Journey up the mountain

I'm seriouly late in uploading my reflections and thoughts. Opps.. But seriously, time flies. Its 3 weeks since our mountain climbing trip ended. Was held back by quite a few things and so, didn't manage to write up a formal entry until now. Yet, it was a good time where I got an extended time to think about the many things I have learnt from the trip and even seeing the experience becoming part of my post-trip spiritual growth :)

I love the mountains. I love being with nature. I love the feeling of being right in the midst of God's beautiful creation. I just love it there because its a place where I get to feel close to God. Its a place too that I get refreshed once again and to recieve new insights and words from the Lord. I have climbed quite a few hills, small mountains, trekked quite a bit around Singapore and surrounding countries. Yet, I am never tired of them. Through these climbs, I learn that every mountain is different. Each mountain has its own characteristic, climate, vegetation and climbing difficulties. Mt Kinabalu is no different. So you can imagine my excitement and enthusiasm when I learnt that we were finally, finally, finally going to climb the mountain which I have been targeting to climb for almost a year! ( Haha, my family can swear to that changed me nearing the date of the climb :)

The climb up to Gunting hut via the Mesilau trial was just great! Beautiful sights greeted us at every turn. Interesting vegetations, flowers, leaves, tree trunks, huge rocks, cliffs, suspension bridge, waterfalls, water streams, rivers, peeks to smaller mountain peaks around Mt K's peak. Wow. I was especially awed by a rock and a tree branch forming a cute arrow right on our trial ( natural signpost! except that it was pointing in the wrong direction. Haha). Oh, and did I mention that wonderful sight of a heart-shaped rock right in the centre of our pathway with no other rocks beside it? A lone heartshaped rock? It felt as if God has placed it there right on our path to show how much He loves us! Looking at the beautiful sights surrounding me, I couldn't help but wondered out loud to the team " Why are there so many beautiful sights here?" I smiled in my heart when I heard the spontaneous answer from Si Hui " Oh, becuase God loves us. Woohoo!"

I practically enjoyed the climb up although we climbed all the way till dusk and darkness covered us. Because of that, we managed to catch the magnificant sunset high up the mountain! I was busy taking pictures as I couldn't bear not to capture these beautiful sights although my teammates were urging me to go ascend quickly without stopping. But how can NOT TAKE THESE BEAUTIFUL SCENERIES? And so, I went about doing so by being the last of us 3 so that I can snap all I want without slowing down the team. Haha. But seriously, the feeling of ascending near the clouds, then at cloud level, and finally way above the clouds was just, just great! You know, I felt like jumping down to the clouds which were just right at the edge of the mountain cliff we were standing at. My childhood favourite day dream came back to me then. For a moment, I found myself standing there daydreaming about jumping around the clouds and being caught in the fluffyness of them. Heavenly.

I guess the best part of the climb was actually the unexpected night climb. Heh. We didn't imagine that we would actually take so long to ascend up. And so, we didn't really prepare much for climbing in the dark. Thank goodness my 7kg bag pack came in useful at this time. I was glad I packed in a headlight and handtorch that I borrowed from my cell leader. However, the batteries went out after sometime and I was practically left climbing in pitch darkness. It was really really dark. In fact, I couldn't very much see my hand when I placed it in front of me. We were actually quite high up already and the night weather was terribly cold. We didn't have our winter clothes with us then and was just climbing with our windbreaker. If that wasn't bad enough, it started to rain. We stopped to don our battle suit ( our army ponchos). Keke. We really looked weird all covered up. In an instant, all of us turned greenies ( except Tse Lert who turned bluey). I really felt like taking a pic of that but seeing the tired faces of both of them, I decided not to try my luck. Haha. But seriously, climbing up the treacherous mountain without light was no joke. What's worst was that I was in front leading the way. Just imagine with me.... Torchlight out of bac, cold and hungry, not able to see the route ahead of me, rocks all slippery due to the rain. Why. I practically had to feel my way up. I ended up going on fours many a time as I had to use my hands to grope for my way and my feet to find a good foothold before proceeding up.

