Sarawak en Sabah

© Dirk Deckx (1995)

5. BARIO

Central in the Kelabit Highlands, it's the starting point for trekking in the wild interior en for meetings with the Penan. It's a cozy, lively village in the middle of beautiful green hills and rice-fields where people are very friendly and social. The cooler mountain climate gives our 'central heating-system' a chance to regularize, but nights can get pretty cold.
A permit is necessary (see Miri chapter). There are no banks so see to a sufficient money stock. A small and modest airport makes the area easy accessible for everyone.

Accommodation :

There's only one guest-house "Tarawe's", where John Tarawe and his British wife Karen Hedderman provide every kind of information about trekking possibilities in the area. If you like it, they can also arrange tour packages with porters and guides. However, it's our experience that this might get a little too expensive !
Food and drinks in the guesthouse are not cheap but room prices are OK. Per person we paid 12 RM. Rooms are very clean and convenient (common bath).

Trekking in the area (no guide) :

1. PA UMOR :
...a Kelabit longhouse situated close to an old airstrip, not very attractive. When following the runway across the village you'll fall into some breathtaking rice fields with some nice views. The trip to this village takes about two hours in the burning sun, there's no shadow so bring a good crème.

2. PA BERANG :
...a Penan settlement and certainly worth a visit. It's possible to spend the night there but it's not necessary. The trip, go and back, can be done in one day. John or Karen can give you a walking map. If wanted they can make you a food package too.

Other treks (more than one day) :

...require good guides and eventually carriers. Usually these longer treks are better not underestimated. They can get mentally and physically very exhausting, especially during rainy days when chaos is complete. Leeches are almost always present. Be sure of a sufficient physical and mental condition.

Finding a guide/porter :

John Tarawe will gladly arrange everything for you but it will be certainly cheaper doing it yourself. A good guide can be found in PA LUNGAN (3 hours from Bario) .
Philip Lenjau alias Liang Ayu is an experienced and very nice man who, now and then, works as a guide and porter. He speaks some English and is known by every living soul in Pa Lungan. It should be no problem to find him. He also arranges food and drinks. A normal price for such a trip should be around 50 RM per person per day, incl. meals.

1. PA TIK :
...is a primitive Penan settlement and from Bario reachable in about four tough days. In case of heavy rainfall you should forget it, trails are then very slippery and dangerous and thousands of leeches come out for celebration. We were not able to do this trek.

2. BA KELALAN :
...a nice and lovely village reachable in two or three days via Pa Ukat, Pa Lungan and Pa Rupai (Kalimantan, Indonesia). We spent our first night in Pa Lungan at Philip's place and the second one in an open-air jungle shelter.
It's a long and tough walk that requires good endurance.

Route description Bario - Ba Kelalan :

Around noon our guide Philip and two extra porters, Tony and Stewart pick us up at Tarawe's. They all live in Pa Lungan where we will stay the first night in Philip's home. The first part is easy but after three hours it starts raining and the good trails suddenly become slippery and tricky.
We reach the Pa Lungan longhouse after 3,5 hours and a clean room with mattresses and a mosquito-net.
This friendly village counts about 180 Kelabit souls. Philip and his wife turn out to be excellent cooks, that's clear when we are invited in his living room for supper : rice with spiced meat and vegetables. When it stops raining and the clouds slowly disappear, we can witness a breathtaking contrast between the sunset, the heavy clouds and the green beauty of the steaming forest.
That night we enjoy the coziness of candlelight (there's no electricity in Pa Lungan) and haunted by cockroaches and mosquitoes Philip tells us about the tough day we will experience tomorrow. The path from Pa Lungan to Pa Rupai, across the Indonesian border, takes us through some very dense forest and is notorious for its leeches.
"Tomorrow you will donate some of your blood to the leeches!" he grins. It has been raining a lot and the animals just adore it...

