LIVIN MY DREAM - MY OVERLAND JOURNEY: TRANS BORNEO SOLO RIDE

9^thNOV 2012 : KOTA KINABALU – TANJUNG SIMPANG MENGAYAU – KINABALU PARK (434KM)

I started my ride around 8pm. It was already bright as here in Sabah, sunrise was around 5.30am. It was easy to find my way out of KK, heading to the north. I was informed yesterday that the road condition from KK to Kota Belud is nice – for Sabah standard, but definitely not for Peninsular standard. The supposedly highway was only a one lane road which was slightly uneven and without reserved lane . There were certain areas where the road was seen oily which was caused by the timber lorries, so I nd to be careful – I hv been warned about this yesterday. The road was going uphill and downhill and the view was nice. At one point, someone waved at me by the road side. He happened to be Cikgu Azlan, a member from the KK group. We chatted for a while and later I continued on to Kota Belud. The road condition from here to Kota Marudu worsened as construction were going on. I hv to ride on gravels for about 10kms on and off. From Kota Marudu to Kudat, I had to ride on a narrow and damaged road, so speeding here was not a wise thing to do.

Finally, after riding for 188kms, I arrived Tanjung Simpang Mengayau, the place where the Tip of Borneo was located – a must go for bikers. A beautiful white sandy beach waiting to be explored, but unfortunately I dont hv much time. I made a mind note that the nx time I go to Sabah, I will stay here for at least one night.

I rode on until I reached a no entry sign. The road was blocked by a piece of rope, meaning that I hv to park my bike. I was told that I can take DREAM up to the globe, but it seems that, that was no longer allowed. No choice, I hv to walk.

The view was very nice and beautiful. Blue ocean and huge waves crashing to the rocks was indeed a nice sight to watch. I walked down to the very edge of the rock to hv my pic taken. Only a second after that, a huge wave came from behind and almost swept me off. It was scary but funny too.

I met a Malay family and hv a nice chat with them, only to know that we hv so much in common – We are from Ipoh, Meru to be exact, first timer in Sabah, I rode my bike here and they drove their car, and the wife was also a lecturer. I asked the husband to help me to fix my loosened GPS holder. Thank you bro (sorry I forgot yr name). I spend about 40 minutes here and after that I rode back the same road until Kota Belud.

The rain started to fall heavily and I am feeling hungry. I had my lunch at a restaurant in Kota Belud. My presence alerted the locals. I just smiled at them. I waited for the rain to lessen and chatted with the restaurant staff about direction to Kinabalu Park. The guy told me that there were 2 options – either I rode back the same way to KK but turn left after Tuaran, or I can take a bypass road which is nearer but not recommended since according to him, the road was steep, narrow, winding, deserted, it was raining and I am riding alone. I took his advise and started to ride back the same way to KK, but after passing another kampong road which was not marked in my map (there are actually several road to get to Kinabalu Park), I decided that I want to give it a try. After all, this is my ride. A ride without challenges is just like eating a tasteless food. I took the kampong road which was not that steep after all (may be to the guy it was steep), but narrow, deserted and the rain started to pour again heavily....sigh...Well, the decision was mine and no one is to be blamed, so....enjoy the ride. This is the best that I can do at the moment. To add more to the challenge, fog started to appear and limited my vision. I had to ride slowly and carefully as at certain places, visibility was as low as 50 meters only.

I finally reached the intersection to the highway to Ranau, so the riding gets a bit easier but the rain still didnt want to stop. There were many lorries to overtake but I didnt find it very difficult to do except that I am feeling very cold bcos of the altitude and since I am totally wet. As a matter of fact, I was shivering while riding!!! I finally arrived Kinabalu Park after riding for 246kms fr Tanjung Simpang Mengayau. I was met by Abang Tan and Rusdi, members from KPSES Elegant. I was not told about their presence and was quite surprised to know that they were expecting me. Thank you bro Azmi for instructing your ppl to assist me and thanks to Abg Tan and Rusdi for helping me out. I want to stay at D’villa Rina, so since they were locals, they knew the place and helped me to to check in. After that we had a drink at Kundasang. That night was spent resting in my room since I have a big task tomorrow – to climb up Mount Kinabalu.