the Park about RM15 for each person.

We walked for about 10 minutes after registered in the office and arrive to our twin cabin. It was quite nice. The Electricity supply there was withstand  from 1pm to 6 pm. and then from 1 am to 6 am. One important point was not to open the window even the door should be shut once after you got into the house, because there were many insects and especially mosquitoes. The mosquitoes there were a bit stupid, it was very easy for us to catch them as their response was very slow.

There are numerous trails around Kinabalu Park. So you can grab a map and set off on your own or follow Park Naturalists as they take you on guided trail walks and point out the various wonders.

We had not walked through the trial because we needed to leave our energy to the next day, which as we expected was very hard. We just took a walk around the headquarter, the view there was quite special. The mist comes and goes. If you don't like climbing, I think it is still worthy to stay one night there, walking around, seeing the dawn and sunset.

In the Mountainous region, the weather will change without warning, from sunshine, to mist and cloud to torrential freezing. Therefore we used the time left to pack our things with some plastics bags. We also prepared raincoat and a spare set of cloths for ourselves if we were wet by the rain.

Start Climbing

The next day we woke up at 6:00 am and took a breastfast at 6:30. When we walked out of our room we saw the beautiful dawn. Then we met our guide in the Park Office. You can book your guide on the day you arrive at the headquarter through the office, you may group with other people to hire one guide. But be aware that if the speed among the group members is different, the guide will only take care the last.  We didn't join other group, so just one guide for two of us. We also hire a porter to carry bags for us. Most of the white people and Malaysian carry their own bags, they were afraid of being look down by others if they hire a porter. However, walking up the hill with a heavy bag will make you much more exhausted.

There are also a no of fees you need to pay before you can climb the mountain, click here to look for it

You may wonder why we carried so much things up the mountain. It was because the temperature can falls below zero up the mountain. If you plan to get to the summit, you need  thick thick clothes. Aslo we needed to took a bottle of water, because there were just some untreated water for refill in the shelters until we reached the resthouse where we will stay for one night. And we also bring some biscuits and chocolates to recharge ourselves.

There are 2 trails up Mt. Kinabalu and both meet at Layang-layang. The Mesilau Trail was just recently opened and offers more opportunities for view flora and fauna.  The Summit Trail is the main route taken by most climbers and it is a simpler and shorter approach.  We took the Summit Trail.

The trail winds up a steep staircase of gnarled tree-roots to a mossy world of drifting clouds Pic 1, 2  and orchid-draped tress, where pitcher plants and rhodondendrons abound. We came upon the first shelter at 1981.7m. where  on a clear day , a view of the road that links Kota Kinabalu city to the Park can be seen. The Second Shelter at 2.081.4m was the point of entry to the zone of Low's Pitcher Plant. We had saw a few. Some were small about a few centimeters large, the large ones were as large as a bottle. There were a total of six shelters. The first 4 Km was quite easy, just felt hiking in Hong Kong. Then the last 2 km was really difficult. The steps were steep and each step was tall. We felt short of breath when we reached the last 0.5km. It was very interesting. Your legs wasn't very tired, but you just can't breath. It was probably caused by the low oxygen content there. 

Laban Rata

Then we reached the Laban Rata resthouse where we stayed a night before continuing the climb the next morning. There were a few rest houses up the hill some a bit higher up and some lower. But only the Laban Rata resthouse has heater and the cafe. Laban Rata was a dome, so you need to share room with other. We lived in a four person room quite nit and tidy.

You must book rest house well before you arrive at Sabah to ensure a heated room. You can apply aslo in www.KinabaluNatureResorts.com.  You can confirm your booking when you arrive in KK in their office located in Wisma Sabah.  If you have any query about travel, you can also ask them.

We took a big lunch in the cafe, finished the whole plate of fried rice. Then we felt a bit fussy, with the stomach bloating. I though it was due to the high mountain effect. Eating was a heavy load to our body. We then felt palpitations and SOB again. I lay on my bed, very uncomfortable with a tense headache. We slept until 6:00pm. I got up and went to the washroom which was just next to us. Even such a short distance I felt SOB and my heart beating up to 120bpm. We have no appetite for our dinner.

Sunset in Laban Rata

Six was a good time to enjoy the view of sunset ( pic. 1. 2. 3. ) at Laban balcony. We were very fortune, because of the good weather, the sunset was extraordinary graceful. (The BackGround was one of the photo we took)

I slept until 8:30am and they came back. Here was the picture of the dawn at Low's peak 4095.2m , the Summit of Mt.  Kinabalu.  They claimed that all the way was steep inclination and you need to hold a rope to guide you up. Ivan reached the top at 4:30 am and waited their until 6:00 when the sun came. It was very cold up there. He said it was just above zero degree and was very windy indeed.

