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A client travelled on our 'Mount Kinabalu & the Rainforests of Borneo' holiday and submitted this entry to our writing competition.
Bornean Rainforest by Dani Free
Borneo – Blood, Sweat & Tears
I sat at home on a wet April day in Kent and stared longingly at the pages of my Myers field guide. I was supposed to be doing my ‘homework’ for our September trip to Borneo as promised. ‘Birds of Borneo’ gave plenty of subject matter but I couldn’t quite settle to the task of actually learning anything useful. One page captured my attention as I flicked through. My interest settled at last. ‘Oh why do I always do this?’ I asked myself. When I set my heart on something, why can’t it be simple or at least large and easily spotted. Why not make my life easy?
Five months later, our Naturetrek group gathered round the table for dinner on our first evening in the Kinabalu National Park. Everyone was tired from the long journey but excited and keen to get started. Inevitably, over a beer, the talk turned to what each of us had as a wish list for the trip. Some named rare and colourful endemic birds of Borneo’s rainforests whilst others admitted it was Orang-utans they really wanted. ‘What about you?’ asked one of our group. I answered without hesitation. ‘Why?’ asked fellow traveller David – ‘Was it the name? It has to be the name’. No I quickly assured him that was pure coincidence. There’s always one bird that stares at me out of the page. One that says go on pick me, after all, nobody else will. Our guide, Chris, remained calm in the face of obvious madness; he stared into his noodles for a few seconds but didn’t bat an eyelid. Hope, then! At least he didn’t tell me it was impossible on day one.
We discovered such wonderful birds in Borneo. In our case, over 226 new ‘life’ birds in three weeks. A fantastic trip with the most amazing mammal sightings as well. Nothing could have spoiled it. But there we were on our last day in the rainforest at Danum Valley and still I hadn’t got my bird. My husband, Rob, assured me he’d ordered it from Amazon for my birthday a few days earlier but we all know what deliverymen are like nowadays. One last chance with a few hours left. ‘Now this is what I call real birding,’ Chris was heard to say as he jumped off the boardwalk and into the bushes. What choice did we have but to follow? What if you miss a new bird, unthinkable! We’d followed Chris everywhere despite the heat and humidity that made us sweat so much. Added to that was the ever-present threat of leeches. Most of us had lost a little blood along the way and some, who refused to cover up with their very fetching leech socks, had lost a lot!
I’d given up of course by the time it happened. I should have had more faith. It was the end of the last afternoon and we had retreated from the forest onto the road back to the lodge. We were just having one last look at one of Chris’ favourite spots and someone whispered hesitantly. There was movement in the bush in front of us. Chris was listening for the call, scanning the bushes. He hadn’t forgotten that first evening and had been playing the call of my bird. Then he spoke the magic words. I thought he was pulling my leg but panic set in anyway, what if I missed it? My heart rate soared and my hands shook. I couldn’t quite see the bird, well in fact either one of the two birds everyone else could see. Then finally I calmed and focused my binoculars again. Such a beautiful little creature and so much more than its picture. As I stood there watching, soaking up the moment, I felt little tears of happiness welling up inside me. I knew that completing the checklist that evening would be even more rewarding than usual.
On the plane back I turned on some music to sleep to. Paloma Faith’s ‘Blood, Sweat & Tears’ came on. How appropriate, I thought. You really do only get what you work for. As I drifted off, I thought back over what had been a fantastic holiday. You can keep your Bornean Bristleheads, Whitehead’s Trogon, baby Orang-utans and even that Flat-headed Cat by the river because, at last, I have seen Fluffy-backed Tit-babbler = TICK = the wish of my heart. Well, until the next trip of course!
Read more about our 'Mount Kinabalu & the Rainforests of Borneo' holiday.