Saturday 5 March –Ao Chalong
We went ashore meaning to catch a bus to Phuket town but decided to hire a motorbike instead. We were looking for the weekend market and also somewhere to buy rattan. We went right through Phuket town and didn’t find the market so went on up to Supercheap for a last shop. Asked directions to the market but it didn’t start til 5pm. We took a shortcut through the park and found the markets then went to Big C Supermarket to fill some time and just as we pulled up who else should pull up but Braveheart! So we went for a fruitjuice and caught up on all the news. Then some shopping and back to the markets. Not all the stalls were open as it was still a little early so we walked through the whole thing. By 5pm it was getting pretty crowded so we were pleased to have gone early. Headed back to the boat and stopped at the Anchor Inn for one of their fabulous salads!
Sunday 6 March – Ao Chalong
Were going to get up early and shoot up to Big C and have the bike back by 11am but we had a bit of a late start so hired the bike for another day. Went chasing down a rattan place but it didn’t seem to exist. We had pulled over in a little town to consult the map and were watching a black ute in front of us putting caged birds in the back. We had to wait for traffic and luckily hadn’t pulled out when the black ute gunned it and took off. We think he must have thought he would scream his tyres and take off - didn’t work though and a minibus was unable to avoid him and they came together – huge scrape down the side of the minibus. We cautiously passed them and back to Big C where we bought a lot of pork to put in our freezer. They have big slabs of pork and you use tongs to pick out what you want. So our freezer is stocked up. It is difficult to find pork in Malaysia being a Muslim country. After we dealt with the meat we went back ashore and went to a couple of places we had seen which looked interesting. By the time we got back the sky looked a bit threatening so we got takeaway salad to take to the boat for dinner. It is spring tides again and the tide was way out so it was really muddy. But being the innovative things that we are we pulled ourselves along the side of a tourist boat which was tied to the shore until we could reach his line which went about 30 metres out and pulled ourselves out by that – worked really well!
Monday 7 March – Ao Chalong
We took the bike back and then went to Immigration/Customs/Harbour master to check out of Thailand. There was quite a crowd in there so it took about an hour. Good to chat to yachties you don’t know as you find out snippets of information to be tucked away. We went and did some last minute shopping and used all our coin up buying cooked chicken pieces off a roadside stall. The lady was lovely and very happy to take all the coin. We bought some fruit from a roadside stall then went to the Anchor Inn for – you guessed it – the fabulous takeaway salad. Got back to Bob about 4pm and the tide was way low so pulled ourselves out along the tourist boat rope again. Had an early dinner watching the sun go down – couldn’t actually see it as it was cloudy. Watched a dvd –Inception – which we didn’t enjoy – very strange. There are now quite a few boats around us way out here. Suspect it may have got a bit shallow for some of them further in and in fact we could see a yacht on its side – obviously ran out of water. We could smell diesel all around us – not a nice feeling but the diesel barge must have spilt a bit when he fuelled the boat in front of us.
Tuesday 8 March – Ao Chalong to Phi Phi Don
We could smell the diesel again this morning and you could actually see it on thew ater but the tide eventually took it away. We noticed that the yacht which had been on its side was gone. We upanchored at 9am and headed out of Ao Chalong for the last time. Had a lovely lunch of chicken purchased yesterday and of course the wind was on the nose so it was a motor day. It was so clear you could actually see the Phi Phi’s from our anchorage in Ao Chalong. An uneventful trip arriving at Phi Phi Don at 2.45. We went in half way up the island to check out an opening which we had seen when Brett was on board. There were two hong like openings but nothing we would like to take our boat into. As we were coming around the point to Phi Phi Don a large tourist boat passed us and he was putting out a wake at least 500metres behind him. When it hit us the waves were 1.5m high – amazing and exceedingly dangerous!!! We anchored quite a way out and could only see one other yacht further in. It was threatening rain so we stayed on board. A big storm came through but passed just north of us though we did get quite a bit of rain.
