Our photographer, Cheese, on Trek with Alpha 7
I was greeted at the pier by a tanned and relaxed looking Alpha 7. Their pre-trek week on dive island had clearly been productive. However, in a few days their tans would be replaced by mud, and that relaxed feeling would be superceded by tiredness and the odd muscle cramp.
The journey to the jungle started with a 2 hour bus ride from KK to Sipatang where we refuelled…at KFC. There we met the convoy of 4x4s that would take us on the second leg of our trip, a 4 hour off-road drive to Long Pasia, the kampung marking the start and end point of the trek.
In 12 days the sight of the brightly coloured houses, stray buffalo and inquisitive children wouldn’t just be a talking point, it would be a huge sigh of relief and realisation that everyone had finally completed what would probably be their toughest challenge on Raleigh.
But for now it had just begun. Our first task was to erect the team tarp and secure the static hamocs. From now on we would be moving everyday, and instead of setting up camp after 6 hours on the road it would be after 6 hours trekking.
The following morning everyone was up at the crack of dawn, eager to get a day’s trekking under their belt. Camp was cleared, group food and kit packed away, and it was time for our guide to lead the way into the jungle.
Final preparations before beginning the trek.
And we're off!
Nooh, 'The Jungle King' and our guide.
The mist was still rising over Long Pasia as we waved goodbye to civilization for the duration of the trek.
We forded a couple of rivers, scrambled up a bank or two, paranged our way through thicker areas of jungle and arrived at Bamboo Camp. It had been a relatively gentle two hour trek and a pleasant surprise for the group.
We had a leisurely lunch, a cup of coffee (someone left the tea bags behind), a rinse in the river, and a chance to learn some camp craft. Although, rather than the Bear Grylls-esque skills I was expecting, we learnt the art of bracelet making.
Soon though it was ‘longs o’clock’ and we all dutifully changed and smothered ourselves in deet. The cooks whipped up some of the finest Raleigh rations on the campfire and we carbo-loaded like nobodies business. The evening was passed with a game of mafia and some stories of the jungle spirits. I soon became much more attached to my newly whittled bracelet, which I hoped would act as a jeemat with plenty of obat to ward off the bali saleng.After a night of strange noises, mainly Aydan’s snoring and Ben’s flatulence, I was woken by the familiar sound of the hornbills whooping from the canopy of the forest.
The daily duties started with stoking the fire, boiling water for porridge and taking down hamocs and tarps. The less glamorous jobs come after breakfast and include filling in the long drop (with soil) as well as burning the loo roll, which was a favourite for Flic.
Yes Flic, you love it!
The morning group stretch.
It had just gone 8am by the time we left camp. A few hours of the usual jungle scenery passed and we came across a clearing and several flimsy looking bamboo structures, we had made it to the next camp. Our new home for the night was set up in increasingly quick time.
The guides took us foraging for river fern before dark, which was cooked in a traditional recipe for the evening meal.With energy levels replenished it was a unanimous decision to have a longer trek the following day. The guides agreed our team was strong and had coped with the first couple of days well. They suggested a challenging trek to a camp near the Indonesian border, which only two other Raleigh groups have been deemed fit enough to do in the past. Naturally, Alpha 7 accepted.
The trek was tough. Eight hours ascending into the Kalimantan hills took its toll on our bodies but most of all our will power. It tested everyone’s physical and mental limits but we all eventually made it to camp unscathed. The heavily chlorinated but still slightly stagnant smelling water wasn’t going to stop anyone enjoying a well-earned cup of mylo.Thunder, lightning and a storm came that night…a real one this time. Despite some people’s efforts to ignore the deluge, determined to sleep off the day’s exertions, they were forced out of their waterlogged hamocs.
A night on the forest floor under the communal tarp wasn’t the best preparation for another hard day of trekking but there were no complaints...well not many.
We descended from the ridge where we'd camped using climbing ropes and sticks to support ourselves on the steep slopes made slippery by the heavy rain, which had started again.
We descended from the ridge where we'd camped using climbing ropes and sticks to support ourselves on the steep slopes made slippery by the heavy rain, which had started again.
A meticulous leech check.
By now the daily duties had become routine and the team worked together like a well-oiled machine. Everyone’s tarps were taut and it looked like the hamocs had been tied using a spirit level. I’m not sure whether this was a case of practice makes perfect or whether people had just taken extra care for fear of another rainstorm. Either way, the camp looked immaculate. I made the most of my perfect hamoc and had an early night while the others continued to pick leeches from their boots, not the usual evening entertainment but satisfying nonetheless.
I was off to meet Alpha 8 for their homestay, but that’s a different story…
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