After applying the ritual layer of sunblock and repellent and filling our day packs, we set out to the lodge for breakfast sponsored by Brian's aunt and uncle (Marc and Karen Garfinkel)...thank you! We had omelets made to order with a side of Malaysian potato curry and fresh mango juice with a consistency more like a smoothie than juice. The birds were singing and bugs buzzing in the wall of rainforest that surrounded the dining room. A fine layer of mist was settled in the canopy and as the sun rose was just beginning to lift.
Leech socks on, we set out with Mitch, Mike and a few other guests on what would be our longest rainforest trek. We started our hike on an easy path that gradually became more and more difficult...the neat slats of wood lined with wire turned into a rugged rainforest trail of tangled roots, vines and layer upon layer of leaves and foliage. Mitch pointed out a large centipede and demonstrated how simply touching it would cause it to roll completely into a perfect black and yellow striped ball. When held, Mike counted each stripe (10). Mike spotted a rare fungus known as bridal mushroom and noted that the characteristic veil is usually only obvious shortly after a rainstorm. Brian spotted a large beetle perched and perfectly blended in with the tree bark...completely still despite all the photos being snapped around him.
We continued on as our trail seemed to go up and up and up some more. At one point I looked behind us and wondered where we had even come from...As the rainforest seemed to just fill in our tracks. Mike told us to stay together because it can become very disorienting if you are not on the same trail with the group...I can now see what he meant! He also warned us in his safety speech yesterday that someone had once gotten lost for 5 days because they had been following a butterfly...I couldn't help but laugh at the time but now I realize, it really isn't funny at all...
Our trail meandered up and turned along a large rock formation on the right...up to an area high on a hill known as "coffin point" with ancient "coffins" made out of wood. Mike explained that there used to be tribal people living here and that they have found human skulls etc in this region. He showed us some pieces of what looked like it could be bone/skull but I found it hard to believe that these were all just sitting here...? We continued farther up the hill, slipping on wet leaves and rocks hoping to see some monkeys...Mike started imitating monkey noises but they must not be hanging out here today. The sun was up now and even though we were protected from direct sunlight by the canopy, everything started heating up and the humidity was close to intolerable levels...
We headed back down a bit then started going back up an incline along a different path. This one proved a bit more difficult and steeper and had a rope strung up along the right side (thankfully) to assist. I was completely drenched in sweat at this point both from the heat and exertion. We stopped a few times along the way for water breaks but now the 3 bottles we brought definitely did not seem like enough for this trip! Finally we reached the summit and the viewing platform...from here we were perched atop the canopy of Danum Valley and could see nothing but rainforest from here on out. It was really quite impressive. The fog had mostly lifted and we had a pretty clear view. We could see the lodge down below. We all took some time to get photos before carefully going down the narrow and slick staircase back to the rainforest floor.
Continuing along and just about halfway through our trek I began to feel a little disappointed that we hadn't seen much wildlife yet when all of a sudden there was an orangutan and her baby! This baby looked to be much older than the one from yesterday. They were just hanging out high up in the tree tops and unlike the baby from yesterday, this one was kind of going off on her own around to nearby branches while her mother just kinda let her do whatever she wanted...including just dangling from her arms and peeing! Their arms were so long and hands and feet so large they curled almost completely around the branches. Orangutans have opposable thumbs just like humans. I used our new binoculars to get a closer look at them...I could really only get a good look at the mother whose face appeared sullen. I always thought they looked so unhappy at the zoo because they were in captivity but maybe this is just their general demeanor? Mitch told us that orangutans are solitary animals and besides mother/baby couplets when seen in the wild, usually they are alone. Orangutans have the longest birth interval of all mammals- as their babies stay with the mother for about 7 years before setting out on their own. We all huddled below to watch the pair snack on the fruits of the tree and occasionally sway from one tree to the next. In the scuttle below to get the best photo ops we found ourselves slipping off the trail and sliding down the incline, tripping over each other etc but we barely noticed as our necks were extended back as far as our range of motion would allow to not lose sight of these gentle giants. Their orange fur as was caught on camera almost appears as an aura around them...surprisingly the orange color really doesn't make them stand out as much as I thought it would...if they had been perfectly still we might have completely missed them.
