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Climbing Mt. Kinabalu turned out to be less intimidating than I thought it would be. It was certainly not a walk in the park but not terribly difficult either.

The trail up to the rest house at Laban Rata was actually pretty trekkable. All one needs is a good pair of shoes and proper hiking attire. No specialist mountaineering equipment is required. But it helps a lot to keep a steady and constant pace throughout the trail as so not to overexert yourself.

There were numerous ‘pondok’ or shelters along the trail where weary climbers can rest and quench their thirst with the cold and refreshing (not to mention, free) Kinabalu Mountain Water™

There was even appropriate facility for those with small bladders or those that had too much for breakfast in the morning.

Your typical rainforest.

And vioala! Rainforest no more.

The view along the trail slowly changed from your typical rainforest to a strange and unfamiliar environment where the vegetations are sparse and trees grew stunted.

The sight of this 3-storey building put a smile on my face as it marked my arrival at Laban Rata after 5 hours of non-stop climbing.

The first thing I did after reaching Laban Rata? Take active measure to prevent myself from starving of course. Who cares if a portion of Fried Rice cost RM15? I was hungrier than a polar bear after hibernation!

I had the good fortune of staying in one of the better rooms in the rest house. It has en-suite bathroom with heated shower, an electric room heater and four comfortable single beds. I was told that the room was pretty hard to come by. One would need to book 9 months in advance to get it.

I didn’t get much sleep before the night climb to Low’s Peak. But nevertheless, the lack of sleep didn’t deter me from reaching the summit. The night climb was way more challenging than the day trek to Laban Rata. Having need to endure the shivering cold and navigate my way up the wet, steep and rocky trail was quite an experience.

Good thing I reached the summit early because the place was already getting crowded. Everybody was waiting to witness the sunrise.

After waiting for nearly half and hour at the peak, cursing non-stop at the freezing cold wind, the sun finally decided to show it’s face. The crowd (including me) went ooh-ahh over this glorious sight. It was very awe-inspiring indeed.

Proof that I made it to the moon. Also doubles as a medical certificate for my sick leave.

So what do you get after you had successfully scaled the peak of Mt. Kinabalu? Well, apart from sleep deprivation and sore legs, you will be awarded a nice-looking color certificate.

But we should not let a measly certificate get in over our heads. Unless you are one of those porters that carries a full tank of gas up the mountain everyday.

We are only mere mortals compared to these gods of the mountain.

Anonymous porter, I salute you!