This past May 13 – 26, 2013, we traveled to Malaysia on our trip Borneo: Into the Wild at the “End of the Earth,” and it has become one of AdventureWomen’s all-time favorites! It is indeed “almost mythological as a place,” with old growth rainforests that team with wildlife and plant life, rare birds, endangered monkeys, and the “man of the forest,” the orangutan. Such amazing biodiversity and incredible beauty is difficult to explain upon returning home. Only photographs can tell the best story about our adventure, so we hope you enjoy this Borneo Photo Gallery with photographs taken by Susan L. Eckert and many photo-saavy participants on the trip. Click on the photos to bring them up full-frame, and enjoy!
-
- Almost mythological as a place, Borneo’s real-life rainforests teem with wildlife and plant life, incredible beauty, and the endangered orangutan, the “man of the forest” in the wild.
-
- On an early and misty morning rainforest canopy walk at Borneo Rainforest Lodge.
-
- Borneo has some of the richest avifauna on earth. Here is a little Whiskered Treeswift posing for us on a canopy walk. Photo by Gayle Hagins.
-
- Female orangutans can have up to 3-4 babies in their lifetime. Photo by Gayle Hagins.
-
- The Gould’s Frogmouth, which is on the threatened species list, along the View Point Trail at Borneo Rainforest Lodge. Photo by Gayle Hagins.
-
- A mother orangutan cradles her baby. Photo by Gayle Hagins.
-
- AdventureWomen is welcomed to a local Rungus village with fresh coconut milk. We stayed in a traditional longhouse for the night, an experience few visitors get to have.
-
- All hands on the belly of this immense rainforest tree on a spectacular canopy walk in Borneo’s Danum Valley, home of Borneo Rainforest Lodge.
-
- Cindy Katsapetses, Susan Eckert, and Gayle Hagins (L-R) enjoy the beach at the South China Sea, Borneo. Photo by Pam Regimbal.
-
- From Borneo Nature Lodge we took boat excursions on the Kinabatangan River to view wildlife and birds in their virgin habitat.
-
- More than 400 species of birds are found in Borneo, including eight different species of Hornbill. Ellen Bump photographed this Rhinoceros Hornbill in flight near the Borneo Nature Lodge.
-
- The proboscis monkey is only found in some coastal areas of Borneo in South East Asia. The rampant clearing of the region’s rainforests for timber, settlement, and oil palm plantations has depleted huge tracts of their habitat, and like the orangutan, the proboscis monkey is now extremely endangered.
-
- A beautiful late afternoon sunset on the South China Sea at the very northern “tip of Borneo.”
-
- We just love going to the local markets in Borneo. Here is a beautiful local woman in her market stall. Photo by Diane Hanley.
-
- AdventureWomen at the end of their trip in Borneo, in Kuala Lumpur in front of the iconic Petronis Twin Towers. A beautiful city, it was a gentle way to transition from the natural beauty of Borneo’s rainforests, rivers, local cultures, and wildlife, back to our own busy hometown lives. Borneo, a remarkable natural treasure and a fascinating place to explore.
-
- An early morning river cruise on the Kinabatangan River includes sightings of birds, monkeys, and the elusive orangutan in the wild.
-
- What activity is a favorite of AdventureWomen? It’s rafting, of course! Here we are in Borneo, whitewater rafting on the Kiulu River to get rid of our jet lag from the long plane rides enroute.
-
- Here are some of our AdventureWomen with their awesome cameras, having fun while viewing the South China Sea, Sabah, Borneo.
-
- The only great ape outside Africa, the endangered orangutan is found only in Borneo. This baby is at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, where orphans are taught the skills to return to live in the wild.
-
- Borneo’s Dipterocarp forest is considered to be the world’s tallest and oldest, having existed for over 100 million years. A spectacular hike through primary rainforest on the trails at Borneo Rainforest Lodge, Danum Valley.
-
- Young boys in their village longhouse. The ethnic people who live on the Kudat Peninsula are the only villagers in Sabah, Borneo, who still live in traditional longhouse dwellings. Photo by Diane Hanley.
-
- At the “Tip of Borneo” monument, northern Borneo on the South China Sea.
