Saturday August 1, 2009
Enchanting Lambir
By LEONG SIOK HUI
Despite its Lilliputian size, Sarawak’s Lambir Hills National Park is a favourite stomping ground for nature lovers and scientists because of its stunning waterfalls and botanical riches.
The air is refreshing and crisp, and as slivers of the morning rays peek through the lush foliage, they create funky, geometric shadows on the giant Licuala palm. Dwarfed by the gargantuan trees, we saunter on a trail fringed by jumbo palms and sprinkled with a medley of Technicolor fungi.
The forest is alive with the symphony of crickets and bird calls. An ethereal fall plunging two-storeys down into an emerald-green pool awaits us at the end of the trail. Ah, bliss indeed!
Waterfalls like Dinding Waterfall, with a sheer drop of more than 30m and a sandy beach. Thanks to the proliferation of cheap flights, my partner and I recently hopped on a two-hour flight from Kuala Lumpur to Miri, Sarawak, for our weekend getaway. Our destination? The low-key but fascinating Lambir Hills National Park.
Just half an hour’s drive from Miri, Lambir is often overlooked by tourists to the state who tend to flock to Mulu or Niah National Park (Miri is the gateway to Lambir’s well-known cousins). But according to scientists, this modest 6,952ha park established in 1975 boasts one of the world’s most complex and diverse forest ecosystems.
Apparently, one tiny, 52ha patch of the park revealed more than 1,175 tree species. More than half the park is swathed in lowland dipterocarp and kerangas (heath) forest with towering trees like kapur (Dryobalanops aromatica), keruing (Dipterocarpus spp.) and meranti (Shorea spp.). Its sandstone and shale escarpments form rugged terrains which make for challenging hikes.
And there are numerous crystal-clear cascades and bathing pools strewn around the park.
The park’s wild gamut of ferns, palms, strangling fig trees and shrubs showcase its naturally “landscaped” tropical garden. Bright red wild gingers and multi-coloured fungi add colour to the rich green backdrop. Near to the summit ridge, the kerangas forest features smaller trees like rhu bukit (Gymnostoma sumatranum) and pitcher plants.
Researchers have listed at least 69 wild fruit trees species, including wild mangoes, durian and engkabang (illipe nut). Little wonder then that scientists from Japanese and American universities have permanent rainforest research stations situated in the park. The porous sandstones beneath Lambir also doubles up as a vast water reservoir that supplies most of Miri’s drinking water.
Visitors who are lucky may glimpse Lambir’s melange of fauna, from bats and pangolins to barking deer. Birdwatchers will be thrilled to spot Bushy-crested hornbills and barbets out of the more than 237 bird species recorded so far.
A self-guided trekking utopia
The giant fan palm (Licuala sp.) grows abundantly in Lambir. One of Lambir’s biggest draws, for yours truly, at least, is its network of well-marked hiking trails — great for self-guided or solo trekking. Hikers can grab a map from Park HQ and hit the trails. The wide trails are marked with dashes of different paint colours on the tree trunks to indicate each trail — pink for the Inoue trail, for example, and blue for the Bakam trail.
It’s impossible to get lost, unless you’re colour-blind or left your GPS at home.
Most of the longer trails like Summit and Pancur require slogging uphill and down, and crossing streams. But the reward — a refreshing splash in the pools with sandy bottoms — is worth the sweat and grind.
I first visited Lambir in 2003, and one of my favourite spots was the 40m tree tower. I’ll never forget that transcendental moment sitting alone on “top of the world”, munching an apple and taking in a bird’s-eye view of the forest canopy.
Birds flitted among the trees and a wood nymph butterfly gently glided downward like a wafer-thin piece of paper floating to the ground. Unfortunately, on this last visit, the tree tower had become dilapidated and was now off-limits to visitors.
A local attraction
On weekends, Lambir is popular amongst Miri folk who love the gorgeous falls located within easy walking distance from the park headquarters. A 15-minute amble takes you to the First, Second and Latak Falls — a 25m high cascade that plunges into a pool with a sandy beach framed by delicate Dipteris lobbiana ferns.
The chalets at Borneo Tropical Rainforest Resort are surrounded by greenery. This popular picnic spot is equipped with a washroom, shelter and picnic tables.
Those who crave privacy and solitude can wander off on the longer trails between one and three hours (one-way) and enjoy the more spectacular falls like Pantu, Tengkorong and Dinding. During our hour-plus trek on the Panti-Inoue trail, we didn’t spot a single soul till the end of our journey.
Nature ‘school’
Naturally, nature buffs and bird watchers from Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) Miri branch frequently organise programmes in Lambir, like birdwatching trips, weekly treks, night walks and nature camps for kids and teachers.
“Surprisingly most Miri kids have never visited the park,” says Mohd Nazeri Abdul Ghani, the chairperson of MNS Miri. Nazeri is also the Birdgroup coordinator.
“Since we live a short distance away from Lambir’s enormous treasures, we use the park to our benefit.”
Lambir’s diversity is its biggest draw, Nazeri adds.
“Though the larger mammals are shy and difficult to see, regular trekkers have stumbled upon tarsiers and monkeys. We have seen sun bear and sambar deer tracks. Someone has taken photos of a clouded leopard spotted here,” says Nazeri, a geophysicist by profession.
MNS Miri’s ultimate objective is to educate the locals about their natural backyard.
“In the end, the voice of the local community will be the deciding factor in conserving places such as Lambir,” adds Nazeri. “If you don’t care for your backyard, no one else will.”
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