Kinabatangan
Kinabatangan is both the name of a town and district in Sandakan Division of Borneo’s Sabah State, as well as that of Malaysia’s second longest river. (The Rajang in Sarawak State comes top of the table.) Since 2009, the lower reaches of the Kinabatangan form the Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary; justifiably well-known amongst visitors to the island, as it provides some of the most readily accessible and bountiful wildlife viewing opportunities in northern Borneo.
Its banks are also conveniently dotted with several eco-lodges and low-key resorts which provide food, accommodation and guided tours to visitors. The various resorts all have trained wildlife guides and generally offer packages including board, lodging and wildlife spotting activities in the form of boat trips up and downstream, with early mornings and late afternoons being the most popular times. Day hikes, visits to local villages and night walks will also invariably feature on the resorts’ menus.
The jungle-lined Kinabatangan River We’ve stayed at several of the locations and always found local staff knowledgeable and helpful and never been disappointed by any of the numerous boat tours we’ve taken. Accommodation and meals have always been more than acceptable and while the former is unlikely to be anything fancy, rooms or chalets are comfortable with air-conditioning and en-suite bathrooms. There’s no local bar and restaurant scene – unlike around the edges of certain other popular national parks – as lodges are scattered in the forest along the riverbanks rather than clustered around any particular village, but everywhere we’ve stayed has had an in-house bar with plenty of cold beers to be had.
Early morning on the river Monitors and crocs inhabit the waters while its forested banks are home to myriad bird and mammal species. All eight of Borneo’s hornbill varieties have been recorded along the river as well as storks and adjutants. Commonly seen primate species include proboscis monkeys, langurs, macaques and, of course, orangutans, while Borneo pygmy elephants are a regular sighting. Slow lorises, leopards and gibbons are rarer encounters.
Eight species of hornbill have been recorded at Kinabatangan Our itinerary for Kinabatangan consists of an afternoon arrival from Sepilok with a stop on route at the Gomantong Caves, followed by some time to check-in and relax before a late afternoon boat trip up the river. An optional night trek to discover the nocturnal wildlife completes our day’s activities. Our second day includes an early morning boat trip with a return to the lodge for breakfast, followed by a walk around the local village. After some time at leisure, another sunset boat trip is on offer before dinner.
Proboscis monkeys are just one of several primate species to inhabit the Kinabatangan’s banks. The 2-day, 2-night Kinabatangan programme features on both our Borneo Adventure and Sabah, Land Below the Wind tours as well as our Borneo and West Malaysia tour.
