Have you ever seen an orangutan in the wild? Didn't think so. Our tour group was lucky enough to catch the rare sight of these elusive primates on the way to the camp we would be spending the next three days in. He was perch high in the tree top observing his domain, and he was massive. Borneo is one of only two places in the world you have the chance to witness this endangered species in it's natural habit. It was defiantly a highlight of the trip.
After being stranded on a train platform in the middle of nowhere for what seemed like forever, we missed the bus taking us on our next days excursion of diving. This came as a blessing in disuse as I was exhausted from the traveling and the day before activities. We explored the city of KK further, visiting the near by wet lands, the city's mosque and of course the local food establishments once again. It was nice to get a chance to relax before our three day jungle stay at Uncle Tan Wildlife Adventure.
The next morning saw another early start to another long journey across Sabah. This time on a coach, a nice coach with air conditioning, a toilet, that was for "only pee!", and even a movie to watch. The movie in question was not in English. Roughly five hours after leaving KK we had arrived at are destination, almost. Just a short half an hour walk down the road, in the sweltering heat, carrying all our luggage. With not much time to catch our breath we were off yet again, driving for about an hour, from the concrete paved roads of civilization to the bumpy dirt roads of the jungle. We arrived in a small village and made our way to the dock, or the closets thing the village had to a dock. It was pretty much just a ladder that run down a slope to where the boat was.
The boat ride felt wonderful, the refreshing cool air blowing in your face and only the occasional bug in your mouth. It was shortly in to this journey to the camp that we saw the glimpse of the orangutan. Just the first of many animals and birds we would see over the next few days.
The website described the accommodation as spartan, whatever that meant. Within a moment of arriving any questions I may have had been answered. A cabin with no doors no windows awaited us. No bed, just a mat on the floor with a mosquito net. Surprisingly there was a light, but the generator only ran from six PM to twelve AM. Next to the hanging sign that greeted us a spider sat menacingly. As the group approached it scurried away. It was so big, but what made it worse was how fast it was. The sound of the spider running up the wall was like the sound of nails taping on wood. The bathroom facilitates consisted of a real toilet but with a bucket of river water which you had to carry in with you as the flush. And the shower was not that dissimilar, a bucket of cold rain water. After dinner of the first evening the eight people on the tour made a group decision that no one would shower and we would all be in the same smelly boat.
The next morning we woke at six, and by now I had adjusted to the early mornings. Surprisingly I found sleep not impossible despite the constant sound of the 'what-what' frogs and the Bites that covered my body causing uncontrollable bouts of itching. In the city I had managed to avoid the mosquitoes bite but not out here in the jungle, the mosquito was king and I his whore.
The next two days we went on many trips up and down the river, exploring the rich and exotic flora and the fauna who inhabit it. we saw crocodiles, spiders and snakes. A family of otters was a surprise as I had no idea that they lived in this region. Countless birds, or a variety of colour and size, from tiny kingfishers to large eagles, we even saw our guide rescue one from a tangled fishing line.
There was so much to see and do crammed into such a short amount of time. I even went fishing for the first time in my entire life. I caught four fish in all, and while they may not have been the largest of fish, for a first attempt I was pretty please with myself. I felt a real scene of accomplishment as I sat down and ate my catch.
Love, hugs and damn these bugs!
Samuel James.
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