a remote mountain trip

[Robert]

Exploring a remote highland mountain at approx. 1,700 metre.

Flying over the mt range I could see in the distance our intended destination.



Arriving the remote settlement 6 of us met our 5 porters and set off with camping facilities, drinking water and caned food.



Along the way we came across some heath forest housing common neps of the area-stenophylla , reinwardtiana and the hybrids. At this time of year, the intermittent rain, a sign of the coming rainy and cool monsoon, It was also neps flowering season. Ants and bees were busy having their early morning round. While neps don’t follow a strict flowering pattern, they flower anytime of the year that is, they tend to flower enmass this time of year, probably due to the humid and sudden cool conditions. The same pattern repeat before the hot dry monsoon arrives.











Steno., seedlings


reinwardtiana


Hybrid, likely reinwardtiana x stenophylla










Following the trail we entered a primary forest. Our porters picked up some edible wild spinach, rattan shoots and mushrooms. The jungle, according to them, was the jungle supermarket opened 24 hrs a day !

Wild spinach


Edible mushroom belonging to family tricholomataceae






Smoked rattan shoot, then peel off the skin to extract the edible pulp


According to our guide it will take approx 6 hrs to reach our destination. Since we stop several time to admire nature and photography and we had only walk 3 hrs, and it was appro 4.00pm, with the overcast sky we dicided to make camp nearby a stream.

A temporary open kitchen was consturcted.


done !


…..and dinner preparation by our porters, some collect water, another collect fire wood and others and our group set up our camps.



Cooked spinach and mushroom soup




Our temporary camp for the next 3 days


...and leeches are abundant…along the way I had pick many and throw them back to the forest, despite having anti mozzies and anti leech spray one of them collected a bonus !


Some neps taken near the summit…Most neps here are epiphytic in nature. Chaniana was abundant and tend to dominate the mossy forest. Lowii, tentaculata and chaniana are found growing on thick moss pad on tree trunk and branches.




















It was drizzling and very cooling. The temp and humidity reading approx 1.00pm


Some interesting plants-no id begonia


Wild ginger


Non edible wild mushroom

[TranMinh]

Fantastic ! I really want to travel in a jungle but I think it quite dangerous !

[plantlover]

Beautiful plants and scenery. You're so lucky.

[fishoman]

Very interesting trip Robert . If I were to organise a trip like that , how much it would cost?

[Robert]

Tranminh, since there is no dangerous animal in Borneo it's safe to travel, only to care for personal health and safety.

welcome Aaron.

Originally Posted by fishoman

Very interesting trip Robert . If I were to organise a trip like that , how much it would cost?

in the region RM1200 - RM1400.

[NepNut]

Nice, what an adventure !! I'm hungry looking at the edible mushrooms... Thanks for sharing Robert

[ellisonk001]

Thank you for sharing the details of your trip and your beautiful pictures with us. I would really like to do something like this, but don’t see it happening any time in the near-term so I will have to live vicariously through the forums…. Thanks again Robert!

[kentosaurs]

Nice nice Hybrid looks slightly gracilis-like don't cha think?

[marvin1997]

I'm going to buy a stenophyla now!!!!So nice~~But I'll die there if there's no other food...I'm very picky....Haha

[Robert]

Rob and ellison thanks for the comment.

ken, when i first saw it look like gracilis too, easily mistook if grown in lowland habitat. But as reinwardtiana and steno were growing in the same site, while no other species were found nearby so i'm quite sure of the origin. Could be (reinwardt x steno) x reinwardt ?