Leeches :

Next morning at 8 we start and five minutes later the first specimen want to say hello. They attach themselves to the shoe-soles and then slowly but surely crawl upwards in search for warmth. The smallest hole is enough for them to enter and enjoy the flavors of your blood. Especially the top end of the shoes is delicate because once inside, a sock won't stop the intruder's bite.
But some things may help ! Using lots of insect repellent on socks and shoes may turn out very effective. Putting the pants in the socks and then taping socks and shoes with some wide tape prevents the animals from getting inside the shoes. Two of us were lucky (including me)...not one leech succeeded in its efforts. But our third companion was less lucky, because there was not enough tape ! His pants suddenly were soaked with blood. You don't feel the bite but the small wound keeps bleeding for a long time because the leech injects a fluid that prevents the blood from coagulating. But there's no reason to worry, it's harmless and you'll get used to it after a while. Also using a flame (lighter or match) causes the wrong-doer to run. In several cities you can buy leech-socks which cover feet and calves and protect against bites.

...and the trip continues :

The monotony of the area (trees and bushes), the extreme heat and the permanent absence of any form of animal life has an unfavorable effect on our nervous system and fatigue takes over our bodies.
Suddenly, Philip points out the presence of the rare Rafflesia. We have to leave the path for about 60 feet to behold the biggest and rarest flower in the world. This terrific red flower has a diameter of 12 inches and is in full bloom. A Rafflesia should be able to grow up to more than 3 feet wide. It's not so common to find a wild specimen and so it gives us poor guys new strength to continue.
We reach our shelter after six hours sweating and swearing. It's nothing more than some leftovers of the old Pa Lungan, abandoned after the British colonization. Apart from this small wooden construction in the middle of a giant bamboo-forest, there's not one trace left from the old village.
When comrade Patrick takes off his boots, he finds out that several leeches outsmarted him...socks and pants turned red.

The evening fall is a strange experience when you realize that you have to spend the night in the middle of a rainforest in open air with only some wooden construction above your head as protection.
We prepare for multiple attacks of insect-troops, but strangely not more then a handful of mosquitoes and beetles want to bother us. Nevertheless, a mosquito-net and a small mattress can be very handy.
Philip starts talking about the Penan and their unequal struggle against the Malaysian government and the continual destruction of the forest.
Soon the crickets start their noisy and shrill concerts and keep us awake for a while. Nights can get very cold here, sweaters or pullovers in the backpack are not only overweight here.

8.30 AM : on the way to the Indonesian village Pa Rupai. We cross the Gunung Murud (7.952 ft) area, the highest peak in Sarawak. Continuous ascending and descending, difficult passable paths covered with mud and lots of vegetation makes it hard here. For the athletes it's possible to conquer the Gunung Murud peak but for this an extra day and a excellent condition is necessary.
The border with Kalimantan (Indonesia) is situated in the middle of thick jungle and there's only one concrete pile to tell you that you have reached the border. There's no trace of any human presence.
It's here that the legendary Hornbill decides to shout at us. The natives believe that an important message is on the way when a Hornbill flies over. Some Bornean Gibbons throw themselves from one tree to another above our heads.
Four hours later the friendly people of Pa Rupai welcome us to their cozy village. At last we can breathe normally again. A basic meal is prepared in a perfectly clean wooden cottage. You can eat from the floor here.
Another intense rain-shower delays our departure to Ba Kelalan with an hour.

When we approach the Sarawak border again (another trail), we have to pass a military post. Soldiers ask for our passports and our names are written in a book. Lucky for us they don't ask questions about the permits. Philip advises us to put our camera's away because some of the soldiers may use corrupt practices. There are stories about tourists who had to hand over their camera's unless they paid an amount of money. In our case the guys are quite friendly. They want us to buy a bottle of whiskey. Selling booze seems to be the solution for some extra earnings. We refuse but it causes no harm.
...and this brings us back into Sarawak without too many problems. The last walk from the military post to Ba Kelalan shouldn't take more than 4 hours, depending on the state of the paths. There were no more leeches since Pa Rupai and the landscape is getting more friendly and hospitable. The rough hilltop makes place for green pastures and rice-fields.