Visited: Aug 13-20, 2024
Introduction to Mulu National Park
We left the modern comforts of Kuching to head to the remote Gunung Mulu National Park. Mulu is an area with spectacular biodiversity and geological history. The Park is home to many endemic species, including some that are only found within specific pockets of the Park. There are also many caves in Mulu, including a massive underground cave that has so far has been mapped up to 270km; and is still being explored and mapped. There is a lot to do and see in Mulu.
We were initially drawn to Mulu by the Pinnacles hike. The Pinnacles hike is widely described as a very steep and difficult 2.4-kim hike to see sharp, jagged dark limestone rocks jutting into the sky. This hike must be done with a park guide, and therefore must be booked in advance. There are multiple timed checkpoints along the hike, and if you are unable to reach a checkpoint within the allotted time, you are not allowed to continue the hike (see the pic of the route map).
I read many blogs of people’s experiences where they described it as one of the most difficult hikes they had ever done. It is a short, but very steep climb up with no breaks. The final stretch to top requires climbing seventeen ladders affixed to the mountain. I was so intrigued by the combination of the unique views and the challenging hike that I really wanted to try it even if I wasn’t sure I’d be able to complete the hike. The trek was fully booked on the dates we wanted to do it, so we had to cut our time in Kuching short and go to Mulu earlier.
Mulu is so remote that flying is the only way to get to Mulu. You cannot drive there. The one daily flight from Kuching to Mulu was sold out, so we flew from Kuching to Miri, and then to Mulu. Both were very short flights. We arrived in Mulu around 2pm and the extreme heat and humidity welcomed us as we exited the airplane. We immediately checked into our homestay for the night. Our homestay was clean but very basic, like all the accommodations in Mulu, aside from the fancy Marriott resort (but that wasn’t in our budget). There was no wifi, no air-conditioning, and no breeze making for a miserable afternoon sweating and lying on the bed in front of one tiny fan. There are no indoor cafes or restaurants with AC either. This first day was just a taste of the week to come.
It was much cooler in the evening, so we finally took a short walk down the road to the park entrance and ate dinner at a nearby restaurant. The menu was limited to fried noodles, fried rice, and fried chicken. The food was fine but nothing to be excited about. There are only four restaurants in Mulu village and we ate all of them (besides at the Marriott) during our stay and they all have essentially the same menu and foods. So, I won’t talk much about the food we ate at Mulu. Here is a sampling of the food we ate for the week.
After dinner, we got ready for the big 3 day, 2 night Pinnacles adventure. We carefully packed our daypacks with what we would need. We would leave our big backpacks at the guesthouse. It was storming heavily outside, and the guesthouse lost power, so we went to bed in the heat listening to the thunder and pouring rain with no fan. Luckily, we both managed to sleep some.
Pinnacles Day 1: Heading to Camp 5
The next morning, our guide, Ronaldo, picked us up from our Homestay around 10am to start the Pinnacles trek. Hiking the Pinnacles is a 3 day, 2 night ordeal. On day 1, you hike to Camp 5 in the Park and spend the night. Day 2, you get up around 5am to do the Pinnacles hike and return to Camp 5 to spend one more night. Day 3, you return to the park headquarters. We had to book the trek through a third-party tour operator because the Park said their tour was full. We ended up unintentionally getting a private guide as we were the only two in the group.
We quickly registered at the Park headquarters to obtain our entrance wristbands and then got on a small long boat to head to Camp 5. It was about an hour ride on the river to a trail to Camp 5. It was a very peaceful and scenic ride. We were the only boat on the water for long stretches and it felt so serene and beautiful to be alone in the lush, green rainforest.
From the trailhead, it was a 9-km hike to Camp 5. Ronaldo told us to go ahead as he would look for wild ferns for us to eat. But we did not see him until we reached Camp 5. The walk to Camp 5 was flat and easy and we reached the camp in under three hours by 2pm. We were quite hungry by the time we arrived, so we ate the fried rice lunch that Ronaldo had given us in the morning. A benefit of a private tour (booked with private tour company) is that your guide provides and cooks all of your meals over the 3 days. Had we booked directly with the Park, we would have had to bring all of our own food.
Camp 5 was basic, but still much nicer than I expected for being so remote. There was a nice kitchen and dining area, a bathroom with plumbing, and working lights. The camp is located along a beautiful clear river that is the perfect watering hole to cool off during the scorching day. There are open sleeping quarters that are reminiscent of Korean army barracks where everyone sleeps on mats next to each other on a platform. We were lucky to be assigned a section with no one else, providing a modicum of privacy for the first night.
