Where has the jungle gone?

I imagine I'm not alone when I thought that Borneo would be bursting with jungle and all the wildlife that it offers. So leaving cheap flights behind for a little while we took a long distance bus out of KK towards eastern Sabah which we both thought would be abundant with dense forest. Travelling cross country has so far given us a wide range of experiences, from getting stuck in the bush in Tanzania to seeing real village life throughout Africa. I can only describe this particular trip as utterly saddening. For over six hours we travelled through vast expanses of prime Borneo countryside, yet quite quickly the landscape became repetitive. Palm plantations are all that can be seen for hectares and hectares sweeping off into the distance. Where once there would have been jungle there is nothing but palms. I am no expert and I can imagine that the palm oil industry brings significant revenue to the region but one can only imagine the destruction that has taken place to turn such vast areas into plantations. Ironically we were travelling to Sepilok to an Orang-utan sanctuary, the only of its kind in Sabah, to see these endangered creatures and in doing so we were passing through what once would have been their natural habitat. It's not hard to see why they are now so endangered.

The Orang-utans did not disappoint, after dropping our bags at our forest accommodation we hurried to the sanctuary for feeding time. Twice a day rather a lot of fruit is placed in strategic platforms in the protected jungle where the sanctuary is housed. A mix of semi wild and rescued Orang-utans come to feed. Standing on a large viewing area surrounded by ropes and trees everyone was waiting in anticipation. Before long a few of the trees rustled in the distance and a mother with her baby clinging on swung her way to a lunch of bananas. She was soon joined by another mother and her baby. It was incredible to see these creatures so close and we both felt extremely privileged to be able to do so. After an hour or so of munching they took to the ropes and hung around a little, posing for the cameras and observing us all below, before quickly disappearing back into the trees.

Not far off shore from the town of Sandakan is another sanctuary, this time for Green and Hawksbill Turtles. It was purely by chance that we heard about this island where it's possible to go and see turtles nesting. We were incredibly lucky to get a cancellation and soon we were on our way with a small group to Seligan Island, one of three making up the marine park. Arriving on the island just after lunch we had a couple of hours R&R on the beach before our turtle vigil would begin. The mothers come ashore at night and dig out their nests and lay their eggs. The rangers then take these to the hatchery where they are re-buried in the sand safe and sound from predators. About 9.30pm we were called told a turtle was nesting so after a quick scramble down to the beach we were able to see a beautiful Hawksbill Turtle laying her eggs. Whilst it is a undoubtedly a privlidge to see the turtles so close a few of us all felt rather uncomfortable as we surrounded this lone turtle, gawping at her as she lay her eggs. There were only 8 in our group but we were joined by about 20 others. The rangers clearly knew what they were doing and kept everyone in order. As the Turtle was closing over her nest he took measurements and recorded her tag, identifying that she had previously nested on the island. After seeing the eggs transplanted we were also lucky enough to see 65 tiny hatchlings released into the sea.

A spectacular few days filled with sights of nature we are sure never to be able to witness again. A real honour but experienced with mixed emotions as we ask ourselves how long can it all last and by visiting are we part of the problem. Age old questions but ones for which I don't have the answer.