Staff Jungle Camp - Part 2!

Day Two - Saturday 22nd September

As the slightly tired staff prepared their instant porridge for breakfast, packed the remainder of their group kit into everybody's backpacks, and split into 2 groups for the trek up to the camp, the realisation that they would be spending their first night in the jungle in hammocks they would be putting up themselves, the excitement grew.

Armed with a guide, plenty of water and high spirits the first group, consisting of Delta 1 and Delta 2 made their way at a steady pace into the jungle, to be followed an hour later by the remaining group of Delta 3 and Delta 4. The teams trekked for 2 hours to the camp site, over some pretty tough terrain - made all the more challenging thanks to the rain the night before. Spirits remained high despite many of the team slipping and sliding and getting covered in mud, and songs filled the jungle!

Some impromptu lessons were demonstrated on the trek in; courtesy of Delta 2's Medic George - showing us all how to fall safely and successfully cover yourself in as much mud as possible! - and Delta 1's Medic Hen - showing us all how to slide down a hill in a skiing move, whilst successfully remaining on your feet, and most importantly the 'hug-a-tree' method of stopping! Honestly its always the medic's!

A quick lunch, of whatever Raleigh rations they had left from the day before, and then to the real test - putting up their tarpaulins and hammocks for the first time on their own! Most people had remembered what knots to use and the best way to put your tarpaulin up, however the real test would be making it through the night remaining dry, comfortable and in the hammock! The teams were also shown the delights of digging the long drop (toilet!), how to avoid falling in the long drop (crucial lesson!), preparing the living area, and making wet and dry slops for food waste.

The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing, either proudly lazing in their hammock's or enjoying a very refreshing dip in the river. Dinner was prepared by each Delta group on trangia's - a skill and another first! - and the evening was spent discussing the arrival of the participants, how to manage the groups on project and playing a few games - just for a bit of fun!

People began to wearily make their way up to the sleeping area and the night passed with only one incident of hammock failure from Delta 1's Matt (believe it or not yes another medic!) learning the difficult way that the width of the tree is crucial in avoiding complete knot failure! Double knots all round after that!

Day Three - Sunday 23rd September

The trek out started early with Delta 1 and Delta 2 starting a little after 7am, followed shortly by Delta 3 and Delta 4. Their had been no rain the night before so the trek out was a lot easier - with no incidents of mud sliding or falling, although there were some wet feet as the teams crossed streams and small rivers to get out of the jungle.

The extremely weary staff gathered their tired, and pretty dirty bodies, and clambered on the bus back to the very welcome sight of fieldbase, and the promise of a well deserved rest and comfy beds!

Staff Jungle Camp - Part 1!

Traverse Activity Centre, Kiulu River (aka Jungle Camp)

Day One - Friday 21st September

At 0700 hours (aka to flippin' early!) all the autumn expedition staff left fieldbase to face their first challenge of the expedition - surviving 2 days in the jungle on Raleigh rations! No mean feat I assure you! Armed with Ping Pong crackers, plastic cheese and greasy dregs, they bravely boarded the bus for the hour long journey to Jungle Camp.

The bus made it's way up the winding roads and down into the valley to arrive at beautiful surroundings of the Kiulu River, to reveal the setting for the staff's intensive jungle training. Here the staff would be taught the basics of living in the jungle (including a demonstration of the use of wet slops and long drops), navigation, first aid, and radio operation.

First up was radio training where the teams were taught how to care for and operate the HF radio's, how to speak on the radio, setting up the radio and the dipoles correctly (which included how to get the correct bearings to get the best possible signal to fieldbase) and how to deliver SITREP's and Radio Checks; the daily reports back to fieldbase the groups will make whilst out on the project sites.

The next element of the training saw the staff learning about navigation from expert trekker Will. They were taught about how to read bearings on a map, and how to use compasses correctly, as well as being shown how to use a PLB (Personal Locator Beacon) and a GPS (Global Positioning System) - a very snazzy piece of equipment that appeared to do everything but cook your dinner for you!

The staff then had a break for lunch and the opportunity to trawl through their weekends issue of Raleigh rations for a suitable lunch, which in the end turned out for most to be crackers, cheese and tuna - THE lunchtime Raleigh staple!!

After lunch the staff learnt perhaps the most important lesson for the jungle in their Camp Craft session - how to put up your hammock so it doesn't fall down or get wet if it rains! They were taught by guides Jimmy and Floyd - who under the folklore of the jungle at night we were only allowed to call them 'friend'.