Thank goodness my other teammates' torches managed to survive through the night. And so, whenever a beam of light from their torchlight shone in my path, I quickly captured the image of the rocky path ahead and formulated a way to take the safest path up. Yet, climbing up in pitch darkness required faith and guts. I had to climb by faith and just move forward- up, up, up. However, I had to keep stopping, not only to allow my teammates to rest, but also to double check that I was going in the right path. That's where our mountain guide, Bill came in wonderfully. Bill would always guide me back to the right path whenever I made a wrong turn. It was scary cos there were times I went off course and realised that the path I was going was actualy leading us down to a long, painful and potentially fatal fall right down the mountain!

Although we were pressured to increase our pace so as to reach Gunting at a certain time, I was more concerned about our safety. My main priority was to make sure that we would all reach Gunting safely. And so, I made sure that we had as frequent stops as much as we could so that all of us could reach our resting place for the night together as a team and of course more importantly, in one piece. Haha, don't know what the 3 guides ( 2 of them came down from Laban Rata to guide us safely up the mountain as it was way into the night) were thinking about us. Think Bill was a little frustrated that we took so long time climb. But heck la. Safetly comes first. ( was also thinking about acclimatisation and the need to climb slowly so as to allow our bodies to adapt to the increasingly high altitude. Don't want to increase our risk of getting the potentially fatal HAPE and HACE ( high altitude pulmonary edema/cerebral edema) which are mainly caused by rapid ascend without acclimatisation. I decided pre-trip that we shouldn't bring acetazolamide up as there is a high number of people allergic to this drug. Since none of us have taken it before, its best to err on the safe side. ( don't want an analphylatic shock right up there in the mountains!). Also no dexamethasone and life support equippments up here. So imagine my scare when I overheard that Tse Lert had chest pain! And this good buddy didn't even tell us!!! Thank goodness she's fine and talking now. Still can live to tell the tale. Haha. But seriously ar... no joke.

So advice no 1: Do not climb alone.

Advice no 2: Inform your climbing partner when you experience any symptoms, especially chest pain, shortness of breath, bad bad headache.

The worst shocker during the climb was the huge rock that stood right in front of our path and our resting place which was right up that huge huge slippery rock. Goodness. That was the first time that I stood staring at the rock ahead of us stunned. Turning to Tse Lert who was behind me, I asked her:" Hey, how do you suppose we climb this!?" The answer I got? " WAH!!!". And the same response- the stunned look staring at the ultimate obstacle right in front of us.

Route 1: Just climb up the steep rock. But if we fall, we'll really slide and break our limbs. Risk is high as the rocks were really slippery due to the rain.

Route 2: We'll go by the side of the rock and edge our way to the staircase at the side. That was equally scary. Although it was dark, I knew that below the small path is the bottom of the mountain. But the route was straight and less slippery. And so, we decided that we would take that path. Well, you can imagine us all tredding cautiously and all the time holding onto the only available hold ( the water pipe on the ground). Oh yes, we held on it dearly. Must really congratulate all of us, especially Tse Lert and Si Hui who were already going to drop from fatigue for making it safely to Guting hut! What a journey of guts and faith! Thank God He sustained us all!

No Longer a Holiday

Because we didn't reach Laban Rata before dusk, we had to spend 3 hours climbing in the dark. It was the worse thing that could happen. It was cold (10 degrees Celsius or less), drizzling, windy and dark. And we were hungry and exhausted after 8 long hours of climb. By 4.5km (still daylight), Si Hui was already tiring out. By nightfall, I started having chest pain (dull epigastric pain on exertion) during the last few km. Thankfully, Si Hui was slowing down significantly and stopping every 8 steps or so so I could rest from the pain too. I didn't tell them about it, afraid of breaking the already fragile morale. Besides, the frequent rests gave me time to recuperate. I know, I really should have told the party, but I didn't. I was mortally frightened that I might deteriorate, yet there was no other choice except to inch my way up to Laban Rata. Bil had no idea what to do if there was an emergency and I don't think a helicopter would really come up. I have 2 nurses with me, but with no equipment, what realistic hope do I have? Seriously, I was scared for my life. That night, I developed a fever and I just wondered how I was going to survive the descend. The next morning, when even the descend to the Laban Rata cafe from our hut made me pant, I could only wish the descend to be as smooth as possible. Thankfully, the giant steps of the Timphonon Trail slowed us much and made it easy on my lungs. I feel so unsatisfied that I didn't even get to start on the summit trail. I want to come back to Mt K again! And reach the summit!

