Mount Kinabalu
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| Mount Kinabalu | |
|---|---|
| Gunung Kinabalu | |
 Mount Kinabalu | |
| Elevation | 4,095 m (13,435 ft) |
| Prominence | 4,095 m (13,435 ft) Ranked 20th |
| Listing | Country high point Ultra Spesial (Ribu) |
| Location | |
| Range | Crocker Range |
| Coordinates | 6°5′N 116°33′E / 6.083°N 116.55°ECoordinates: 6°5′N 116°33′E / 6.083°N 116.55°E |
| Climbing | |
| First ascent | 1858 by H. Low and S. St. John |
| Easiest route | Hiking |
In 1997, a re-survey using satellite technology established its summit (known as Low’s Peak) height at 4,095 metres (13,435 ft) above sea level, which is some 6 metres (20 ft) less than the previously thought and hitherto published figure of 4,101 metres (13,455 ft).[3]
The mountain and its surroundings are among the most important biological sites in the world, with over 4500 species of plant, 326 species of birds, and 100 mammalian species identified. Among this rich collection of wildlife are famous species such as the gigantic Rafflesia plants and the orangutan. Mount Kinabalu has been accorded UNESCO World Heritage status.[4][5]
Low's Peak can be climbed quite easily by a person in good physical condition and there is no need for mountaineering equipment at any point on the main route. Other peaks along the massif, however, require rock climbing skills.
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[edit] Biology
Significantly, Mount Kinabalu along with other upland areas of the Crocker Range is well-known worldwide for its tremendous botanical and biological species biodiversity with plants of Himalayan, Australasian, and Indomalayan origin. A recent botanical survey of the mountain estimated a staggering 5,000 to 6,000 plant species (excluding mosses and liverworts but including ferns),[3][6][7][8][9][10] which is more than all of Europe and North America (excluding tropical regions of Mexico) combined. It is therefore one of the world's most important biological sites. It includes the Kinabalu montane alpine meadows ecoregion in the Montane grasslands and shrublands Biome.The flora covers the mountain in zones of different types of habitat as one climbs up, beginning with a lowland belt of fig trees and insectivorous pitcher plants. Then between 2,600 and 3,200m is a layer of short trees such the conifer Dacrydium gibbsiae and dwarf shrubs, mosses, lichens, liverworts, and ferns. Finally many of the world's richest variety of orchids are found on the high rockier slopes.
These plants have high levels of endemism (i.e. species which are found only within Kinabalu Park and are not found anywhere else in the world). The orchids are the best-known example with over 800 species including some of the highly-valued Paphiopedilum slipper orchids, but there are also over 600 species of ferns (more than the whole of Africa’s 500 species) of which 50 are found nowhere else, and the richest collection in the world for the Nepenthes pitcher plants (five of the thirteen are found nowhere else on earth) which reach spectacular proportions (the largest-pitchered in the world being the endemic Nepenthes rajah).[3][11][12] The parasitic Rafflesia plant, which has the largest single flower in the world, is also found in Kinabalu (particularly Rafflesia keithii whose flower grows to 94 centimetres or 37 inches in diameter),[3] though it should be noted that blooms of the flower are rare and difficult to find. Meanwhile another Rafflesia species Rafflesia tengku-adlinii can be found on the neighbouring Mount Trus Madi and the nearby Maliau Basin.
[edit] Fauna
The variety of plant life is also habitat for a great variety of birds and animals. There are some 326 species of birds in Kinabalu Park (including the spectacular Rhinoceros Hornbill), Mountain Serpent-eagle, Dulit Frogmouth, Eyebrowed Jungle Flycatcher, and Bare-headed Laughingthrush. Twenty-four birds are mainly found on the mountain and one, the Bornean Spiderhunter, is a pure endemic. The mountain is home to some 100 mammalian species mostly living high in th trees, including one of the four great apes, the orangutan (though sightings of these are uncommon; estimates of its numbers in the park range from 25 to 120).[3] Other mammals include three kinds of deer, the Malayan Weasel (Mustela nudipes), Oriental Small-clawed Otter (Aonyx cinerea), and Leopard Cat (Felis bengalensis). Endemic mammals include the Black Shrew (Suncus ater) and Bornean Ferret-badger (Melogale everetti).Endemic annelids number less than a dozen known species but include the Kinabalu giant red leech that preys on various earthworms, including the Kinabalu giant earthworm.[13]
[edit] Threats and preservation
The steep mountainsides with poor soil are not suitable for farming or for the timber industry so the habitats and animal life of Kinabalu remain largely intact, with about a third of the original habitat now degraded. Kinabalu Park was established in 1964 and the nearby mountains were protected as the Crocker Range National Park in 1984. However even national park status does not guarantee full protection, as logging permits were granted on Trus Madi in 1984.[14][edit] Geology
