MY FINAL CLIMB!!!

Mount Kinabalu (Malay: Gunung Kinabalu) is a prominent mountain on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It is located in the east Malaysian state of Sabah and is protected as Kinabalu National Park, a World Heritage Site. Kinabalu is the tallest peak in Borneo's Crocker Range and is the fourth tallest mountain in the Malay Archipelago after Papua's Puncak Jaya, Puncak Trikora and Puncak Mandala. Mount Kinabalu is also the 20th tallest mountain in the world by topographic prominence.

In 1997, a re-survey using satellite technology established its summit (known as Low’s Peak) height at 4,095 metres (13,435 ft) above sea level, which is some 6 metres (20 ft) less than the previously thought and hitherto published figure of 4,101 metres (13,455 ft).

Gosh....I didn't realised that ...20th in the world and I conquered it three times!

I should have given myself a pat in the back for making it up the second time.... but the third?
Ha... but I'm soooooo relief and satisfied that I made it all the way up and all the way down.

( I'm not comparing with Jo's feat of nine times....yeap... believe it.  No wonder she wasn't at all keen to come along when I told her about the trip)

This last climb will be my final climb....period!

I'm done with  mountain climbing. This one in particular.
It's not really at all about the climb, it was more of the coming down part that's hard to bear. .

I'm still aching all over while writing this. Walking is really a task....then again to be exact, any movement is such a task.
I just feel like laying down and not move anything. ....which infact makes it more unbearable once I try to move later.
aaaarrrrrrrrrrr....I really dislike this feeling of 'helpless'  and with the 'mess' around the house....eeeeeee
The worse thing the maid could do now was not turning up today ... and that exactly what she did.
double aaarrrrrrrrrrrr.... I had to do all the priorities with my 'babies'

Blinky 'stink' and so does Chalaga ( baby pup) from being 'caged' during the days that I was away.
But no way was I am able to give them their badly needed bath today.
I was told the ache will be over within four days....but so far I feel that it's aching more by the day.
Hopefully that saying is true .

Overall, beside the aching.. the trip was really a wonderful 'get together' time for me and the girls.
It was fun doing it with them. That is actually why I agreed to the idea in the first place.

THE CLIMB
We started out journey on thursday. Took the 2pm bus from Sandakan to Kundasang. By the time we made it to the motel that I have made booking days earlier, it was already almost eight pm. Weather was really cold and misty. To my suprise, Andrew was there waiting for us with some warm clothings ( our winter clothing that was kept in KK) and some medication for high altitude sickness .
I kind of guess he was worried I couldn't take care of his girls :)
He didn't stay long thou, he left just as we finish our dinner.

Posing in their warm clothings :)

Dinner....wan tan kui tiaw

 We stayed a night here before the day of climb, Friday 22nd July. We walked about 300m to the National Park headquaters for our permit to climb.

 The six ladies ( plus the photographer)  who went on this quest.

Right at the starting point with Eliz

 This is a must photograph....the first waterfall you'll see. That one 'thing' that will always remember along the trail

Along the steps to 'heaven'?

Getting steeper and steeper....the fact that it rained the whole way up didn't make it easier.

Once you get wet it gets colder
Trees getting shorter as we move upwards

The much waited dinner at Laban Rata. Now managed by Sutera Sanctuary Lodges, it was all 'hotel food' buffet style. This was my dinner....after 6km of climbing..it was like the best food ever.

The long lone walk upwards...as breathing gets more difficult

Yona hiding in the 'kick ass' mask just passing the South Peak

At 8Km..it's only 700m to the top
so near...yet so far.

 I made it.....so did the girls and the gloves in my jacket.
Yona dropped them  while climbing the ropes. My pouch was full so I just slipped it in my jacket.

Pictures taken during descending

I made myself take this shot . Initially I wanted it taken on the top....I have forgotten since it was so darn cold and crowded there. We only stayed a few minutes as we have to leave by the given time . 

 I found out later, none of the girls also took any pictures while on top :(

  By 11 am....Starting the long walk down

Again.... the fact that it rain heavily halfway down didn't help the situation. The normal three to four hour walk down turned out to be almost six hours for me.

As with the previous climbs, its always comes back to my 'bad' knee.

I said goodbye to the many steps I stepped and passed by....for I know this was to be my final encounter with them.  Compared to yesterday upwards climb of 6Km, today I had walked a total of 11.4Km.....2.7Km up to the summit plus the 8.7km down to the starting gate. All I can say was Pheewwww!!!!!!  DONE!

As agreed earlier, Andrew was there waiting to take us home. The three other girls

caught the 8.30pm bus from KK back to Sandakan.

Unlike us three, only one of them came back with a 'full' cert.

Which we were unable to collect that day as the office were already close.

We stopped over at Mountain View Lodge cafe for dinner before making the journey home at around 9pm.

The hot( two kind of hot) food that awaits us...

 Dinner was steam boat before continuing our journey home

We made it safely to Sandakan at almost one in the morning. 
Took the much needed bath and went to bed.....aching all over.
What a wonderful weekend it was. Tiring yet fulfilling.
-
TWO DAYS LATER........

Tadaaaaaaaaaa........!!!!!!!!!