Enjoying Nature at its best

The River at 3V

We all love splashing around in a river with crystal clear water. It is reminiscent of a childhood in an innocent past. Many who grew up in the village will have experienced this sort of environment. 

When I visited Kg Nahaba in Kota Belud, nostalgia was the first emotion that hit me; especially when I visited 3V  which stands for Villa Valley View.  A river runs through  the valley, rushing its crystal clear water on the pebbly water riverbed.

Deren Liging

The river is under the tagal system, which means no one is allowed to harvest the fish there for a year or two until the tagal committee decides otherwise. The fish are then harvested by the villagers.

Meanwhile, a group of people are taking care of the three kilometres of tagal river promoting it as a tourism destination. This group of people called the area 3V and promoting it as a place to picnic, to camp out and bath in the river, as well as fish feeding.

This group is led by Deren Liging, 46, who shared that some 80 people are actively involved in the endeavor.

“The river called Woriu is direct from Mount Kinabalu, therefore its crystal clear most of the time. We have lots of fish in the river and we are now trying to make them a little tamer by feeding them as we want to promote fish spa and fish feeding here too.”

“We also encourage our guests to hold picnics here as this is a cool place, with tranquil natural environment that most people will enjoy. We have several huts for our picnickers. These huts can be rented out for overnight stays,” he disclosed.

Feeding the fishes

According to him, they are currently clearing out a trail for those who like jungle trekking. The track will be about three kilometres round trip and the destination is a waterfall they call ‘Wasai Ponohuan’ which means ‘waterfall for fish to lay eggs’ in Dusun. When the trail is completed, guests will be able to enjoy bird watching. Besides the flora and fauna, they will also be able to enjoy the freshness and challenge of a jungle walk.

The camping ground is spacious enough to accommodate 14 tents and students from SK Narinang has camped there once quite comfortably, he shared, adding that their guests in the past comprised of Malaysians and Singaporeans with a few westerners.

“We hope that more tourists will come and enjoy our nature here and what we have to offer. We can also accommodate those who wants to hold their functions here such as birthdays or other types of gatherings. Our site can accommodate some 300 people.”

“As for food, we can provide food upon request. We usually cook traditional food. We don’t have an eatery as yet but we hope to open up one soon,” Deren said.

They also hope to embark on the homestay programme where they will be able to share their lifestyle and daily activities with their guests. The people who live in Kg Nahaba are traditionally paddy planters and rubber tappers.

For more information, call Deren at 018 9720839.-BNN