The Crocker mountain range runs parallel to the northwestern coast of Sabah for about 100km from Tenom towards Mt Kinabalu, with elevation ranging from 100m to 2050m at the peak of Mt. Alab.
The Crocker range national park was initially set up as a forest reserve in 1968 and became a national park in 1984 to protect its rich biodiversity and rare species of plants and wildlife.
The park is located in the southern part of the Crocker range and is 75km long and 15km wide. With an area of 1399 km² it is the largest national park in Sabah. Most of the park ist covered by forest with a section of perhaps the last remaining hills dipterocarp forest along western Sabah.
106 species of mammals (the three most endangered species are the Orang Utan, the Sun Bear, the Clouded Leopard), 265 species of birds, 52 species of reptiles, 67 species of frogs and 26 species of freshwater fishes live in the park.
The Crocker range national park is covered mainly by mixed dipterocarp forest and montane and upper montane mossy forest at the peak near Gunung Alab. Rafflesias grow across the park and are relatively easy to spot.
Across the park there are 10 substations which offer access to the park. Near the park headquarter in Ulu Kimanis there is the Crocker Nature Centre, a facility with a small lecture room and a gallery display. Next to it there are two short trails across the forest. The Salt trail is a longer (34km) trail in the Tambunan district which can be covered in three days.
How to access the Crocker range national park:
From KK it's an 1:30 hours drive to the park headquarter near the Kimanis station, 14km from Keningau. Alternatively it is possible to drive by bus from KK to Keningau (departures from KK are at 7am, 8am, 10am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 5pm) and take a taxi from there to the park headquarter.
Accommodation inside the park is available at the relatively expensive Manis Manis Rooftop of Borneo resort, which has individual rooms from RM 320 and cheaper shared rooms in the adjacent hostel. Otherwise there are many hotels in the city of Keningau, which is 13km from the park headquarter.
