Day 3: The Assault

29/5/2011

Distance 17 km, 8 hrs 50 mins, 5384 calories burnt, and level of difficulty: another day of torture.

The final 5 km to reach the summit, a 500 m elevation climb. The route was mainly through mossy forest, most of the time tip-toeing on large roots and overgrowths. In fact we were hardly stepping on proper earth as the whole place seemed to be made of piles of dead leaves and intricate network of roots and tree branches. Most of the time one would be looking at hollow ground below, at other times walking on the edge of steep cliffs saved by a small patch of earth and roots.

The final climb was littered with a number of rope climbs, a few instances of clinging to large roots and tired ropes for dear life. The upper body strength was tested to the maximum to be able to push further on the ascend.

We reached the summit after 3 hours. The celebration was quite long, much needed to please oneself after making such an incredible feat of conquering the in-famous Mount Mulu and perhaps our hardest climb ever in our life.

The descend to Camp 4 was equally challenging, a much shorter affair taking some 2 hours.

After a small meal, we proceeded to decend to Camp 3, our place of stay for the night. The rain however started an hour into the walk. Feeling cold, wet and tired, the whole place seemed foggy, dark and mysterious.

What was supposed to be an easy 7 km stroll became an arduous and lonely walk for me. It took me 3 hrs 50 mins to decend. With the whole place being muddy and slippery, the walk was a real torture. There seemed to be no end to the descend. I reached Camp 3 just as darkness set in, feeling totally drenched and tired. What a day to remember.