Pulau Tiga Resort, Sabah – my mud bath at the mud volcanoes!

Hello all!

I’m back from my “island” holiday! And would you believe it, this is my first ever island adventure in my 30 years of existence! 😉

I got Firefly Airlines to thank for this fabulous fam trip. There were so much planned out for all of us, and I’ve got a lot to share so expect a lot of posts about Sabah as I go along.
Anyhow, I’m starting the wackybecky Sabah Chronicles with this “muddy” post, simply cos I’ve got some epic pictures that I think you guys will like!

Such as this one:

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-17

Haha, that was us heading back to our resort BAREFOOTED after our mud bath at the Mud Volcanoes on Pulau Tiga.

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah

Pulau Tiga is believed to have been formed by the eruption of several mud volcanoes after a large earthquake on the Philippine island in 1897. Since then, the island was expanded and formed into its current size thanks to subsequent mud volcano eruptions.

Thankfully, there is no significant eruptions since the beginning of the 20th century. The only volcanoes the current generation knows about at Pulau Tiga is the loosely-termed “mud volcanoes“. It is not the eruptive kind but a pool of bubbling mud from deep inside the earth.

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-16

The mud is believed to be mineral-rich & is good for the skin. Well, since yours truly here is always on the quest for luscious skin (ahem) I couldn’t possibly pass up on such an opportunity right?

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-8

The rest (there were 12 of them!) egged me on & stood watching to see if I was going to sink! Chis! 😉

Rebecca - mud volcano pulau tiga sabah

Oh, did I mention that it’s FREE?? Yea.. that’s why I’m laughing like a hyena in the pic below. :whistle:

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah

This is me after wading pass the first small pool. Behind me lies the big one which is deeper hence the need for the ropes that runs across the pool.

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-1

The mud is very sticky and thick. Walking is tough and swimming is impossible! The bed of the mud pool is alike a less scary version of a quicksand, you tend to sink deeper as you make your way around; only thing is it doesn’t “suck” you in & swallow you up!

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-13

A bit of assistance can be God-sent when you want to get out of one pool to another!

DSC_0863

Anyhow, here’s the group of us who were “adventurous” enough to go into the mud pool. And all are hanging onto the ropes for dear life. Haha..

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-10

Below: I don’t what I was doing! I swear! LOL!!

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-3

Being interviewed by TV3: (UPDATE! I appeared on Buletin Utama, TV3 on Sat, 12th March 2011 at around 8pm++. Yay! Watch the video clip!)

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Mud people alert!
Below: Us goofing around.

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-5

Ok, let me warn you first. The mud looks nice to play yes, but it’s a real pain to wash it off!
Awfully gooey, it sticks stubbornly to fabric (even my bikini), and God help you if you are wearing cotton. You’ll never to be able to wash it off clean!
Even for my skimpy bikini, it took me a full hour of scrubbing and rinsing and scrubbing again & again before the colours were recognisable again. Imagine if you are wearing a t-shirt!

mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah-12

Disclaimer: These are not my feet ok! I got prettier ones ;p
Ok ok, the point is, I’m trying to show you the thickness & gluey-ness of the mud. When it dries, it literally “cakes” up on you.

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Posers in action! 😉

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It would have been stupid to stain anymore of our clothes with the mud so we walked back like this:

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LOL. We really qualified as jungle men & women then!

Oh oh, I LOVE THIS PICTURE! It is not photoshopped but it does gives the effect of greyscale right? 😉

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GETTING THERE: Pulau Tiga is located about 10 km (6 miles) offshore of Sabah near Kuala Penyu town on the tip of the Klias Peninsula. If you are in Kota Kinabalu, it will take about 90 minutes by road followed by a 20-30 minutes powerboat trip from town (a sub-district of Kuala Penyu) to the island and its marine park.
If you are in Labuan, you can take the ferry to Menumbok and then the speedboat to Pulau Tiga. Alternatively, you can also charter a speedboat from Kota Kinabalu or Labuan.

This is us!!

on the boat to Pulau tiga

Daily Standard Boat Transfer Schedule

  • Kuala Penyu to Pulau Tiga Resort: 1000 hrs ; 1500 hrs
  • Pulau Tiga Resort to Kuala Penyu: 0900 hrs ; 1400 hrs
  • So would you have waded in the mud like I did if you are in Pulau Tiga? 😉

    Mud volcano - pulau tiga sabah

    PS: Another muddy adventure in KOREA – click HERE !

    This Post Has 34 Comments

    1. pw

      that’s a hint!

        1. pw

          hahaha…. something something something …. up at first 3 para… hahahah

    2. Sean

      Gosh, looks like ‘mud’ is the theme for a lot of your vacations this past year (here and Korea). This looks fun, and as long as the mud is ‘clean,’ I guess I’d do it! Did u feel any positive effects on your skin after that? 😀

      1. rebeccasaw

        hah! Now I’m tempted to try something else.. I wonder what other extreme/ wacky stuffs can I do next?? :whistle:

        oh you would jump in? Yay! We can go holiday together! Thk God i wasn’t the only one that waded in! The 2 guys (brad & Fei) were very good companions throughout! Very opened – minded & adventurous!

    3. Caroline

      wow!! really fun right! haha how come u dunno what u were doing at that time?? :p haha sempat interview summore! u look sexay with those mud babe! :p

      1. rebeccasaw

        Sexay yea?? Hehehe! Thks!
        I was goofing around and got caught in my wacky pose! ;p

    4. Aris Tee

      Ah, I see lots of my photos~ ^^
      Btw, hi Rebecca!

      1. rebeccasaw

        Haha!
        Thks for the pics Aris! You should have waded in with us!

    5. paranoidandroix

      Talking about Blogger Exposure! Lmao. I would have dipped myself it the mud. Serious!

      1. rebeccasaw

        Really! Yay!
        I can’t wait to see the side of you that is clubbing, dancing the night away & now, wading in mud! wooho!

    6. Thristhan

      Hahahaha, that looks like alot of fun and yucky at the same time 🙂

    7. Thomas Chai

      Interesting…Looks like you are having a swell fun time 🙂

      1. rebeccasaw

        I always do! Hehe…I’m game for anything & I believe in being happy

      1. rebeccasaw

        Urghh!! Actually we were worried a bit of that..hehehe
        We were scaring each other on whether there are any crocs, monitor lizards etc below that mud pool!
        Luckily there wasn’t anything other than tree branches! Hheehhe

    8. AR

      Gosh you look like a statue…lol. Seems fun though 😀

      1. rebeccasaw

        It was!! You need to treat yourself to a holiday soon Alex! you work too hard!

    9. Wui Keong

      hi there, actually l was been there before, but unfortunately, l was sick so just rest inside the quarter~~~
      by the time we reached there, we were told by our guide to bring those “unused” clothers for the mud, otherwise, it will wasted

      1. rebeccasaw

        Hi Wui Keong! Hahah, yes. I wish they have told me that! Cos my clothes were ruined! It’s terribly hard to wash the mud off!
        If you do go again, remember to play in the mud 🙂
        Anyhow, it must have been horrible for you! to be sick in such an isolated area 🙁

        1. rebeccasaw

          Oh thks for sharing but I can’t view. Not sure if it’s cos we are not friends.
          Hahah sleep & look at ceiling! Terrible!

    10. Wui Keong

      yeah, that’s terrible~~
      err….. if there is, maybe you try to add me, so that l can share some related pic. to you~~
      🙂

        1. Wui Keong

          l can’t get ur fb account, so, just “like” your page, please take a look on that~~~~

    11. Wui Keong

      ok~~~~~
      just see ur reply~~~~~

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