Adventure Caving and Trekking in Mulu (Part 2)

This is the second day of our expedition, we hopped on the longboat and visited a native Penan village near Melinau river. FACT according to my research: Penan people are the last remaining semi-nomadic people in Malaysia.

The settlements by the river.

Indigenous people live a simple life. The women will look after the family while the men go out to work. Their regular income is through farming, hunting, and tourism. I was really impressed by the nearly dying traditional handicraft bead work and weaving. 

There are wooden cutleries, basic traditional musical instruments like the nose flute, fake blow pipes (harmless), weaved basket, mats, woven bracelets. 

I personally bought a number of beaded bracelets and key chains from them, wanting to share it among my friends back in Kuala Lumpur. (Shout out to Jo, Son, Mark c, and Kim!) 

NOTE: Prices are negotiable with the Penans, but don't bargain ridiculous prices, be reasonable.

Misty morning at Penan Village, Mulu

We continued our journey along the Melinau River, and stopped off at the Cave of the Winds. It is also part of the Clearwater Cave system.

There are a series of steep stairs that leads up to the Wind Cave, tourists would need stamina for this! ;) But trust me, the climb is definitely worth it. 

This unique species of monophyte (single leafed plant) grows at the mouth of the cave, towards the sunlight. They only grow on limestones.

The name 'Cave of the Winds' came about due to its cool breeze that blows of the cave mouth. As if we were in an air conditioned room, the cave was breezy and the wind was strong. 

At the end of the Wind Cave's passage, lies the famous King's Chamber (the main reason why I mentioned that your treacherous steep climb up to this cave will be totally worth it)

Columns formed by stalagmites and stalactites. Stalagmites are the limestones from the ground, and stalactites are the limestones from the ceiling. 

ps. I will never forget my geog teacher Ms Maddy's phrase: "The tights go down, and the mights come up!" Catchy, ain't it? As long as it helps you to remember.

Let's give it another hundred years...this stalagmite and stalactite will join!

We turned back and headed out of the Wind Cave entrance and continued our journey in reaching the Clearwater Cave, which is the longest cave system in Southeast Asia. It is larger than Deer Cave, and largely unexplored. It is about 107km long. However, only the first few hundred meters are accessible to tourists.

There are actually two wats of reaching the Clearwater Cave. The first option is to trek from the Wind Cave's nature trail, which is 4km and it takes about one and a half hour. The second option is to take the long boat which takes only 15 minutes. Needless to say, most tourists take the long boat, and that includes us.

Stairways into the Clearwater Cave. The gushing sound of the underground river could be heard.

A ray of hope.

Mulu caves contain different types of unusual floral and fauna too. Most of the creatures living in this pitch black are often described as the 'isolated' ancient group survivors, or 'living fossils'.

 This helictites, also known as lateral formations, are photokarsts. They are tiny needles of rock that will point towards the light as you shine on it. How dramatic!

At the end of the passageway, we climbed down the steps which led us to the deck area. At the base of the steps was a crystal clear pool with water flowing out of the cave. It is a perfect swimming hole, all natural and shallow. Tourists can freshen up after hiking in the caves in this cold water if they wish to do so. 

Our cave expedition ended after this trek and hike into the caves. We rested for about 45 minutes before returning by the longboat.

Adventure Caving and Trekking in Mulu (Part 1)

Underneath the mountains of Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak, Malaysia, lies the largest cave system in the world. This awe-inspiring natural phenomenal became a world-famous attraction. The park was proudly awarded UNESCO World Heritage site in year 2000. Speleologists around the world are still trying to explore the undiscovered parts of this massive cave system until today, how intriguing!

This is the Mulu National Park main gate, where our walk to the Lang Cave and Deer Cave begins through a long plank boardwalk. To ensure these nature phenomenal are full protected, all caves visit at Mulu must be guided. Tourists will also have to obey the strict rules of the national park.

The view while walking across the wooden bridge to the boardwalk trail. Longboats are the main transportation along the Melinau river.

And so, the trekking begins. The trail is mostly in filtered sunlight and shade therefore it feels chilly and cool.

                         

These towering trees are the skyscraper of the glades.

Don't forget to be fully equipped! Water is essential to stay hydrated during the journey, other items that will come in handy are insect repellent, cap, torch light, and umbrella or raincoat.

 Jungle streams.
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This astounding rainforest is also home to many different types of flora and fauna. Until today, botanical expeditions continue to shed more light on Mulu.

A lucky day to witness two millipedes mating on the top rail. Friendly reminder- do not put your hands on the railing.

Our very first cave visit was the Lang Cave. This cave is small and less well known yet it contains intricate curtain stalactites and jellyfish-like coral helictites as if it was a work of art.

Luminous spotlights gorgeously exhibits the low cavern in all angles.

Jellyfish cave formation.

Lang cave was a short walk to Deer Cave, the biggest cave passage and cave entrance of the world.

  

 

Cave entrance view from the outside.

 The cave mouth is 2.2km long and 220 high at it's highest point.

Although the walkways in the humid caves are well defined, it can be very slippery and damp. Water droplets would fall regularly from high above (or at least you'll hope it's water) like misty veil waterfalls. I was so weary of the millions of bats hanging overhead and the overpowering guano (bat poop) stench made me feel sick in the gut. The Deer Cave is home to a massive bat colony, thick layers of guano (the local people call it 'black snow') covers the cave floor.

The east entrance of Deer Cave opens onto a luxurious patch of jungle named the exotic sounding Garden of Eden.

The all-time famous creatively interpreted silhouette of the sharp profile Abraham Lincoln.

Photo taken from the amphitheatre located at the bottom mouth of the cave. Tourists would take a breather around this spot while waiting for the evening showcase of bat exodus. It is a cleared field aligned with wooden benches and a restroom. We waited with bated breath for the bats to emerge from the entrance of the cave.

The Bat Exodus occurs between 5pm to 7pm, if the weather is fine. Black clouds of millions of bats begin their daily flight ritual in search of food. What a spectacular sight to witness!

The bats fly out of the Deer Cave in spiral-like formations, like a dragon in the air. I was really lucky to capture a photo of a bat hawk swooping in for kills.

The parting of the bats from their homeland also signals that the sky is getting darker. It was time for us to head back to the park entrance. As you can see from my bat exodus photos, the sky was gloomy on that day. Not long after we departed from the amphitheatre, rain started pouring down heavily! The 'best' part of it all was the fact that we forgot to bring umbrellas and rain gears. With no other choice, I walked steadily at a good pace, completely ignoring the idea of the rain heavily beating down on me and that I am soaking wet. All I could think of was I certainly do not want to be out in the jungle after dark! The loud sound that went like "guak, guak, guak" really startled me, my dad said it was made by a type of river toad. I sped up my pace, walked even faster! I couldn't wait to get out!

According to our guide, we have trekked approximately 9km, walking to and fro through these two caves and walking back to the park entrance. Great job. I'm glad that he did not tell us the distance before we begin trekking. But it seemed that everyone eventually made out just fine, even the senior citizens.