Canada Hill

Miri Well No 1, known universally as the Grand Old Lady, was spudded in on the tenth of August 1910 on the ridge above what was then a small coastal settlement, and it produced until 1972 - the first oil well drilled in Malaysia, and the reason Miri exists as a city at all. The steel derrick still stands on the hilltop as a national monument, and the Petroleum Museum beside it covers the geology, the drilling and the industry that followed. The ridge itself, Canada Hill, is the local walking and running place, with a long view over the town and the coast and, in the other direction, the interior. Sunset draws people up. The name is said to come from Canadian drillers involved in the early operations, though accounts vary.

What you actually see

• The Grand Old Lady - the 1910 derrick, Malaysia's first oil well, still standing.
• The Petroleum Museum - geology, drilling and the industry that built Miri.
• A long ridge view - over the town, the coast and inland.
• A local exercise route - the paths along the hill, busiest at dawn and dusk.

When to go

All year; sunset for the view. Two hours.

Honest expectations

The museum is modest and skews promotional. The derrick is a single structure and takes minutes. The hill is exposed - go early or late, not at midday.

Nearby

Miri town and the waterfront are below; Piasau Nature Reserve is north.