What you might wanna know before climbing Mount Kinabalu

#kotakinabalutrip As a Malaysian, we all know Mount Kinabalu at 4095m is our highest peak (and also one of the highest in Southeast Asia). So I had always been thinking about making a climb, but little did I know it could cost a fortune to do that, especially if you’re doing it through a tour. However, if you want a cheaper way to climb Mount Kinabalu, there is a way: book directly with Sabah Park. Every year towards the end, Sabah Park releases about 20 public slots on their website, and the prices are way cheaper — several hundred, sometimes even over a thousand ringgit less than booking through third-party companies. But during my trip, all of such slots were taken, so I had to do it through Amazing Borneo. On the day itself, early in the morning, we hopped onto Amazing Borneo’s van, leaving Kota Kinabalu for the mountain base. After nearly two hours of foggy, bumpy mountain roads, the hiking journey officially began. Since Mount Kinabalu’s summit is over 3000 meters above sea level, the risk of altitude sickness is pretty high. So the climb is divided into two parts: first day, hike from Timpohon Gate to the halfway point (during the day); second day, summit attack from the halfway point (before dawn). The first part is about 6km long, with an elevation gain of roughly 1400 meters (from 1866m to 3300m). It’s a long walk, sure, but the weather is pretty cool and you have plenty of time — looking back, this part can totally be done at your own chill pace. Honestly, there’s not much scenery along this stretch, so no worries if you go slow — you’re not missing anything. Plus, taking it easy can help keep altitude sickness symptoms at bay. Even if you get to the halfway lodge early, like I did before noon, there’s not much you can do anyway. Mobile signal up there is basically nonexistent (or very choppy depending on the time), so you’d be pretty much just lying around and resting anyway. Whether you’re going up or coming down, this stretch is all about patience — if you can prepare some music or audiobooks to listen to while hiking, it’ll help a lot with the boredom. Also, from my own painful experience, here are two must-bring items: 1) A proper raincoat: a water-resistant/water-repellent windbreaker is not enough. Waterproof is a whole different level. 2) Trekking poles: ideally bring a pair. Also, make sure you learn how to properly use them — the technique for going up and down is different. If used wrong, they can hurt your knees instead of helping. If you usually do squats as part of your workout, focus more on using your glutes and hamstrings during the climb instead of relying entirely on the (This is just part 1. Check out part 2 and 3 for the journey of climbing mount kinabalu)