We had the rest of the day to hang out at the camp. We rested, swam in the river, and watched as hikers returned from the Pinnacles hike throughout the afternoon. Many of them looked completely exhausted. I grew anxious, wondering if I would be able to complete the trek. I had already convinced myself that there was a good chance I would not and that I would be OK if I had to turn around.
The only negative of Camp 5 was that there were so many bees everywhere as it was flowering season. The bees loved sweat and with how hot and humid it was, human sweat was in plentiful supply. In fact, the first instruction we received when we arrived at Camp 5 was to go take a shower so as to not attract bees. There were sweaty clothes hanging everywhere and it was unbelievable how many bees would swarm certain items of clothing – clearly they had preferences for certain people’s sweat!
Our guide Ronaldo cooked us dinner which was surprisingly very tasty. While most of the others were busy cooking or eating simple foods, it was nice to just sit and be served a full hot meal.
Pinnacles Day 2: Hiking the Pinnacles
On Day 2, we woke up early at 5:30am to get ready for the big day. Ronaldo served us breakfast at 5:45am and we were off by 6:30am before sunrise. There were only three hiking groups, so the guides decided we should all hike together. It was still dark for the first hour, so we had to hike using our head lamps.
Just as I had read online, it truly was an endless steep uphill of big steps rather than a steady smooth incline. I was quickly using all fours to scramble up tree roots and rocks. Even in the early morning, it was so humid that all my clothes were quickly drenched. However, to my pleasant surprise, despite the sweatiness, I did not find the climb tiring. I found myself able to quickly climb up without difficulty. The 8-day trek in the Alay mountains had prepared me very well for this hike.
We reached our first checkpoint, called the mini pinnacles at the 900m mark, in about 40 minutes. This was great as the time limit for this first stretch is 60 min. We took a short water break, and I was feeling great. Unfortunately, Nate was not feeling nor looking so good. He had a worsening sore throat and was feeling weak. The guides told us that this was the point of return – at this first checkpoint, anyone who wanted to, could turn back and return to Camp 5 alone. Past this point, no one would be allowed to turn back alone; they could go back only in pairs. Worried, I told Nate to not push it, and to call it quits if he wasn’t feeling good. He had been struggling with stomach issues for two weeks prior, so it was not a surprise to me that he could be feeling ill as a result of that. But being the competitive person he is, he insisted that he could still complete the hike.
So, we all continued upwards to checkpoint 2. I was still feeling great. Unfortunately, Nate continued to feel worse and decided that he should not continue further. We were worried that I would have to also turn back in order for Nate to return to Camp 5. But fortunately, our guide agreed to make an exception and let Nate go back alone. I felt bad not going with him, but we had traveled so far and even changed our schedules to be able to do this hike. At least one of us needed to make it to the top. So, I continued alone.
The remainder of the hike was also not too bad. I climbed the second half with another guide and group (Italian friends and a Malaysian couple) and never saw my guide who proved to be elusive and not much of a guide. I did have to be careful because the rocks were still a bit wet from the night before and many of the rocks were very sharp. I knew that it would be very easy to cut or stab myself if I slipped or fell. But I made it to checkpoint 3, the start of the ladders, in under an hour with ease. There are a series of 17 ladders and grates to reach the top. Being afraid of heights, I was most nervous about this section as I had read that some of the ladders can be dizzying. I just focused on my next step all the way to the top and found it easier than expected.
When I finally made it to the top, the sight of the Pinnacles took my breath away. The sudden protrusion of the black, jagged rocks in the sky was amazing. Unfortunately, I only had about one minute of clear views before the clouds quickly shifted to envelope the Pinnacles in a dense fog. All of us at the top all groaned, bemoaning our bad timing. I sat on a rock and ate my packed fried rice lunch while waiting and hoping for the view to clear up. Even after fifteen minutes or so, the clouds were not letting up.
My guide, Ronaldo, eventually arrived and a few minutes later, he and the other guide insisted that we start our descent. It felt like much too short a time at the summit after the considerable climb. So, I lingered even after the Italians started their descent. Luckily, the Malaysian couple reached the top right as I was about to start my descent which bought me more time at the top. I waited with them and I am so glad I did because after a few minutes, the clouds cleared up and I got another clear view of the Pinnacles!
