I'm not sure if it was my excitement to summit Kota Kinabalu or the non-stop noises our 6 fellow Malaysian roommates made the whole night that woke me up well before 1:45am. After a quick porridge breakfast and some good Sabah tea, we are ready to go.
To our surprise, the gate to the upper part of the mountain was still locked and the park ranger late to open it. We finally started our ascend from the Laban Ratan hut (3,323m) at around 3 in the morning. The light of our headlamps guided our way. The first hundred steep meters were all stairs. Our heartbeat was up to 170 fast beats a minute. Our breath was heavy and fast. Around 15 people walked in front of us, badly gasping for air. We were stuck in the snail trail. We managed to pass all of them and when the trail turned into a more natural terrain, flat granite slopes, we were way ahead of the crowd.
At around 1km into the hike we were the first to pass the ranger station on April 1, 2010, logging in with our code number. From there it was another 1,5km to the peak. Despite the higher altitude, our heartbeats suddenly returned to a more normal rate. Motivated by the thought of being the first to summit Kota Kinabalu today, we turned on our turbo engines and steamed up the mountain. We left our guide in the dust who, finally catching up with us, admitted we “are very strong climbers”.
At 4:19am we reached the top of the highest mountain in Malaysia! The wind was gusting strongly. Seeking shelter from the cold, we hid behind a massive rock formation. We had another 1.5 hours to wait before the sun would rise. Wiggling our toes and rubbing our hands to keep warm the next 90 minutes seemed endless and futile effort.
At 5:45am the sun rose spectacularly. Partially covered in clouds the unmistakably red of the rising sun uncovered the magnificence of Kota Kinabalu: its deep vertical drops and long slopes. The full moon whose white glow guided most of our morning ascent was still bright, apparently reluctant to give up its dominance on the cold morning sky.
After exhausting the seemingly endless photo opportunities on the peak we started our descent back to the Laban Ratan hut. At around 9 in the morning we indulged in our second breakfast. The deep black local coffee (Tomen) brought our spirits back to life.
The remaining 6km back to the park headquarters were the most straining. Endless natural and man-made steps left my knees in pain. Unlike during our ascent, the clouds gave way to an awesome view into the valley ahead of us. However, the view didn’t last long. Once we entered the tree zone, it rained on us once again.
Finally, back on a paved road, we took the bus back to Kota Kinabalu City, sleeping most of the 1.5-hour ride. Our hotel welcomed us with a desperately needed shower and a magnificent sunset over Kota Kinabalu City’s bay.
No comments:
Post a Comment