Congratulations on a great trip – the main measures of success for me are 20 gibbons sighted – they are def my favourite forest animal, 4 cat sightings (plus the two on the drive out) is great too – but the biggest measure is to hear how much the local Malay students got out of this trip – we were delighted to be a part of that and hope to see you back again in future.
Dear all members of the Expedition.
Thank you all for all you did to help the Expedition be such a resounding success. To adults, students, sponsors, advisers, Smaug Abroad and to Dominic, Christine and Lee of Field Skills many thanks for all the hard work you put in in making this such a success.
I can honestly say that Lee’s contribution was the main reason for us learning so much, seeing so much and I can say he is right up with the best guides I have worked with over the past 35 years running Expeditions.
I hope you quickly get over 3 flights in 24 hours to get us home from the Heart of the Sabah rainforest. Meanwhile remember that the Species List on the Blog does not include the drive out and so you can add the Pygmy Elephant we saw and the two Leopard Cats spotted on late drive the night before.
Quintin and I will be in touch reference photographs for you and from his collection and the books etc..
Once again many thanks and have a good Summer.
PABS
#
35
Paul Baker on July 25th, 2010:
We’ve arrived in Sabah, now at the Shangri-la, and it is raining cats and dogs – well, more like frogs!
Mary & Heather will meet our brood tomorrow at the airport. David and I are playing golf – is there no end to our suffering?
We’re all attempting to climb/walk up Mt Kinabalu on Sunday; it known locally as “summmitting” so hopefully we’ll be adding some new geography as well as a new verb to our lives.
All the best to everyone,
Robin/Dad.
#
34
Robin, Mary, David & Heather on July 23rd, 2010:
have loved reading all about the rainforest, would love to be there with you all. Please let Jess know that we sat in our new home with her best friend Abi and her family reading all about the trip and looking at the amazing photos. So looking forward to meeting you all at the airport. Enjoy the last day. Big hug to Pabs& Stan. Sue xx
#
33
Rileys on July 23rd, 2010:
Harriet Alice and Cathy – great blog – of course I read it all – see you tomorrow at the airport – hope you are excited about the climb on Sunday. Heatherxx
#
32
Heather Sandison on July 23rd, 2010:
Harriet, Alice and Cathy…. Great blog! Interested to note your priorities. Food and underwear washing! Lynne x
#
31
Lynne Tighe on July 22nd, 2010:
The blog is superb and its only problem is that it is making all of us who are not there feel very jealous about missing out on visiting this disappearing landscape.
The leech socks look a bit excessive – have they been needed?
All the best to y’all for a trouble and fever-free (get well soon Sholto) last few days.
#
30
Robin Allan on July 22nd, 2010:
Sholto it looks amazing, I am sooooo jealou. Looking forward to hearing all about it xx
#
29
patricia fraser on July 21st, 2010:
Love all the pictures and the diary. Sounds as if you are all having an amazing time. Mary and I will be at KK airport on Saturday to meet our children . Have a great last three days
#
28
Heather Sandison on July 21st, 2010:
Hope Sholto feeling fully restored and can get out and about quickly. Pictures look amazing. Enjoy the amazing birds and the last few days of your trip.
#
27
The Hansons on July 20th, 2010:
Great to hear about your arrival in Danum Valley. If you see some crested firebacks (pheasants that might walk through the “resort”), or bornean bristleheads (kind of like crows with reddish heads – but that is doing them an injustice!!) please take some pictures (maybe easier with the firebacks). Love the picture of the orchid mantis – there should be some pretty cool insects, probably especially at night. Andrew and Valerie Callender
#
26
Andrew Callender on July 20th, 2010:
This site is a wonderful way to ‘follow’ the trip. We look forward with anticipation to each day’s diary entry and the fabulous photos. Glad you are experiencing so much wildlife.
Eloise we have emailed you.
The Haylor’s
#
25
The Haylor's on July 20th, 2010:
Great to see the blog developing – some very interesting reflections and some beautiful photos Quintin. Great to see the Malaysian students smiling away in the forest having put 5 very excited but slightly nervous students on the plane a few days ago…
A very dull message – please can Rory, Rupert & Max send me their passport number (& Max – please remind me of your birthdate) as I need these details for your passes to Mount Kinabalu.
Hi All,
Good to get the email and call from Sam, glad that everything is OK. Sam if you think that the DEET is bad now, wait till you start sweating it into your eyes. I guess the Mosquito bangles did not work!
All is well in France, Mike was at Kate’s wedding yesterday so should get a report. Tour de France finished in Mende yesterday.
Don’t forget to try and keep at least one set of kit dry.
All the best
Love
D3
Click on ’satellite’ to see the longhouse we staying in.
No a/c tonight and bamboo floor under our feet.
#
19
Stan on July 16th, 2010:
Greetings to all from Umbria – Have just e mailed link to Blog to various others.
Wonderful to see and hear your progress.
Have a great time – Is there really AC in the jungle Stan?