Wednesday 9 March – Ao Chalong to Ko Roc Nok
07°13’021N 099°03.606E
We awoke to lots of rocking and rolling. The swell was coming from the wrong direction. We left at 7.10 and counted 10 other yachts in. Thats the beauty of taking your house with you – you can do your housework on the way. We sailed for a few hours with a SE swell and then motored arriving at 2.30. Just as we were approaching the islands we thought we saw a fish trap but it turned out to be the fins of a pod of dolphins. Five of them swam under the nose of the boat but only briefly and then they broke away. Was wonderful to see such a large pod. We came in between the two islands and anchored on the opposite side to where we had been last time. We could see a huge weather front coming in and were pleased to be anchored out of the way. The rangers came to collect their 200 baht per person but we only had a 500 baht note and 290 bht in change. They didn’t have any change so decided to only charge us 100 baht each!! We had quite a bit of rain and the storm was all around us and just seemed to miss us. We could see a wall of water (rain) to the north. A couple of cats came in and took up buoys and a French boat came in and anchored in front of us.
Thursday 10 March – Koh Roc Nok
It was very windy through the night and very windy all day – comfortable though. A few tour boats came in at 10. We stayed on board. Peter cleaned some stainless and caught a couple of fish which kept him happy and Dell made us a 2011 calendar – finally.
Friday 11 March – Koh Roc Nok
Well wind against tide did not a comfortable night make! We bucked up and down and at times went side on and rolled. There were white caps further in front of us and when we got up all the other boats had left!! The wind kept blowing but at 12 we got in Bob and headed up towards the beach but the swell was so bad we turned back and investigated the side of both islands out of the wind. The coral didn’t look great so we didn’t bother snorkelling and came back to the boat. Saw a large puffer fish – red with white spots very pretty – who was in a spot of bother splashing around on the surface and all puffed up. Dont know if he puffed himself up too much or he got hit by a boat. Anyway there was nothing we could do for him so left him to sort himself out. Around 3pm it was a completely different story. The wind dropped off, the swell dropped and we were able to go to the beach and have a swim. This is a beach with the shining white sand and beautiful aqua clear water. We had a swim and then sat in Bob and gently floated along the shore line towards our boat. Until Peter realised he was getting bitten by sandflies (they love him!) so we started the motor and went down a bit further then jumped over for a snorkel. The coral wasn’t much and it was pretty murky. We went down aways but visibility wasn’t good and we started to get a bad feeling so we came back to the boat. Seemed we were in the current line and all sorts of nasties were floating past and then we saw something interesting so hooked it. After we managed to get all the crabs off it, who were reluctant to go, we found it was an industrial strength sling used with forklifts. Might come in handy sometime so we have kept it! Tonight four more boats have come in. Three are out the back with us (much calmer) and a big timber ketch is behind us. The boats further forward of us last night must have had a really bad time. So far tonight the weather is looking good!!
It seems we will have to haul out again before we head south. We usually cover our prop with prop speed but this time decided to use copper coating which is supposed to be very good. We had it professionally done but we are not sure if it wasn’t applied properly or it just is no good. It is supposed to last ten years but really it hasn’t lasted ten weeks and the prop already has barnacles. Anyway we don’t recommend it.
For those of you who know Ann and Bill, they are finally on the move and can be found at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/seareverie
Hope you are all well
Much Love
Dell and Peter
Monday, March 14, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Sat 26 to Fri 4 March - Khao Lak to Ao Chalong
Saturday 26 Feb –Khao Lak
Had a relaxing day and later in the afternoon we saw an elephant walking along the beach. Went ashore to meet with Axel and Elisabeth. We were very grateful for the floating plastic jetty as otherwise we would not have been able to get ashore. We went to the resort to keep a lookout for them and asked the waiter how much a beer was. He didn’t know but said it is happy hour sit down sir (to Dell) so we did and paid the same as normal rates elsewhere – but they did give us lovely glasses to drink out of!
We met Axel and Elisabeth and went to a beachside restaurant for dinner. It was lovely to see them again and it didn’t feel like 27 years since we last met but looking at the photos of us all which Axel kindly bought along you could see that it might have been a few years!! We had a really lovely evening and we are hoping that our respective children will make contact. So good to see them. Once again on the way out we were grateful for the floating jetty!