We started our down hill course at 9:00. Many of the people might think that down hill was much more easy. If you think so as some of the white did, you will regret. It was very tedious, on the last 1 km trail, I really felt I couldn't move my legs. Therefore we had not take any picture. ( no mood ma).  We reached the Park Office at 2:00pm.

Back to KK

We took a taxi back to KK , only cost RM 50 after bargaining. We slept for an hour on the bus and we reached our hostel in KK The Pantai Inn. It was quite cheap only RM 65 for one double room. We thought it was a new inn as the decorations were very new and fresh. It was own by a Chinese family, aside it was its restaurants. Menu there had picture and it was easy to order.

Along the street of our Inn located were some local restaurants. There were some delicious sadat cost RM 0.4 each only.  Then just a minute, there was a lane where people sing and dance at night. Many travelers gathered there and cheers until very late.

We went to the night market to buy a shirt with Mt Kinabalu and then went to The Evening Food Stall near the Jl. Sapuloh.  Seafood there were very expensive and not very well prepared, though quite fresh. 

We have try our best chance to see the dawn and sunset in Sabah, because one can't see them in Hong Kong.

Manukan

The 2nd last day, we went to Manukan. It was much bigger then Sapi. Once we arrived the port, we saw numerous fish in the blue shallow sea. They were very big.  There were a numbers of blocks  with different facilities. The beach was very long. The tour groups occupied most of the sparse land except the beach for their lunch and ma jog. It was difficult to understand why they enjoy noise rather then the peaceful beach.

We mostly lie on the sand, enyoying the nature bearing our muscle ache. Snorkeling in Manlukan was much more funny then in Sapi. You can go to the tip of the beach as was in my picture, then you look at the sea, take note of the darker area, then jump and go for it. It was just a few meters from the shore. Lots and lots of colorful fishes with lively coral reef, unimaginable.

By ATIRW

04年3月去了 kk 和神山,資料供各位參考:
1.KK->神山,最好坐的士,因為真的很遠,去程花了RM130,但回來時講價講到RM50! (開衡都要個半鐘,去程需時更多,因為上山!)
2.住了幾天nexus resort,雖有很多野送(如1/2hr massage, horse riding, water sport..),但它與kk city相距很遠(車程坐底半粒鐘!),有shuttle bus,但每天只有5,6班(09:30-19:30),很不方便. 不過,如果閣下只打算在酒店裡玩,也不為一個好地方. 強烈推介Lagoon Park, 坐小船四圍看,玩下kayak,都幾好玩.由於只包早?#44;又局住你係酒店食lunch and dinner, dinner buffet 約百幾港紙,故戴定張Credit card!
3.外島,我去了Sapi 和 Manukan. 推介後者! 如果去sapi, 記得戴d食物. 碼頭搬了(不是lonely planet 2001Ed 所說的位置),check it before go.
4.如你不是要求很高,可以試下我地住過的 Pantai Inn (KK市中心), 雙人間獨立廁所RM70, 可以用credit card. 近Mandarin hotel, 勝在近大街,方便.
5.如星期日,不妨去Gaya street(Sunday market), 在pantai inn 後面,幾好feel呀! 那裡有很多華人開的"茶餐廳",平! 我地叫左兩碗面,兩杯拉茶, 都只係RM1.8(不可想像)(不過,總的來說, 沙巴的東西都稍貴!)
6.神山,我上到最頂,很美!(不過,日出還不及poon hill 的好!) 由kinabalu park(08:00) 上到 Laban Rata Resthouse (14:00), 路是好行,如麥徑.最辛苦是高山反應,約到3000m就會出現. 故此要計畫在臨到 laban rata 前放慢步伐. 此外,到了resthouse, 不要狂食, 我地就係"賴"野.
7.零時兩點出發上頂,用頭燈好d, 記得戴強力風衣, 真係好寒(可能只有幾度),又大風,衰在要等日出,我04:45到頂,06:00先日出,故好好準備吧. 為免塞"人",最好在02:30前出發.
8.最甘....不要少看落山,我覺得係最辛苦,戴兩枝stick好d.
good luck!

by IVAN

NOTE : The Time Schedule and Cost May Change Anytime, I just quote my reference.

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