At around 2,980m above sea level, you will arrive at Pondok Villosa - the rest shelter just before the 5km mark on the summit trail of Mt Kinabalu. The trail begins on the prophyritic granite customary of Kinabalu, but quickly crosses a fault-bound wedge of serpentinite. The vegetation also sees a clear change - transitioning from the tropical jungles into low vegetation due to higher elevations (typically above 3,000m above sea loevel) and the nutrient-poor nature of the underlying serpentinite. It then returns to granite as you reach Pondok Paka at an elevation around 3,110m above sea level.
One of the most notable characters of the trail from this point is clear evidence of glaciation which was pointed out to me by the mountain guide. I questioned the glacial moraine in the area to which he mentioned that these were naturally occuring, and they had set the trail to cross these areas. In fact, the sculpturing of the iconin peaks of Mount Kinabalu has been attributed to these glaciers from approximately 1.4 million years ago during the Eurasian Ice Age. Mt Kinabalu was once snowcapped with glaciers as a the chief artisan, cutting and carving the features of the mountain.
The trail from this point is littered with evidence of glacial moraine (the material left behind by the glaciers from the past). Rubble left behind by glaciers descending from Kinabalu's summit. It is possible that there are yet, undiscovered moraines exist on Mount Kinabalu and are either inaccessible today through vegetation cover or have been remoulded by subsequent landslides and erosion forces. These leftovers are all that remians - a ghost of the past where glaciers once ruled the mountain.
How to claim this earth cache
Proceed to Pondok Villosa - where you will find all of the information on a geological poster at the site. This will give you all the required info to answer the following questions:
1. Describe the shape of the granite boulders and rubble left behind by the glaciers
2. The granite here is not porphyritic like that seen near Layang Layang. Describe the differences.
Proceed up the trail and inspect the glacial moraine.
1. How large are the glacial moraine littered on the trail? Provide a range of estimates (eg. between 50cm to 2 metres in diameter)