I must say, Lixin was an excellent climbing mate. I don't know what went through her mind, but she sure kept her composure and found spare strength in her to encourage Si Hui and I to continue. As urgent as it was to reach Laban Rata, she was patient enough to sustain us through the ardous journey. I can just imagine, if I were her, the most naturally things I might say could be, "Come on! We have to get to Laban Rata asap. The more we stay out here, the more dangerous it'll be." So, one more thing I've learnt: Sometimes, people already know what they need to do. So more importantly, they need to know they can do it. And perhaps, one of the best ways to let them know they can do it, is to let them know they can do it at their pace.

Commendable Things and other stuff

1. Scenary is very beautiful, the sounds of the waterfalls are melodious and peaceful, the fog makes me feel like i am in heaven, the tall and majestic mountain makes you feel awed as you may not be able to see the peak as the clouds surronds it. Hence, it seems so mysterious.
2. I have very good friends during the climb. They are very nice and supportive and understanding people. That is what nurses are made for. haha
3. Our guide, Bill, is one of the best guy i ever seen. Woohoo! No complains from him at all, strong guy carrying our heavy bag for 12+7 hours!!! He is also quite shy. I tried to offer him food and water, got rejected! Ai ya, we just want you to be part of us ma!
4. We saw the rainbow, not half rainbow but full rainbow, which encircle the sun! it is a beautiful and surprising sight. The beautiful scenary dont last long, luckily for us, we have a few minutes to watch and admire it. Once the clouds fly past, the rainbow was gone. God, You surprised us on this day!!! Woohoo!!! Love you man!!
5. We meet a few friends and encourage them for the climb. We say hi to them! One of the korea 'uncle' said to me, you are a beautiful girl!! hahaha..hey, i am asian, ok?

Other stuff to commend on:
1. the distance is so deceiving. 1 km of walk is not as easy as you think. Dont play play!!
2. our guide, bill, give us false hope. He said we are reaching, we walk and walk, and we asked him how much more distance we have left, and he told us there is 200m more to walk for 3 times.

Improvement to make on:
1. Start early for the climb so that you will end early and prepare for the climb on the next day.

New Business Plan i would like to suggest to Headquarter of Mt K.

1. Build a hut at the 4km for the physically weak people like me, or for those people who want to spend more time to enjoy the scenary like me, or for those who people who want to watch the sunset like me.
2. Build a heated dormity instead of a non-heated one. People will die of cold. Oh ya, i forgot to tell you that i didnt brush my teeth at night and the morning after that due to the coldness. The running water is cold, the floor is cold, the toilet seat is cold.
3. Have some program to teach mountaineering skills so i can use it to reach the peak.
4. Can people switch off the light in the house of the hut, i cant see the beautiful stars in the sky clearly!

P.S. : Luckily Li Xin do some research. Mesilau trail is more beautiful and exciting than the Timphonon Gate trail.I love the Mesilau trail. Never climb Timphonon Gate. It is way too boring and i would rather you to climb Singapore's hill.

The Climb and Some Tips

When I announced my intentions to climb Mt K, friends who've climbed the mountain before didn't respond with anything resembling enthusiasm. It seems like I was doomed to climb a mountain I would regret. My cousin was especially candid, describing to me how the trail was not like a mountain trail at all but an endless staircase to climb. Worse, the steps are built so tall you will just die. But, worst of all, there are no scenery to enjoy because of the thick vegetations.