Once the team had learnt about basic tool safety, they headed for the first of their many first aid training sessions; where they learnt about basic life support, treating burns and fractures, shock and tropical diseases and general health and hygiene in the jungle - not too much to remember then!

The rest of the afternoon was spent preparing their hammocks before it got dark at 6, preparing the evening meal of - you guessed it Raleigh rations! - and preparing their kit and bags for the trek into the jungle to put the skills learnt to the test! A reasonable nights sleep was had by most - apart from those who got wet either from running to the toilet in the torrential downpour - that started about 10 and lasted most of the night! - or those that got wet in bed as the rain drove in!

Introducing the Adventure Projects

Trekking, Diving & Mt. Kinabalu

The trekking element of this project will see teams trekking in the south western corner of Sabah on the Kalimantan and Sarawak border starting from the small village of Long Pasia. The trek will be 10 – 11 days in duration and will involve teams carrying all their own supplies and equipment for the duration. Long Pasia is a very remote area and is steeped in tradition and folk lore. The surrounding jungle has been under threat for many years from logging and the community has suffered from a gradual decline in numbers as young people move away from the area. In order to halt this decline and re-establish the community as well as help protect the surrounding environment, WWF worked closely with the community to develop an eco tourism plan.

This has been going for several years but is starting to decline as new areas are opened up in Sabah. The area is one of the richest plant diversity sites in Borneo in particular for orchids, rhododendrons and pitcher plants. In addition the people of the area have an interesting history as fierce head hunters. There are many ancient legends passed down through the generations which make this a fascinating place to spend some time as well as being thick and untouched jungle.

The trekking will be across arduous and physically challenging terrain, which will often mean they are extremely remote and will need them to be fully self sufficient. Teams will camp wild near the trail, ensuring they have a minimal impact on the local surroundings which will include leaving nothing behind. Where necessary teams will assist local guides to upgrade the trail through the dense vegetation since the jungle very quickly grows back across trails. Teams will obviously have the opportunity to learn about the pristine rainforest environment as they progress.

All adventure groups will be involved in a SCUBA diving conservation program in Tungku Abdul Rahman Marine Park in partnership with Borneo Divers and Sabah Parks. The team will spend 3 to 4 days doing their PADI Open Water diving qualification followed by 1 to 2 days of an underwater clean up, where they will collect litter and other waste from selected areas of the marine park. During this time they will live on their very own paradise island from where the diving is carried out.

The adventure phase will finish with an opportunity to climb Mt. Kinabalu to watch the sunrise from the top of the highest peak in Southeast Asia. This exhilarating climb passes through five different temperate zones from a dense rainforest to a barren alpine landscape. The mountain is 4096m high and is certainly no walk in the park. It takes approximately 24 hours to climb to the summit and back down with a few hours of sleep in the middle. However exhausting it may feel at the time, the views of the sun rising on a clear day are amazing and well worth all the sweat and tears to get there.

Introducing the Environmental Projects

Danum Valley – Bridge and Camp Construction

Danum Valley is a highly protected world-renowned conservation and research area famous for its rich biodiversity and abundant wildlife. The 438 sq. km. Danum Valley Conservation Area provides facilities for research, education and wilderness recreation in one of the Sabah's last strongholds of undisturbed lowland rainforest.

Sited beside the Segama River, the Research Centre is located 81 km west of Lahad Datu and more than 20 km from any other habitation - a truly remote setting. Research efforts have revealed a tremendous variety of plants and the full range of Sabah's lowland fauna, including such rare and endangered species as the Sumatran rhino, banteng (tembadau), elephant, clouded leopard, orangutan and proboscis monkey. Birdlife is equally varied with some 275 species recorded to date in the area.

The project group will help complete the construction of a hanging suspension bridge started by a Raleigh team in late 2005. The purpose of the bridge is to increase access into the conservation area for scientists in order that they can carry out further research. The site is approximately 1 hours trek from the Danum Valley Field Centre and the group will live in a minimal impact jungle camp close to the work site. The other main project there is to build a satellite camp site near the bridge in order to allow scientists to base themselves there whilst conducting research.

This will mean that they will be able explore deeper and longer into the area. This will also involve developing further the trail network on both sides of the bridge. Additionally, the project team will assist international scientists with various conservation projects and receive rainforest education in this amazing jungle setting.

Imbak Canyon – Trail & Infrastructure Development

Imbak Canyon is the last remaining untouched and relatively unexplored area of Sabah. Less than 200 people have ever entered this virgin primary jungle area while the last research team discovered a new tree species. The region is home to wildlife including elephants, orangutans and 100’s of rare bird species. Yayasan Sabah (the concessionary) now wants to reserve this area as a natural gene bank to help protect future biodiversity of the whole region and has asked Raleigh International to play a major role in the development of this area.