We stood and watched them for what seemed like hours. It is just indescribable how cool it is to see these huge animals in the wild. It made me think of how traumatizing and scary it must feel for them to be captured and taken to live in captivity. Any time I have ever seen an orangutan at the zoo, they are always covering their face- at the San Diego zoo 2 of them had climbed halfway down a wall just above a murky moat that separated off their habitat and both were holding pieces of trash (food wrapper and a piece of newspaper) up to their faces...it seemed as though they were trying to escape the glass viewing window just above them where upwards of 50 people were gathered waiting for them to come into view. Right now, these orangutans were at least 30-40 feet above our heads. It occurred to me now how unnatural it must feel for these socially anxious mammals to be so close to each other and humans as they are forced to be at the zoo...
We continued on through the forest as they day seemed to get hotter and hotter until it felt simply sweltering. Brian and I joked as we hiked about how a weather forecaster might describe this: "Oh you'd like to know the temperature today? Rainforest. Humidity? Rainforest." That would basically sum it up!
The only thing that kept us going was the promise of ending the hike at the "jacuzzi pool" which is a natural pool at the base of a waterfall where there are lots of carp fish. The carp will nip at your body and eat off dead skin. Mitch explained that this has become a popular practice all throughout Malaysia in spas. We did see a spa at the central market in KK where you could sit on the edge of a fish tank and dip your feet in for 10 ringitts/hour. But Mitch says the fish here are much stronger and more "effective" than the ones they usually have at the spas.
Mike, who was leading the pack, had seemingly endless energy in this heat. At every fork in the road he would tease us,"this way to jacuzzi pool but first we go this other way"...ahhhh! He did bring us to see a few waterfalls that were quite beautiful..."Fairy Falls" which was very misty and sparkly in the sun. He explained that we were lucky for the rain as this waterfall is only here after rainstorms. Next was "Serpent Falls" which I am guessing was so named for it's twisty appearance. At some point from one falls to the other Brian tripped and fell while holding his camera with it's fish rye lens on and exposed. He was fine but we were both sure that the lens was ruined...fortunately not even a scratch. Finally, we were en route to jacuzzi pool...and it was finally in sight- the light at the end of the tunnel- my legs ready to give out under me from hiking so much when a leech firmly adhered it's slithering black gooey body to my forearm! I just about lost it. Brian tried feverishly to get it off my arm while continuously telling me to calm down...but in the end I ran to Mitch who expertly (and quickly) removed it- ugh what a relief. I didn't waste any time finding my sani-wipes and wiping my arm down immediately. As I did so, Brian went to the makeshift changing area to switch into his bathing suit when he came out of the stall in a panic...I couldn't help but smirk a little now that the tables had turned and he was fighting with his own leech ;)
I took my socks and shoes off (which felt wonderful) and stuck my feet in the surprisingly cool water. Brian just went right in...cautiously of course because of the rocks lining the bottom. He looked like he was enjoying it but then every so often would jump because the fish were nipping at him! I laughed at his exaggeration at first until I felt a fish nip at my foot and had the same startled reaction!
We reluctantly put our shoes back on to trek back to the lodge. We were so excited to see the cabins coming up...both just totally exhausted, dehydrated and craving a shower like you wouldn't believe. Before we even made it all the way back Mike was already talking about setting up a time for the afternoon trek but Brian and I looked at each other and just laughed...we were both thinking the same thing...there was no way we were doing anything else today!!! We cut away from the group early to detour directly to our room...the shower was amazing...I don't recall a shower ever in my life feeling so incredible. I didn't even mind that the water was no warmer than lukewarm, I could have stayed in there forever. We both laughed and joked about how we wouldn't care at all if we missed anything on the afternoon hike...not even an orangutan riding a rhino...because after closer to 6 hours of trekking through rainforest jungle, we were just totally spent...and for once, showers, lunch and a concept foreign to Brian called "relaxation" was all we could imagine doing...
- Posted from abroad using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Lahad Datu,Malaysia
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