Our next step will lead us to Sungai Kinabatangan basin, which with its 560 km is the longest river in Sabah. Its banks conceal a wildlife sanctuary that draws one of the richest ecosystems on Earth, why he became one of the most attractive destinations in the area.
The independent travelers do not have it too easy to move because tour operators have exclusive rights to certain destinations. However, despite the scarcity of public transport and accommodation in short supply not connected to any agency, it is possible to organize for a few days in the river basin.
Before embarking the trip had exchanged some emails with the Sabah Tourism Office and although they confirm that there is a daily bus from Sandakan to Sukau, I am not clear or the schedule or stopping place.
Early in the morning, I call the Greenview Sukau B & B where we will spend the next two nights and I have talked to say that the driver of the bus and we will collect the Sepilok Jungle Resort between 1pm and 1: 30pm, thus avoiding having to go back to Sandakan.
At 12 we are ready but the 2 still has not arrived one and begin to fear that something is wrong. In the end it was all a misunderstanding and it may seem unusual happened the driver to pick us up but is he expected to find three girls and not so set off without us. Therefore not be used to infer that a woman who negotiated for accommodation or transport and as I left my name to reserve a triple room, they would think we were three girls. Oh dear! After a few phone calls at 3 in the afternoon we collected a van but while we fix the price leaves us far more expensive than we had expected. The only thing that matters now is to reach as soon as Sukau.
The trip is much faster than I thought and after just over two hours of travel miles and miles of monotonous palm oil plantations, we arrive at Greenview Sukau B & B .
The room is very basic and only has three beds, a fan and a small basin of hot water and even a sad piece of toilet paper. The B & B consists of the main house and some sheds adjoining rooms, as we have been awarded. In another building are the kitchen and dining room which is open facing the river and it also functions as a meeting place and information.
The B & B offers guides for each type of activity, good knowledge of the river and wildlife that inhabit it.
is estimated that over 20% of the forest has been logged since 2001, mostly illegally. The future of this forest of over a hundred million years old is highly threatened by oil palm plantations and the timber industry that have ravaged the upper reaches of the river with the consequent expulsion of many animals in their habitat. In 1999 about 27000 Hectares of the lower Kinabatangan basin were declared protected area and later also declared bird sanctuary and nature reserve so I like to believe that it has begun a good way.
The forests of the plains are developed in the area where the river touches the lowlands. Their common features are the lakes that form in the curves of rivers, forests in fresh water marshes and limestone hills.
Any time of year is good to visit the area, although the rainy season from October to March can be uncomfortable for the frequent floods, but in return is the best time for birdwatching.
Although it arrived later than expected and good rain is falling we intend to make the so-called "afternoon cruise." It has stopped raining and the light of heaven takes a special flair. The landscape is beautiful but the river, majestic, immense, imposing respect for not knowing what lies beneath their muddy and murky waters and the forest that surrounds it. At first I feel a certain distrust disappears as the boat is slipping on the water. Simple
wooden houses on stilts in contrast to some tourist lodges are spread along its banks.
is a good time to spot animals and begin to enjoy the moment. A rhythmic, deafening song tells us that we have about a hornbill, a bird sacred to some villages in Borneo and around a national symbol. Indeed, it is a rhinoceros hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros) endangered species that lives in the jungles and rain forests of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and Malay Peninsula. Seeing the look of the bird, easily guess why his name. Although it may seem, the natural color of its beak and its prominent horn is white, but due to constant friction with a gland that lies under the tail which exudes an orange liquid, these parts become stained such characteristics. We also see other type of hornbill, the so-called Oriental Pied (Anthracoceros albirostris) which while not as flashy as the previous one, makes a sound just as loud, almost as much as the male proboscis (Nasalis larvatus). In addition to several groups of primates see those ugly long-tailed macaques, silver monkeys, wild boars and various kinds of birds. We do not have the luck to find a pygmy elephant, but the guide points out the trail we left there they pass. Already getting dark and the boat turns around to return to the B & B. The guide tells you anything to the ferryman and it stops the motor. With binoculars we left in doubt: it is an orangutan building its nest on top of a tree for the night, a task that takes more than five minutes.
have dinner at 7 and it's time to share experiences and stories with people from different parts of the world. The desktop is short since we left at 8 in the boat again to participate the "night cruise." Although the goal is to see nocturnal animals gives me the feeling that what we get with the powerful source that uses the phone to illuminate the river bank and the branches of trees is to annoy every living creature trying to sleep. Perched birds, owls elegant, two small crocodiles that show their prominent eyes on the dark waters, several groups of proboscis monkeys now in absolute silence, a confused boar and little else apart from the fireflies that give a little color to black night. The accumulated fatigue of the day and relaxed for a few moments ago that I too fall asleep, do not have to wait too long for me fall into the ancient bed.
