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Time to Leave
We left the Jungle Sanctuary shortly after 7:30am the
next morning.
On the boat ride back, we saw:
- 2 Hornbills (Rhino & Great)
- 2 Eagles flying -- one was swooping across the river --
magnificent!
- A bird with a turquoise body, black head, orange beak,
size medium
Can we stop?
As we were approaching the village, the boat ran out of
petrol and the boatman had to let the river carry us the last stretch,
using his single paddle to steer us towards the bank. As the current
swept us by the main jetty, he called for help to a lady doing washing
there, but she just ignored him. It looked for a moment as though we
might continue on unchecked downstream, but, paddling frantically, the boatman
managed to pull us into the lee of the jetty where the water was less
rapid, and then paddle back upstream to the jetty and make fast the boat.
Right on cue at 9am the van turned up for the journey
back. This time it was just us and the van driver. The road
that had been flooded on our way in had by now dried out.
I noted the times and distance for the journey back:
- It was about 3 hours and 115km back to Sepilok.
- 1-1/4 hours and 42km of that was on the bumpy gravel
road from Sukau to the main road.
- Another 30 minutes and 36 km was going North towards
the main East-West road.
- And finally there was 37 km towards Sandakan.
However, eventually we were back at Sepilok Jungle
Resort, where we stopped for lunch (cost RM 75).
I had decided it was too much to drive the six hours
back to Kota Kinabalu that day, so instead I had decided to book our final
night near the Kinabalu National Park. I had tried to book a cabin at
Poring Hot Springs, but the cheaper cabins like Enggang Lodge unavailable
and all they could offer was the deluxe Rajawali Lodge for RM288 a
night. I had also contemplated Tambunan Village Resort Centre so as
to be close to the Rafflesia Center.
Kinabalu Rose Cabin
In the end, I had booked two "Deluxe" Rooms at
the Kinabalu Rose Cabin. This is a small Chinese-run hotel just 2km
East of the gate to Kinabalu National Park. Deluxe rooms (which each
had a double bed and a single bed) were just RM73.50 a night (all
inclusive). The walls were a little thin, but they had superb views
of Mount Kinabalu in the morning.
[TIP: If you stay here, make sure that you ask for rooms
on the mountain side. In fact, Kinabalu Rose Cabin would be a good
alternative to actually staying in the Park – especially if you had your
own transport (though I think they would shuttle you back and forth if you
didn't). If you do, you should keep your Kinabalu Park Entrance
tickets with you, so that you don't get charged each time you go in.]
Hot Showers and Food
Our first priority after two nights in the jungle and
eight hours travelling was hot showers. After that, we needed food
(RM 56). The restaurant proved to be fast, efficient, plentiful and
cheap. Just what we needed! The staff were friendly and helpful
and a couple of the waitresses were even Filipino.
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