“3,2,1 go!” “Drive! Drive” Eddie called out to me. I was driving but no movement. “Oooops, hang on, my transfer lever was in neutral..” I found that I could get out of the rut without any assistance after engaging my gear. I tried again and crossed the deep mud with large pebbles buried inside without ay problems. We finally hit the cement path to Apple Lodge. Time 9.15 p.m. We had been on the road for 11 hours including rest stops.
Radio contact ensured that the last three remaining cars comprising of Voon’s mechanic vehicle towing the limping Suzy and co-leader Laurence Baraw’s BJ 40 were guided into Buduk Nur; the village where Apple Lodge and the airstrip are located.
Hot steaming ‘adang’ rice,
vegetables and chicken soup made one of the best meals after a hard day’
off roading and adventure. It was gobbled up in record time. Being so
hype by achieving our quest, we sat and chatted into the night in 19
degrees Celsius cool crisp mountain air.
Lots of muddy reststop.. .
It has to be pointed here that ‘adang’ rice is different from Bario rice as it has a finer grain and is more fragrant.
Day 4 was an easy tour day on foot. In the morning we checked our vehicles and found everything to satisfaction. We roamed the village look at shop and found items uncommonly in the cities. Eddie found himself a steel spade, most people bought the rubber shoes with studs. Adang rice was another much sought after commodity especially the fresh newly harvested ones.
The picturesque village of Ba'Kelalan
Mutang Tagal took the group on an afternoon agro-tour of to see temperate fruits such as apples and Mandarin oranges, vanilla, ‘abeyu’ (a South American fruit), horses, buffalos, cattle, and hills. Another highlight was the micro hydro plant that has been producing power for a number of houses since 2004. Normally an afternoon walking tour under the sun at 2.30 p.m. would exhaust all but the hardiest. But in Ba’Kelalan it was pleasurable as perspiration would evaporate in the cool mountain air.
Ba’Kelalan got its name from the Kelalan River and Ba’ which means wet lands in the Lun Bawang language. Its population is about one and a half thousand people but as many as eight thousand call it home. The Borneo Highlands is reputed to have the highest PhD holders per capita of its population compared to others.
That night the group gathered
around the fire place in the lodge and had an indoor barbeque farewell
dinner. Again the drivers shared their off roading experiences and
dreams into the night while the younger ones had their own gathering.
Presenting souvenirs to Pa' Tagal Paran
Day 5. After presenting the souvenirs to Pa Tagal Paran with the mandatory group photographs, the convoy rolled out from Buduk Nur. We had received reports that the road was even drier and the drive to Lawas at our pace would take about five hours. The adventurers wanted to fully enjoy the area and it was suggested to go off the main track.
Having made this trip about five years ago, I remembered a river crossing between Ba’Kelalan and Long Semadoh. The plan was to have lunch there, swim in the cold waters, and then get our vehicles through it.
After tackling more mud and extreme gradients, we got to our lunch area. Every family had their own spot and set-up their own camp with camping gas, portable seats and shade. Many braved the cool water with the younger ones leading the way.
Having relaxed after a picnic
lunch, all items were packed and the convoy assembled for the photo of a
lifetime. All vehicles except petrol engine Suzy lined and went through
the river. Laurence chose a line over the shallowest part of the river
and then the group headed to Lawas and then on to Limbang.
Wadding...
The trip out was not without further dramas also. Suzy had already fixed her problems caused fuel filter and faulty spark plugs on the way into Ba’Kelalan. Now she had gear shifting problems but was driving on her own ‘steam’.
Scout Eddie, co-leader Laurence and Voon experienced rear brake failure. Only much later was it diagnosed that mud had gotten into the rear drum brakes and was ‘baked’ from the high heat build up from braking on the extreme gradient. This resulted in mud turning to ceramic which impeded the brakes. No such brake worries for my four disc Raider.
My Land Rover blew a hole in the radiator hose because it had been rubbing on the steering arm. This happened at Brunei Immigration coming out from Lawas. I fixed that by putting rubber putty over the hole and strapping it down with a fair amount of duct tape and finished it off with another layer of rubber host held by cable ties. I also lost the cap to the motor oil filling hole (didn’t tightened it hard enough) only to buy a replacement a few kilometres at a road side garage at Selangau.
Day 6 saw us make the trip through Brunei, stopping to meet up with Azahari, the president of Kuala Beliat 4X4 club, then on to Miri and Bintulu and on Day 7 made it back to Kuching.
On the return leg we saw three other 110 owners who waved and flashed us enthusiastically. Laurence observed and made a comment that Toyota 4X4 owners would want to compare to see who had a better modified car whereas Land Rover owners would look for this ‘brotherhood’ thing.
In all the Land Rover performed flawlessly. We did not suffer any serious mechanical problems. The four disc brakes were especially beneficial for a heavy loaded car. The suspension was superb and we could not complain about cab space. Now I still need to get a power steering box…
[back to LR page] [borneo4x4]