In early 2004, a Raleigh International project team worked closely with the staff of Yayasan Sabah to plan the location and type of necessary infrastructure needed to protect and allow access to the pristine protected area of Imbak Canyon. The first stage included mapping the area to determine points of interest, possible trail networks, sources of water and best locations for a field centre.

The second expedition to Imbak in late 2004 started putting in place basic infrastructure including a Ranger’s camp, visitors’ accommodation and basic trails. This is the first permanent structure built as part of the master development plan for this conservation area. The infrastructure has been gradually expanded by a number of Raleigh teams during the two expeditions in 2005. In addition a new trail as been recce’d along the ridges and into the centre of the canyon by groups during expedition 05G in late 2005.

The next phase of this exciting project is to further expand the infrastructure including finishing the field centre complex, developing the newly recce’d trails into the canyon for researchers and upgrading existing tracks to a waterfall and jungle camp. In addition one of the key priorities identified was the need for a bridge crossing the Imbak River to the entrance of the conservation area.

In the dry season this river can easily be crossed by foot. However, during the rainy season the river often becomes swollen cutting off access to the conservation area. This would be approximately a 200ft span hanging suspension bridge to be constructed from scratch. This bridge will enable scientists to access the canyon for research purposes as well as enabling a gravity feed water system to be fed across the river into the field centre.

Introducing the Community Projects

Kg Ambong, Kota Belud - Gravity Water Feed System

Kampung (village) Ambong is situated approximately 90 minutes north of Kota Kinabalu, just short of the small provincial town of Kota Belud. It sits on the untouched coastline to the south west of Kota Belud and is a Muslim village made up predominantly of the Bajua ethnic group.

The Bajua are a very proud group whose history stems from the Philippines, have their own dialect, dances and are renowned for being excellent horsemen and seaman.

The community’s main sources of income are from growing rice in the small padi fields in the surrounding valleys and from fishing and fish farming. The population of the community itself is in the region of 1000 people, squeezed into a compact village with surrounding houses spread along the coastline. Currently water is collected by households from rain and stored in tanks. In addition there is a small well on the edge of the village where people collect water for washing – this water is cloudy and ideally not suitable for drinking.

Approximately 3 km away there is an existing water source (pictured right) which feeds a small gravity water system to an outlying household some 2 km from the village itself. It is intended to improve the dam at this source, put in several storage tanks there and run pipe into the village. This will require close survey of the surrounding area, avoiding padi fields but ensuring sufficient drop on the pipe to maintain a workable pressure.

The pipes will be laid around the village to pre-selected sites where further storage tanks will be placed for villagers to access the water in times of need. In addition it is proposed to build several bathing/washing tanks for the community to use, rather than the small swamp which is used currently.

The funds for the project are being provided by the Rotary Club, in particular the Luyang Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu who have a connection to the community. They are providing RM 35,000 for the project.

Batu Puteh, Lower Kinabatangan – Eco Lodge

For a millennia the indigenous ”Sungai” (River) people of the Lower Kinabatangan River have been living off the rainforest for food, medicine, household commodities and products of trade. This world changed dramatically from the 1960's onwards, with the advent of mechanised extraction of the forest’s timber resources.

The ensuing rapid reduction of traditional forest resources forced many local people into a spiraling trap of dependence on timber as the only remaining viable source of trade.

With the final conversion of large tracts of lowland forests of the Lower Kinabatangan throughout the 1980s into permanent agricultural crops, many local people were then forced to poach timber and other forest products to eek out an existence.

The MESCOT (Model of Ecologically Sustainable Community Tourism) Initiative was started in 1996 by a group of about 30 visionary and dedicated individuals from the different villages of Batu Puteh to create an alternative medium of income generation for the people of the area, while in the process protecting the last remaining vestige of rainforest and traditional indigenous cultural heritage.

Raleigh International have been working with the community since 2002 in developing this interesting and cutting edge project. The key objectives of the MESCOT Initiative are to develop an alternative path of co-existence with the remaining rainforest resources and generate a sustainable long-term economic path for income generation; the core activity chosen by the MESCOT group was eco-tourism.

It was hoped that this activity would be the key to raising income in this poor and remote rural community, increase the economic value of a depleted forest resource, and, in the process, raise funds to support the protection and restoration of the last remaining wetland forests and wildlife of the area. MESCOT’s scope was broadened in 1998 when drought induced forest fires ravaged parts of the remaining natural forests surrounding the village.

