I was a bit disappointed with the timing that I got from this run because my target was to complete the whole run within 1 hour and 15 minutes. I thought that with the recent hiking at Mount KK, my stamina and speed will increase slightly but there’s no changes at all. It’s my worst timing for 12km run.
Never mind, going to try much harder for Standard Chartered run. Now that my best friend couldn’t make it for that run, I’ll push everything into it.
Before entering university, hiking the Mount Kinabalu had never come across my mind before. Not even once. It is just a symbol on paper note for me to use to buy food from the canteen. In fact, if you were to ask me that time to wake up 2-3am in the morning to climb up some hill/mountain just to watch sunrise and then climb back down, I would assume you are experiencing post-SPM stress in your head. Who in the right mind would do that?
But after trying out hiking for the first time (it was Broga Hill btw), I finally understand why people choose to hike. Whether can you make it in time to the top to watch the sunrise, that’s just a small reward. The actual reward lies in the effort that you put to reach to the top. Of course, most of us would like to see the sunrise at the peak of Mount KK, but the one thing I’ll always remember from the trip is the journey to the top; on how we push ourselves even though our legs started to scream in pain and how we motivate and encourage each other through lies; “Come on, we almost make it! Another 5 more minutes and we will reach the checkpoint! Hang on a little bit more!!”. The longest 5 minutes in our lives.
So if you wanted to try to hike the Mother of all mountains of Malaysia, here are some items/advise that you might want to consider before starting the trip.
“Should I get myself a walking stick?”
It really depends on individual, but for me, I don’t need them. I prefer to hike using my own ability without relying on cheat codes like walking sticks. It’s really possible to hike Mount KK without using them. But having said that, if you’re short or you think you’re short, walking stick will be a great help because most of the steps there are pretty high. You might need it for stability purposes, especially when going down. The sticks can be costly; depending on what type that you buy (My friend bought a pair for around RM70) but you can buy a pair and share with another friend. 1 walking stick is enough for a person, unless you want to use 2 cheat codes, hence two walking sticks for yourself.
Do keep in mind that, you can bring the walking sticks into the airplane’s cabin if you depart from KL. However, when returning back to KL from KK, remember to buy the luggage in advance because out of the sudden, they will treat the walking sticks as weapon. You can no longer bring the sticks into the cabin. We were caught unaware of this and we almost have to leave the sticks behind if we couldn’t buy the luggage in time. Sneaky little airplane corp.
“Should I buy the headlamp?”
Most people will tell you that headlamp is a MUST!! Having a headlamp will be convenient but I don’t think it’s an absolute necessary. The cheapest that I could find in shopping complex is around RM50 and I’m not willing to spend that amount of money on something that I most probably will only use once. If you have a small torchlight and don’t mind holding it with your mouth for a few minutes, you’re good to go.
“Other things that I might need?”
Bring at least two pairs of every clothing that you plan to wear during the hiking itself. In the beginning, I thought a pair of gloves is enough. Nope, not enough. It was really cold up there, and luckily my friend brought extra gloves for everyone. My hands still feel cold even after wearing the 2 gloves at the same time. (I also wore 2 layers of tshirt + windbreaker). If you’re sensitive to cold temperature, bring scarf to cover half of your face, so that you won’t directly breathe in the cold air. And bring extra socks to wear during night time, when you go to bed. I’m not exaggerating about this; it’s really cold when you’re up there. It’s so cold that any bottle that you carry inside you bag, felt like taking out from a fridge. And remember to buy a disposable raincoat. It can be a real life saver.
Okay, enough with words. Picture time.
The journey is divided into 2 parts; 6km for the first day, and the remaining 2km for the second day. This view is captured after hiking the first 6km and it’s time to call it a day. From this height, we are already above the first layer of cloud and it’s really beautiful if you can see this with your own eyes. Its like you’re standing on a land floating above the sky.
Along the way during hiking, you will meet these superhuman porters who can easily overtake you even though they are carrying a lot more loading than you. Most of them are carrying gas tank and food supplies, so that you will have something to eat once you reach the stopping point. Thank you for your hard work.
Perhaps we can apply this in real life as well. No matter how heavy is your burden, don’t give up and just carry on (pun intended) with steady steps because sooner or later, you will reach your destination. Feeling inspired yet? =D
The view at the peak of the mountain.
Finally found the model behind every 1 ringgit note.
This picture was taken by our hiking guide. In the beginning, he told us that there’s a perfect spot to take picture and he took us to a place and asked us to just stand there. He then squat down and took a picture of us, which makes me wonder why he have to squat down. After seeing this picture, I finally understand. He wanted to capture our reflection in the water as well. Not bad Rusdi, not bad at all.
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