I had extended my stay at the top for close to fifteen minutes and the guides were getting increasingly impatient, so I finally agreed to start going down. Their reasoning was that it may start raining and they wanted us to get down before the rain started. I understood that, but it was a little annoying to see that the third group was just getting to the top as I was going down. They were almost an hour behind us, but still allowed to summit and take their time at the top. If they were allowed to still be at the top, I feel like I should have also been allowed more time at the top. But oh well.
On the descent, my guide again told me to go ahead. Up until this point, I hadn’t minded too much that he did not actually act as a guide. However, on the descent, it annoyed me. I thought he was right behind me, but it was soon clear that I was hiking all alone. The Italians were far ahead of me and my guide was nowhere to be seen. I steadily made my way down, but going down was much harder than going up. I was never scared, but I couldn’t help but think that if I were to slip and fall and roll off the trail, it could be an unknown amount of time for someone to find me, if at all. For all the repeated talk about safety measures (no one turn back alone) and the dangers of the hike from the guides, it seemed like a serious problem to have me hike down alone.
I went down very slowly and eventually the Malaysian couple caught up with me (also guide-less) and we eventually ran into the Italians at checkpoint 2. We all joked about where the guides were and eventually continued on our way back to the camp. Because we all hike at different speeds, I found myself hiking alone again for most the remaining way down. I had a few near slips but was always caught myself and never fell.
I returned to Camp 5 by 2pm. I was more drenched in sweat than I had ever been in my life – I truly did not know I was capable of sweating so much. I quickly finished the rest of my lunch and then immediately jumped into the river to cool off. It was so refreshing. Unfortunately, Nate was slightly feverish and feeling unwell. I was so glad that he did not push to finish the climb. We did very little for the rest of the day.
Day 3: Returning to Mulu Village
Day 3 was Day 1 in reverse. We left Camp 5 around 8 am, hiking 9km to the river and then taking the long boat back. Ronaldo was nice enough to take us directly to our second homestay, Mulu Village Homestay, instead of the park headquarters. Nate was a trooper as was able to make it trek back without too much trouble. The Homestay was very simple with no AC or WiFi. But it was located next to the fancy Marriott Resort. Our hosts gave us the Marriott WiFi password so we were able to use their WiFi by going to the lobby. We did absolutely nothing but nap and lounge in the Marriott lobby for the rest of day 3.
Four Days Exploring the Rest of Mulu National Park
We spent four more days at the Mulu Village Homestay to explore the rest of the Park. Nate was still recovering so I did half of the activities myself. I did two half-day cave tours (including watching a bat cave exodus), a night-walk, tree canopy walk, and some self-guided trails.
Not wanting to miss out on anything, Nate insisted he was well enough to go on our first cave tour to Deer and Lang Cave. Deer Cave is famous for being home to millions of bats. Every night, people flock to watch a bat exodus of up to two million bats. The Deer Cave was massive and we could see black swathes on the ceiling that were roosting bats. There are so many bats that the ground is covered in black droppings that are bat poop. We also visited Lang Cave next door which is much smaller than Deer Cave. There were beautiful rock formations throughout. Unfortunately, cave pictures do not come out
After visiting these two caves, we waited outside until sundown to watch the bat exodus. Unfortunately, that night, there was no big exodus. We did see groups of bats fly out and around together, but it wasn’t the massive stream of black.
The second cave tour the next day was of Wind and Clearwater Caves. Having already seen two caves, Nate thankfully decided to not join this one and instead sleep in. Clearwater Cave is an incredibly long underground cave with a river. The cave is still being explored and mapped. The highlight of this tour was going for a swim in a very clear natural pool outside of Clearwater Cave. It was very refreshing to jump in after climbing many steps to explore these caves.
That evening, Nate and I went back to the National Park to join a night tour. With our headlamps, we went on a two-hour walk with a guide to see what critters we could find at night. Though we didn’t see any mammals, we saw plenty of bugs, insects, reptiles and amphibians. My personal favorites were the various walking stick insects, tarantula, and a viper snake.
On our last full day at Mulu, Nate rested while I went to explore some trails on my own during the day. Unfortunately, it was way too hot to enjoy. I was only able to complete part of a trail before waiting in the shaded meeting area for my canopy walking tour at 11:30am. I walked on suspended bridges between trees at the canopy level. I was unable to see any birds or animals because it was already too hot and late in the day; but it was still a very fun and cool experience to walk around high among the trees. This was the last activity I did in the national park.
The next day, we said goodbye to Mulu and left for Sandakan. As wonderful as Mulu was, we were ready to leave and return to modern amenities and most importantly, AC and wifi.
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