There is no time for boredom and come prepared to make every minute of everything that we want to show Sungai Kinabatangan. The alarm rings at 5:30 and 6 have a new start with the boat, this time known as the "dawn cruise." We've been waking up with the day and we enjoyed a beautiful sunrise. More birds, more proboscis and a large snake from the mangroves on our heads. We reached the lake horseshoe collar or beef (Oxbow lake), where sediments have closed the entry and departure of former meander left out of the riverbed, making it the habitation of freshwater fish and otters. It's been an interesting journey as we have entered into various tributaries of the Kinabatangan that were once used to transport the nests of swifts from the nearby Caves Gomantong would visit a little later.
After breakfast we take a leisurely stroll to the village of Sukau is located less than two miles from the B & B. As soon as we have come across a vehicle, four wheels either, if any motorcycle. Fluttering butterflies, roosters and hens with their chicks roam freely in the middle of the road, giving good shade trees, friendly people greeted us with a "hello" and a smile, a population that lives off the river offered. Life unfolds on its shores and even some sleep in their boats. Sukau is very small, although houses belong to people isolated from their surroundings. The houses, mostly wooden, are very simple and poor maintenance. Children who at that time in school, when they see us come running to go ask our names repeat with smiles trying without much success. A small cemetery, a small mosque, a small shop ... and everything here is a little less the river, of course.
About 10:30 am we go to pick up to visit Gomantong Caves. The car I drive a very young lad, if intuition serves me, I would say that is less than 18. not speak a word of English but have given instructions on where we have to follow.
to the caves is about 20 miles and the journey is fast. As in the Niah Caves in Sarawak to visit, here are collected swift nests and bat guano. From the offices of the park to the cave is a nice path that runs on a wooden walkway that you can do in just 20 minutes. As for fauna, we only see lizards, butterflies and monkeys. The cave itself is less than the Niah but here is plenty of raw material.
These caves, located on limestone hills around the lower Kinabatangan, made famous by the quantity of edible birds nests that house, whose collection is tightly controlled by a licensing system.
The walls are full of bats and the floor is covered with a thick layer of guano. We travel the cave in the direction of clockwise on a slippery wooden walkway. The smell is unbearable and one species of crickets invade everything orange. There are thousands and despite attempts to avoid them is inevitable with any subsequent step creek that ruffles the hair. A pair of rats cross in front of my feet ... and we do not see because of the lack of light inside.
Views become a Sukau caves and after lunch we have to make the final output by the river again "afternoon cruise." Proboscis see less than yesterday but it's raining and they are less active. In fact, during the rainy season when river levels are up significantly proboscis and few who enter into the jungle. Again the deafening hornbills and a playful pig-tailed macaques (pigtail macaques) keep us entertained for a while. The pinnacle has been seen again orangutans in total freedom. On this occasion have been two and we've been relatively close, a dream come true. We are left with the desire to see a pygmy elephant but the Kinabatangan river has given us more than we expected.
The last activity is a night walk "night walk". Accompanied by an expert guide on birds we have to find different species that live a bit further away from the river bed, especially brightly colored birds and a scorpion.
Turn to get up early because at 6:30 in the morning we will pick up the bus to Sandakan. Here the day starts very early and we'll have breakfast ready. At that time, children from surrounding villages and walk to school well groomed and neat.
bus arrives, which is actually a seven-seater van. We took our seats and we said goodbye to the staff of the B & B while I run a last look at the great Kinabatangan.
This wetland area around the lower Kinabatangan contains aquatic and terrestrial habitats to help regulate the amount and quality of water and to maintain ecosystem functions, creating a sanctuary fauna and flora rich and diverse.
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