You heard me right. One death after nearly 9 years since 2001. I am not really sure what had happened. I can’t really get insiders information about the incident as most of my contact had been transferred out to other places.

You can read about it here. I personally think that Kinabalu is one of the safest mountain to climb in the world. However, accident happens. As long as you follow your guide’s advice and Sabah Parks guidelines, you should be enjoying the trip more.

Part 1
We set off at 08.30 after a breakfast of rice and vegetables, carrying water bottles and snacks such as dried bananas to eat on the way. The younger members of our party rushed off determined to arrive at the rest house at Laban Rata in record time. They were less interested in comparing the changes in flora and fauna on the trail, than overtaking other walkers who had set off before us. At the Timpahon Gate, the entrance to Mount Kinabalu, is a board detailing the times taken by the fastest runners up to the summit and down again. Some have realised unbelievably short times, which spurred Ellie and Kit to climb even faster.

I received an email from Stacy. She is looking for a climber to join her group on 19th March 2009 as she overbooked the beds. You may contact her if you are interested.

There are 5 of us however, we booked accommodation for 6 at Laban rata room on 19 March 2009.
If there is anyone (unfortunately it’s only for one) who may interested in bunking in with us, we can accommodate. The price is MYR 347.
Please email me details if there is anyone who’s interested.

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):

Effective from 1st of September 2008, Sabah Parks will impose new rates of fee charges for visitors like you and me. You may want to check it out if you decided to have some good time in one of Sabah Parks destinations:

1. Kinabalu Parks (where Mt. Kinabalu is)
2. Turtle Islands Park (east coast of Sabah, 40km north of Sandakan)
3. Tunku Abdul Rahman’s Park (just 15 minutes away from Kota Kinabalu, a group of 5 beautiful islands)

It’s here again. Happening on 23-24 August, 2008 at Mount Kinabalu.

Deemed as “the World’s Toughest Mountain Race”, the Mount Kinabalu International Climbathon is the ultimate challenge to take for those game enough to test their endurance by running up and down Mount Kinabalu for a total distance of 21 kilometers.

I don’t think I will be able to join. I would love to, but I am afraid that the organizer asked me to climb down as soon as I reached the first pondok…

I thought it was a small matter to most of us. But the truth is, it’s not. I received an email from Miss M (not her real name) asking me on what type of gloves that she could use to climb Mount Kinabalu.

• Can an ordinary gardening gloves would do?
• Do I need a water proof gloves, in case the climbing gets too wet and I don’t want my hands to be freezing?

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

I received another email this morning. Patrick asked me about climbing Mount Kinabalu with his children. If you have climbed Kinabalu with your children before, please share with us your opinion. Here is his email:

Hi Ruhaizad

Thanks for the Kinabalu newsletter that I have just received, it was very helpful. I am climbing Mount Kinabalu at the end of July with 3 children aged 10 and 11, I wonder if you could help me avoid any serious mistakes and help me improve our chances of reaching the summit, please? A little about ourselves…