Thankfully, Lixin's friend advised us to take the longer Mesilau Trail for better sceneries. No websites would advise first-timers to take on this route, but oh well, who's gonna stop us! Hence, we decided to ascend via the Mesilau Trail and descend via the Timphonon Trail.

The Mesilau Trail
The Mesilau Trail is definitely much longer. So my first advise is to start early and don't rest too long on the way. We took our time to ascend and we didn't make it to Laban Rata before dusk. But I must say, the sunset sceneries were magnificient and totally worth the horrible night climb later. Consequently, we hiked up the last 2 km (which amounts to about 3 hours) in the cold wet night with hungry stomachs (since dinner was waiting for us at Laban Rata).

However, the Mesilau Trail is very rewarding indeed. The sceneries there are superb. From time to time, you'll find vantage points to enjoy marvelous views. The steps are not as many nor as huge as those on the Timphonon Trail. There are more mudtracks too. Between distance and giant staircases, I'd rather choose the former. To all first-time climbers, I say, choose the Mesilau Trail!

The Mesilau Trail is really beautiful, so please please don't damage it. Walk on the centre of the trail as much as possible to reduce erosion along the trail. Don't widen the path or you may hurt the plants growing right next to the trail. And please keep it litter-free! (Compliments to users and rangers of the trail because I'm really impressed there was not a single litter to be found!)

Many people make the mistake of taking the Mesilau Trail on the descend (probably because of the way the reserve marketed it). When you're so tired after reaching the summit, the only thing you want is to finish the descend as soon as possible. But the Mesilau Trail is long and full of ups and downs. I don't think you'll like the ups when you're bent on coming down the mountain. The Timphonon Trail, on the other hand, is a good trail to descend because it is straight down. The only thing you might be careful to prepare is a good pair of knee/ankle support because the impact of those giant steps can be agonizing. Lixin sprained her ankle on the descend. Oh yes, a climbing stick would be very helpful too.

Waterpoints. Yes, there are waterpoints along the way for both the Mesilau Trail and the Timphonon Trail. However, the waterpoints may not be available during dry seasons so don't count on them. And they are untreated water, so bring your purification tablets. I say, bring a 0.5L to 1L waterbottle up. Your 2kg lunchpack would also include another 0.5L bottled mineral water and a can of Coke. Talking about lunchpack, bring ketchup or chilli packets with you too. The sandwiches are bland.

Si Hui's Climbing Experiences

We reach Mt. Kinabalu headquater, there we met our mountain guide cum porter. He is very young, only 17 years old. His name is Bill. He has to carry our 11kg bag which was packed with all our winter wear with us to the top of the mountain. Our bag for him has no proper support for his back, which i feel quite bad and sorry for him. His back must be aching.

As blur as my usual self , i did not know how far are we climbing. So we take it very slowly.

We start from the Mesilau trail with the packed lunch in our bag. We carry about 2 kg bag for this climb oursleves. Looking at the startng point of the trail, i felt it was quite cool. The trail was a bit dark and so natural. As we wait through, the first complaint i make it why are we walking down after we climb so much. This is because we have to climb up more to reach to the top of the mountain. But soon, i realised that this trail is the best. I can see lots of different things, like the vegetations, the trees, two small waterfalls, and the walking path is so different. We walked on man-made stairs, wooden stairs, on different kinds of rocks. It is really beautiful. God's creation is so beautiful. Best part of the climb: Waterfall and no mosquitos. Climbing upward is the worst part of the climb. But that is not all.

Soon, after about 5 hours of climb, we realised that we are halfway done, which means we are at the four km. We started the climb on 0945am. You know what, i already feel like giving up when i reach about 3.5km. I am already struggling. I already felt so breathless. And we have another 4 km to go. That is already so crazy to me at that point of time. Every 0.5km of walking feels so difficult. After the 4km, i already do not care about stopping to see the scenary. I just want to rest. But i cannot give up, cause there is no one to bring me down the mountain. There is also no one to carry me up the mountain. I cannot stuck in between the mountain. Cause not even helicopter can save me now.

