The Jungle Book: Bako National Park, Kuching, Borneo, July 22

Bako National Park

Ahhhh where do I even begin!! I've been here one day and I already think Borneo is one of the greatest place known to man (you'd agree with me if you're as nerdy as I am about ecology and the environment). Let me first take a step back...

Last night I flew from Johor Bahru into Kuching, the capital of Sarawak -- the largest state in Malaysia. I got in around 8pm and met Kevin at our hostel (121 Lodge, which for anyone planning to come here should stay at). After hanging around the hostel for a bit we headed out for some dinner to Top Spot which came highly recommended by the hostel staff. It was about a 20 minute walk through a heavy downpour, but was certainly worth it. The food was fantastic. I had delicious sweet and sour prawns (me eating them is a testament to how good they are) and a side of Midin with garlic sauce, which is a famous local dish. Midin grows like a mushroom in the sense that it doesn't have to be planted and after heavy rains grows right out of the ground in the forest. I've had it with every meal thus far and it's nice to have some plain ole' veggies.

We woke up around 6am in order to catch the first local bus out to Bako National Park. From the bus stop we had to take a 20 minute river cruise to the park entrance. As soon as we got off the boat we came across the elusive Proboscis Monkey which is endemic to Borneo. At that instant I thought to myself, "wow I just got here and I can't believe I'm seeing this monkey that can't be seen anywhere else in the world!" We joined the two girls we met on the bus on their hike to Telok Pandan Kecil Beach (about a 2.5km hike). The trail was wet and muddy b/c of the rains last night and at times quite steep, but who cared we were in the jungles of Borneo!! The hike to Kecil Beach took about 1.5 hours and went through dense jungle to sandy/desert vegetation before going back into the jungle upon descending to the beach. The cliff before the beach had some spectacular views!! Kevin and I hung around the beach for about an hour before deciding to go for another long hike before having to catch the 3 o'clock boat to the bus.

After returning the way we came, we headed for the Telok Delima trail for another shot at seeing proboscis monkeys. Only 10 minutes into this hike we heard loud shuffling in the trees above and above us were about 7 or 8 proboscis. We stood there watching the monkeys for a solid hour (at least) seeing them climb, jump, and howl from tree to tree. They make a strange noise, almost like a goat but is certainly hard to imitate. I probably could've watched the monkeys for hours but unfortunately we had to get back to the jetty.

This was my first full day in Borneo and I can certainly say the jungle here is one of the most amazing ecosystems I've ever seen and has countless endemic species. I can't wait to go back!

Once back into Kuching we relaxed in the evening before heading out to dinner and drinks with the girls we met on the bus to Bako.