Jungle Dave added a fresh cap to his trade that night and became Chef Jungle Dave. He cooked up a selection of chicken, beef curry, bean curd (for Mr. Happy), and rice. We feasted 'til sundown (though I feasted carefully - the last thing I wanted was a complicated trip to that latrine in the dark).
The night sky was lit by a half-moon which sent a lot of wildlife into hiding. On our night trek, we managed to see some gi-normous ants, the glowing red eyes of something I hoped would stay away from camp, and a large, hairy tarantula. With these images dancing in my head, I headed to my tent for some shut eye.
We "slept" rough on a glorified yoga mat with a towel on top of us. Mr. Happy complained he couldn't sleep. I checked my watch and suggested that might be because it wasn't yet 8:30.
Around 5:30am Jungle Dave "woke" us up. Today, we would hike into the jungle and lay in wait while wildlife came to us. "You must not move!" Jungle Dave warned. "Any motion will scare the wildlife away!" We doused ourselves with bug spray,
We set off on our hike before sunrise, but the gibbons awoke before we were in position. I climbed into my hiding place - not moving, not breathing. I really wanted to see a monkey. Swarms of mosquitoes gathered around me, but I did-not-move. I could see Jungle Dave and he was even more motionless than me. The trainees, on the other hand, had ants in their pants. They could NOT keep still. They waved around their walking sticks, swatted bugs, and even made a flyswatter out of jungle leaves. I wanted to scold them, but I have too sweet a disposition.
The only wildlife we saw were the mosquitoes and some more giant ants. We changed position, but it didn't help too much. We managed to see the trees move from a passing baboon. But we did not see the baboon. Two large squirrels chased each other and Jungle Dave got excited. Back in the States I can open my window and a squirrel will jump in, reach for the remote, and make itself at home. This wasn't exotic enough for me.
After five hours of crouching we headed back to camp. I cut my hand on a tree spike. It was a little bloody, but I was relieved when Jungle Dave reached for a bandaid and not his machete! 
Muddy and exhausted we packed our things and started the long, hilly trek out of the camp. Today, the temperature was almost 96 degrees and we took several water breaks.
"What's the oldest hiker you've ever had on this trip?" I asked Jungle Dave while checking my pulse.
"97 years old. He was from Scotland." I kept quiet after that.
Just before we reached the road, Jungle Dave motioned for us to stop. He'd spotted a very rare, very poisonous snake resting on a log. We gathered in close to look.
"Be careful," Jungle Dave warned, "They usually travel in pairs."
At this news, Kim headed off to the car. The rest of us watched as Jungle Dave took a few photos to document the sighting.
"Oh, I am so happy you got to see this," Jungle Dave exclaimed, "Some more wildlife just before you leave."
I'd really wanted to see a monkey, or a baboon, or a jungle cat. But I was happy too.
(Mr. Happy was muddy and happy as we wait for our plane back to Kuala Lumpur)
2 comments:
Hello, I've read all your 3 parts post about Brunei and your trip. I'm really impressed on how you planned your trip.
I'm a local myself and trying to gather materials for my side project. I'm rather interested with this 'Jungle Dave' person. I would like to contact this person if I were to go on a trip such you've went through.
Can I know how I can contact this person? Thanks.
Anyway, I'd like to thank you for being honest with your post about the bare and emptiness of BSB. Since that would give me a headsup of what first time foreigner visiting Brunei.
Thank you again.
Regards,
Bahit Hamid
Hi Bahit,
We had a fun time with Jungle Dave. If your trip isn't for a month or so, you'll be able to go to the jungle during "fruiting season". I think you'll see lots of wildlife because all the animals are eating all the time!
You can email Jungle Dave at mft.brunei@gmail.com
BSB was ok. I was just surprised at how quiet it was and that all the public buses stopped running at 6pm. But it was pretty and it was very clean! Have a good trip!
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