Day 8 - Kinabatangan River

The alarm clock sounding at 5.45 a.m. was no longer coming as a shock to the system as with very little to do in the evenings and no TV to distract early nigts are very much the order of the day. We peered out of the bedroom window to see the river shrouded in mist. As Ann took her constitutional first fag on the balcony, we listened as the riverbank serenaded us with its early morning call.

A swift cup of tea (and we enjoyed Sabah tea all the way) and we was back out on the boat with Joanne and our trusty boatman, Jani. We had a running joke with Joanne that following our lack of success on Turtle Island she had a lot of making up to do, as if four orang-utan sightings had not been enough!

But making up she was as we added another two sightings on this pre-breakfast cruise. At first it is difficult to see what the experts eyes catch at a glimpse and you have to stay focussed on what appears to be nothing but leaves and branches for some while. When those leaves start moving an arm might appear, then quickly the rest of the orang comes into view as he moves from his overnight nest in search of his breakfast. On the river where the forest is no so dense the sighting can be clear for some minutes.

Further down river we had yet another sighting and as with a couple of these views the moment is either so fleeting or mostly obscured that it does make photography difficult with an ordinary camera. On the way back to the Lodge we continued our joke with Joanne telling her that despite having now seen seven orangs (including the baby) until we had seen pygmy elephants and crocodiles failure with the turtles had not been compensated.

For the afternoon cruise Joanne suggested that since we had a good number of sightings of orangs we make quick progress further down the river in the hope of seeing elephants. I think Jani the boatman must have super-natural intuition as he took us almost directly to a junction with a tributary where in full view, and with only one boat in front of us, were three adults and two young elephants. Jani navigated the boat very close to these magnificent creatures as they shredded the river grass. Slightly distant down the tributary was the rest of the herd, we estimated there could be as many as a dozen in total.


We had a long look watching one of the elephants clearing logs left as flotsam by the logging rafts before the rest of the convoy of about eight boats turned up and in turn unsettle the elephants with their young to turn tail and head back up the tributary.

Our package with Audley allowed us a private boat whereby the boats arriving had upwards of eight people in each and the clamouring for position is too much for the animals. Some of the boats took advantage of the clearing that had been done by the elephant to chase them downstream, but all they achieved was exactly that, they chased them away.

Jani was much wiser, he backed out and sailed down river to where he considered they would reappear and there was already an elephant there ripping away at the grass. We sat alone, almost within touching distance, as she took no notice of us and continued feeding. We watched for ages before the convoy caught up and spoilt the moment. By this time we were getting hot, so as the elephant turned its back on the rest, they could have their fleeting look which was all they deserved for their callous chasing.

We had booked the night cruise with Jani, so as we sailed back to Melapi for tea and donuts we had still more stories to tell to our fellow Audley travelling companions, Simon and Monica, who had yet to see a orang-utan so our seventh sighting was a bit embarrassing. But it was taken in friendly banter.

After dinner the night cruise proved that the river could be just as magical with fewer sightings. As the boat left the jetty with Jani and Joanne manning the spotlights we must have travelled ten yards and Jani was pulling the boat to the side. There, perched on a branch, was a beautiful Buffy Owl, but it had been too quick as we struggled to get our cameras out of the bag the bird took flight. Lesson to be learnt, always be ready from the outset. We then saw a beautiful kingfisher perched, almost posing and how Jani picked out a baby crocodile is beyond me, I just saw a pair of eyes before it submerged. After the turning point we saw a monitor lizard just stretched out along a branch, perhaps five foot from head to tail, just watching the world go by and flicking out a tongue to catch the unsuspecting fly.

Jani pulled the boat over to the centre of the river, cut the engines and with just him and Joanne, sat in silence, looked up at the stars and took in the sounds of the river. It was a moment when it was impossible not to feel emotional.

There was still time for Jani to show us his fantastic awareness when he spotted a bigger, but still very long crocodile, this time our view was perfect. On arrival back at the Melapi it was time to say goodbye to Jani and his wonderful skills. Time to say goodbye to the Kinabatagan River, that had been so good for us.

The following morning as we descended the steps to the jetty, having said our farewells to Lynn, April and Azzuri, the cheery girls who had helped make the stay, once again it was hard not too get misty-eyed on the five minute sail upstream.