Sarawak Chamber @ Mulu Heritage Park, Sarawak

- August 30, 2017

After the preliminary round at Racer Cave, only 8 out of 10 of us are qualified for the Sarawak Chamber adventure. It is really sad news for those who failed are unable to join for the ultimate adventure. Imagine it we came all the way just for it. Anyway, the staffs are very strict and no room for negotiation at all for our safety sake.

The cave is not somewhere nearby the headquarter. We need to walk to camp 1 for 3 hours and overnight there before we begin our adventure to Sarawak Chamber in the next morning. The first hour of the walk was fine because we have Paku Waterfall beside us and Mulu Skywalk Canopy above us. It was truly rewarding but after that, the trail gets tougher as there is no visible trail can be seen.

We are 100% depend on our rangers to guide us through the whole journey. That was not all. The insects were the most annoying part in our journey. An insect which looks like a fly which sting and sucks blood. It is very painful. That's what attacking our upper body. The lower body were attacked by leeches. Full of leeches that can climb to our ear. It was horrible.

This is the camp 1 which we were supposed to reach here within 3 hours but we took 4 hours to reach. Our legs and hands are full of bloods of ours. There is no one here at Camp 1 compares to Camp 5 and the facilities are really limited. There is no mosquito net provided but luckily that day we do not have them paying us a visit. There is only a 5 cm thick mattress provided for us. We have to bring our own sleeping bag to get through the cold night.

This is the kitchen. There is no gas available here but you don't have to carry your own gas. The guide will carry for you. It is for you to cook your own dinner and your next day breakfast.

There is a pit fire here if you are keen to do barbecue here. I doubt you will carry all the raw foods all the way in for 4 hours. It is really tiring. However, if you really think you can do that, please do so. You will have an enjoyable night.

You are advised to bring your packed lunch from the headquarter so you can have a great meal by the river beneath the camp. The water is clean and amazing. You can drink the water from here. It is fine.

At night and in the next morning, we had to perform our culinary skill. As usual, the easiest would be cooking instant noodle which is fast and filling. Next, we have 4 different kids of canned food. Sardines, curry chicken, tuna and rendang chicken.

Ta da! Hahaha...it may looks delicious to you but when you are so hungry in the middle of the jungle, this is as delicious as you can find at anywhere else.

After dinner, we had a little walk by doing a night trail in the jungle. Our rangers guided us through the jungle for about 30 minutes and the journey has cut short because one of us got stung by a hornet. After that, there are more hornets following our lights from the torchlight. The disappointment brought us to sleep early on that day.

Early morning, after our breakfast, we started the journey at 8.00am and walked about 30 minutes before we leave our things by the river. We only carried snacks and drinking water into the cave.

This cave is the home of swallows and bats. Swallows stand the most population in this gigantic cave. We saw a swallow injured when we were at the entrance.

This is the starting point where we need to get wet. As you can see the different colors on the rock, you can imagine that it could get more than 2 meters deep. That's why if there is a continuous rainfall before the adventure date, you may not be granted the access to this cave. When it is too deep, you have to swim against the current to get into the cave. It is hard and impossible.

During our trip, the deepest was at our chest level. So girls who are below 160cm will have to float at some points.

Your strength of your hand and leg are very important to make you go through this challenge. Rocks are sharp inside the cave and simple slip will get you injured badly. There are no safety rope or harness provided throughout the journey. You are basically like a spiderman inside the cave. Do watch my video below to understand more about our adventure in this cave. Hope it will gives you the overall idea of how difficult this cave is.

Overall, this cave is the biggest cave in Malaysia and the toughest one. However, it is not as fun as Gua Tempurung Grand Tour Plus. Anyway, it is still a good experience for people who likes to caving adventure.

Side note: Do not plan your to leave Mulu after this adventure. You will not able to make it for the flight. Get another stay. We used less than 3 hours to reach the HQ but we did not make it for the last flight leaving Mulu at 3.55pm. We wasted a lot of money to purchase the flight ticket again and accommodation.

Things to bring:

1) Good hiking shoes

2) A set of new clothes to change

3) Packed lunch

4) Full gloves

5) Sleeping bag

6) Canned food, instant noodle, bread and anything you preferred for your dinner and breakfast.

7) Torchlight (you will be given headlamp but you may need a torchlight at the camp)

8) Insect repellent

Price: RM310.00/pax (inclusive of camp fee and guide) - min 3 pax

Freakout Level: 5/5

Service: 4/5