Sungai Kinabatangan

Sungai Kinabatangan:

Sabah’s longest river is Kinabatangan. It’s a menagerie of creatures....an ironic result of the massive logging and oil-palm plantations. Looking at the endless acres of oil palm is depressing...the forests are fast disappearing. Here along the River the animals seek refuge..

palm oil.......

We stay in a ‘jungle lodge’ next to the river. For three days we witness a variety of wildlife. From the river boat we see our first sightings of the proboscis monkeys. A large family colony is feeding in a tree overhanging the river. These large monkeys are hysterical. Their enormous potbellies their floppy noses and, for the males, their wonderful superman “undie” markings. It’s impossible to keep a straight face whilst observing these leaf eating primates... especially the first male we see with its enormous erection dominating its figure.!



silver  langur



The Jungle lodge offers a full schedule. It’s river cruise , breakfast ,trek, lunch, river cruise, dinner, nightwalk ...bed. Repeat the next day! These full days are certainly a different approach for us...but at least we don’t have to make decisions.

We see hornbills, eagles, silver leaf monkeys and a variety of other birds and insects. We don’t see pygmy elephants...however do see their footprints and poos...so that half counts!Being on the river shows a different aspect of life, although looming true not far behind the vegetation strip are the oil plantations. This is a fragile habitat and who knows how long it will survive.

We get to take a rather privelliged route up a small tributary, “because the water level is just right and we are the only guests along with an expensive tour group of four and private guide.” Our boat has to navigate carefully up and we only just fit the chanel. Trees overhang the tributary and it feels a bit like Tarzan and Jane territory! We eventually come out at an oxbow lake. A stunning still backwater. Immediately it feels more remote and the birdlife is evident.......A

Large Oriental Darters sit drying their wings, small colourful kingfishers fly from vantage point to vantage point around the lake edge and eagles perch or circle overhead. An oasis in the middle of nowhere. We trek through ankle deep flooded coastal rainforest in hope of seeing something special- a wild orang-utan, large cat or pigmy elephant. But none are around for us. The European tourist marvel at every insect, they have phobias of nearly all small and large critters. Though we don’t see any amazingly unusual bugs........

 


We circle through the jungle and return to the lake, though you can’t swim in it in case of crocodiles, you can feed the little fish who leap over each other to get at bread. If you put your feet in, ie. Angela, they leap over each other to take a layer of skin off your travel weary feet............some people pay lots of money for this treatment.

Each adventure from the lodge unveils some of the marvellous variety of wildlife in Borneo. Only by visiting these areas is their value to the locals’ economic future ensured. Otherwise it’s a palm oil roll out across the countryside.....R