Sabah, Malaysia · July 2025
MtKinabalu.
My first big mountain! I wanted to try Kinabalu before anything longer, in case I hated the whole process.
I hated the summit push and I'm so proud I did it. I spent most of the climb hiking alone, in my own head about how tired I was. That's the main thing I'd change. The night I got back I was already talking about Rinjani.
Day by day
How it went.
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0
Fly into Kota Kinabalu
Land, lunch, then drive up to a lodge near the park so you start the next morning already at altitude. The sunset over the peaks from the lodge was unreal.
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1
Park HQ to Panalaban
Breakfast, check in at the park HQ, rent your hiking poles and go. The first half honestly feels easier than Bukit Timah. Don't say that out loud though, because after the lunch point it's steps, steps and more steps, all the way up to the clouds.
You sleep at the Panalaban rest house. The shower is basically an ice bath. Around 10pm someone in our room went to the toilet, came back and said there was a Milky Way outside, and the whole room that was "asleep" went out to look.
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2
Summit, then all the way down
Up at 2am in the cold and dark. The stairs turn into rock, then a big flat granite slab where you pull yourself up on ropes. The air gets thin near the top. You can see the summit and every step still takes so much out of you.
We caught the sunrise on the way up, above the clouds. Then you go all the way back down, around 8km in one go. Nobody warns you enough about the descent. My legs were done.
What I'd tell you
Tips.
- Train for the descent. Going up is tiring but expected. Coming down 8km on tired legs is the part that gets you.
- Watch for altitude sickness. One of us felt it badly at the rest house and sat out the summit. That's the right call, the mountain isn't going anywhere.
- Don't overpack water. If you don't drink much on your training hikes, you don't need to haul 3L up.
- Bring something warm to drink. It's freezing at the top and a flask of hot water makes a big difference.
- Hike with your people. I did most of it alone and it made it harder than it had to be. Seeing a familiar face at a rest stop was always the best moment.
- One step at a time. Whatever gets you to the top. Music, swearing, counting steps. Your body is stronger than you think!
Most of my gear was the same as Rinjani. Here's that packing list, minus the camping stuff since you sleep at a rest house.
The documentary
Watch it.
What came next
Rinjani.
If Kinabalu was an 8 out of 10, Rinjani was a 12. Here's how that went!