Usually when visiting a new place or city I would always choose to rent a bike, (Dutch roots calling!) Besides that, it’s as just a great way to move around and really dig into a new culture as you get to see more of the city or environment.
When I found out about a 3-hour cycling tour through the abundant nature of Sabah which included some authentic experiences in meetings with locals as well, I immediately wanted to join.
At 8.30AM I was welcomed by the Amazing Borneo team who arranged a pick up at my accommodation place. We picked up two other guests Jeremy and Annie from Australia who were in Sabah for their adventurous honeymoon!
After a one and half hour drive we arrived at Tamparuli Town. This place was our starting point where we met our guide for the day, Junior.
We were given a few bottles of water to combat the heat of that day and we received a short briefing on safety and how to use our bikes. We put our helmets on and off we go!
The first part of the tour was crossing one of the wooden suspension bridges to reach the Kiulu village. It’s a whole new experience to cross the bridge on a bike with camera in hand! But it truly gives a wonderful view of the river, surrounding hills and mountains. Junior told us that some parts of the town weren’t accessible by car which makes everything very calm and peaceful.
We cycled on concrete roads to gravel and off road paths leading to different parts of the town passing by the locals, their self-built houses and as all kind of sceneries. Sometimes Junior would stop and give us some explanation about the things we could see along the way such as different fruits and plantations.
After cycling under the scorching sun for a bit, we stopped at one of the farms where we were welcomed by the farmer who brought us some cold tea and local snacks for us to try. These sweet little pancakes made of rice flour, coconut milk and palm sugar are called Kuih pinjaram and kuih dadar, With Kuih being the Malay word to say cake.
While resting Junior told us more about the village, the people who reside there and its culture. The little break at the local house was a great way to rest and cool down as well as exchange stories with our guide.
We put on some extra sunblock and mosquito repellent as we were all heading out on foot to the rubber plantation belonging to the farmer. We passed a rice field, a pineapple plantation and banana trees before arriving at a small wooden barn facing several rubber trees.
While the lady demonstrated how to get the milk out of the tree, Junior gave us more details about the process of rubber tapping. The milky rubber started to drop out of the tree when the lady suddenly asked if we wanted to try to tap it our self. It was cool getting to try it out!
We returned to the farm and drank some water before hoping on our bikes and continuing our tour. After crossing some more suspension bridges, we arrived at a mountain bike trail full of trees protecting us from the sun and downhill trails to enjoy.
We arrived at our end point around noon, but our food wasn’t quite ready yet. This gave us the opportunity to relax a bit by the river and refresh a little in an idyllic environment. Junior told us that the river is also the perfect spot to learn how to raft, so while we were waiting we could see the people having plenty of fun on board of their rafts.
Lunch was served at the river cafe in a buffet style with rice, noodles, chicken, vegetables and even a freshly cut pineapple from the farm as dessert!
After our lunch, we said goodbye to Junior and we were brought back Kota Kinabalu city.
So, if you find yourself in the area of Kota Kinabalu and you would like to know more about the Sabahan culture and stunning landscapes, you should definitely come along on this cycling tour! The roads are mainly flat and no heavy climbs so everyone can have a fun moment on their own pace.
Just don’t forget to bring mosquito repellent and sunblock, believe me, you will need it!
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