Having completed one excellent tour, the start of our next one, returning to the rainforest, was a short flight away in Sandakan. We had originally booked an early morning flight to get to Sandakan for the start of the tour, but it was cancelled before we left Australia. This meant catching the next flight and missing the first activity of the tour. This was a visit to the Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre at Sepilok – as we had already been there, we were not too disappointed.
Sandakan
On landing after the shortest flight I have ever experienced, we were met by the tour representative who took us to the hotel where the rest of the group were to have lunch. Since we were very early, we explored more of the town including the fish, fruit and vegetable market. The last of the clean-up from the morning’s fish catch was in progress and locals were catching their river taxis home with bags of produce from the market.
Return to the Rainforest
After lunch, our 2.5 hour journey back into the rainforest was by boat. We were joined by a single American lady, Paulette, and an American couple, Rockie and Andrea. On the way we stopped to admire a crocodile and a Lesser Adjutant. We could not believe our luck when a herd of elephants was spotted on the eastern bank of the river. Although we had to get to the lodge, we spent a few minutes watching and photographing the animals as they walked past.
We only had only 30 minutes to check in (which included a demo on how to wear the sarongs provided in the rooms), find our room and get back to the jetty for our first river safari, where we were joined by a Dutch family of three generations who had arrived by coach. The rain that the heavy dark sky had been threatening started almost immediately we set off in the boat. Even with our heads down and rain capes on, our shorts and undies were soaked in no time. Word had spread of another elephant sighting in one of the tributaries. As we approached the area, the rain stopped and we were treated to a herd crossing the creek for yet more photographs. Reflecting that there was supposedly only a 10% chance of seeing elephants, we felt more than blessed at having seen them on three separate occasions.
It was dark by the time we returned to the lodge. Wearing our sarongs, we ate a delicious dinner overlooking the river and enjoyed the relatively cool evening.
More River Safaris
Our morning river safari commenced at 06:00, so it was a quick grab of tea and toast before setting off up a tributary opposite the lodge. The highlights of this outing were the Kingfishers and a White Breasted Waterhen.
After a welcome breakfast and on our way back to our room, we spotted the local resident Orangutans high up in the trees. in July 2014, a mother and baby, christened Lucky and Day, were first sighted close to the lodge. Making an occasional appearance, they gradually came closer to the lodge as they realised there was no threat. In 2019, Lucky gave birth to the now 6 year old Hope. Later that morning we joined a nature walk led by one of the rangers and after lunch we enjoyed a presentation about the Borneo Orangutan.
Our final river safari departed at 4 o’clock. Within in 30 minutes it not only poured, but we treated to a full thunder and lightning storm, and, yes, we were soaked yet again. There was not much wildlife spotted on this safari – this was OK because the rain had dampened our enthusiasm considerably.
Final day of the tour
With a 09:00 departure we enjoyed a leisurely breakfast before packing the last of our belongings and checking out. Shortly after leaving the jetty in the boat back to Sandakan, our tour leader spotted a pair of rare White Crested Spoonbill, much to his and our delight.
With no other sightings we sped off and arrived back in Sandakan where our fellow travellers went in opposite directions. We were, however, joined by an independently travelling German bird photographer who accompanied us for lunch and our second visit to the Rainforest Discovery Centre. Unlike our first visit, it was not raining and therefore more enjoyable. We climbed the tallest tower on the boardwalk to find a group of serious bird photographers trying to entice the rare Borneo Bristlehead with a recording of its mating call. This practice is not commonly acceptable, however after lingering for a while we spotted a specimen in the distance and K managed to photograph it as it came closer. As we were leaving, we had a final sighting of a mother Orangutan with her baby.
Back to Kota Kinabalu
Our tour ended when we were dropped off for our last night in the east at our resort, the Sepalok Jungle Resort. This resort was in need of much maintenance, however the grounds were extensive and enjoyable. In the morning, we spent some time watching a couple of Kingfishers diving to catch fish. What started out to be a long wait for our transfer to the airport and our flight back to Kota Kinabalu ended up being entertaining with a great opportunity to have a go at photographing the birds in action.
And so ended the penultimate stage of our visit to Borneo, with the final few days in Kota Kinabalu to look forward to.