Sunday 27 Feb – Khao Lak to Nai Harn
We left at 6.45am, motored for an hour then had a great sail for five hours. The boat was tipping which Dell hates but we were going so well we passed both destinations we had decided on and went straight through to Nai Harn. As we were passing Patong we noticed thousands of jellyfish in the water – thousands – they are bigger than a large round dinner plate and kind of like a cotton reel going in at the middle with a dinner plate on the other side and they are white, pink, some have a purple stripe and all colours between white and pink. Quite pretty really. We took Bob ashore – with terror on Dell’s part and just as we got out a wave hit and soaked Dell’s backside! Anyway had a lovely dinner at one of the little restaurants and came back to the boat without incident.
Monday 28 Feb – Nai Harn
Had a boat day – tidying and cleaning and went ashore at 4pm – made it in without incident. We found out someone had got rolled the day before (it had been his third trip in). We both had a massage which was very nice then had an early dinner and made it back without incident. Watched the final extended version of The Lord of the Rings so it was rather late when we went to bed and the wind had really come up.
Tuesday 1 March – Nai Harn
Just catching up on some work and relaxing. Still windy and so many plastic bags and a couple of fish traps have been floating past us. We have never seen so much rubbish in the bay. Have decided not to go ashore tonight – would probably get wet! So will eat on board. We could see a big storm to the east with all the silent lightning but then the wind came up and all of a sudden we had thunder, lightning and torrential rain. We had gone to bed but got up when we heard over the radio – all boats in Nai Harn – there is a cat on the loose. We went up to check and sure enough – a huge tri-catamaran had dragged all the way out and there it was just on our starboard side very close. A couple in a dinghy came out and asked us if it was still moving and we said yes so they boarded the boat. By now it had stopped dragging and it was dangerously close to us and it became clear that the people were not going to move it so we had to upanchor in the storm and go further out the back to re-anchor. There were unlit and badly lit boats around and the only way you can see them is when the lightning flashed. You could say it was a little bit stressful!!! Nai Harn has not been kind to us the year.
Wednesday 2 March – Nai Harn to Ao Chalong
The sea was a bit rolly so we upanchored and went around the point to the other side of Phuket Island. Ao Chalong is full of boats – big and small and also full of buoys so it is always a problem anchoring. We found a spot between three boats on buoys and a huge big wooden boat also on a buoy but his buoy has a big long rope and then he has a big long rope from the buoy to the boat so his swing room is enormous. We went ashore at 4pm and went to the Villa Market and bought some vegemite (and licorice)!! Then had dinner – the most magnificent huge salad – the meals at the Anchor Inn are enormous. Then Peter went to the dentist and Dell stayed to chat a while with Bach & Byte who had joined us. It was well after 8 when we started back to the boat and we could see the lightning and the dark sky. Got back to the boat about half an hour before the storm hit – timing!! We were sitting behind the huge big wooden boat and could see their TV so they were reasonably close!
Thursday 3 March – Ao Chalong
This morning we saw the most amazing thing – Peter said is that a hang glider with a boat on it. And sure enough it was a hang glider with an engine with a dinghy attached to the bottom and a person sitting in it. He bought it in to land on the water then motored to the boat ramp and drove up it – must have had some sort of wheels as well. A little later he took off and flew over us heading to another island!!! Amazing. Another thing we saw in a shop were kayaks with motors (water jet engines – no prop) in the back – Stu & Jean!!!! Good for when you get tired of paddling. Checked the weather for the day and decided to move as we were a little uneasy about the huge big boat thinking if a big blow came it would be possible for his long ropes to stretch and if we were behind him it might be a bit too close for comfort so we moved further out. Made the long trek to shore - about 1 ½ k and went to the paint store and found some paint which will do the interior of our boat and then wandered through the Home Store with all sorts of interesting things for the house. Then went back to the Anchor Inn for dinner and another one of those huge salads. It was almost dark when we headed back and dark by the time we got to the boat. It was a lovely still night with the sea like glass and we sat and watched the lights on the shore – very peaceful.
