Gunung Mulu National Park

Tropical wonderland is the only way to describe Sarawak's largest national park. For visitors seeking adventure it has everything form the world's most extensive cave system, rock climbing, jungle trekking, kayaking, mountain biking, river rapids, and fascinating people, including Sarawak's last nomadic tribe.

Three mountains dominate the 544 square-kilomitrepark - Gunung Mulu, Gunung Api and Gunung Benarat. The latter still unclaimed. They are honey combed by the world's most extensive cave system which includes the world's largest natural chamber, Sarawak Chamber capable of holding London's St. Paul's Cathedral, the world's largest cave passage, Deer Cave, and the longest cave in Southeast Asia, Clearwater Cave, which runs for 108 kilometres.

Most of the cave systme are accessible only to proper caving expeditions with specialized equipmen. But four well-lit show caves are open daily to visitors. A longboat trip from the Park HQ takes you to Clearwater Caveand Wind Cave while a plank walk leads throught forest to Deer Cave and Long's Cave.

Most visitors go to Deer Cave at sunset to watch a black river of three million bats pour out on their nightly forage for insects.

Above ground the park is just as fascinating. Its 15 different types of forest contains a wealth of wildlife and thousand of species of ferns, fungi, mosses and flowering plants. Thre are 170 species of wild orchids and 10 species of the carnivorous pitcher plants.

One of the more demanding treks is to the pinnacles on Gunung Api. The razor sharp limestone peaks soar above and surrounding jungle.

A more horizontal trek is along the Headhunter's Trail, used in bygone days by local tribesmen moving from one river valley to another on headhunting raids.

Niah National Park

Human inhabited Niah Great Cave 40,000 years ago. Today, local Penan tribesmen venture into the cavesto collect edible bird's nests and the guano dropped by the myriad swiftlets and bats that live there.

You can see evidence of prehistoric inhabitants in the Painted Cave where human figures drawn on the wall watch over grave sites where the dead were laid in boat-shaped coffins.

You can reach the caves on a plankwalk throught the lowland forest alive with birds and butterflies. Other forest trails take you up a 400 meter limestone ridge or to an Iban longhouse.

A two-hour drive from Miri, the park has a VIP rest house and chalet or hostel accommodation for overnight stays.