Mount Kinabalu, Mu tunggu aku datang! - Story 3/3

Day 3, 16 June 2014

I couldn't really get my sleep... Even though I closed my eyes, I only can see forest and mountains..

By 1am, aku dah tecongok bangun... bising lagi by the students..

 The plan was to start at 2.30am, however the group of students in the Pendant Hut kitchen was slowing down our plan. We only can have our preparation once they gone out. Our first group climbing was at 3.00am while the second group was at 3.30am.

After a ‘tool box talk’ on the journey ahead and prerequisite tests on our head torches, we stepped into the dark and cold, resuming our personal battle with the mountain trail.

Right before we gone out to the Peak

The climb started by going up what seemed to be a million steeps, rickety wooden steps...up, up, up with nothing but your head torch to light the way.

There were a lot of people climbing, we keep going as the air gets thinner and thinner. As you look around during the climb...you can see hundreds of head torches looking like a line of stars winding their way up the side of the mountain in the cold, dark night...

beautiful and inspiring..

I start to coughing... continuously... but Alhamdulillah its gone after half an hour or less... mungkin sebab my body trying to adapt the new environment in thinner air.

Then came to the ropes... In the dark...pulling yourself up by ropes...with no safety gear... for about 1km.. I found myself so fast in taking the rope up. I ran fast pulling my body up.. looking back, I left my friend behind.

this consider a flat route but still rocky..
couldn't see anything without the head torch

Keep moving until we were on the flat route, even the rope was still there but we already can stand
without it, the rope was there mostly for the guidance and the indicator to the peak. I lost my energy... sangat-sangat penat mendaki hamparan batu yang maha terbentang... I rested my legs... quite some times.. until ... Fashran, Trang and Ricardo overtook me...

I dont care if I was late... I want to take my own sweet time with the nature.. with the clouds.. midst.. fog.. and mountain..

Zirullah yang tidak lepas... bila pandang ke belakang.. dalam kabus samar-samar dapat tengok view yang sangat indah... lebih cantik dari lepak kat gunung Jerai, Kedah masa kecik-kecik dengan geng PERKEP Polis dulu.

Climbing up slowly.. very slow.. inhale.. exhale.. Lahaulawa..quwataillabilla hillalliyillazim..

I felt my both legs becoming heavier and shaking... the weather slowing down my motion and the heavy cloud make the vision limited. I pretty sure that I won’t get that chances to see the sunrise..

Our group then again spread out as some of us were very fast. The matsalleh were gone... I met them climbing down already while I was still mendaki ke puncak. Who care.. we are not in a competition...

My legs were becoming heavier and heavier to walk. Slowly but still moving..

The plan was to have a group photos at the peak however, due to the weather which was not allowed us to stay longer at the peak and also the timing that we have to be at the Sayat-Sayat at 8.00am for Via Ferata Route, making the earliest climbers in our group went down to the Sayat-Sayat meeting point.

Finally, after the greatest effort that I have been put on, I reached the summit at 4095m, Low's Peak. The splendor of the view coupled with the chilly wind and crisp air of about 2-6 degrees left me feeling so much more.

I touched the sign with my both hands. The strangest sensation was... happy... even I can’t see the sunrise... so glad to be at that moment...so glad to feel so alive so relief... I forget all the tiredness.. about the pain that I have been through during the climbing... No words can exactly describing the feeling..

Yes, I made it !

“May your dreams be larger than mountains and may you have the courage to scale their summits.”

― Harley King

I was all alone.. no friends... I left Linda..

I asked the people around to capture my moments up on the peak. Thanks to unknown climbers who helped to pull me up ngee ngee.. batu-batu sangat curam dow.. 

Climb Back Down

I was thinking Linda has turn back via Ferrata... but I was wrong.. I met Linda on the way down from the Peak. Go Linda Go.. suddenly I felt happy knowing my friend trailing my back. I thought I can wait for Linda and go down together after she reached the peak but.. Hairie (the guard) urged me to go down huhu sorry Linda.. sejuk sangat lagipun.

