Well after nine hard days working it was time for some chill out days off though we don’t tend to have total chill out days because usually there is some excursion arranged and this time was no exception. The day started with a drive to the burial grounds about 1 ½ hours drive from Sepilok. As the ancient site no photography was allowed. The burials took place are in caves in a small hill with the higher status members of the local tribe were buried (or probably more correctly entombed) in a cave at the top of the hill which involved [View Full Entry]

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Just spent the last 9 days back at Rasa Ria this time not as a guest in the hotel but working at the Nature Interpretation Centre (NIC) attached to the Rasa Ria resort which is home to a variety of species as well as to 6 Orangutans. Strangely enough it has been working with the other animals that I have enjoyed as much as working the Orangutans. I gained a really soft spot for the Whistling Teals, with their little cackly whistles when you feed them. Fell in love with a gorgeous Pied Hornbill called Gill who has eye lashes [View Full Entry]

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Well the last few days was an experience and not necessarily a good one - hard to believe that I am saying that about one of the things I had really looked forward to doing along with than working with the Orangutans that is and that was to Climb Mount Kinabalu But when you read on you may be will understand this comment. But lets start at the beginning; we had to endure a grueling 5 hour car journey from Sepilok to Kota Kinabalu. It was the shame the numbness in certain parts of my anatomy couldn't numb me to [View Full Entry]

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Still catching up with blog entries. Up to the 10th July I have been working on surveying the Small Mammals that inhabit our surroundings at Sepilok. Over 4 day period we laid 20 traps baited with banana. Don't think I really need to say they traps do no harm to the little creatures that are tempted in by the promise of a meal, which is probably worth the indignantly of been caught for a few hours and having vital statistics taken followed by a little hair cut! Over the 4 days we managed to capture several different species mainly shrews [View Full Entry]

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Well we have just completed our last Orangutan Nest Survey today though not the last of our surveys as tomorrow we start Small Mammal Surveys. We have now had our last couple of difficult days of trekking in the morning - I say that slightly with tongue in cheek because I couldn’t really call today’s trek that tough because we ended at a Water Hole where we could swim! The treks themselves had been pretty routine - can’t believe I am saying that ion this beautiful place but it is pretty much the typical hot and sweaty trek up and [View Full Entry]

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Well we have officially started our placement at Sepilok and for my Group (Katy, Heather and Me) that means Surveys and Treking. We have spent the last few mornings trekking through the jungle of Sepilok looking for Orangutan Nests and the afternoon doing various projects around the centre. We did not know what to expect from our survey trekking and in our very fetching leech socks we followed Gabili (our staff ranger for the surveys) out into the jungle. Gabili comes armed with a sprayer full of Detol. We were given a very effective demonstration to why; it is very [View Full Entry]

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Well the start the placement at Sepilok has begun. Though we don’t officially start until Monday we have spent the last few days getting some work experience at Sepilok - probably because they realized that the volunteers are just too excited about working with Orangutans to be able to wait until Monday and how correct they are. The talk for the last week has revolved around orange, hairy babies. We started with an Induction by Sylvia and we were model students - listening intently just in case we lost out on the Hands On experience that was going to happen [View Full Entry]

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Today (ok so I am still catching up so it was several days ago but lets just pretend for now) we had a tour of Sandakan. We were picked up by John, our local contact for a tour of the main attractions of Sandakan and an orientation to the area where we will be living for the next few months. We started at the Crocodile Farm - actually it is meant to be the local idea of conservation because as far as I can gather none actually become handbags if the sign about one living there for 43 years to [View Full Entry]

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Slowly catching up with blog entries but limited internet access and slow connection are not making it easy. Well finally made it to Sandakan after a short flight and car journey we are finally at Sepilok and our home for the next 2 months. We hurriedly dropped our belongs in a basic but pleasant enough Resthouse as we had been informed we were going to go and watch the Orangutans at the feeding platform. The Resthouse is conveniently located just few hundred years from Sepilok Rehabilitation Centre and our workplace - am I going to miss my 2 hour morning [View Full Entry]

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Started the morning by heading to the local market near the Waterfront - the main aim was to get my rucksack transporter bag repaired (torn courtesy of the airline in transit - just glad it wasn't the ruck sack). Found a lovely little local man who said he could repair it for 5MYR - I think by his standards this was probably overcharging but to me it was a good price and he did a fantastic job. Domestic sewing skills is so not my forte even if I had a machine available! Plus I have enough insect bites without adding [View Full Entry]

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