清水洞長222公里（2017年的勘察數據），為世界第八長、內容積最大的岩洞體系。這次觀光的清水洞為此岩洞體系西南方的主洞，此處為清水洞體系最早被發現的洞口，洞深約15哩，為地下河清水河的出口地帶。在探險考察工程進行了約40年後，體系的長度已達222公里。在探險隊從風洞找到通往清水洞的通道後，風洞也被列入清水洞體系。我們參觀的主洞有完善的步道規劃，入洞後先去參觀其側邊少女洞尾端的深坑，再去主洞繞一圈，欣賞地下河清水河的河道及石灰岩洞景色，為此程精彩絕色的壓軸戲。
The Clearwater Cave System (Malay: Gua Air Jernih) in Gunung Mulu National Park is believed to be the largest interconnected cave system in the world by volume and the 8th longest cave in the world at 222 km (2017). The system lies mainly under the western margins of Gunung Api between the Melinau Gorge and Cave of the Winds. The first exploration by speleologists was during the 1977/78 Royal Geographical Society Mulu Sarawak Expedition when 15 miles of the cave passage were surveyed. Many expeditions by the Mulu Caves Project have increased the explored length and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.” — from wikipedia. Clearwater Cave is located at the southwest of the Clearwater Cave System, and it is the downstream of Clearwater, one of the biggest known underground rivers (more detail here: Clearwater Cave by Mulu Caves Project). We have visited the Lady Cave and the Big Pit, then the Clearwater passage and the cave views, a great ending of our Mulu’s showcaves tour. Continue reading →

「風洞」之所以叫風洞，就是因為它的洞裡有風，呵呵！風洞裡的通道有寬有窄、起伏不平，尾端有一壯麗堂皇的「帝皇之室」。洞體因為中間有塊洞頂崩塌而開了天窗，在熱氣上升的作用下，加速從洞口往洞裡的空氣流動速度，形成了風，尤其是在天氣熱時，站在狹窄的瓶頸地帶就能感受到涼風習習。而「帝皇之室」內的鐘乳石、石筍、石柱等的形成也跟室內的空氣流動，或說風的方向有關聯。
A plankwalk leads from the riverbank to the entrance of Wind Cave, so named because of the cool breezes which can be felt at the narrow parts of the cave. Wind Cave, which is part of the Clearwater system, has many impressive stalactites, stalagmites, flowrocks, helitites and rock corals, some which are illuminated in the ‘King’s” Room. — from mulunationalpark.com Continue reading →

在越南的山水洞（Sơn Đoòng Cave，目前世界最大的單體洞穴，參考YouTube上的3D模擬，Oxalis的探險記錄或Ryan Deboodt的洞內航拍）被發現以前，鹿洞（曾）是世界最大的洞穴。其實，專家都以各種標準（長度、寬度、高度、內容積等等）來衡量，誰最大還真的不好說。至2009年，鹿洞已知通道有4.1公里，南邊的洞口設有棧道讓遊客進入，參觀有174米寬、122米高的主洞。鹿洞裡住著幾百萬隻蝙蝠，排泄量以噸為計，所以，洞內充滿著亞摩尼亞的氣味，排泄物融入水裡，引來了巨鹿到此喝鹽水。當然，現今已沒有巨鹿的踪影，只留下了鹿洞為名。徬晚時分，只要天氣不差，都能在鹿洞外欣賞蝙蝠出洞，看那一批批的蝙蝠出洞覓食，就像一條條黑色的彩帶在空中飛舞。
Before discovery of Sơn Đoòng Cave in Vietnam (see YouTube: 3D Modeling, Oxalis Expedition 2017, or Drone video by Ryan Deboodt), Deer Cave was always claimed as the largest cave of the world. There’re still a lot of discussions about which cave is the largest, as there are no standard measurement for the largest cave passage. Until 2009, the known passage of Deer Cave is 4.1 km. The main chamber, which is partially lit by sunlight, is 174 meters wide and 122 meters high. There are millions of bats living in Deer Cave, and, if the weather is good, tourists can enjoy the spectacular view of dancing black belts emerging from the cave to search for food. Continue reading →

藍洞是姆魯四個觀光石洞中最小的一個，但她的石灰岩景觀絕對值得一覽。
Lang’s Cave is the smallest of the show caves but its rock formations are well worth seeing. These are made all the more attractive by the strategically positioned spotlights which highlight stalactites and stalagmites. As the cave is relatively small and well-lit, it offers good opportunities to see some of its inhabitations such as bats, swiftlets and even cave-dwelling snakes. – from mulunationalpark.com Continue reading →