The next day we got up early to eat breakfast and then go hiking or “trekking” as all the Europeans called it. Speaking of Europeans, that’s all we have seen so far in Malaysia and in our hiking group there were two Dutch girls, a Welsh couple and an Italian couple. After breakfast we all loaded up into the canoe and headed to the other side of the river which was the entrance to the park.
Our first adventure of the day was the canopy walk – the longest in the world (the highest canopy walk is in Costa Rica). The canopy walk was 500m of suspended ropes, wires and wooden planks high above the ground. There were strict rules about how far you had to walk in front of and behind people and how many people could be on the walk at a time. The walk was really fun though my heart was definitely pumping while swaying and walking as high as the trees. I felt like I was back in junior adventure camp where we did ‘team building’ on ropes courses but this time there wasn’t a net or safety harness. It looks so easy but once you get up there it feels totally different and vulnerable. Finishing the walk was definitely a rush of adrenaline but my knuckles were a little white from gripping the ropes so hard. ($8 breakfast, $20 jungle trek, $13 room)
The rest of the morning we spent hiking up and down slippery and muddy slopes, learning about different plants and insects and taking in the jungle sounds. Our guide was helpful and friendly and liked to joke which was sometimes hard to catch given his accented and broken English. He highly encouraged hands-on learning so we were constantly smelling plants, feeling trees or holding insects – it was really fun.
We arrived back at shore hungry, muddy, tired, sweaty and thirsty and enjoyed lunch before heading back to shower and nap. Sean and I enjoyed a relaxing afternoon of napping, reading, writing and playing cards. We signed up for a night jungle hike and booked a bus ticket to another area of Malaysia called the Cameron Highlands for the following morning. I’m crossing my fingers that tonight I can continue my leech-free streak! ($60 ticket to Cameron Highlands, $7 lunch, $13 night hike, $7 dinner)
The night hike was a bit spookier than I anticipated. We spent about two hours walking through pitch black jungle while our guide used his flashlight to point out different birds, insects and small animals. We saw huge owls, spiders, scorpions and lots and lots of bugs. We always had to be careful to keep moving so the giant superhighways of termites and ants wouldn't crawl over and up us. My absolute favorite part of the hike was when we got to see the parks famed naturally phosphorescent mushrooms. It was so cool! Everywhere you looked there were little green glowing orbs peeking out from under fallen trees and leaves. I came away from the hike with several mysterious bug bites but no leeches (did you know that you keep bleeding for an hour even after you remove one? It's because of some anticoagulant chemical that they leave on your skin). Our adventures in the jungle were just about over and we packed up and got ready to leave early in the morning. Total = $128 (price for two people)
Quiero ver esos honguitos fosforescentes con mis propios ojos!!!!! Las fotos están alucinantes, I keep living vicariously through you!!!!!!!