Climbing Mt Kinabalu

Hello everyone,

This post covers climbing Mt Kinabalu for the last two days. 

DAY ONE - Tuesday 2nd July

After a buffet breakfast, a bus dropped us at the Timpohan Gate, 1866m above sea level. Here we met our guides, took a group photo and had a look at some information about Mt Kinabalu. On Mt Kinabalu, there are 351 species of birds. Forty five of these are endemic to the mountain. There are many reptiles, insects, flowers (including nine species of rhododendrons endemic to the mountain) and much more. It’s a very diverse place in terms of ecosystems and flora and fauna. As well, the area is home to the world’s largest mosses, and apparently the mountain hosts 608 species of fern which is more than in all of Africa!

Then it was time to set off. It was really interesting as the day progressed seeing the landscape and plants change with the altitude. The first section was quite dry and I think it could have easily been hot. We were lucky that it wasn’t too bad. 

Every 500m there was a marker telling us how far we had walked and how high up we were. With every one we saw, it was that motivation to keep going. 

We stopped for lunch after 4km, and by this stage Mum and I were in the front group with a few other people. I was worried I wouldn’t be fit enough for the 10km run a few weeks ago and I smashed that out, and I was worried I wouldn’t be fit enough for this and we smashed it too. I don’t give myself enough credit for how much exercise I do at home I think. What really made a big difference for me today I think is the fact I swim laps every week. It’s worked wonders for my breathing and I hardly felt out of breath at all until we reached the 3000m above sea level mark. 

Lunch was a packed bag from the breakfast buffet, and once we had eaten it (much to the nearby squirrels’ dismay) we headed off again. At this point, Mum and I actually set off ahead of the front guide. We weren’t racing up or anything, but we both wanted to hike at our pace. It worked well as we shared lollies and water and stopped when we wanted to. We were pretty lucky too as it only rained a little bit, and our waterproof jackets for us and our bags did their jobs properly. 

The second half of the day we were treated to a more alpine meadow type landscape, and when the cloud blew through we saw some pretty dramatic views. 

Eventually we could see our rest house ahead of us on the mountain, and at 2.40pm we were the first people from our group to arrive. Sam arrived soon after us, which was pretty amazing considering we were three out of the four people who didn’t get a porter and carried all our own things. I’m feeling pretty proud about that!!

Just as well we arrived early, because at about 3.15pm it absolutely bucketed down rain for ages. By this stage about 2/3 of the group was back, but the remaining third unfortunately got saturated. But at least we all made it - a great achievement in itself :)

Our hostel is really nice. On the Inca Trail, we camped with toilets that were holes in the ground and freezing showers in very dirty sheds. Here we have a 12 bed dorm for the women on our trip, each with a comfy bed complete with towel, pillow and doona. Sam and I had cold showers and felt refreshed, and then we headed downstairs to enjoy a drink. A buffet dinner was served at 4.30pm and we ate up after our big day. 

Then Mum, Sam, Dianne and I headed outside once the rain stopped to enjoy the view and see Malaysia’s highest postbox. Now I’m resting on my bed. The altitude is making my face feel tingly and my heart is beating faster than usual. Other than that though I just feel quite tired. Fingers crossed that’s all that happens to me. We are currently at 3372m above sea level. 

At 6.30pm we are having a group meeting. I’m crossing my fingers and toes, as Ned has told us it’s only a 50% chance that we will be able to climb to the summit tomorrow. The winds are very strong tonight. 

Love to all

Claire

Xoxox

DAY TWO - Wednesday 3rd July

Hi all,

Remember how I said my face felt tingly and I felt tired, and I hoped that was all that happened in response to altitude? ....that was not all that happened in response to altitude. 

We woke at 1.20am, and I had hardly had any sleep. I felt very hot, the tingles were worse, and when I went downstairs and smelled all the strong breakfast food, I knew straight away the altitude had won and I was going to be sick. I won’t describe what happened next, but it wasn’t very nice! There were moments of doubt in the bathroom where I really thought “I can’t do this. I’m too sick”. But after being sick, I suddenly felt much better thankfully. Later in the day after chatting to others who had been sick, I realised not everyone was as fortunate and many had had to turn back. 

The weather had cleared and the wind stopped, so at 2.30am we set off. Mum and I were up the front again, and followed the front guide James as we had yesterday. I’m not being dramatic here when I say that the hike up and back Mt Kinabalu was the hardest thing physically and mentally I’ve ever had to do. I’ll do my best to describe it, but I’m exhausted. 

The first section involved many wet, slippery stairs in the dark. After a while, we got to a platform. Then began the ropes. We had to hold onto very wet ropes and pull ourselves up steep rock faces. This was the second “I can’t do this” moment I had today. But I kept going. By this stage, we had formed a little front group. Alex, Rory, Sam, Mum and I persevered with James leading the way. We got to the checkpoint at 4.30am (the cutoff was 5am, after that it was closed) and continued. More steps, more ropes, all in the dark and cold. Then we got to the plateau part, which was still a little steep. This went on for a while before we reached the prominent summit ascent. The last 100m ascent was very slippery and very difficult. At one point, a rock was so big that Alex had to pull me up. I don’t think I would have made it if he didn’t!

When we got to the top, it started to spit with rain. We enjoyed the views and took our photo with the sign saying we were 4095.2m above sea level. It was strange. At this point, I felt a huge sense of achievement and couldn’t believe I had made it. But then I remembered I had to walk back the 2.7km to the rest house, and then the 6km back to the bottom. Oh my godddddd. 

So began the steep, slippery climb back down. The ropes were better on the way back with the help of gravity, and it was nice being able to see with the daylight!! We could then see how far we had come down and were astounded, and saw some ginormous boulders. There was a huge earthquake here in 2015 and many people died due to large rocks falling. We could also see some great views of towns below. 

Then we had another weird moment, arriving back at the rest house. “We did it!” ...oh wait, still 6km to go. 

After breakfast and a change into cooler clothes, we set off back down. Ohhhhh the pain. We formed a small group again - this time Alex, Greg, Sam, Mum and I with James the guide. I really don’t know how I would have gone without the camaraderie of the group. All day despite being tired, challenged and sore, we chatted, laughed and motivated one another. The company was great, it made the mental part much easier. We even asked James how to say “good work” so we could say it to passing porters overloaded with goods. And every person we saw coming up, we gave them words of encouragement. We kept the vibe very positive. 

I think we all suffered for the last km though, because we went silent. Everyone was so sore we just didn’t have the energy to speak. By the end, I was in so much pain going downwards that my walking stick was basically holding me up. Sam turned to me and I nearly started to cry - “I don’t think I can walk anymore”. But then we rounded the corner and Sam said she could see the end. After climbing the very cruel 20-30 steps upwards to finish, we had finally made it!! This was by far the hardest hike I’ve ever done and will probably ever do. I’m glad we did it, but it is not for the faint hearted.

We had a weird late lunch at 4pm. Considering the menu was tailored towards people who had just finished climbing the mountain, it was weird. All the options were heavy junk food. I just ordered some chips and ate some fruit. 

Then we drove in a few buses to Poring Hot Springs where we are staying for two nights. 

I’m so glad we did it, but I can’t wait for a shower and a good sleep. I’m sure I’ll be good as new tomorrow. I’m even more proud of Mum. She’s one of the older people on our tour and she kept up with the front group of people in their teens and twenties the entire time. She’s amazing. Glad we got to experience it together!!

Love to all

Claire

Xoxox