Mount
Kinabalu
towers 4095 meters
(13,435 feet) above sea level. It is the highest mountain between the
mighty snow-capped Himalayas
and Wilhelmina
(4509 meters / 14,793 feet)
in Irian
Jaya. It is also one of the
most accessible and spectacular
mountains in the world. Because of the earth movement, in is still
growing with the rate of 5 mm (1/4 inches) a year.
Ever changing, it
is
the mountain of tropical rainforest, colorful blossoms and golden
sunset,
but also dark and violent storms. At times, a ghostly mist
shrouds the mountain and it is easy to believe the local Kadazandusun's
claim that it is the homeland of their spirit world.
In
1964 Kinabalu
Park was
established
to protect Mount
Kinabalu and its plant and
animal life. Its 754 square
kilometer (291 square mile) terrain stretches upward from lowland
rain forest to montane forest, cloud forest and sub alpine meadow,
before
finally reaching a crown
of bare
granite. Only at Mount Kinabalu
can
you eat breakfast in a lowland
rainforest, lunch in a cloud forest,
and
enjoy dinner in a subalpine
meadow!
The trail to the
highest peak winds
along the southern side of the mountain. It is an 8.5 kilometer (5.25
mile) trek to the top. For most people, from a 9 month-old baby
(carried by father) to an 83 years-old New Zealander, the journey takes
two days.
The Kinabalu
Park Headquarters is
located 90 kilometers (56 miles) from Kota
Kinabalu, Sabah's
capital
city. More than one million
visitors have enjoyed the park since it
opened. In the year 2000, UNESCO
have declared Mount
Kinabalu
asThe World
Heritage Site.
Today's
relatively comfortable two day climb to the peak is a far cry from the
travails of the early explorers. In 1851, Sir Hugh Low,
then the
Colonial Secretary for the British crown colony of Labuan,
credited as
the first person to climb the mountain, took nine days to reach the summit plateau,
traveling in a group of 42 people.
Low
and John
Whitehead, a zoologist
who discovered two of Kinabalu's
spectacular birds, Whitehead's Trogon
and Whitehead's
Broadbill, both
started their historic ascents from the village of Kiau, situated on
the southern flank of the mountain near the Kadamaian Waterfall
and
recruited their guides and porters here. This route was both steep and
arduous, and when the park was gazetted in 1964 and the Kinabalu Park
HQ
was
established, the ascent route was changed to the present one. People
from the nearer village of Bundu
Tuhan
supplied most of the guides and
porters, and Bundu Tuhan's
most famous son, Gunting
bin Lagadan,
reputed to possess remarkable powers, become the first officially
registered park guide. Though Low
reached the summit plateau, he did
not reach the peak that now bears his name. John Whitehead
is the first
person who reached the summit in 1888.
Low
discoveries
focused the attention of the scientific world on Mount Kinabalu,
but it was not until 1910 that the first botanist (and
incidentally the first lady) Lilian
Gibbs,
climbed the mountain and
discovered many species new to science. Increasing interest in the
mountain's natural richness culminated in major expeditions organized
by the Royal
Society of Great Britain in
1961 and 1964.
Mount Kinabalu
Climbathon 2004. PhotoİZachary Mobijohn
Thus it was that
in 1964 the Kinabalu
Park was gazetted and when
the
park first opened it was a far cry from the world class facility it is
today. In the early years the road to the park was largely a narrow
muddy earth track, passable only to 4-wheel drive vehicle. This
restricted access to real enthusiasts, but when the road was finally
sealed in 1981 visitor figures shot
up. Today more than 200,000 people
visit the park each year. Of these, about ten percent have successfully
reached the summit. Within the last few years
however, an increasing
number have come to enjoy more strenuous activities, including Mount
Kinabalu
Climbathon,
mountain running and mountain biking.
Good for you Rinjie.... i cant wait for my 12th trip to mount Kinabalu via original route (Kiau Village) by Hugh Low and John Whitehead.
Rinjie Jauji Tambunan Sabah
Posted at 3:04pm on Thursday, July 10th, 2008
i wanna climb d mount kinabalu!!!I'm ashamed cuz my hometown is not 2 far from the mountain but i still not climb it....:-(
Kazuolim Penang Island
Posted at 9:59am on Thursday, July 10th, 2008
We're back from the climb. Using Mesilau trail and reach Laban Rata in 5½ Hours. Summit attempt was great but the weather is not very good during the climb and no sunrise on that day. Descending through Timpohon and back to KK then going for Sipadan Island. It was a memorable and great trip. Definitely will be back.
Mesilau trail still the best as compare to Timpohon although is 2km longer.
To view more of our trip to Sabah. Please visit http://www.pbase.com/boon3887/sabah
paul jones ruislip england
Posted at 4:02am on Wednesday, June 25th, 2008
climing kinabalu in aug 08
Jin Tokyo
Posted at 1:26pm on Saturday, June 21st, 2008
Thanks for the information...
murugan chendra kuala lumpur
Posted at 1:38pm on Thursday, June 12th, 2008
i find this site is very usefull.im joining a team of frens to climb kinabalu on august 08.very infomative site..tkhs guys
che bad Gombak
Posted at 5:24pm on Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008
Aki Nabalau rockz!!
Kazuolim Penang Island
Posted at 1:17pm on Thursday, May 15th, 2008
A must go destination and a must climb mountain in the world. My trip with 2 of my friends is just round the corner. Meet us 9th June 2008
Shafini Ashraq Putrajaya
Posted at 11:51pm on Monday, May 12th, 2008
Many thanks to all of our Malim Gunung for your unconditional guidance. Finally 29 out of 34 reach at the summit and 8.72 km trail is such a memorable for each one of us. Thumb up for Sabah Park for a good efforts on conservation of natural resources. It is the most beuty mother nature that I've explore and very wonderful and magnificient. Finally, "take nothing but photograph and leave nothing but footprints". Cheers.
klchan kuala lumpur
Posted at 9:20am on Monday, May 12th, 2008
Hi. I am back from the climb. did it on 8/9 May '08. Managed to reach Low's peak 4095.2m). It was has great view from the top. don't give up after 8km cos reaching the top (8.5km) gives you much more satisfaction. Thank to our guide Mr. Severinus Saili. He was very patient and helpful. I was the last on the return leg from Low's Peak to Laban Rata (10.30am) and I was also the last for the final descent from Laban Rata to Timpohon (5.40pm) but he was very patient and was always by my side. Great trip. Everybody must go once in their life-time.
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