Sam Holmes Sailingvideo
Sailing Through an OIL RIG MAZE to Miri, Borneo
July 6, 2026 · 37 min · 57K views · Bako National Park
What this video covers
Departing Kuching 10 miles up the Sarawak River, Sam Holmes sails roughly 300 miles up the Sarawak coast to Miri, just south of Brunei, over five to six days of light, variable winds.0:08 The passage requires timing the river exit with the outgoing tide and navigating a bridge with 25 meters of actual clearance despite a posted 20-meter sign.0:31 Offshore, dense fishing nets on the surface force repeated evasive maneuvers at six knots, and the chart's scale conceals dangerously shallow water close to shore.10:28 Battery management becomes critical after two overcast days running the autopilot and electric cooktop drain the bank to 30%; both fridges are switched off and hand steering substitutes for the autopilot until sun returns.15:27 A parasailor drives the boat at seven knots in the final run, but the Miri entrance sandbar — minimum depth touching 3.4 meters against a 3.3-meter draft — demands precise tide timing.12:43 In Miri, Sam repairs soft spots in the deck coring, replacing rotted balsa with foam and epoxy-glassed fiberglass.28:26 A water pump bearing failure is also addressed by rewiring the circuit to an accessible breaker panel.8:21 Ashore, Sam and Arlene visit the Petroleum Museum and the Naya Caves via a jungle boardwalk.26:41 Deceptive chart zoom levels on shallow coastal approaches warrant keeping the chart at a wider scale throughout.11:55
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