At 6pm, we are aound 5-6km of the trail. The sky is getting dark. The weather is getting colder. The temperature is less than 10 degree celsius. We quickly put on our poncho and headlight. Can you imagine how dark it is. In a mountain place without lamp post. The horrible part is that it is too cold for us. Tse Lert is the one who fear cold the most. Too thin la. Must eat more. For me, i am already losing my motivations. I cannot see the end. I kept stopping and asked for rest. I am already too tired. Li xin is the one who is strong. Luckily for her, she didnt really complain why we are slowing her down. She kept encouraging us. That tse lert, you know, during the climb, li xin will be in front of me and tse lert behind me. I really scared i slowed down tse lert because she had to stop whenever i stop and i guess it will be more tiring for her. I felt guilty to stop so often and caused her to lose her momemtum to climb. At the rest time, she then tell me that luckily i often took rest, cause she felt chest pain during the climb, and she didnt tell us during the climb. I wanted to scold that person le!!

As we past by various hut in the mountain, i felt so sad. Cause there is a place to rest but we cannot. Bill's mother meet us aound the 7km of the trail. She then told us that Mesilau trail is not for us, who has no experience in climbing. She suggust we should try the Timphonon Gate first.
When i heard that, i felt a sense of accomplishment, while, i almost reach my destination. At that time, i vow i never come back to this place again.

Oh well, if you have not realised, we havent ate our dinner. Cause our dinner is in the hut, Gunting. We are so hungry, tired and also also freezed to death.

Step by step, inch by inch, even the last 100 to 200m of the walk, is difficult for us. We made our way to Gunting. It was already 10 plus. Me and tse Lert decided not to climb the summit the next morning at 2am. I think because 100m of walking is already tough for us. How can we go up to the top?

Well, we finally reach Gunting, the non-heated dormitry. As the name suggusted, it is so cold instead. We have no choice but to wear our long john, thick socks and long pant. We quickly threw our stuff on the floor. Our room was so messed up. I quickly ate a few mouthful of rice,vegetables and meat and tucked in in my bed to sleep.

I was awoke in the middle of the night by the noise other back packers who are intending to go for the summit climb. I saw Li Xin was still sleeping. I woke her up so that she wont be late for the climb and miss the sunrise. Meanwhile, i am tossing in my bed, mind is still very alert. I am surprised i felt no aching sensation in my legs and hands. I am deciding whether to go for the climb. In the end, i gave the thoughts of climbing. Up to now, i felt so 'ke xi'. But given at the same situation, i think i will still not want to climb up. So, if i really want to climb Mt. Kinabalu again, i really make sure i have enough training to climb the summit. I may also need to learn some mountaineering skills.

My Quest Up to the Mountain (Pre-climbing preparations)

Hmm...where should i start?

We went to army market to buy our essential stuff for the climb. I brought a head-light, neon-light, whistle, poncho and a pouch. Oh, that tse lert brought her 'bao bei' bag, yellow in colour, cost about 90 plus.

We also want intensive training for this climb as a group. Haha..but then i am lazy to go back to school to train with them. Thus, i train at home, by climbing my staircase starting from 3 times up and down of 16 storeys. While, i only did it 4 times in total.

I am the one who will be controlling all our money and funds. Haha..Hao Lian...haha..

We spend about 500 plus for this trip. Everything. From Hostel to transportation and tips for the guide and a massage for our tired legs. Oh ya, i brought a tong kai in Sabah, the one you saw in picture. Cost about 3 ringgit. I wanted to bring it back to Singapore but i lost it. It accompanied me through the hardship, the cold and the wet. I felt so sad about losting it.

