Lethargy sets in on the fifth day but journey goes on (Travelogue Day 5)

The Isuzu D-Max 1.9L Blue Power handling well on poor road condition.
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By D’Drift Team

BINTULU, July 3: On the fifth day of the D’Drift adventure, lethargy has set in after a long journey to Lusong Laku and back which took more than 12 hours.

Such grueling experience traversing the rural and urban areas in Sarawak was very common as road condition will only get worse as one travelled deeper in the interior.

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To reach our destination of Lusong Laku Waterfall, it took us three hours’ drive from Bintulu on good road and upon reaching Murum junction, the road, although tar-sealed has gotten damaged on certain sections due to overloaded vehicles plying the route and perhaps lack of maintenance.

The Isuzu D-Max 1.9L Blue Power against the Lusong Laku Waterfall.

From Murum junction to Tegulang Resettlement Scheme’s junction, it took one and a half hours. Proceeding to Lusong Laku, it took us another one and a half hours, although the distance is only 32 km.

This was the kind of disparity we observed and experienced on the fourth day of the journey which caused our energy to be drained out on the fifth day.

Thus, getting up this morning was a real struggle after a long exhausting day.

A Penan man casting his fishing rod at Lusong Laku Waterfall.

So we had a light and easy meeting with Murum assemblyman Kennedy Chukpai Ugon who was generous with his time and willing to share his experience as a first term elected representative.

After that, we had another casual meeting with Prime Minister’s Special Envoy to the Republic of China, who is also Bintulu member of Parliament, Dato Sri Tiong King Sing who chipped in his precious time to share his views on the challenges and issues in Bintulu.

At this juncture, we would like to extend our gratitude to Tiong’s press secretary Ross Sia and her team for arranging and making the meeting possible.

SK Lusong Laku surrounded by greenery.

After a get-together with Tiong, we then rushed to our next destination – Miri.

As usual, we had two choices of routes which was either using the under-construction Pan Borneo Highway or the coastal road which was wavy at many sections of the road.

Taking the wheel from Bintulu to Miri, which covered a distance of 176 km, took about two and a half hours.

The Isuzu D-Max 1.9L Blue Power once again gave us the confidence to reach our destination safely with its powerful, yet fuel efficient engine.—DayakDaily

Related articles:

Travelogue, Day 1 — Discovering the green gem of Sarawak
Travelogue, Day 2 — The journey continues…
Travelogue, Day 3 — Sibu’s food never fails to impress
Travelogue, Day 4 — The road to Lusong Laku, the road less travelled

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