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The real adventure for us started with the trip to Camp 5. First we had to take a one-hour boat ride from the entrance to the Clearwater Caves, carrying all the gear that we would need for the next two nights with us. Then, led by our guides but carrying our own stuff, we had to hike along a jungle trail 8.8 km to Camp 5. The terrain was flat for the most part, but there were still plenty of roots, rocks and muddy patches on the trail, so we had to keep our eyes constantly glued towards the ground or else we’d trip or slip and fall. We arrived about 2.5 hours later, including time for a rest stop in the middle.<\/p>\n
Camp 5 turned out to be a small cluster of wooden buildings next the swift flowing Melinau River. The accommodation is very spartan: basically each person is assigned a hard mattress on top of a wooden platform in a large communal room. The scenery however is fantastic. The camp itself is located just at the base of the mountain that we’d be climbing, part of Gunung Api. On the opposite side of the river lies the even more majestic Mount Benarat. Meals were prepared by the guides assigned to each group using rations that they had carried with them from Mulu and eaten in the large open cantine area. After dinner, our guide briefed us on what the climb would be liked, reminded us of what we’d need to bring and gave some advice.<\/p>\n
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I couldn’t find a schematic of the climb anywhere on the net so I’m just going to briefly describe it. The peak is at about 1,170 m above sea level but Camp 5 itself is already at 100 m. The total distance that we’d need to actually cover to reach the peak is 2.4 km. The first 200 m is a fairly easy hike through the jungle. Then you arrive at what is called the “1st Rope”. Basically it’s a rough rock wall with a rope attached to help you scale it. After that comes what they call the “scrambling” portion of the climb up a slope averaging from 50 to 60 degrees. It’s called that because you basically need to use your hands as well as your legs to clamber over the rocks and roots.<\/p>\n
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This goes on up until the last 400 m of the climb which is called the “free climbing” section. It starts with a long ladder climb and proceeds mostly 90 degrees up the rock. There are ladders, iron bars and ropes attached at difficult sections to help you, but mostly you need to do rock climbing, finding proper handholds and footholds to make your way to the peak. There are also sections where you need to traverse a crevasse on a plank with ropes at the side to help with balance. We were instructed that each person would also have to bring at least 3 liters of water each for the climb as well as our own food.<\/p>\n
Now, this may not sound terribly scary when you read about it, but I can assure that as someone with no experience of climbing at all, when I came across the first rope, there was a sinking feeling in my heart as I realized just how hard this climb was going to be. Then, add the fact that we had a schedule to keep. Basically you have to be able to reach certain checkpoints before a set time or else the guide will call the climb off as you won’t be able to get back to camp before dark. This meant that rest stops were few and brief.<\/p>\n
Our group actually made pretty good time going up the mountain. It turned out that except for my wife and myself, the rest were all experienced climbers and had plenty of stamina to spare. It took all of our concentration and energy to keep going so as not to slow down everyone too much and I have to admit that I was cursing how hard it was the whole way. By the time we started the free climbing portion, we were so exhausted that we didn’t have the luxury to think about how dangerous it actually was and went ahead with it. My thigh muscles cramped about halfway through this portion but I pushed through the pain anyway.<\/p>\n
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I suppose that most people like to talk about the sense of achievement that they feel when they reach the peak, but for my part, what I felt was mostly relief that the ordeal was over. The view there is of the Pinnacles, natural limestone rock formations that have been shaped by the weather into jagged spikes. We reached the top at about 10.30 am, having started off at 6.45 am, which our guide said was very good time. We had a half-hour to rest and munch on our sandwiches and then it was time to start our descent.<\/p>\n
Believe it or not, the descent was harder than the ascent by far, which is why the schedule calls for more time being spent on descending than ascending and why the guides keep pushing you to get to the top quickly. Firstly, when you climb down a vertical rock wall, it’s hard to see where to put your foot to descend, so you end up hanging helplessly like a fool trying to find a way to get down. Secondly, everything up there is slippery. The rocks, the roots, even the rungs on the ladders. You need to be ultra-careful with every step you take or you’ll end up falling. The two of us were so slow that the rest of the group went down ahead of us while the guide stayed behind to wait for us. Towards the end our leg muscles were so rubbery that we were practically crawling down the mountain. We finally arrived back at camp at about a quarter past four in the afternoon, with the rest of the group arriving a full hour before us.<\/p>\n
I guess there’s something about sharing an arduous experience that breaks the ice between strangers because our group had a good long discussion that night. The rest of them all had plenty of stories to tell about the different mountains they’d climbed and the dangerous experiences they’d had. The British lady in our group commented that the descent was probably the hardest of all the different mountains she’d climbed while the Japanese guy, Yuma-san, commented that the free-climbing portion was the longest he’d yet encountered and he thought that the entire climb was so dangerous that he’d expect that out of every ten people, at least one would get some kind of injury. Our guide confirmed that on average only around 60 percent of the climbers actually manage to reach the peak.<\/p>\n
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For my part I have to say that if I’d known how hard the climb would be beforehand, I would never have gone but now that I have, I am glad that I did. I’m still annoyed by our tour agent for not warning us however because this climb is clearly not suitable for amateurs. She didn’t even ask if we had any medical conditions that would complicate things. Our hike back the next morning was uneventful and a cakewalk compared to the climb. I did learn a lot during this trip and I have to admit that I’m looking forward to our Mount Kinabalu climb more than I did. Perhaps my wife and I will end up climbing it twice! Once using the usual Timpohon route and again using the harder Mersilau route that our Pinnacles guide recommended.<\/p>\n
Finally, I’d like to add that Camp 5 is a really picturesque and pleasant environment to visit on its own. I was a bit miffed at first at how basic the facilities are but you stop caring after a while and learn to appreciate what is there. Most of all, the sense of camaraderie there is incredible. The first night you arrive, you ask the ones who are already there about how hard the climb is. Then once you’ve come back from your climb, a whole new group arrives and eagerly asks you about your experiences.\u00a0 To anyone who’s interested, yes, it’s worth it but be warned that it is extremely tough so you do need to train yourself first. And please, please listen to your guide and bring enough water. You’re going to need every drop of it.<\/p>\n
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The real adventure for us started with the trip to Camp 5. First we had to take a one-hour boat ride from the entrance to the Clearwater Caves, carrying all the gear that we would need for the next two nights with us. Then, led by our guides but carrying our own stuff, we had … Continue reading Mulu Caves \/ Pinnacles Climb, Part 2<\/span>