Friday 4 March – Ao Chalong
Caught the bus to Phuket town and walked around looking in all the lovely shops and went to the Dibuk Restaurant and Peter had the squid stuffed with pork which Brett had last time - it had gone up 20bht but was just as delicious. We were supposed to take a photo of it but the camera wasn’t working! Dell had the spicy pork which was also delicious. We were going to take the bus back but a tuk tuk driver offered to take us back for 100 bht (against 60 bht) so we said ok but as soon as he had us in the tuk tuk it was ‘I will take you to three stores you don’t have to buy anything but I will get free petrol for taking you there’! We weren’t at all keen as we had been caught with this in Bangkok, however, as it turned out the three stores were fantastic and we spent quite some time in them and yes we did purchase something. But it didn’t keep the tuk tuk man happy as we needed to spend 500 Bht for him to get a free t-shirt – our purchase didn’t come to that!! We went to the Anchor Inn and had another wonderful salad.
We are preparing to head south again as our Thai visas are up on the 8th. We may have to have another look at the East Malaysia rally as it has a 500 nm section crossing from Malaysia mainland to Borneo – thats a very long way. Meanwhile huge hugs for Jessie, Charlie and Rosie – miss you all terribly. And a big hullo to Aunti Lottie in Germany!
Calm Seas and Fair Winds
Dell and Peter
Had a relaxing day and later in the afternoon we saw an elephant walking along the beach. Went ashore to meet with Axel and Elisabeth. We were very grateful for the floating plastic jetty as otherwise we would not have been able to get ashore. We went to the resort to keep a lookout for them and asked the waiter how much a beer was. He didn’t know but said it is happy hour sit down sir (to Dell) so we did and paid the same as normal rates elsewhere – but they did give us lovely glasses to drink out of!
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| From 4 Feb 2011 |
Sunday 27 Feb – Khao Lak to Nai Harn
We left at 6.45am, motored for an hour then had a great sail for five hours. The boat was tipping which Dell hates but we were going so well we passed both destinations we had decided on and went straight through to Nai Harn. As we were passing Patong we noticed thousands of jellyfish in the water – thousands – they are bigger than a large round dinner plate and kind of like a cotton reel going in at the middle with a dinner plate on the other side and they are white, pink, some have a purple stripe and all colours between white and pink. Quite pretty really. We took Bob ashore – with terror on Dell’s part and just as we got out a wave hit and soaked Dell’s backside! Anyway had a lovely dinner at one of the little restaurants and came back to the boat without incident.
Monday 28 Feb – Nai Harn
Had a boat day – tidying and cleaning and went ashore at 4pm – made it in without incident. We found out someone had got rolled the day before (it had been his third trip in). We both had a massage which was very nice then had an early dinner and made it back without incident. Watched the final extended version of The Lord of the Rings so it was rather late when we went to bed and the wind had really come up.
Tuesday 1 March – Nai Harn
Just catching up on some work and relaxing. Still windy and so many plastic bags and a couple of fish traps have been floating past us. We have never seen so much rubbish in the bay. Have decided not to go ashore tonight – would probably get wet! So will eat on board. We could see a big storm to the east with all the silent lightning but then the wind came up and all of a sudden we had thunder, lightning and torrential rain. We had gone to bed but got up when we heard over the radio – all boats in Nai Harn – there is a cat on the loose. We went up to check and sure enough – a huge tri-catamaran had dragged all the way out and there it was just on our starboard side very close. A couple in a dinghy came out and asked us if it was still moving and we said yes so they boarded the boat. By now it had stopped dragging and it was dangerously close to us and it became clear that the people were not going to move it so we had to upanchor in the storm and go further out the back to re-anchor. There were unlit and badly lit boats around and the only way you can see them is when the lightning flashed. You could say it was a little bit stressful!!! Nai Harn has not been kind to us the year.
