Caving in Into Nature: Fairy Cave & Wind Cave, Sarawak

After buffet breakfast at the hotel (which included laksa Sarawak, by the way!), we boarded our bus to Bau, some 50km away from the city of Kuching in Sarawak. It was already our last day of #TSDayOut Special Edition Selangor Meets Sarawak. Our destinations for the 3rd and final day in Kuching before we headed back to the airport later in the evening are 2 caves, interestingly called Fairy Cave and Wind Cave.

Now, I’d be the first to admit that I’m not a "cave" person (although – before anyone else points this out - I admit, from time to time I might behave like a "caveman" *gives innocent look*) so I was feeling quite neutral about visiting these 2 caves in the sense that I wasn’t really looking forward to it but at the same time, I didn’t mind it either.

I believe, sometimes when we travel, we just have to be open to explore new places and try new things.

After all, that's why we travel, no?

Fairy Cave

We arrived about an hour later in front of a tall structure that looks like a watchtower or something, except that it’s basically the staircase to see the fairies. How high? About 5-storey high just to get to the entrance to the cave! Before anyone shudders at the thought of having to climb the stairs, just imagine the alternative, which could be rock climbing, ha ha!

So yeah, count your blessings rather than start cursing, aye? *gives another round of innocent look*

We reached the entrance to the cave in no time but not without a sweat. Seeing more steps in front that lead into the dark side of the cave was a bit discouraging but they are there for a reason – to make your visit to the cave easier and safer.

It wasn’t long before we had to climb a set of steep wooden steps through a dark and narrow passage. If you’re claustrophobic, this would probably be the only point where you might feel the fear. Fret not however, as climbing the steps here shouldn’t take that long.

(Unfortunately in my case, that’s the point when I remembered I had actually brought with me a torch all the way from Kuala Lumpur (for this very cave trip) but I had left it in the bus instead. Well done, RaW! Well done!  Luckily I didn’t bang my head while climbing the wooden steps in the darkness although I probably should have done so willingly for forgetting the torch.)

And then, there it was. A sight to behold.

Fairy Cave, in all its glory, all lit up naturally by a big opening from above that allows plenty of sunlight into the cavern. All the huffing and puffing (along with the complaining) suddenly forgotten, and all cameras automatically came out into action.

Noticed the size of the cavern? It's huge! Something I didn't expect at all when I first started climbing the "watchtower" to get to the cave.

Legend has it that people used to live in this cave but the population was made up of a group that loved to abuse and torment kids, especially orphans – much to the dismay of the fairy that lived here as well.

Not happy with the situation, the fairy put a curse on everyone and turned them into rocks and stones.

While there is obviously no proof that the story is for real, venturing further into the cave, we saw plenty of stalactites and stalagmites, some of which have been said to resemble some human forms – and this has been used to corroborate the story. There is even a rock formation that resembles a Chinese goddess, which makes the cave a popular site for the local Chinese community coming to pray. 

(Moral of the story: Be kind to kids (even the annoying ones!) because you never know who/what’s watching.)

Wind Cave

After Fairy Cave, we hopped back onto the bus for a quick ride to Wind Cave.

Wind Cave couldn’t have been more different than Fairy Cave in the way that it’s fully enclosed and dark, with not much source of light getting inside it. It was another reason to bang my head on the wall or something because, again, I left the torch in the bus.

Getting old, aren’t we?

The ticket counter does rent out headlamps for RM4 (~USD1) each but I don’t think anyone among us cared much about it, probably thinking that the cave is going to be similar to Fairy Cave, which was a big mistake, of course. The light from the mobile phone screen didn’t help much unless if the phone has a torchlight feature, so we were literally in the dark most of the time whilst following the long plank walks inside the cave.

There are 3 pathways inside and despite the darkness, we managed to find two. By we, I meant Missyblurkit and I, who were left behind from the first group in front and trailed by another group at the back. Thankfully the pathways were much less taxing and there wasn’t much climbing involved, if at all, compared to Fairy Cave.

In some parts of the cave, especially near the entrance and exit, where there were a bit of light, the cave looks just beautiful. 

Inside however, along the pathways, we could see some, and hear lots of, bats, swiftlets and nothing else. If only I had brought along the torch with me… Oh well! There's always next time, I guess.

The cave supposedly got its name from the sound of wind that passes through its one opening to another. Despite the name, I didn’t feel much wind whilst inside. In fact, it was quite the opposite. It was a bit humid and there wasn’t much a breath of air inside.

You could however certainly feel thousands of eyes watching.

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Regardless of the fact that I couldn’t see much inside of Wind Cave during the visit, the trip to both caves did open my eyes to a whole new world, and introduced me to something that I didn’t know I would enjoy. I definitely caved in into nature whilst in Kuching, Sarawak.

So here’s to more caves in the future. And a return visit here! (With a torch, of course!)

Tips on What to Bring/Wear  Bring a torch. Bring a torch. Bring a torch.  If you bring the torch, remember to bring it with you into the cave.  If you forgot about the torch, rent the headlamp. Wear sturdy footwear that’s good for walking. Make sure the grip on your footwear is still there. It can be slippery.  Bring some drinking water with you. You'd need it.  Use some insect repellent if you have it.  Wet wipes could be handy as the hand rails in the cave are almost certainly covered by guano.  Oh, and you have to be reasonably fit, I guess, especially for Fairy Cave. If you’re not, just do it slow and easy. The view up there, whether or not you find your fairy, as you can see from the photos, is totally worth it.

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How to get there:

There is no public bus service going to the caves which are located some 50km away from Kuching. The best way to go there by public transport would be by bus to the town of Bau, and from there, arrange for a taxi drop off and pick up. The caves are located between 5 and 8km from Bau.

Alternatively, you can rent a car/taxi for the day or join a half-day package tour to the caves with any travel agency that is recommended by your hotel.

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A Thank You and Disclosure Note

I would like to thank the organiser of #TSDayOut Special Edition Selangor Meets Sarawak, Tourism Selangor, for the opportunity to be part of the programme. A big thank you also goes to other official sponsors, which include Sarawak Tourism Board, AirAsia and Empire Hotel Subang.

#TSDayOut is a Tourism Selangor programme that introduces and promotes interesting places as a day out/day trip destinations in the state of Selangor in Malaysia. The programme is opened to bloggers, media practitioners, and social media influencers. #TSDayOut Special Edition programme combines a trip in Selangor and a visit to another destination outside of the state. For this second #TSDayOut Special Edition, the destination is Kuching, Sarawak. For more information about #TSDayOut, check their website here.

For other blog entries on #TSDayOut Special Edition, click here. Going to Kuching, Sarawak? Do check out these hotels for your accommodation requirements there. For other blog entries on Malaysia, click here.