Thread by @CriticalStress_

Off to see a mud volcano, about 40km south of Miri in Sarawak, NW Borneo.

I’ll try to live tweet as much as possible!

I’m absolutely crazy in love with mud volcanoes (MVs)! So, I’m super excited! I’ve not been to this MV before and it’s been 7 years since I’ve gotten to a MV.

As a good family geologist. I’m dragging along my wife and 6yo son, Morgan.

They do not share my enthusiasm...

I can’t get them excited. I’ve told them about how huge underground fluid pressures form, and how these are like volcanoes, but are erupting mud from deep underground!

The word ‘volcano’ briefly got my son interested, but the lack of destruction and lava has curbed that.

After a lot of cajoling, I have got my family out of the hotel and in the car. You can see just how excited Morgan is about an hour drive to look at a mud volcano.

Typical unprepared geologist. Upon exiting mobile coverage, I realise that I forgot to download the google maps for the area. Pretty sure I remember how to get there....

Time for some geology.

The mud volcanoes in this area are part of the Baram Basin. It’s formed of Miocene-Recent deltaic sediments from the Baram river system.

The location is near the equator. So, you’ve got massive weathering and erosion of the nearby Crocker-Rajang range. So, you have extreme deposition rates - like 1000-3000m per million years!

It’s also on an area of active tectonics, so sediments get quickly buried to several km, but then can get quickly uplifted and exhumed. It results in some fantastic outcrops.

All these geological conditions are ideal for the generation of extremely high fluid pressures in the deep pro-delta Setap shales. The mud volcanoes are one of nature’s ways of bleeding off these pressures.

Okay, we’re close. Time for the obligatory stop for water and snacks. I may not be sure where I’m going anymore, but at least I don’t think I’m going to kill me or my family from thirst/starvation.

Oh, some mobile signal bars, and whatever “E” means! Enough for google maps to give me a satellite pic of the nearby area.

Yay! The ‘road’ into the palm plantation is not locked off. We’re taking our tiny hire car and it’s 1.0L engine in there...

We are driving about 2km/hr. Stay in air con as long as possible. It’s Borneo. It’s hot. It’s humid. And I’m extremely ‘naturally insulated’.

We really surprised some farmer out here taking a whizz...

We made it! Should be just about 50m away. Can’t see it yet. Wife and son not keen to explore. Morgan worries about tigers. I’ve told him there aren’t any.

But that there might be reticulated pythons, which I call ‘giant cuddle snakes’, that can eat you whole.

I’m a bad dad...

There’s a mud volcano!!!! Oh my goodness it’s so glorious!! I’m so happy

Aww, it’s bubbling and gurgling. It’s so cute!!! I’m Instantly in love.

I drag my wife and son to have a look.

They do grudgingly show some interest and excitement. Morgan does really like the gurgling bubbles.

My wife wants to try the mud. She’s dipping her hand in. She’s so awesome!

After a bit of an explore, it’s time to try the drone. Not used it in like 4 months. Have totally forgotten how to work it. Really poor planning, geez I’m rubbish with technology.

Right. Turned the damn thing on. Now why the F- will the F-ing drone not F-ing connect to the remote controller!

Screw you drone! It’s like a million degrees out here and I’m pouring sweat. What do you mean disconnected. The drone’s right frigging there!! It’s flashing and stuff - connect damn you!

My wife and son have long since retreated to the car and air conditioning.

Right, let’s try Wifi connection through the phone. Whoop! Whoop!! We’re in business!!

Calibrate and we are up and away!!

Ah, but I’ve never used the phone as a controller before. How do you fly this thing?!

Geez, I really should have re-read the manual, or at least downloaded it before coming out here.

Okay. Figured it out. Not easy to figure out or fly - can barely see the screen in the sun.

Oh, now this is super fun! It’s hard to get myself close to some of the salses, but can fly drone right up to them. Good drone. Sorry I was so cranky with you!

Took video and photos with drone for about an hour. Used up 2 batteries. Will have to get images off drone later.

Most of the mud volcano area is quite sandy. Lots of quite coarse grained material coming up, probably entraining deltaics en route to the surface.

You can see all the tiny layers of earlier mud flows inside this little gryphon.

The mud volcano is about 75m diameter. There one big (~5m) salse (bubbling mud lake) in the middle, a bunch of small to tiny salses. There one largish (~0.7m high) gryphon (conical mud vent), and a few smaller ones dotted about.

Here’s the largest gryphon. Correction, is about about 0.5m tall.

Here’s the main salse in the middle, you can see a small one bubbling in the foreground.

There’s bits that are quite dry, and you can walk on without too much trouble.

You can get right up close to some of the bubbling vents.

I love this place so much.

The gentle bubbling is so nice. Should be used as relaxation music.

No idea if I can link to audio somehow.

I’ll figure out how to get some gifs happening later. The mud volcano is nice a gently active. The bubbling and gurgling is constant. It’s so cute!

Some vents have a fair bit of what looks like microbial activity around them.

After a couple of hours, I’m extremely happy. The sky is darkening and thunder is rumbling. It’s time to get my extremely patient family back to Miri.

Bye mud volcano!

~2km/hr back along the ‘road’. There’s some rather alarming clunks. Go little hire car! Go! You can do it.

Car with 1.0L engine: I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

Back to the actual road. Well done little car!

About 2 minutes later, it starts bucketing down! Phew!

An hour to drive back to Miri. Hungry son. Every two minutes....

Back in to mobile coverage! Can copy my drafted tweets from my notes. Will try to post some drone footage and gifs later! Now time to have some Kolo Mee!

Thanks for following my mud volcano adventure!

I’ve successfully got drone footage onto phone and converting videos!

Here’s the mud volcano from a height of ~40m

The main gryphon didn’t erupt much, but did put out the odd spurt, caught by the drone.

I could watch this bubbling all day

Morgan did come back once I eventually got the drone up and flying. He wanted to say hi.

This tiny salse was bubbling like crazy!

The whole area is filled with little bubblers gurgling away everywhere.

Little baby gryphon bubbling away merrily.

Here’s a aerial still of the mud volcano. Height ~40m agl.

Here’s some drone photos around the ‘gryphon end’ of the mud volcano.

They are just mesmerising. Gloop. Gloop. Gloop...

Flying from the salse to the ‘gryphon end’

Obligatory mud volcano drone selfie.

I think that about wraps up the thread for now. Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed coming on a mini Miri mud volcano adventure with me!

Oh, here’s a video of this.

This has audio! Turn up the volume to hear the bubbles and gurgles!

This has audio too!