We rose before dawn and were out on the logging roads as the morning mist still lay across the surrounding jungle. The morning was spent yipping along the logging roads – the only benefit of which is that wide views of the jungle can be seen.
We made rapid time and descending into the valley towards base camp before the sun truly hit. The following scorching hour and half saw us up to base camp and by lunch we had made up all lost time and firmly by on track.
Collectively keen to hit our target - the summit – we quickly lunched and basha-ed up, before beginning the 2 hour scramble with Batu Lawi towering above us.
The ascent was like nothing we had seen before. For the first 45 minutes we climbed through pure primary rainforest. Once past the gnarled and knotted roots and ensnaring vines we entered the cloud forest. The ethereal stage was a haze of damp air and moss clad trees. The distinction between the cloud forest from the rainforest was incredible and we pressed on impressed by the variety of terrain experience in the trek. 
Once through the cloud forest we reached the sheer rock face of the summits two mega-tors. This was where the best fun began as we hauled ourselves up sheer rock faces, thread bare rope ladders and over huge boulders towards to cloud wrapped summit. Half climbing, half scrambling we paused to pay our respects to the British Liberator Crews (who had operated and perished in the area during WWII) at their honorary plaque before ascending the final stage to the summit.
Presently we were enjoying high-fives, hugs and home brewed whiskey at the other-worldly summit.
Batu Lawi lived up to her reputation as shy by wrapping herself in clouds and with time pressing on we were forced to descend to base camp after just half an hour in order to reach camp before dark.
The return however took just a fraction of the time with a new style of ‘falling with style’ trekking whereby we ran back down the mountain only just getting our feet beneath us and avoiding chewing the untasty jungle floor.
