Preparations for the project phase were only slightly hampered by some impressive hangovers following our post-jungle-training shenanigans and we were soon back in Hornbill Lodge - this time with the intention of pimping it to the max - like a jungle version of Extreme Home Makeover so that eco-tourists, scientists and even future Trekforce volunteers could enjoy the Kelabit Highlands from the comfort of a jungle palace (complete with throne, thanks to Jack and Theo’s tireless work with the shovels on the long drop).
Oz’s fevered brain had produced a list of tasks and we set about trying to forge the jungle to fit the tortured visio
n of his genius. Between us we shifted, sawed and axed our way through several tonnes of timber (Oz finds loose dead wood very un-aesthetic which can be bit of a problem in the jungle).
At times it seemed we differed from the loggers we were trying to keep out only in terms of our relative inefficiency but we reminded ourselves that by improving the lodge we were increasing the value of the land as jungle rather than as timber. Hoping, as it were, that people won’t see the wood for the trees.
Bridges and pontoons were built, unsightly wood and dangerous deadfall removed and the cabin was souped
up so that by the end it seemed nothing less than a 5-star spa resort.
Jonny’s methodical pacing of the basha area as he effectively tried to clear wood out of a wood was a lesson to us all in the staunch, patient and above all unrushed adherence to an appointed, infinite task.
Another more or less constant fixture was Jenny’s titanic struggle with the stump known as Stumpy (though by the third day it had several other, unprintable names). It was hard to tell who came off worse in the end as Stumpy was hacked and chopped from every angle and an increasingly mad Jenny was reduced to a tattered mud monster as she grappled with the stump with which she had formed a bizarre bond of mutual hatred and respect. Rian waited for the third day before casually remarking “Rain will come. It will rot.”
On the same day Tom slightly increased the productivity of the group by returning to his hammock, although he would point out in his defence that he was expending vast amounts of energy each day in maintaining his own height and, of course, in the solution of some of the most intractable puzzles known to man, such as the point of canned food and what exactly it is that a milkman does. Jack’swork on the long-drop was much appreciated, though his creative contribution to the girl’s ‘pee palace’ was less so. 
Having sufficiently pimped Hornbill we turned our attention to cutting trails to connect the Lodge to nearby cultural sites. If there’s a list of phrases you don’t want to hear from your jungle guide as you’re cutting new trails in unmarked forest with dusk drawing in and your GPS on low on battery, pretty near the top must be “I’m so tired...” closely followed by “Is this...familiar to you?”.Although the trailblazing had to be abandoned in favour of a swift night trek and Oz repeatedly giving birth to a small community of kittens until he gallantly ventured into the jungle darkness in one boot (the other having perished in the mud) to rescueus. Most of us agreed however that getting lost in the jungle was pretty much what we’d come to Borneo to do and we relished the experience of stumbling through the undergrowth in pitch black while listening to the insects (and Tom shouting and singing with pre-pubescent glee) and firmly ordered Oz to ‘jog on’ when he found us.
The next day’s trail-cutting - as we attempted to cut our way back to the point at which we’d become lost the day before - was just as memorable, though thankfully more for its scenery and wildlife than for any similar drama, despite Jenny’s best attempts to fall over or off every single ledge, cliff and tree root in range.
The next day it was back to Bario in time for tea and medals (or more accurately Skol, moonshine and karaoke) content in the knowledge of a job well done and the hope that our efforts would have and long-term preservative effect on that gorgeous area of rainforest.
