‘The children took it all in their stride’

memories of the place – but how do they compare with the Borneo of today? With my teenagers ripe for an adventure, and as eager as me to return, the time felt right for a holiday to find out.

To make the most of our 14 days, we devised a strict timetable: first we would visit the north, taking in the islands of the Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, 15 minutes off the coast of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah’s state capital. From there we would climb Mount Kinabalu, at 13,400ft the highest peak in south-east Asia. Afterwards we would head south to Sarawak, experiencing the jungle en route to The Pinnacles: razor-sharp, limestone shards that jut skywards in Mulu National Park, back in the north. We would end our Borneo adventure with a visit to the park’s limestone caves.

In Kota Kinabalu, to help Tara and Cameron acclimatise to the country’s colourful assault on the senses, we checked into the Hyatt-Regency hotel. Not only did it offer familiar home comforts, but it was also perfectly located for short boat rides to the islands. When I’d visited these in the past, I could almost have counted the people on one hand. Now they are the destination of choice for southeast Asian travellers. Restaurants and barbecue joints have sprung up, and I was saddened by the amount of plastic polluting the once-clear ocean. The best of the islands is Manukan, which is less of a tourist magnet.

Brought up on my stories of how untouched the islands were, the children were disappointed by the reality. More than the number of people, it was the amount of rubbish that perturbed them. But in stoic fashion they set about collecting all the plastic waste in sight. Only then were they happy to snorkel in the turquoise waters that teemed with fish despite all the human activity.

Any disappointment evaporated in Sabah, where we embarked on our three-day trek up Mount Kinabalu. Our guide first told us about the steps being taken to protect the environment around the iconic peak – and we were impressed. The accommodation built to cater for the swelling number of visitors is designed with low environmental impact in mind, with an emphasis on recycling, solar energy and transporting rubbish off the mountain.

Mount Kinabalu also boasts the world’s highest via ferrata – a climbing route following a steel cable anchored to the rock. At 12,000ft, the route is breathtaking as it passes over a sheer rock face descending almost vertically to the jungle below. Tara and Cameron had never attempted one of these before, but I’d brought them up to enjoy rock climbing and abseiling so they were up for the challenge.

After acclimatising at a hotel near the entrance to Kinabalu National Park, we trekked up to Pendant Hut – our next accommodation, at 10,500ft. This was where the real adventure began as we trekked through dense forest in intense heat and humidity.

As we neared the hut, the terrain