mount kinabalu trip

From the 27th to the 30th of June, I went to climb Mount Kinabalu. It was indeed a wonderful experience. Mount Kinabalu is located at Sabah, the third largest island in the world. It is 4095.2m above sea level and it is mostly covered with rainforest which is rich in flora and fauna. When we arrived at Kota Kinabalu Airport, it was aready raining very heavily. Kevin told me that in such tropical countries, it is either rainy or really rainy seasons, which is from the month of November to February. Thankfully, a van was chartered for us so we need not get drenched that often. The driver drove us to Kinabalu Park which was located 1564m above sea level and I experienced a lot of ear popping as the car went up the high altitude. After registering to climb the mountain, I went to stay for the night at Mesilau Nature Resort while the rest of them stayed at Strawberry Garden Hotel.

In order to make the climb a good experience, I got myself a porter to carry my backpack while I placed my essential items in a scout bag. So I carried like only 2kg of weight instead of my 10kg backpack. The climb from Mesilau to Laban Rata, the mid point of the mountain was not really that cold. Hence I wore only 1 to 2 layers of clothing. As we chose the Mesilau route, which the x-trekker coordinator Alpa informed that it would be tougher but more scenic, we had a tough time climbing up to Laban Rata. Thankfully I wore trekking boots which helped cushioned my steps and the trekking poles helped reduced the strain on my knees, keep me in the right posture and provide me better balance on steep slopes. To prevent blisters, I wore toe socks. I also bought Mars bar and sneakers bar as they are energy food needed while climbing.

We started the night climb at 1.30am. I had to put on a thermal wear and a fleece jacket because it was getting really cold. The climb up from Laban Rata to the summit was tougher because it was much steeper and dangerous. A head lamp was essential as there was a trail where we need to grab on to the ropes as we walk the narrow and dangerous trail. The pathway was only about 1.5 metres wide and a slip can result in falling off the cliff. We were extra cautious until we reached to the 3/4 mark where a check point is located. The person manning the checkpoint will take our attendance to prove that we did indeed climb to the summit of Mount Kinabalu. At 5.30am, I reached the summit and I saw the sunrise with my very own eyes. I tried to take a picture of it but even my 12.0 mega pixel camera did not do justice to what i had seen. Indeed the eyes are still the best camera, designed by God. I wanted to experience the scenery at the summit of mount kinabalu, but it was overcrowded with people. Hence it was a mini spoiler for the trip.

God had been kind to us throughout the trip. He held back the weather while we were climbing from the Mesilau trail to the Summit and back to Laban Rata. It only started to rain heavily when we descended from Laban Rata to the Timpohon Gate. During this past 4 days, we had a wonderful time talking to one another. By the way, the people I went with are averaged 40 years of age and I, being the youngest there was constantly called Young Man. It was indeed a relieve climbing with them as they were constantly joking and offering me food. If I were to climb with people around my age, I would probably be stressed up by them. Hence, it was indeed a fun and awesome experience and I praise God for all of these. :)))