In 1982, I participated in a scouting leadership course held in a compound near the government rest house in Santubong. On a pleasant day in early December, we travelled by a pom-pom vessel from a wharf in Kuching to Santubong, which was a small village at that time. Accompanying me was a colleague from Rajang Teachers College (RTC), Dominic Sullang Majang (now deceased). We, the two RTC lecturers, joined over twenty scout leaders who were attending Stage Four A of the Scout Leadership Woodbadge Course. This course would ultimately lead us to become scout two-bead Wood Badge holders, provided we completed a thesis.
After an hour-long journey, we arrived at the village and settled in the rest house compound. Course leader Peter Lim briefed us, and then we proceeded to set up our tents. I had a special tent that protected me completely from mosquitoes and took only half an hour to erect. Most of the scout leaders had similar tents.
In the afternoon, after lunch, which was prepared by someone else, we attended another briefing and introductory lecture by the trainers. These trainers included scouters and commissioners like Mohd Said Bolhassan, Tang Meng Khee, Peter Lim, Joseph Chong, Simon Lee, and a few others. Sadly, some of these men have passed away, and may their souls rest in peace.
On the second day, Sarawak Scout Chief Commissioner Datuk Safri Awang Zaidell (now Tan Sri) visited to show support for the course. The friendly commissioner took the time to talk with us, the course participants, and offered his encouragement.
Later, we were blindfolded and tested on our sense of smell and hearing. I remember performing perfectly on both tests. One of the items used was ‘kulat tepik’ in Iban, a type of fungal growth with which I was very familiar. I wondered if any other participants scored well on that item.
On the fourth day, we embarked on an overnight journey starting in the afternoon from the camp. Several destinations were assigned, including climbing Mount Santubong. Our group of six was assigned to go to Teluk Belian, near the present-day Damai Beach. In 1982, it was all jungle. We had to be prepared for leech bites and ensured that our socks were intact and infused with tobacco to deter them.
The journey was quite arduous. We navigated dense undergrowth and crossed at least three steep streams. We even had to traverse a section along the steep seaside. Eventually, we reached a site with a house structure whose floor and roof were made from nipah leaves. As the leader of our all-male group, I decided that this was where we would camp. We chose not to build tents as the house structure was intact, with some remaining nipah leaves as a roof. There was a stream nearby where we found lots of fish and prawns which were easy to catch. We prepared dinner using a pot to cook rice and leaves to cook the prawns and fish, supplemented with the canned food we had brought.
We made a campfire and enjoyed the pleasant evening weather. However, just as we were getting settled, the winds picked up, and part of our roof started flying away due to the strong gusts. Fortunately, there was no rain, so we didn’t get wet. I used a torchlight and discovered that most of the nipah leaves that had served as our roof were gone, leaving only a few remaining above us. We laughed it off and went to sleep under the open sky.
Early the next morning, we discovered that our makeshift roof was completely gone, but luckily, it didn’t rain. After a satisfying breakfast of bread, kaya, and butter, we departed, but not before realizing that the name tag on my scout uniform had gone missing. It must have dropped during our journey to the campsite.
The return journey began slowly as we took pleasure in the surroundings, following a new route along the seaside back to Santubong. However, fate had other plans for me. I stumbled on a log, causing my spectacle frame to break. It became impossible for me to continue walking. Thankfully, the youngest member of our group, a Chinese man named Goh, volunteered to rush back to the camp and inform course leader Peter Lim about my situation. I went to the beach, rested under a casuarina tree, and placed a shirt on a post to indicate my position. About two hours later, Safri, Peter Lim, and Simon Lee arrived in a boat to pick me up. We all shared a good laugh. Upon reaching Santubong, I walked to the shops and found one where my broken spectacle frame could be repaired. It was a stroke of luck as the shop owner’s daughter was a former RTC trainee, and he refused to accept any payment for his service. This incident remains in my memory.
In 1984, I received my Wood Badge (two-bead) after completing a thesis titled ‘Jungle Survival’. In 1993, I pursued my third bead as a national trainer in Kem Sardon, Cheras, KL. I received my certificate from Tan Sri Khir Johari (now deceased).
The views expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the New Sarawak Tribune.
