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mt. kinabalu 

Every year more than 55,000 people from all over the world come to Sabah for one purpose only, and that is to climb Mount Kinabalu, the highest Mountain in Malaysia. Standing at 4,093 metres, Mt. Kinabalu is also the highest Mountain in Borneo Island, the second largest island in the world after Greenland. The areas in and around Mt. Kinabalu have some of the world most diversified fauna and flora, well over 3,000 different spices have being classified to date. In recognition of the importance of this biological role and value, UNESCO has designated Mt. Kinabalu Park as a World Heritage site in the year two thousand.
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An overview from Rock-Faces of Kinabalu at Dawn

After a good night rest, and with the body strength restored, many climbers choose to get up as early as 2:00 am to prepare for the climb. The restaurant at Laban Rata opens at 2:00 am to 3:00 am, light breakfast, hot coffee and tea are served. Temperature at the outdoor is cold at 10C average throughout the year, and warm clothings are essential items.

Many climbers start the second part of The Summit Trail at 3:00 am from Laban Rata (3,272 m), which gives them about 3 hours to reach the summit before the magnificent sunrise. Whereas the slower climbers will go as early as 2:30 am to have more time to cover the 2.7 kilometres, while the fitter climbers can start a bit later at 3:30 am.

The first section of this journey is passing the steep rocky faces of Panar Laban. Climbers will have to manoeuvre through a series of wooden stairs and later rocky steps. This is normally done in pitch dark condition, therefore a flash light or head lamp will indeed be handy.

Many parts of the wooden stairs and rocky steps can be congested as the trails are only wide enough for one person at a time. The congestion is mainly caused by climbers with different level of fitness, and also because of the thin air at the mountain climbers have to huff and puff for air.




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The administration office, is situated next to the Kinabalu Park Headquarters entrance, opens as early as 7:00 am. After securing a bed from the Sutera Sanctuary Lodges, normally with booking done much earlier, and settling the various Kinabalu Park climbing fee with Sabah Park at the administration office, climbers are provided with a mountain guide.

Next a charter bus will transport climbers and the mountain guide to the Power Station, which is the main station that supplies electricity to the various facilities at Mt. Kinabalu. From the Kinabalu Park Headquaters to Power Station used to be 45 minutes to an hour walk in the old days, with the road improvement made back in the early 80s, today the 4 km bus ride will only take 15 minutes.

Two trails lead to the summit of Mt. Kinabalu, The Summit Trail is the more popular choice and the distance to the summit is also shorter. The other alternative is the Mesilau Trail, where the landscape is more dramatic, passing through rivers and streams, and splendid for those who are interested in floras, plants and wildlife.

Timpohon Gate at 1,866 m is where the journey to the summit of Mt. Kinabalu begins. This is also the 1st check point out of the three designated check points that will aid the safety of the climbers. Interestingly the summit trail starts with a 100 meter descend that ends at Carson Fall, a small waterfall that is named after the first warden of the Park.

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