The Gathering

The first thoughts of going up Mt Kinabalu (thereafter, shall be shortened to Mt K) was born while Lixin, Ziyang and I were on another mountain a year ago. That was an impromptu day hike up part of Lantau Mountain when we were at Hong Kong. We had so much fun then, we wanted to have another trip just to climb a mountain. Mt K was the most attractive destination because of its reputation to be traveller-friendly. But the plan did not settle at that; We were tempted to explore Nepal or Indonesia too, and the indecisiveness worn us down. At some point of time, it almost felt like we were just dreaming and making empty talks. Anyhow, we finally decided to be steadfast with Mt K and so we began our journey...

Si Hui has been my jogging partner for the past year, and I couldn't be more glad when Lixin told me that Si Hui would join our party. It was also great news because Ziyang pulled out due to other plans and I was worried it was going to be just Lixin and I. Not that Lixin was a horrible bunkmate, but it's kinda boring with just two persons. So Si Hui came aboard and woh... you won't believe how fun it was...girl-talks, church-talks, camera-whoring, and especially her woohoo-ing at everything amusing! Oh, have I forgotten to mention I basically borrowed from her all the winter wear I needed?! haha. Si Hui is an inspiration too. She's really positive about life, full of hopes and zeal. She stuns me time and time again how she finds pleasure in situations I find impossible, simply depressing or maybe even boring. It's a common notion that happy people are simple-minded, but the truth about her is that in spite of life's worries, she sees the bright side of things, finds courage in God's strength and walks towards the hopeful future. And as she walks, she discovers the joys she knew she would find.

At Gunting Luganda (the mid-mountain stopover before you continue with the summit trail), I was freezing in my bunk and hated to move even an inch under the cold linen. Si Hui was jumping with excitment when she saw stars in the window, "Let's go out and see the stars! They are so beautiful!" I refused, and she came at me again, "Two hours! Let's watch the stars for two hours and we'll be back." I gagged. Two hours? Stars? I have gone stargazing for 4 hours before so I know they are captivating. But 2 hours in this freezing night? I looked at my shoes which were wet from yesterday's climb and dreaded putting my already cold feet into them. I refused to budge and she left without me. Indeed, she left without me! I was surprised she really ventured into the pitch darkness, cold and loneliness of the outside. It was safe enough on the veranda, but I would have thought it was no fun being alone. So this I've learnt from her: Sometimes, we just have to get over the discomforts of our situations, want badly enough, and go for it!

Si Hui came back 2 hours later, "Let's go out and catch the sunrise!" Once again, I wished she didn't ask, but having refused her once I thought I ought to do better this time. Hence, I finally dragged myself out of bed after she bribed me with a cup of hot milo. As I walked towards the door, I kept second-guessing how beautiful it can get. Don't all sunrise look about the same? But when I opened the door, I was terribly mistaken. The mountain morning was fantastic (although I know my sleepy face didn't show my amazement in the photos). The view above clouds was heavenly and the morning pastel colors were simply comforting after a cold wet night. It was strange the warm colors in the skies didn't match the cold temperatures, yet it was interesting and nice. What injustice I would have done to yesternight's miseries if I hadn't enjoyed that moment's wonder--a wonder only possible to witness because of the heights we attained! So here's the next lesson: Just believe in that vague but sure reward, because when it comes, it will amaze you beyond your imagination. And don't compromise just because you're tired, because you'll be sorry you made yourself suffer for nothing.


Lixin was an indispensable member too. Though Si Hui and I jogged almost frequently, our fitness were far from acceptable and we weren't the most enthusiastic people when it comes to training. Lixin was the constant reminder for us to get back on our physical trainings. Oh yes, she was the true-blue nurse too. I was stunned when she presented to us her research on altitude sickness and medications and especially when she pressed me to confirm my bloodtype so as to make me an emergency medical information card. "No agarations! This is important," this was the email I received one sleepy morning. Her email was dated something like 3 or 4am and I thought she's crazy to stay up so late to do this sort of stuff. But oh well, that's her! Her first-aid kit alone was, I say, at least 1 kg. Always prepared. That was her motto. And hey, it pays off! Her constant exercise regime made her fit enough to reach the summit!