From KK I headed east on an express bus headed towards Sandakan. Getting on the bus was crazy. I was completely mobbed as I got out of the taxi by about 20 people trying to get me on their bus (Siem Reap boat flashbacks!). I was aiming to get a later bus and was in no rush but it turned out the earlier buses had all been delayed but where leaving at that moment. Having a huge rucksack for once payed off as all these short men couldn't carry it and therefore I had a choice of buses rather than what ever one my bag got put on. Lots of running later and I was on the bus and only running 40 minutes ahead.
The bus journey was very scenic. Unfortunately the view of Mt Kinabalu was completely blocked by cloud. The bus driver kindly dropped me off at Sepilok 5 and half hours later which meant that I didn't have the faff in Sandakan of trying to get back to Sepilok.
Sepilok is the location of the Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. Having missed out on seeing the apes in Semmenggoh I really wanted to make a day of visiting the centre. There are morning and afternoon feeding sessions which allow tourists to see the apes in all their glory. I saw about 8 orangutans at the feeding, of all sizes. They really were fascinating. The orangutans are semi wild and come back for feeding when they feel they need to. Although the whole experience was very commercial and the fact that the tourist entrance price is 6 times the Malaysian entrance made me think how much money the government pockets, it really was fantastic to see the orangutans but it felt no different to watching them in a zoo. There are walking trails through out the reserve but they close over 'lunch' so if you go to the morning feeding you actually never have the time to complete the trail. Pretty disappointing as the day out ended a lot sooner than expected.
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