Back to the forest........Bako National Park

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A bit of info/history i found on the net:-
Gazetted as a protected area on 1 May 1957 and was published to public on 4 may 1957. Bako is Sarawak's oldest national park, covering an area of 2,727 hectares at the tip of the Muara Tebas peninsula, about 45 min drive from Kuching city. It is one of the smallest national park in Sarawak, yet one of the most interesting as it contains almost every type of vegetation found in Borneo.

Bako is also home to approximately 150 rare proboscis monkey, found only in Borneo. The male is an odd looking creature with a huge pendulous nose and a large pot belly weighting in excess of 20 kg. I managed to spot a group of them while trekking back to the park HQ. Too bad i can't get a good look of them because they were high up in the trees hiding in the shadows of the setting sun. Caught a quick glimpse when they jumped from branches to branches. They looked so beautiful with they golden/orange fur basking in the late afternoon sun.

The other group of monkey we saw was the silvered leaf monkey or silvered langur. They have silver grey fur and spiky crest of head hair, and really agile.

The other animal or more commonly seen at Bako is the Bornean Bearded Pig. As its name implies it is distinguished from other wild pigs by prominent bristles either side of its snout. Bearded pigs are often found around the Park Office scavening for food or wallowing in mud. They even came to the doorstep of our lodge asking for food. They are not harmful but their size and the looks make you rather stay some distance away.

There are many trails/jungle trekking tracks there. We chose the one with 2.5 hrs trekking time to Tajor (which we took 3 hours!!!) The trail also passes the Tajor Waterfall, a popular resting spot. The waterfall is quite small (and best after heavy rain) but it has a beautiful jungle setting and a small dip pool. It is secluded and quite! But the water is dark red brownish colour. I don't know why, probably because of the vegetation or the soil. Maybe someone can help?

Sunset there is the most beautiful!!! Looking straight to the Mt Santubong basking in the soft orange rays is unforgettable!

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Photos

The forest floor 1
There are many type of forest. Diiferent plants but one common thing - hot hot hot!! Weather is really hot!

The forest floor 6
At the waterfall, look at the colour of the water.

The forest floor 5
The waterfall. The setting is really nice..... very natural 'jungle' look. Make a good set for another Anaconda movie, i think! :)

The forest floor 7
The waterfall

In the jungle 2
Some mushroom growing on the jungle floor. You have to keep your eyes open on the floor to find some really fascinating things.

In the jungle 3
The pitcher plant! It's a insect eater!!! It lures insect into its 'belly' by producing some sweet sticky liquid.

The shy proboscis monkey
can't get a clear view of them. Always facing the back to us. They knew our existence though.

Silver leaf monkey
agile and less shy
pretty noisy too

The male bearded pig
It's really ugly......!

The whole family came to us.....
The mother brought 3 of the younger ones to our hostel doorstep, as if they were saying 'Treat or Trick!'. Reminds me of the story of 3 piglets with their houses against a wolf!