The trail network at park headquarters is the birding. Whitehead's trogon, Whitehead's broadbill and Whitehead's spiderhunter — the mountain's celebrated trio — all occur here, along with mountain blackeye, Bornean whistler and the mixed flocks that move through the mossy forest.

The Silau-Silau and Liwagu trails are the classic morning walks, following streams through moss-hung forest where the endemics are most reliably found.

The mountain garden near headquarters holds many of the orchids and pitcher plants gathered from the park — Kinabalu has one of the richest orchid floras on Earth and several giant Nepenthes species.

The summit trail passes through montane forest, then stunted scrub, then bare granite, with the plant life changing dramatically with altitude and the vegetation shrinking to almost nothing near the top.

Poring Hot Springs, lower down on the park's edge, is a different fauna entirely — lowland birds, a canopy walkway, and the Rafflesia flowers that bloom unpredictably nearby.

Birding is good year-round; the drier months make the climb more pleasant.

Practicalities

The park is around two hours from Kota Kinabalu. Climbing the summit requires a permit, a compulsory guide and an overnight stay at the mountain hut — permits are strictly limited and book out months ahead, so if the summit matters, arrange it first.

You can enjoy the park's wildlife entirely without climbing, and many birders do exactly that. Altitude affects some climbers seriously; the ascent gains a great deal of height in a short distance.