MIRI: A group of local journalists and YouTubers recently took part in a trip to Long Selaan organised by the Sarawak Tourism Board (STB).
Long Selaan is a Kenyah village located in Ulu Baram, some 10 hours’ away by road from here. It is accessible only by logging roads.
During their trip to Long Selaan, the journalists and YouTubers stayed at Segah Selaan One Stop Homestay, located about an hour’s drive from the popular Tekiwit Waterfall.
The journalists who joined the trip came from New Sarawak Tribune (Miri), Borneo Post (Miri), Sin Chew Daily (Miri) and See Hua Daily News (Miri).
Led by STB staff, they arrived at the homestay late evening of last Thursday.
The Segah Selaan One Stop Homestay, run by Rose Balan and her husband, Joseph Lawai Apoi, is considered the most successful homestay in the area.
Apart from organising eco-friendly activities for guests, Rose and her husband are very hospitable. Their homestay, which first opened for business in 2014, has many rooms that offer a lot of privacy.
On the second day of the trip, the journalists and YouTubers were brought to the best of Long Selaan’s waterfalls — the Tekiwit Waterfall.
Located at about a 45 minutes’ walk from a Penan settlement known as Data Bila, the 100-metre high waterfall is considered the tallest in the area.
There are about 200 people and more than 20 Penan houses in Data Bila.
According to Joseph Lawai Apoi, the Tekiwit Waterfall, apart from Kelu’an Waterfall (or Three Sisters Waterfall), is a hot favourite among travellers who visit Long Selaan.
The journalists and YouTubers also visited another Penan settlement known as Long Naman.
At the village, they saw Penan women making traditional handicrafts.
After that, they proceeded to a Kenyah settlement in Long Selaan to donate some food to fire victims.
On June 8 this year, one block of the 12-door longhouse was destroyed by fire, leaving 400 villagers homeless.
The villagers are still in the process of recovering from the effects of the fire.
No fatalities or injuries were reported in the incident and the blaze did not destroy another two blocks adjacent to the building.
The journalists and Youtubers concluded their three-night/four-day trip to Long Selaan last Sunday.
