Borneo Headhunter’s Heartland Biking Tour

You made it to Borneo! You’ll have some time to settle in your hotel before meeting your group and guide for the first adventure of your Borneo cycling tour. You’ll pedal off through the lovely main square of the old part of the city, getting a chance to peruse the Main Bazaar. Cross the river on a sampan ferry steered with oars to reach Fort Margherita, built by Charles Brooke in 1879 and named after his wife. Don’t worry, those cannons aren’t loaded anymore! Then, it’s off for a sunset dinner on the bank of the Sarawak River.

After a quick transfer out, to avoid the busy traffic of Kuching, you will take a traditional sampan boat to cross the Sarawak River to reach an isolated mangrove island of Beliong. Very near to Kuching, yet isolated on an island, Beliong is home to three vibrant communities, each with their own cultural expressions. More recently, the impressive Chinese temple there has become a local attraction for devotees and local tourists. Perhaps lesser well known are the numerous trails that link the various communities and the numerous orchards, farms and plantations on the island. You will ride through partially gravel roads at a steady pace through mangroves, paddy fields, and Malay fishing villages. Stop to marvel at Beliong Temple before crossing the Sabang River on another wooden boat transfer. You'll drop by a local fishing market and take photos of the catches of the day. Enjoy the scenic ride on a combination of tarmac road and gravel back lane as you cycle along the river bunds along the South China Sea coastline. Stop at the small buzzling town of Asajaya for lunch before riding to a comfortable Malay homestay at Sadong Jaya. Enjoy the home cooked Bugis Malay dinner at one of the traditional timber Malay village houses.

The road is all flat throughout the day as you continue our ride up the coastway. Along the way, you cross two major Borneo rivers, one over a huge bridge and the other using a unique community car ferry. You will end the cycling today by riding into the Kampung Hilir Maludam, a peaceful Malay fishing village, where you’ll check into a local hotel. You will leave our bikes at the hotel and take a 45-minute boat ride to the little-visited Maludam National Park in search of big-nose proboscis monkeys, and if you are lucky, you may have a chance to sight the endangered Red Banded Langur. Spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the quaint Malay fishing village that is famous for its jellyfish and dried fish processing. In the evening, walk to the old town area for some local dinner.

After an early breakfast, you take a drive on a scenic road along the coast, and after a ferry crossing into the outpost town of Pusa, you head westward into the interior of Borneo as you enter the Iban communities territory. At the small rustic town of Debak, you get back in the saddle, and you can enjoy the great view of the rainforest dotted with small scale pepper farms, rice fields, and rubber plantations. As you slowly ride into the heartland of the Iban tribe, you will discover more and more longhouse settlements lining the side of the road. The main sources of income in the interior is rubber tapping and pepper planting. You’ll see raw rubber being dried in front of the longhouse as well as pepper processing! After a good stint of pedaling,you disembark at an authentic century-old longhouse and drop in to visit one of the oldest Iban longhouses in the region to walk through their rich history and learn more about their descendants which still plays an important part in the social and political life in Sarawak. You then continue cycling through secondary forests and rubber and palm plantations, taking in the fresh air and peaceful natural surroundings and enter into the township of Betong for a well deserved lunch at a good local coffee-shop! Visit Fort Lily (1855), built to fortify this 'outstation'. Lily has seen considerable action in the turbulent times when Iban chief Rentap challenged the Rajah; some of the cannon used in the skirmishes are preserved in the Betong District Office. Overnight is at a local comfortable 2-Stars standard hotel.

Today starts with a van ride upcountry and then a ride towards the Kalimatan border. You’ll pass quite a few longhouses along the route, marking this as the Iban heartland. Follow the Lemanak River to a lake nestled into the hills, where it’s time to set off by boat to the Batang Ai Resort. Spend the rest of the day relaxing as you like and enjoying the weather.

Your last full day cycling through Borneo begins with a scenic ride through the countryside that flanks the border with Indonesia. Mountain views spoil you along the way! Enjoy lunch at Engkillili before a transfer to Kuching arrives. Enjoy the relaxing ride back and then settle in for dinner at Topspot Food Center in Kuching, a delicious mix of the best food in Sarawak. The ambiance isn’t quite on point and it’s not fancy, but the food is worth writing home about!

Enjoy a final breakfast before your cycling tour of Borneo concludes. If you’re not in a rush, feel free to book an extra excursion or a few extra nights.