Exploring a mossy forest

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 08:38

At the end of June 2008, I went to explore with 3 outdoor friends in the mountain range which separated Malaysian Borneo & Indonesian Borneo. (border) This is one of the most exciting adventure trip in 2008, dangerous & yet fun! This is my first time in my life photographing sanstone cave! And the big surprise was the mossy forest in such a low altitude (below 3,000 feet)!!!

The journey to the summit was not easy.....need to climb sandstone cliff vertically!!!

The breathtaking view (Seri Aman area):

The rainforest of Borneo:

As usual, logging is....almost anywhere. A logging road:

Somewhere near the summit:

The scenery:

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 08:47

The disturbed jungle in logging area.

The shotgun of a bird nest collector near the summit. (guard the entrance of the cave)

Scenery:

The green jungle.

Sandstone cliff:

Beautiful Sarawak....

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 08:53

The most exciting part is the mossy forest. Almost everything is covered by mosses!!! That place is indeed a secret paradise!

Sandstone boulder & tree roots:

There are so many species of moss, covered the tree trunks, logs, rocks & ground......DAMN BEAUTIFUL!

The trail.

Mossy forest:

A blackwater stream in mossy forest. There is no fish or aquatic plant, only aquatic insects.

The mossy sandstone boulder:

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 09:01

The trail is interesting.....by passing tree roots & giant rocks....

Beautiful trees in mossy forest:

Mosses:

Sandstone cave mouth:

Sandstone cave:

Cave mouth:

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 09:18

The modern cave painting:

Orchid, Bulbophyllum sp.

The rare pitcher plant, Nepenthes vietchii always grow on the tree:

N. vietchii on the mossy tree trunk:

The pitcher of N. vietchii :

N. vietchii on tree branches:

**aquaSynthesis** · 5th Jul 2008, 09:53

one of the hanging moss looks like airplant to me... cause i have them..

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 10:33

N. vietchii

A variety of Nepenthes hirsuta (looks a bit like N. gracilis):

N. hirsuta here is much smaller than the usual one in other places:

Photographing @ paradise on earth:

Nepenthes albomarginata on the edge of sandstone cliff :

First time see this fern:

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 10:42

Too many plants which I never seen before can be found here:

species A

Species B

The flowers of species B

Species C

Alocassia sp.

Terrestrial orchid

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 10:52

The inflorescence of terrestrial orchid:

Wild ginger- species A

Wild ginger - Plagiostachys sp. ??

Amorphophophallus pendulus

Wild orchid

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 11:08

Aroid, Homalomena sp. ??

Aquatic plant (relative of water lily), Barclaya motleyi

The habitat of Barclaya motleyi: a jungle pool at the foothill.

Jewel orchid, Anoectochilus sp.

Palm, Pinanga veitchii.

**kuching** · 5th Jul 2008, 11:12

Unidentified species of palm:

Drinking a cup of coffee with bird nest collector & enjoying the view. What a life!

NOTE: Luckily, there was no leech at the time we visited the summit area as there was no rain for few days. If the floor is wet after rain, we'll be "hunt" by those blood sucking leeches!