The MESCOT group voluntarily engaged to fight these fires and in the aftermath decided it critical to rehabilitate the degraded wetland forests and critical wildlife habitats and corridors. At the time, these steps were ground-breaking, as previously little was known about the complex floodplain forest tapestry and the different rainforest types of the area.

The mainstay of the eco tourism project is a lodge, now semi finished, which sits on the edge of a large oxbow lake formed by the former course of the river.

The Tungog Lake is of special significance in the Lower Kinabatangan because it is only one of three deep clear-water oxbow lakes within the floodplain, being totally disconnected from the main Kinabatangan River Channel, and is a natural sanctuary for more than 150 native freshwater fish species, and a host of other rare aquatic dependant birds and wildlife.

Major floods in early 2000 had a major impact on the lake, introducing an exotic weed to the Kinabatangan called Salvinia molesta.

Within two years this exotic noxious floating fern had totally engulfed the surface of the Tungog Lake, which stretches for some 1.5km in length. The devastation immediately noted was the disappearance of the rare diving water-bird the Oriental Darter and the three native Otter species. From all accounts, research and literature, the Tungog Lake was doomed to suffocate under the ferocity of the Salvinia blanketing, decaying and filling up the lake, starving the clear waters of oxygen.

This is a very ambitious and exciting project which has taken many years meticulous planning and it is only now that the community are starting to realise their dream. The group will live in an environmentally sound jungle camp on the edge of this small community, just 10 minutes up river from the main lodge/lake site.

The team will assist local tradesmen with finishing off the lodge, develop trails and bird hides as well as help the local community in its continual battle to rid the lake of Salvinia. In addition there is the opportunity for wildlife cruises along the rich banks of the mighty Kinabatangan river, where monkeys, crocodiles and an assortment of birdlife can be seen at close quarters. This is an exciting project, combining a unique environmental project with interaction from the community.

Project Sites Revealed!

The Autumn 2007 Expedition sites were revealed today to an exited - and some rather jet-lagged - Raleigh staff team just moments ago in the slightly air-conditioned Sabah Suite of Fieldbase, Kota Kinabalu! Mr Rory Hall introduced them to the history and culture of the people of Sabah before announcing the projects to the team as the excitement reached fever pitch!

The least surprising reveal of the evening was the adventure projects of diving from Mamutik Island, trekking from Long Pa'sia, and finally the ascent of Mt. Kinabalu, but the enthusiasm reached dizzy heights as the view from the summit was revealed in an awe inspiring shot.

As the presentation gained momentum the reveal of the two community sites as Kampong Ambong and Batu Puteh sparked cries of "awww!" and "bless", as pictures of the local communities - and especially their children! - flickered across the screen. Wise words from Rory reminded everyone that "you can't take the children home!".

Last, and by no means least to be revealed, were the environmental sites of Danum Valley and Imbak Canyon, the two most remote static sites in Raleigh's Malaysian portfolio. These were met with open mouthed faces in awe of the breath taking scenery, until the first picture of leeches and a rather large spider turned the mood slightly - only one squeal was heard and that was quickly muffled by sighs of "wow" as pictures of the mist covered jungle filled the screen.

As the presentation drew to a close, a few people dashed off to the tandas while the rest reluctantly left to whisperings of "where do you want to go" and "I can't pick, they all look amazing!"; its safe to say everyone left excited!

A detailed description of the project sites and pictures will follow after a small interlude . . . . . . .

Welcome to Fieldbase!

This is the famous Fieldbase and the base of operations here in Malaysia - here the advance staff will work their socks off to ensure the expedition runs smoothly and the participants have all the crackers they need!

The advanced staff have now arrived here in Malaysia and let's introduce the new guys to you: in the Admin corner looking after all your stationary needs is the very Scottish Tom; over in the Logs corner we have the invincible team of Miranda, Claire, Angela and Kev (lucky guy!); making sure we don't spend all our money at once our Accountant Sarah; and finally making sure we all stay healthy (!) our Fieldbase Medic Matt.

Well that's the new gang introduced - now for the old guard here at Fieldbase, who didn't want to go home at the end of the Summer Expedition so have signed on again (complete nutters!): the awfully talented (and writing the blog so she can say that!!) Communications Officer Em; and the man in charge of us the one, the only, Deputy Expedition Leader Tom.

Which only leaves 2 to introduce to you (and they think they are the bosses - but we know better!): our Expedition Leader, the lovely Laura; and the big cheese over here in Sabah, Mr Rory Hall.