#
18
Beverley on July 16th, 2010:
Hi Everyone, Great to see the pictures of you at the market. Hope the boys got some cool sunglasses (at a cheap price!). Have fun at Poring Hot Springs if you have time to stop there.
Val, Andrew and Sebastian Callender
Great pictures Quentin. We’re looking forward to seeing some of the rain-forest.
The night market looks as if it was fun; did anyone eat any snake? or toad? or other Sabah delicacies? Surely the Dragons didn’t shy away from eating local grub – or should that read grubs?
TTFN.
#
15
Robin Allan on July 15th, 2010:
Message from Stan on the 14th of July: “We are on the bus to the hotel in Kota Kinabalu, we had a lovely day in Bandar”
Good luck to the team – know you will be in the air now and looking forward to welcoming you to Sabah… We’re excited about the itinerary we’ve been putting together for you and especially about the amazing opportunity you are providing for the local students who will be joining you – see you at the airport this evening!!
Wishing you all a fantastic trip. Take lots of pictures and I look forward to listening to more of the amazing sounds of the rainforest. Looking foward to looking at this site as you travel around. Belinda
#
11
Belinda on July 13th, 2010:
The group is boarding at Heathrow. All on time and cheerful. Good luck for a rewarding, interesting trip… jc
Hi Sam and Paul,
Hope that you arrive safely. Watch out for the leeches, snakes, mosquitos and other assorted wildlife. All is well in France. See you in August.
D3
ATMs are reliable and widespread in both Brunei & Sabah although using them in both countries triggered my banks fraud prevention, blocking the card till I called. there is a £3.40 handling fee per ATM withdrawal so take out a large amount each time. If you want to take $ from uk money changing is also easy with fair rates.
#
8
Quintin Lake on July 9th, 2010:
Quintin
Is $ a good idea in Brunei & Sabah
Thanks
jc
I leave Brunei for Kota Kinabalu in Sabah tomorrow where I’ll be catching up with Dom from Fieldskills. Do get in touch if you have questions about what to bring or anything else.
#
4
Quintin on July 7th, 2010:
Not long now, folks! Sure you are all looking forward to it as much as me! What an adventure, have you started packing yet? Don’t forget to check you have everything on your list, there are still 2 weeks, so you can get supplies before you leave. I am trying to fit it all into a small back pack and hand luggage – at least I shouldn’t need the 5 season sleeping bag…
#
3
Sam Hillcox on June 27th, 2010:
Thank you Jamie for this great web site an we will keep in touch.
Paul
#
2
paul on May 26th, 2010:
Paul, best of luck to you and all the team. Looking forward to seeing all your reports from the field. Jamie
Congratulations on a great trip – the main measures of success for me are 20 gibbons sighted – they are def my favourite forest animal, 4 cat sightings (plus the two on the drive out) is great too – but the biggest measure is to hear how much the local Malay students got out of this trip – we were delighted to be a part of that and hope to see you back again in future.
Dear all members of the Expedition.
Thank you all for all you did to help the Expedition be such a resounding success. To adults, students, sponsors, advisers, Smaug Abroad and to Dominic, Christine and Lee of Field Skills many thanks for all the hard work you put in in making this such a success.
I can honestly say that Lee’s contribution was the main reason for us learning so much, seeing so much and I can say he is right up with the best guides I have worked with over the past 35 years running Expeditions.
I hope you quickly get over 3 flights in 24 hours to get us home from the Heart of the Sabah rainforest. Meanwhile remember that the Species List on the Blog does not include the drive out and so you can add the Pygmy Elephant we saw and the two Leopard Cats spotted on late drive the night before.
Quintin and I will be in touch reference photographs for you and from his collection and the books etc..
Once again many thanks and have a good Summer.
PABS
We’ve arrived in Sabah, now at the Shangri-la, and it is raining cats and dogs – well, more like frogs!
Mary & Heather will meet our brood tomorrow at the airport. David and I are playing golf – is there no end to our suffering?
We’re all attempting to climb/walk up Mt Kinabalu on Sunday; it known locally as “summmitting” so hopefully we’ll be adding some new geography as well as a new verb to our lives.
All the best to everyone,
Robin/Dad.
have loved reading all about the rainforest, would love to be there with you all. Please let Jess know that we sat in our new home with her best friend Abi and her family reading all about the trip and looking at the amazing photos. So looking forward to meeting you all at the airport. Enjoy the last day. Big hug to Pabs& Stan. Sue xx
Harriet Alice and Cathy – great blog – of course I read it all – see you tomorrow at the airport – hope you are excited about the climb on Sunday. Heatherxx
Harriet, Alice and Cathy…. Great blog! Interested to note your priorities. Food and underwear washing! Lynne x
The blog is superb and its only problem is that it is making all of us who are not there feel very jealous about missing out on visiting this disappearing landscape.
The leech socks look a bit excessive – have they been needed?
All the best to y’all for a trouble and fever-free (get well soon Sholto) last few days.