I lost Fatin and Zaim... but Zaim then calling me through walkie talkie.. informing that he will wait for Linda. When I know they're there around me then aku dengan niat sengaja telah melengah-lengahkan perjalanan turun. Selfie.. selfie lah...

Why to rush down...?! I was not coming for via Ferrata.. I was there to reach the peak. Susah payah panjat tetiba kena turun cepat-cepat... No way !

I taking my own sweet time.. having my own memories...

On the way down.. the fog and cloud slowly gone...

The famous gorilla face at my back. I couldn't see the face during climbing up.

The walkie keep buzzing me asking about my location and urged me to move fast back to Sayat-Sayat check point.

Go to hell... separuh mati aku memanjat.. once done nak kene rushing back.  Forget it !

During back down, the cloud and fog went away slowly and the view were bright and shine. Tracking the route back was awesome and beautiful view. We don’t see anything during the climb up except the darkness.

Some of us were already tracking back down via ferrata while myself busy enjoying and appreciate the view which I never experience before.

The white cotton cloud, the beautiful trees, from the height to see very small building far from the top of the mountain..

couldn't take the difficult route.. camne nak pegang camera camne nak panjat
coming down.. trailing the rope as an indicator.. I then joined that group as I scared to be alone. That was Aznal and the group. We already fb friend now hehehe..

I was climbing this rocky cliff early in the morning at 3am...

Thanks god.. I was there to witness the spectacular view...

I joined the other group.. which I dont know them.. just be friend... to accompany my back down hehe..

I was the first person reached the Pendant Hut. Ingatkan kene tinggal.. rupanya tercepat sampai. Dalam 15minit baru diorg dsampai. Ceh.. I should spend more time at the peak..

Everybody reached the Pendant Hut happy even though tired. We took a short rest and some light lunch as well does the preparation to continue our climb back down to the Timpohon gate.

'hello hello... i want to make a correction.. this is not 55.2 time saga hill but 200 something times saga hill'

Penat dow... rasa cam dah takleh jalan turun...

After briefly re-grouping at Pendant Hut, we started the long descent. This was initially in pleasant overcast weather than turned gradually into heavy rain (no pictures or postings).

1st stop during climbing down... nak hujan dah

I was with Fashran and Richard lead the others down.. I was fast at first.. until KM3 away from Timpohon.. my ankle sakit nak mati... then kene dera ngan Fashran.. cepat la cepat la.. si Richard lak... common... our lunch is waiting.... huhu.. disebabkan takut kene tinggal dalam kesamaran hutan coz the other group was left far behind us... so I pushed myself to move fast.

Somewhere between 3 or 4 hours later, after 15 hours of activity, we arrived back at the park gates exhausted, aching, miserably wet but the most important was safe.

Pack of lunch and the bus were ready waiting for us. After changing wet clothes we heading back to the hotel

‘It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves’, Edmund Hillary

Penat giler...

Day 4, 17 June 2014

The day started with a breakfast at the Hotel. After we check-out at 11.30am, we took a group photo.

Everybody got their stuff back from the porter but my stuff gone missing in mystery, can't located. I got some cash, ic, clothes and power bank in the bag. All gone. Alhamdulillah it was not me who gone missing.

Let's do the police report for my missing ic. No big deal ! Its back to Allah...

happening..
my bluethooth monopod best !

photos before left the hotel

The climbing certificates were presented in the bus on the way to the airport. By 1.30pm, everybody already in the flight going home.

The weird part was... I think I gonna go again... tirednes is not the matter...

The battle with the mountain has moved our perception of what is possible and it has somewhat changed 

everyone in one way or another. We have worked together and moved forward as a team as team leader, 

Simon Molyneux said, “I can say that I am proud to have been a part of this team, every member was 

committed, acted responsibly and did everything (and more) that they were asked to. We hope that 

the expedition would benefit the 5 NGOs and with Talisman’s 1:1 ‘Match It Grant’ program, the amount 

raised would go well beyond RM 100,000 to help them continue the good work they are doing.” Good job 

everyone! ~ this final note excerpted from Insite, Talisman Malaysia Limited.