Mount Kinabalu is essentially a massive pluton formed from granodiorite which is intrusive into sedimentary and ultrabasic rocks, and forms the central part, or core, of the Kinabalu massif. The granodiorite is intrusive into strongly folded strata, probably of Eocene to Miocene age, and associated ultrabasic and basic igneous rocks. It was pushed up from the earth’s crust as molten rock millions of years ago. In geological terms, it is a very young mountain as the granodiorite cooled and hardened only about 10 million years ago. The present landform is considered to be a mid-Pliocene peneplain, arched and deeply dissected, through which the Kinabalu granodiorite body has risen in isostatic adjustment. It is still pushing up at the rate of 5 mm per annum. During the Pleistocene Period of about 100,000 years ago, the massive mountain was covered by huge sheets of ice and glaciers which flowed down its slopes, scouring its surface in the process and creating the 1800 m deep Low's Gully ( named after Hugh Low) on its North side. Its granite composition and the glacial formative processes are readily apparent when viewing its craggy rocky peaks.[3][edit] Climbing route
Accommodation is available inside the park or outside near the headquarters. Sabah Parks has privatized Mt Kinabalu activities to an organization called Sutera Sanctuary Lodges (also known as Sutera Harbour). Sutera is now requiring hikers stay one night at their lodge near the entrance, in addition to a required stay at Laban Rata. The cost to stay is considerably higher than at lodging just outside the park, and includes a mandatory purchase of meals, etc. From there, climbers proceed to the Timpohon gate at 1866 m (6,122 ft), either by minibus or by walking, and then walk to the Laban Rata Resthouse at 3,270 m (10,728 ft). Most people accomplish this part of the climb in 3 to 6 hours. Since there are no roads, the supplies for the Laban Rata Resthouse are carried by porters, who bring up to 30 kilograms of supplies on their backs. Hot food and beverages, hot showers and heated rooms are available at Laban Rata. The last 2 km (2600 ft), from the Laban Rata Resthouse at 3,270 m to Low's Peak (summit) at 4,095.2 m, takes between 2 and 4 hours. The last part of the climb is on naked granite rock.
Given the high altitude, some people may suffer from altitude sickness and should return immediately to the bottom of the mountain, as breathing and any further movement becomes increasingly difficult.[16]
[edit] Tales
The first derivation of the word Kinabalu is extracted from the short form for the Kadazan Dusun word 'Aki Nabalu', meaning "the revered place of the dead".
The second source states that the name "Kinabalu" actually means "Cina Balu" (which would fully mean "A Chinese Widow"). Due to the lingual influence among the Kadazan Dusun of Sabah, the pronunciation for the word "cina" (chee-na) was changed to "Kina" (kee-na).
It was told that a Chinese prince, was cast away to Borneo when his ship sank in the middle of the South China Sea. He was subsequently rescued by the natives from a nearby village. As he recovered, he was slowly accepted as one of the people of the village. Eventually, he fell in love with a local woman, and married her. Years went by, and he started to feel homesick. So he asked permission from his newly-found family to go back to China to visit his parents (the Emperor and Empress of China). To his wife, he promised that as soon as he was done with his family duties in China, he would come back to Borneo to take her and their children back to China.
When he made his return to China, he was given a grand welcome by his family. However, to his dismay, his parents disagreed with him about taking his Bornean wife back to China. Worse, they told him that he was already betrothed to a princess of a neighbouring kingdom. Having no choice (due to high respect towards his parents), he obeyed with a heavy heart.
Meanwhile, back in Borneo, his wife grew more and more anxious. Eventually, she decided that she will wait for her husband's ship. However, since the village was situated far away from the coast, she couldn't afford to come to the shore and wait for him daily. Instead she decided to climb to the top of the highest mountain near her village, so that she could have a better view of the ships sailing in the South China Sea. Thus, she was then seen climbing up the mountain at every sunrise, returning only at night to attend to her growing children.
Eventually her efforts took their toll. She fell ill, and died at the top of the cold mountain while waiting for her husband. The spirit of the mountain, having observed her for years, was extremely touched by her loyalty towards her husband. Out of admiration for this woman, the spirit of the mountain turned her into a stone. Her face was made to face the South China Sea, so that she could wait forever for her dear husband's return.
The people in her hometown who heard about this were also gravely touched by this. Thus, they decided to name the mountain "Kinabalu" in remembrance of her. To them, the mountain is a symbol of the everlasting love and loyalty that should be taken as a good example by women.
Local legend among the people of Ranau, a district in Sabah, has it that St. John's Peak was the stone which her body was turned into.
[edit] Media
- View from Mount Kinabalu
- View from a flight to east coast of Sabah
- Mount Kinabalu seen from Poring Hot Springs
- Mount Kinabalu with Telecom station visible
- Looking down from the plateau of Mount Kinabalu
- View from the plateau of Mount Kinabalu after sunrise
- Mount Kinabalu
- A view from the route between Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan
- View from Tanjung Aru at dawn
- Mount Kinabalu
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