We”d always intended to climb Mt. Kinabalu, Malaysia’’s 4101m monster, but, as we worked our way across Borneo towards our destination, we began to hear increasingly frightening stories from our ever-informative ”fellow travellers”.

Altitude sickness was the biggest complaint - pounding headaches, a shortness of breath and, according to some, an almost complete physical shutdown (sounds like a relationship). However, given that we had ascended to a greater altitude before (during a visit to the old Tibetan border in China) and experienced only mild symptoms, we weren”t anticipating a huge problem with the height. That said, altitude sickness or not, we knew the climb would be grueling. It was going to be a steep two day 10 kilometer hike/climb to the summit, uphill 99% of the way, and we knew full well that many people don”t make it. Oh, and let’’s not forget, ”what goes up must come down”.

Day 1
After sorting out our climbing permits, insurance, acquiring a guide and getting a group together, we were ready to go.

I must say, the first 2 kilometers were tough. The trail was clear and walking was easy, but trying to convince your body that physical exertion is a good thing takes time. Indeed, in a matter of minutes after setting off, our lungs felt as though they were going to break free, our legs were protesting loudly and all of us, whether we cared to admit it or not, were seriously reconsidering our ability to complete the climb. However, thankfully, our bodies soon found their natural rhythm and, although it remained tough, the summit once again seemed achievable.

Shamefully, whilst us hapless tourists (carrying no more than 10kg) made our slow ascent, we were periodically overtaken by porters ferrying items in excess of 30kg up to the ”half-way house”. We saw these young men and women carrying gas cylinders, bricks, crates of Coca-Cola and all manner of items, either fastened to their backs or slung over their shoulder. Insane!

Things went fairly smoothly until the 5th kilometer, just 1km from the ”half-way house” and our bed for the night. The trail had become much more steep, the path rockier, the climate colder, the air a little thinner and, to compound it all, we were beginning to get tired. Yuki was taking it particularly hard at this point and was stopping for rests every 10 meters or so. The last kilometer took us over an hour - thanks Yuki!

The views from Laban Rata - the ”half-way house” that’’s not really half-way - are amazing. You are literally level with the clouds and the world below seems to small and remote. There is a price to pay for such scenery, however, and it should come as no surprise that the cost of food up there was through the roof! That said, having witnessed the amount of effort it takes to get stuff up the mountain in the first place, the prices are somewhat justifiable. As one rather homesick-looking receptionist told me, even the staff only get to go home once a month.

After eating a huge buffet dinner we went straight to bed, because at 2:30am the next day we were making the final 4km push for the summit. Unfortunately, thanks to altitude induced insomnia and Yuki’’s snoring, I didn”t sleep.

Day 2
At 2:30am, after a quick breakfast, we were all ready to leave. As was the case the previous day, the first kilometer or so was nightmarish but, this time, we were exhausted to begin with and the only source of light, other than the moon, were our tourches. The climb - and it was a climb - was far more challenging than it had been on the lower parts of the mountain. The trail disappeared completely and left us following a single white rope over a vast and barren granite landscape.

The rope was actually not very helpful as it was too low so, instead, we went all Spiderman and just clambered, meter by meter, kilometer by kilometer, towards the summit. Yuki was again finding it very tough and was kind of freaked out by the gradient of certain portions of the climb. Once or twice she insisted she couldn”t go on but, because I never listen to her anyway, and the fact going down would probably be just as hard in the dark, she continued.

We were nearing the summit when we realised that sunrise was only minutes away, so Yuki insisted that I go ahead to catch the moment whilst she continued with the guide. I summoned all my last energy and, I kid you not, ran and stumbled to the top, nearly dying from exhaustion on the way. Though I was impressed that I made it, it was actually all rather pointless as sunrise took longer to materialise than expected and, by the time it did, Yuki, in some type of Warner Bros. irony, had also made it to the top.

But anyway, WOW! What a view. You feel as though you”re on an island upon a sea of clouds. Amazing!

Oh, as I mentioned, ”what goes up must come down” and, true to the saying, step-by-step, we made our 10km journey back down to a world where the air’’s a little thicker, the climate a little warmer and the food a little cheaper.

Day 3
Arghh, my legs!!!

Categories: Featured Articles, South East Asia
Tags: features, Kota Kinabalu, Mt. Kinabalu