Gunung Mulu – a short novel - Mara posting

See the ropes?

The saying, “There is nothing to fear but fear itself” does not apply when you find yourself dangling from a rope off a sheer, slick rock face, over an abyss.  I wasn’t quite dangling; I had a firm grip on the wet rope and my feet were planted in two tiny footholds (but they were shaking so hard and the rock was so slick, it felt like I was dangling).  And the rock face wasn’t sheer; most people would clamber up or down with only a pause. And it wasn’t really an abyss; I could see the bottom, but it looked like a long, long way down. While it only felt like I was dangling off a rope over an abyss, to me, there was in fact more to fear than fear itself.

Somehow I overcame the fear, and I made it down that seemingly sheer rock cliff with only a rope; and then I made it up and down at least five more of them.  In between bouts of panic, there were stretches of sheer awe.  We were in Racer Cave at Gunung Mulu National Park.  The cave was alive.  Amidst the constant dripping water, there were swiftlets, bats, crickets, spiders bigger than my hand (literally), and cave snakes; ceilings taller than the reach of my headlamp, 20 foot mounds of guano crawling with cockroaches; and when the lights went out, utter and total darkness. 

Gunung Mulu has been a highlight of our trip.  We spent five nights and four days in a tropical rainforest, exploring caves and the tree canopy, sleeping in dry beds, and eating decent food.  I assumed such an experience would be completely out of our price range (it is if you book a package from a travel agent).  We ended up spending less per day than travelling on a strict budget in New Zealand.  I include our costs to help anyone planning their own trips (currently 3 MYR = 1 USD).  You do have to pay for almost every activity, as guides are mandatory (although not necessarily helpful or informative).

We flew from Kota Kinabalu to Mulu on MAS Wings and from Mulu to Kuching for $45 per person. The 5 minute van ride to the park cost MYR 5 per person, but you could easily walk. Our first full day at the park, we saw Deer Cave, the world’s biggest known cavern (can you see the person in this photo?). There is a 3 km boardwalk that leads to the entrance, where waterfalls spatter down, swiftlets and bats chatter, and the acrid smell of guano fills the air.  At the back of the cave, we left the boardwalk with our guide, then scrambled over boulders, guano, and through the river up into the “Garden of Eden” (which was not a garden, but a waterfall surrounded by limestone and vegetation and a few accompanying leeches). The tour came back through Deer Cave, and ended with a loop into Lagang Cave.  It poured that evening, so we were unable to watch the bats leave the cave (Deer Cave tour is MYR 20; the Valley hike we did was MYR 105 per person and included lunch).  Day 2 was Racer Cave (where I feared more than fear itself: 4 hours of climbing, sweating, and exploring for MYR 95 per person).

Day 3 started at 9 am with a longboat ride to a small morning market, then onto Cave of the Winds and Clearwater Cave – both amazing caves that have extensive boardwalks, and hundreds of stairs (MYR 20 for the cave tour, MYR 30 for boat trip).  They were much busier than Deer Cave, but compared to Carlsbad Caverns and other caves I have seen, the number of people was manageable.  At noon, the other ten people on our tour took the boat back, but we opted to walk. The walk is supposedly 3 km (although, it took us an hour and a half), and winds up through Moonmilk cave (bring a flashlight), and climbs back down into the jungle for the remainder of the walk. It was incredibly peaceful, as we were the only people on the trail, and it gave us the chance to appreciate the rainforest plants and insects.  That evening we went back to watch the bats leave Deer Cave.  At 6:25, thousands of bats spiraled up and out of the caves and into the sky.  The walk back in the dark was magical, with fireflies floating in the air, amidst a cacophony of night noises (including an insect we named the “hoover bug,” since it sounds like a vacuum cleaner.)

I celebrated my birthday 30 meters in the tree canopy.  We did the canopy walk on Day 4 and learned about the trees and insects (MYR 70 per person). 

For accommodations, we stayed in the park hostel for two nights (MYR 40 per person) – it’s adequate, but anytime you have 20 people in one room, a good night of sleep is questionable. We spent the other two nights in a longhouse room (MYR 180), which was huge, clean, and a treat after several nights in hostels. Breakfast was included (Asian or western fare, good coffee).  Although there are a few places nearby, we ate all our other meals at the cafeteria (which were all good to excellent, and usually cost $10-15 total per meal for the two of us). 
Our total cost for the two of us to spend 5 days and 4 nights, including all of the hikes and caving adventures and domestic flights was $550.  The feeling of making it out alive after dangling from a rope off a cliff over an abyss: priceless.  I would go back in a heartbeat!