Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
CAVING
Slice one of Borneo's limestone hills in half and chances are you'll find that the inside
looks like Swiss cheese. Borneans have been living, harvesting birds' nests, planning insur-
gencies and burying their dead in these caves for tens of thousands of years.
These days, the island's subterranean spaces - including some of the largest caverns any-
where on earth - are quiet, except for the flow of underground streams, the drip of stalac-
tites and the whoosh of bat and swiftlet wings.
Sarawak's Gunung Mulu National Park is a place of spelunking superlatives. It has the
world's second-largest cave passage (Deer Cave, which is 2km in length and 174m in
height), the world's largest cave chamber (Sarawak Chamber, at 700m long, 400m wide
and 70m high) and Asia's longest cave (Clearwater Cave, with 225km of passages). Sever-
al of the park's finest caves are - like their counterparts in Niah National Park and Sabah's
Gomantong Caves - accessible to nonspelunkers on raised walkways.
A pitch-black passageway deep in the bowels of the earth is not the ideal place to discov-
er that you can't deal with narrow, confined spaces. Before heading underground, seriously
consider your susceptibility to claustrophobia and fear of heights (some caves require scal-
ing underground cliffs). If you have any concerns about a specific route, discuss these with
your guide beforehand.
Be prepared to crawl through muck, including bat guano, and bring clothes you won't
mind getting filthy in (some guides and agencies supply these).
When to Go
Rain can flood the interior of some caves at any time of the year.
Gunung Mulu National Park has a shortage of trained spelunking guides, so unless you'll
be hiring a private guide or going with a tour agency, make your reservations well in ad-
vance. Some dates in July, August and September are likely to be booked out months
ahead.
Guides & Agencies
» Gunung Mulu National Park (
Click here
)
» Kuching Caving (
Click here
)
