Marudi

Marudi is a town in the Malaysian state of Sarawak, part of the Miri Division and the seat of Marudi District. It lies on the banks of the Baram River, about 100 kilometres upstream from the river mouth, and was the administrative centre of northern Sarawak before Miri was established in 1910. After the Sultan of Brunei ceded the Baram region to Charles Brooke in 1883, a fort was built here and the settlement was first named Claudetown; the fort was later renamed Fort Hose after the Resident Charles Hose, who used the place as the venue for a boat regatta meant to end the headhunting feuds between the highland tribes. Marudi is regarded as the cultural heart of the Orang Ulu, and it is a transit gateway to the Kelabit Highlands and to Gunung Mulu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Its climate is tropical rainforest, with heavy to very heavy rainfall through the year.