Mount Kinabalu

I was so surprised when Myles Bowen himself contacted me yesterday. If you don’t know who Myles Bowen is, you can read this post about climbing the eastern plateau of Kinabalu. As the first person to ascend the eastern plateau of Kinabalu, he would like to correct some misinformation that he have seen recently in the web. Yes, the route is named after his name…

Hahaha. I sounded that I am always looking for Sutera Sanctuary Lodges and Sabah Parks embarrassing moment since the beginning this year. Well, maybe I am. But I don’t think that I am the one and only person who did it.

Today, I found another good article by a couple of Mount Kinabalu climbers, Matt & Joanne Stamplis, who climbed the Western Plateau of Mount Kinabalu, spend some times in Gurkha Hut, summit the South Peak & standing on the edge of Low’s Gully. A very long and nice write-up, I must say.

A lot of complaints.

A lot of rants.

A lot of rage.

The issue: Sutera Sanctuary Lodges monopolize Mount Kinabalu for their own profits.

They never wants to listen to our grouses on how expensive their climbing packages are, as long as they are the only available solution for Kinabalu climbers.

No. I did not write those words. I quoted from a travelogue entry by staffyandlyddy in Travelpod.com.

They also gave a breakdown of what they had to pay those ripp-off merchants to climb the mountain (for non-Malaysian):

I always received almost similar email every other day, asking about the mountain guide of Kinabalu. I will try to answer all the frequently asked questions here.

1. Do I need to book my mountain guide early, i.e. before I go to Kinabalu Park?
No, you don’t have to book the mountain guide early. You just need to book a climbing package with Sutera Sanctuary Lodges or Mountain Torq for the place to stay at Laban Rata. Your mountain guide will be assigned to you the morning you start your climb.

I received a call from one of my good friend who is also an ‘insider’, working freelance in tourism industry here in Sabah. He said he currently have slots (beds) for climbers of Kinabalu from one of the tour operator. Here are the details:

1. 14 beds available at Laban Rata, climbing starts from Mesilau Nature Resort on 8th September 2008.
2. 20 beds available at Laban Rata, climbing starts from Mesilau Nature Resort on 22nd September 2008.

Kinabalu Park Visitors Guide

I received an email from Martin, asking me to forward his thanks and gratitude to his mountain guide who brought them up to the highest peak of Borneo on the 6th August 2008.

I received an email with a very long travelogue and 53 pieces of photos from Mr. John Brodie yesterday. Let us read together his story…

Ruhaizad

If you have been following me for the past few weeks, there was an issue about climbing insurance for climbers of Kinabalu. BS Tan sent me an email in regards to the issue, which I could not find the solution myself.

Anyway, she received a reply from Sabah Park, explaining about the insurance coverage, after she sent them an official complaint letter. She is kind enough to share with us the reply:

Dear Madam,