Text and photos by Ian Hall I was up before dawn to watch the sun rise from the view point at Borneo Rainforest Lodge. I could see nothing on account of cloud and so I lay down on the bench and went to sleep for a while. I was woken up by an orang-utan rustling the branches above me. I ignored it and rolled over on my binoculars-rolled-up-in-my-hat pillow. Another rustle and debris showered the observation deck. ‘OK you bugger, I’m getting up’ I grumbled and went to check on the progress of the view. The reason...

I was stripped down to my boxer shorts and with my bare hands was clawing great clods of mud out from under the wheel arch. Occasionally I would take a rest from cleaning and lie down in the shallow water to cool myself off. Even with the help of a second tow truck it had taken us nearly an hour to free an old Landcruiser that had got stuck on the way into Imbak Canyon. All three vehicles were now parked in the middle of the Imbak River to receive a much needed wash. By way of taking a holiday from Maliau Basin I had decided...