Climbing Mt. Kinabalu


About six months ago, we were sat in a cute little cafe in Varanasi.Sick of curry and growing tired of the noise and chaos of India, we used a rare afternoon of decent wifi and coffee to think abut our next trip.

 

Borneo had been on our list for a while so we decided on ten days of adventure in Malaysia. Matt started to research jungle treks and caves and who to get in and out of remote National Parks. 

I had a vague idea that there was a volcano we could hike to the summit of. A quick google told me that the volcano is called Mt. Kinabalu. I noted that down and got back to Instagram/Twitter/Facebook.

 

We went home and got busy with work and friends and spent the next five months saying ‘We’re going to Borneo’ but doing absolutely nothing about it. 

 

It got to mid-September and we were still strong in our conviction that we were going to Borneo, despite nothing to show for it apart from the brand new rucksacks we’d treated ourselves to! So we hastily booked some flights (seven in fact) and some activities and sure enough we found ourselves landing in Kota Kinabalu on 4th October, excited about our hike the next day.

 

The total distance of the walk is just 8.7km and you walk up and down in two days. Not too far, right? Except that almost every step you take is up!

 

Climbing Mt. Kinabalu

 

We used our usual ‘slow and steady’ method and plodded our way to lunch at the 4km mark. It was starting to feel chilly at this point but we knew that we only had 2km to go and we felt pretty good about it. The last 2km was tough going, the monotony of being on the same path seeing pretty much the same terrain took it’s toll and we were very happy to arrive at the rest house. We enjoyed dinner and a huge hot chocolate and tucked ourselves into our bunks early for a few ours kip.

 

Climbing Mt. Kinabalu

 

Our alarms went off at about 1.45am and, bleary eyed, we pulled on our layers and took on some fuel for the climb.

We had got ready quickly and were first through the gate when it opened at 2.30am. Just 2.7km to go but this time in the pitch black. Walking in the dark was surreal. All we could see in the small circle lit up by our headlights was our feet hitting the rocky ground beneath us, a rope leading the way on the ground and whisps of cloud blowing across the path. 

 

It became colder as we ascended and the wind picked up. The last kilometre was really tough. The walking wasn’t hard but the cold and the altitude really started to get to me. 

Eventually Joseph pointed ahead at a couple of lights and told us it was the summit. Struggling for breath I asked ‘the real one?’. Assured that it was indeed the ‘real’ summit, we picked up the pace and headed for the tiny lights.

 

Perched on top of a rock, shivering and balancing in the wind, we took a quick photo and were nearly blinded by the flash in the pitch black. We climbed down from the top so that someone else could take a victory photo and Joseph tried to find us somewhere to shelter from the wind. We crouched down behind a rock with the mice and hungrily crammed dried fruit and nuts into our mouths whilst dreaming of a piping hot cup of tea.

After a couple of minutes, I couldn’t stay still any longer. We were surrounded by cloud  so the chances of seeing the sunset up there seemed slim but at any rate, I was unprepared for the cold and had to get moving. 

 

We made it to the top of Mt. Kinabalu!

 

We made our way down, quietly smug as we passed those still on their way up and praying that there would be beans for breakfast.

Slowly the cold relented and at last the sky began to lighten slightly. We looked around to see where we were walking and the landscape was like nothing I’d ever seen before. How I imagine the surface of the moon looks (without the cheese of course!). We kept walking and the cloud started to lift. I’d just stopped to take a photo when I spotted red light in the distance. The sun was rising and turning the sky an array of beautiful colours. We just stood there for a while taking in the view before hurrying on towards another giant hot chocolate.

 

Climbing Mt. Kinabalu

 

Climbing Mt Kinabalu is not cheap. Certainly not when you earn Thai Baht. But we loved the experience and sense of achievement and for us it was well worth the money. The ache in our legs the next morning was more than we had bargained for but it’s all part of the challenge!

 

There were beans at breakfast. And eggs and chips. And pancakes.

 

But the second hot chocolate was bitterly disappointing.

 

Take a look at our video of the climb here.

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