Day 9 - Journey down to Danum Valley

The road out of Sukau is supposedly under construction but is a minefield of bumps and potholes. Our driver, Ali, spent the best part of an hour weaving a trail on both sides of the road and Joanne commented that the road was 100% better than it was a year ago. Once clear of this road it is a straightforward run into Lahid Datu, where we said our goodbyes to Joanne. She had not only been a good guide but also very good company. We enjoyed a laugh, sympathised with her, but also shared a joke, when she told us her best friend had decided to become a nun, not next year or month, but tomorrow! She was a lovely young lady and our farewells were sad.

At the offices of Lahid Datu we were told the vehicle picking us up had been delayed by the logging trucks. We found ourselves a tea and donut and was joined by Simon and Monica who had made their way from Sandakan in a separate car.

The Land Rover with a driver that spoke no English had arrived when we returned and we set out on an expected two and a half hour drive. Once we had left the surrounds of Lahid Datu the road became a track but it was easily negotiated by the Land Rover, so much so we wondered what the delay had been about. The odd logging truck lumbered by in the opposite direction heavily laden. Just over half-way the track started to become muddy with deep ruts caused by the trucks. As we approached the top of a hill the problem was unfolding in front of us. A truck was stuck in the mud and a Caterpillar was being despatched to pull it out. Eventually it took two Caterpillars in tandem to drag the truck to the top of the hill. As we finally got past after a half-hour wait we surveyed the “log-jam” that was queued behind. A minimum of 40 trucks, all fully laden, waiting their turn to attack the hill.

It was muddy and rutted for the rest of the journey but eventually we arrived at the Borneo Rainforest Lodge having journeyed only marginally longer than the estimated time. At the usual Selamat Datang we were shown to our accommodation, a lovely room with a view of the imposing rainforest that was both spectacular and beautiful.


There was no time to waste as we were due to meet our guide, Vivien and have our first introductory trek. But by this time it had started to rain (again!) and as stated before Borneo doesn’t do drizzle. Cracks of thunder, flashes of lightning and Vivien decided that there was no point to the walk, to which we heartily agreed. There was to be a night drive if the weather prevailed.

There have been times on this trip when you wanted the moment to last forever, sadly this night drive was an experience that we couldn’t wait for it to end. Perhaps we had been spoilt by the personal attention we had with Joanne, but packed on the back of a truck with 10 others did not make for a comfortable ride and the chances of seeing much was very limited. We saw some samba deer, but over the coming nights watched these grazing from our balcony. We peered into the trees for ages whilst the rangers made every effort to get a flying squirrel to take flight. It was to our satisfaction that they failed. Finally, what might have been a saving glory the spotlight picks out on the road in front the shining eyes of a Leopard Cat. To us, the sensible thing would have been to stop the truck a let the cat walk towards us, but we continued to go forward and only managed to encourage the cat into the undergrowth, so the eyes were all we got.

We went to bed thrilled with our spectacular surrounds but disappointed with our first foray into the forest. But that is nature, doing its own thing.