Sholto it looks amazing, I am sooooo jealou. Looking forward to hearing all about it xx
Love all the pictures and the diary. Sounds as if you are all having an amazing time. Mary and I will be at KK airport on Saturday to meet our children . Have a great last three days
Hope Sholto feeling fully restored and can get out and about quickly. Pictures look amazing. Enjoy the amazing birds and the last few days of your trip.
Great to hear about your arrival in Danum Valley. If you see some crested firebacks (pheasants that might walk through the “resort”), or bornean bristleheads (kind of like crows with reddish heads – but that is doing them an injustice!!) please take some pictures (maybe easier with the firebacks). Love the picture of the orchid mantis – there should be some pretty cool insects, probably especially at night. Andrew and Valerie Callender
This site is a wonderful way to ‘follow’ the trip. We look forward with anticipation to each day’s diary entry and the fabulous photos. Glad you are experiencing so much wildlife.
Eloise we have emailed you.
The Haylor’s
Great to see the blog developing – some very interesting reflections and some beautiful photos Quintin. Great to see the Malaysian students smiling away in the forest having put 5 very excited but slightly nervous students on the plane a few days ago…
A very dull message – please can Rory, Rupert & Max send me their passport number (& Max – please remind me of your birthdate) as I need these details for your passes to Mount Kinabalu.
rallan@premier-oil.com
Thanks.
Hi everyone, great to see the photo of the whole team – have a great time! Looks amazing – love to Jess.
Hi All,
Good to get the email and call from Sam, glad that everything is OK. Sam if you think that the DEET is bad now, wait till you start sweating it into your eyes. I guess the Mosquito bangles did not work!
All is well in France, Mike was at Kate’s wedding yesterday so should get a report. Tour de France finished in Mende yesterday.
Don’t forget to try and keep at least one set of kit dry.
All the best
Love
D3
All looks incredibly exciting. Looking forward to hearing tales of the rainforest: slugs and bugs, leeches and screeches.
Are location for tonight
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&q=5.941925,116.783563%20%28Kampung%20Nalapak,%20Ranau,%20Sabah,%20Malaysia%29
Click on ’satellite’ to see the longhouse we staying in.
No a/c tonight and bamboo floor under our feet.
Greetings to all from Umbria – Have just e mailed link to Blog to various others.
Wonderful to see and hear your progress.
Have a great time – Is there really AC in the jungle Stan?
Hi Everyone, Great to see the pictures of you at the market. Hope the boys got some cool sunglasses (at a cheap price!). Have fun at Poring Hot Springs if you have time to stop there.
Val, Andrew and Sebastian Callender
Anyone on this blog?
Great pictures Quentin. We’re looking forward to seeing some of the rain-forest.
The night market looks as if it was fun; did anyone eat any snake? or toad? or other Sabah delicacies? Surely the Dragons didn’t shy away from eating local grub – or should that read grubs?
TTFN.
Message from Stan on the 14th of July: “We are on the bus to the hotel in Kota Kinabalu, we had a lovely day in Bandar”
Harriet Hamish and Dughall all checked in for KK
Good luck to the team – know you will be in the air now and looking forward to welcoming you to Sabah… We’re excited about the itinerary we’ve been putting together for you and especially about the amazing opportunity you are providing for the local students who will be joining you – see you at the airport this evening!!
Wishing you all a fantastic trip. Take lots of pictures and I look forward to listening to more of the amazing sounds of the rainforest. Looking foward to looking at this site as you travel around. Belinda
The group is boarding at Heathrow. All on time and cheerful. Good luck for a rewarding, interesting trip… jc
Hi Sam and Paul,
Hope that you arrive safely. Watch out for the leeches, snakes, mosquitos and other assorted wildlife. All is well in France. See you in August.
D3
ATMs are reliable and widespread in both Brunei & Sabah although using them in both countries triggered my banks fraud prevention, blocking the card till I called. there is a £3.40 handling fee per ATM withdrawal so take out a large amount each time. If you want to take $ from uk money changing is also easy with fair rates.
Quintin
Is $ a good idea in Brunei & Sabah
Thanks
jc
Thanks Jean-Claude, I’m looking forward to meeting the team…and for the envious ones remember: no leeches, no sweating and no mossies in the UK! Q
Hi Quintin
Wonderful pictures! Some envious people here and some who can’t wait to join you next week.
Best wishes
Jean-Claude
I leave Brunei for Kota Kinabalu in Sabah tomorrow where I’ll be catching up with Dom from Fieldskills. Do get in touch if you have questions about what to bring or anything else.
Not long now, folks! Sure you are all looking forward to it as much as me! What an adventure, have you started packing yet? Don’t forget to check you have everything on your list, there are still 2 weeks, so you can get supplies before you leave. I am trying to fit it all into a small back pack and hand luggage – at least I shouldn’t need the 5 season sleeping bag…
Thank you Jamie for this great web site an we will keep in touch.
Paul
Paul, best of luck to you and all the team. Looking forward to seeing all your reports from the field. Jamie