Mount Mulu ( ms, Gunung Mulu) is a

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...

and

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...

mountain. At 2376 m, it is the second highest mountain in the state of

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the M ...

, after

Mount Murud Mount Murud or Muru ( ms, Gunung Murud) is a sandstone mountain located in Limbang Division, Sarawak, Malaysia At 2,424 m (7,946 ft), it is the highest mountain in Sarawak. Geography Mount Murud at the elevation of 2,424 m, is the highest ...

. It is located within the boundaries of

Gunung Mulu National Park The Gunung Mulu National Park is a national park in Miri Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that encompasses caves and karst formations in a mountainous equatorial rainforest setting. The park is famous for its cav ...

, which is named after it.

History

In the 19th century,

Spenser St. John Sir Spenser Buckingham St. John (22 December 1825 – 3 January 1910) was British Consul in Brunei in the mid 19th century. Early life On 20 September 1827, Spenser was baptised at St Pancras Old Church. Diplomatic career In 1847 St John's fa ...

and

Charles Hose Charles Hose FRGS. FLS (12 October 1863 – 14 November 1929) was a British colonial administrator, zoologist and ethnologist. Life and career He was born in Hertfordshire, England, and was educated at Felsted in Essex. Admitted to Clare Colleg ...

, attempted to conquer Mount Mulu. However, their attempts failed. It was only in the 1920s, when a

Berawan Berawan is an Austronesian language of Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordere ...

rhino hunter named ''Tama Nilong'' discovered the south-west ridge near the mountain which eventually led to the summit. In 1932, ''Tama Nilong'' led Lord Shackleton and an Oxford University Expedition to the summit of Mount Mulu.

Climbing route

There is only one trek leading to the summit of Mount Mulu. The summit is located at 24 km away from the park headquarters. The trek starts from the national park headquarters to reach Camp 3. It is a 12 km hike through the primary forests with an elevation of 1,200 metres. The mossy forest starts from Camp 3. It will be a few hours to climb to reach Camp 4. After Camp 4, there are a few vertical climbs which requires knotted ropes which eventually leads to the summit. Camp 1 is located along the descending trek from the summit of Mount Mulu. There is another 3-hour hike to reach the park headquarters from Camp 1.

Biodiversity

Mulu's limestone karst and isolated mountain peaks are home to many unique and endangered plants and animal

The mountain has biological systems range from lowland

dipterocarp Dipterocarpaceae is a family of 16 genera and about 695 known species of mainly tropical lowland rainforest trees. The family name, from the type genus ''Dipterocarpus'', is derived from Greek (''di'' = two, ''pteron'' = wing and ''karpos'' = fru ...

forest to montane vegetations. The mountain is notable for its

pitcher plant Pitcher plants are several different carnivorous plants which have modified leaves known as pitfall traps—a prey-trapping mechanism featuring a deep cavity filled with digestive liquid. The traps of what are considered to be "true" pitcher p ...

diversity. Five species have been recorded from Mount Mulu: ''

Nepenthes hurrelliana ''Nepenthes hurrelliana'' is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo, where it has been recorded from northern Sarawak, southwestern Sabah, and Brunei. It is of putative hybrid origin; its two original parent species are thought to be '' N ...

'', ''

Nepenthes lowii ''Nepenthes lowii'' , or Low's pitcher-plant,Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. ''Pitcher-Plants of Borneo''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is named after Hugh Low, who discover ...

'', ''

Nepenthes muluensis ''Nepenthes muluensis'' , or the Mulu pitcher-plant,Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. '' Pitcher-Plants of Borneo''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It grows in highland habitats at ...

'', ''

Nepenthes tentaculata ''Nepenthes tentaculata'' , or the fringed pitcher-plant,Phillipps, A. & A. Lamb 1996. ''Pitcher-Plants of Borneo''. Natural History Publications (Borneo), Kota Kinabalu. is a tropical pitcher plant with a wide distribution across Borneo and Sul ...

'', and ''

Nepenthes vogelii ''Nepenthes vogelii'' is a tropical pitcher plant endemic to Borneo. It is thought to be most closely related to '' N. fusca''. Botanical history The first known collection of ''N. vogelii'' was made in 1961 on Mount Api in Gunung Mul ...

''.Bourke, G. 2011. The ''Nepenthes'' of Mulu National Park. ''

Carniflora Australis ''Carniflora Australis'' was a biannual English-language periodical and the official publication of the Australasian Carnivorous Plant Society.Rice, B. 2010Carnivorous Plant Society Archives The Carnivorous Plant FAQ. rchived page from October 1 ...

'' 8(1): 20–31.

References

{{Geography of Sarawak

Mulu Mulu may refer to: * Mulu (band), a 1990s British trip hop group * Mulu (company), a social sharing website * Mulu (state constituency), represented in the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly * Mulu, Ethiopia * Mulu, Kermanshah, Iran * Mulu, Maragh ...