The journey more or less took us 3 hours, on a leisure walks.
This story is written based on a text book style for easy reading, question and answer style.
1. Introduction
Why did you decide to take this trek?
There was no specific purpose why we di this route. It was just part of the weekly activities those days. This route was one of the many routes we did before this and many routes I was absent.
Who was in this group ?
There are many of us, just a group of friend that of the same interest and I can name some. Our Chief trekker Mr. William. The rest are Allen, Richard, Lau, caroline, Nie nie, Seline, Donna, Margarete, Peter, Vivien, Bibiana, Boon and few more. They were retiree by age and only few were below the retiree age group.
What was the mood like before starting ?
The mood was great as the weather was fine, cool and was having a good breakfast. All were in good spirit and joyful. From the photo, you can judge their mood.
2. Entering the Jungle
The time we enter the jungle, we would not know where we were heading…but we just keep moving. There is only one person knew where and the situation gonna be. The were slippery, a bit of muddy trail, dense vegetation along this ancestral route. The sound of birds, insects and the fresh smell of the forest were heard and smelt. While we were navigating the trail, sometimes it came to my mind that ..what if suddenly those ancestors just appeared Infront of us.. surely some will get fainted !.
3. The Surprises of the Journey
I thought there will be no surprise along the way but I was wrong…suddenly we saw a metals / steel hanging bridge. The bridge was still in good conditions but only it floor covered by dead leaves. I thought the hanging bridge was constructed by the British army but instead a Malaysian Government project to serve the kampung.
Besides this hanging bridge, there were several other crossing types. The other one was the single belian wood bridge. This was challenging for those who seldom enter the jungle. It was slippery and you need a balancing act to cross it. You need a very cautious steps to cross it.
The Bamboo Crossing bridge. This bridge was manageable by those who has little skill to maneuver themselves as it was not high and the river below it was clear.
The ordinary single- wood crossing bridge. You may not know whether the wood can support your body weight but luckily it did not broke, even the fatter individual in the group crossed it.
The river crossing with rope & log, luckily a friend brough a sturdy rope along or else it would be much more challenging as the log was slippery. some were excited, but I get used to it. Some felt very challenging challenging but the laughter laughter from the group on struggles made it memorable.
4. Refreshing River Moments
These ladies were not scared of water leeches. They just sat and enjoy the cool flowing water as well as to loosen their legs muscles. The water was crystal clear, fast flowing and untouched. In spite of grueling journey navigating the challenging route, they were all laughing !
5. Jungle Produce & Heritage
Along the way, me saw bamboo trees in many spots with their shoot sprouting among the older trees. There were spiky tree / giant grass , durian flowers carpeted the ground, farmer’s hut that reminded me of some more than 30 years ago history as well as several large boulders.
6. Approaching the Kampung
After a long while, it was a relief upon seeing a structure that indicated we were approaching the kampung. A concrete bridge or walkway with metal structure on both sides. The ground surrounded it was carpeted with durian flowers and large boulders almost everywhere. Perhaps this place was lucky million years ago that extraterrestrial rock were falling here ! They should study and research the rock…..who knows they can find some gold ore inside them.
After some 5 minutes we arrived to a large boulder water platform where we stop-by for bathing and cleaning, before entering people’s kampung. The water from the mountain was channel using bamboo tube. Its cooling and refreshing.
7. Life at Kampung Gumbang
My first impression of the kampung from the foothill was not as lively as I thought. ..but as we moved up to the kampung toward the kampung shop, it was quite lively as there were several traders from across the border. Surely they did not require any border pass as the area is remote and located at the border (sarawak / kalimantan). They just can walk over for few hours to reach the place. They came over to Sarawak side as it is much easier compare going to their own town, and on top of that, their merchandise fetched much better prices then if they trade in their own town.
Apart from that, look likes almost all the houses were sitting atop of boulders or rocks or the houses are surrounded by boulders. Those were limestone.
The atmosphere at the retails shop was lively, crowded and felt NOSTALGIC. The Indonesian traders were with their tambok full of ginger, as well as selling their pigs, chicken. We sat and chat with them and as usual they smoke a kind of cigarette that they brand it as “Kretek or Djarum”.
This kind of cross-border keeps the kampung alive as well as keeps the shop busy. Cheaper cash crop from cross border arrived at the kampung that gave advantage to them as well as cheaper Malaysian products can be bought for their family across the border. It may be an illegal trades but the again, we should also see on the humanitarian point of view. They just trade sufficient for their need as they do not ship their product on a transport…100% depends on their back, shoulder, head and leg power.
8. The Baruk (Head House)
This Kampung Gumbang is one of the kampungs in Bau District that still keep the Bidayuh tradition, strong in traditional cultural and art.
Most of the group mates have not seen the real Baruk but they have seen the Baruk in the supermarket, a decoration for Gawai festival season. This time, they saw the real thing, with the real human skull inside it. The skulls were eerie yet fascination. The feeling of fear, fun and respect were all mixed up. That was the real reflection on how the heritage and history live on here.
What is a Baruk? A Baruk is a traditional Bidayuh roundhouse in Sarawak, Borneo, that historically served as a ceremonial and communal center, particularly for male warriors, and a defensive watchtower.
9. Closing Moments
Surprisingly, this kampung has a log book for visitors to write down their name and sign it. It was a good initiative by the kampung. Finally, as we left our transport at our starting point, we took a van to transport us back to where we started, where we parked our vehicle at kampung Ledan. Along the way, we stopped by Pejiru cafe for foods, drinks and many laughter.
The most unforgettable moment about the trek besides the safe and enjoyable journey, was what we discovered about the kampung – Its a very nice kampung along the Sarawak kalimantan border, many boulders, Indonesian traders and the Baruk. This journey taught us that even the most skeptical individual among us that he or she can’t do it was able to do it such as crossing the “scary single wood bridge, crossing the river on a slippery large log and walking a challenging trail over some hours non-stop. On top of that, we also saw the kampung preserved the heritage of the Bidayuh society and the community for the world to see.
For Foreign tourist that love to see something exotic about the local society, you can visit this Kampung. Perhaps, it is about an hour plus from Kuching City.
