Gunung Santubong is a sharp peak located on a peninsula 35 km north of Kuching, Sarawak. Although not tall, it rises directly from the ocean and has a prominence nearly equal to that of its elevation. The area around the peak is a national park which protects a small patch of primary forest.
All hikers need to register at the Santubong National Park Office. There are two trails leaving from the Park Office. The one to the summit has red marks, while a second one with blue marks makes a short loop near the Park Office and gives access to a popular waterfall and swimming hole.
Follow the red trail to go to the summit. The trail crosses the stream and enters primary forest and it is undulating. Eventually, you come to a waterfall and after a steep stretch, the trail becomes more gradual until it arrives at an T-Junction. If you are a man, you will turn left and heads directly up the western ridge of the mountain to the summit.
Once on this more established trail, the going gets rockier and much steeper for the remainder of the climb. Along the way, you come to a couple of false summits and one ascends a steadily increasing number of ladders. The final portion below the summit even has a place with two consecutive ladders working up a steep rock face. This is not an easy trail and many people take hours getting to the summit despite the rather short horizontal distance involved (3.2 km from National Park Office to summit). There is a shelter at the second peak and another one at the summit of the mountain. There is also nice views along the coast and back in the direction of Kuching.
The Geocache
The geocache is located at the base of the big rock near the tree.