Tawai Forest Reserve is one of the forests located in Tongod, the heart of Sabah, where you’ll find a 95 meters tall Tawai Waterfall! It is known as the second tallest waterfall in Sabah. Wonder which is the tallest in Sabah then? Well, that’s gonna be one of the waterfalls on Borneo’s tallest mountain, Mount Kinabalu, but according to the guide, it does not look as epic as Tawai Waterfall due to its low volume of water.
How To Get To Tawai Waterfall
A permit from the Forestry Department is required to enter the forest reserves. Conveniently, Tawai Rainforest Camp is authorised to handle the registration and to provide guided tours to the waterfall. The price was RM100 per guide (including transport to the hiking location) so come in a group to minimize the cost.
Advance booking is required to visit the waterfall. You can contact Mr Akmal from Tawai Rainforest Camp at +6010-949 1735.
Tawai Rainforest Camp
The campsite is well facilitated with chalets, multiple-purpose hall, outdoor & indoor shower area and bathrooms.
Of course, a campsite is not a campsite without a campsite. I spend my night camping here with my hammock the day before the hike to Tawai Waterfall.
You can also take a dip at the man made rivers and pools within the campsite.
Hiking To Tawai Waterfall
The waterfall is actually not in the area of Tawai Rainforest Camp, but a lorry and a 4×4 transferred us from the campsite to another location.
We drove a distance on the main road, then entered a village, and passed through stretches of bumpy roads.
40 minutes later, we reached the entrance of the forest reserve.
At the beginning, it was a semi-shaded walk through the bush.
But then, because this area was used to be a logging ground before it was declared as a reserved forest, most of the path ahead were the wide and bare abandoned logging road. It’s a constant uphill walk on the loose rocky road, those looking for a foresty walk would be disappointed.
Distant markings along the road.
After 1 hour and 40 minutes of walking uphill, at the 5.4km mark, we reached the starting point of hiking down to the waterfall.
We hiked down the steep trail toward the waterfall.
In about 15 minutes, we reached the viewpoint of the waterfall.
The 95m tall waterfall was roaring so loudly! The sound of water hitting the bottom surrounds the forest.
Checkout the video below. The wind caused by the gushing water was so strong, you’ll get wet from the sprays just by standing around the area.
This was the furthest point of my supposedly 30 Days Motorbike Journey Around Sabah, where I decided to head back to Kota Kinabalu instead of continuing my journey to the East Coast, due to the Covid-19 East coast clusters outbreak that was happening at that time.
Epilogue
While there are many exciting events during an adventure, the people we meet along the journey often become the best moments and deepest memories we wanna keep. One of the most memorable ones happened here, when a flying metal object almost slammed me.
So I was here in Tongod, the heart of Sabah, where a very friendly group of youth society members from Kampung Sogo Sogo was also there for a 3 days program. I joined them for the hike to Sabah’s second tallest waterfall and we became buddies along the journey. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming.
After the activity, I went back to my campsite (I was the only one camping there at that time), and the group was staying in a nearby chalet. All of the sudden, an abnormally strong gust of wind passed through the area, huge branches started falling around me. Trees bending towards my camp, leaves rustling violently. Not wanting to get squashed, I quickly moved toward the open area. Just when I reached the open concrete area, the wind got a second violent boost. Sand and dust flying, making it hard to open the eyes. And then a metal framed hut in front of me lifted off the ground and flew past just by my side, nearly swept me off along with it.
The condition became too risky for me to stay at the campsite. The sun’s setting down. Thankfully, the group was there to offer and welcome me to stay with them. They even invited me for the awesome dinner and breakfast! We did activities together, sang karaoke (first I was reluctant but someone managed to persuade me haha). We became like a family within a short period of time. Just like the people I met in Orou Sapulot and anywhere else, we didn’t want to separate but we had no choice but to move on, feeling grateful and hoping that one day, we will meet again.
Have this guide helped you? Tag @meowtainpeople in your hiking stories & posts!
Affiliate Links to support this site:
Yay for transparency!: The links above are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a booking/purchase after clicking the links. I recommend only products and companies I use. Your support helps me keep the site going 🙂
Want to do the same affiliate marketing with your site? Use this AccessTrade platform link to receive RM5 reward.
*Captain Planet passing by* Remember, please take care of our environment, and please don’t destroy the Nature. Leave no trash behind and take back only photos and memories (and also some trash if you can). Walk on the designated path and stay in the middle as much as you can, so that the exposed soil doesn’t spread/corrode further. BE ONE WITH NATURE *flies away*