Wednesday 2 March – Nai Harn to Ao Chalong
The sea was a bit rolly so we upanchored and went around the point to the other side of Phuket Island. Ao Chalong is full of boats – big and small and also full of buoys so it is always a problem anchoring. We found a spot between three boats on buoys and a huge big wooden boat also on a buoy but his buoy has a big long rope and then he has a big long rope from the buoy to the boat so his swing room is enormous. We went ashore at 4pm and went to the Villa Market and bought some vegemite (and licorice)!! Then had dinner – the most magnificent huge salad – the meals at the Anchor Inn are enormous. Then Peter went to the dentist and Dell stayed to chat a while with Bach & Byte who had joined us. It was well after 8 when we started back to the boat and we could see the lightning and the dark sky. Got back to the boat about half an hour before the storm hit – timing!! We were sitting behind the huge big wooden boat and could see their TV so they were reasonably close!
Thursday 3 March – Ao Chalong
This morning we saw the most amazing thing – Peter said is that a hang glider with a boat on it. And sure enough it was a hang glider with an engine with a dinghy attached to the bottom and a person sitting in it. He bought it in to land on the water then motored to the boat ramp and drove up it – must have had some sort of wheels as well. A little later he took off and flew over us heading to another island!!! Amazing. Another thing we saw in a shop were kayaks with motors (water jet engines – no prop) in the back – Stu & Jean!!!! Good for when you get tired of paddling. Checked the weather for the day and decided to move as we were a little uneasy about the huge big boat thinking if a big blow came it would be possible for his long ropes to stretch and if we were behind him it might be a bit too close for comfort so we moved further out. Made the long trek to shore - about 1 ½ k and went to the paint store and found some paint which will do the interior of our boat and then wandered through the Home Store with all sorts of interesting things for the house. Then went back to the Anchor Inn for dinner and another one of those huge salads. It was almost dark when we headed back and dark by the time we got to the boat. It was a lovely still night with the sea like glass and we sat and watched the lights on the shore – very peaceful.
Friday 4 March – Ao Chalong
Caught the bus to Phuket town and walked around looking in all the lovely shops and went to the Dibuk Restaurant and Peter had the squid stuffed with pork which Brett had last time - it had gone up 20bht but was just as delicious. We were supposed to take a photo of it but the camera wasn’t working! Dell had the spicy pork which was also delicious. We were going to take the bus back but a tuk tuk driver offered to take us back for 100 bht (against 60 bht) so we said ok but as soon as he had us in the tuk tuk it was ‘I will take you to three stores you don’t have to buy anything but I will get free petrol for taking you there’! We weren’t at all keen as we had been caught with this in Bangkok, however, as it turned out the three stores were fantastic and we spent quite some time in them and yes we did purchase something. But it didn’t keep the tuk tuk man happy as we needed to spend 500 Bht for him to get a free t-shirt – our purchase didn’t come to that!! We went to the Anchor Inn and had another wonderful salad.
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| From gekko |
Calm Seas and Fair Winds
Dell and Peter
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Sat 19 to Fri 25 Feb Surin Isles to Khao Lak
Saturday 19 Feb –Surins
We had a really rough night with the swell coming through. A fishing boat had left the big yellow buoy in front of Cilantro so we headed over and took that one up. We jumped in Bob and went up through the channel where the really good coral was supposed to be but it was all dead so we didn’t bother snorkelling. Went back to the beach where we had first been and snorkelled there but the coral was all dead and there weren’t many fish. So we tried the other side near the boats but it was the same. A yacht left so we moved buoys a bit closer in away from where all the fishing boats raft up and give their catch to the waiting boat which must then deliver it to the market. Had sundowners with Cilantro and planned for next day. The Surins were a big disappointment.
Sunday 20 Feb – Surins – Koh Bungu Similan Islands
08°40.524N 097°38.737E
We left at 6.45 in sloppy seas with no wind so we motored. We put the spinnaker up but it was only up for 15 minutes then it fell in the water! Peter hooked a 5 ft wahoo and got it to the back of the boat – biggest fish we have ever seen – but it bit through the wire trace when he tried to gaff it. We tied up on a buoy at Koh Bangu at 4.15. There were fish everywhere under the boat so we jumped in to watch them – big fish and all different sorts. A lady of the German yacht next to us snorkelled by following a turtle and it came right up to her about a foot away from her face. Really beautiful turtle. A lovely place. The rangers came out and collected 400 bht each ($13) and 100 bht for the boat per day. We had a quiet night on board with Cilantro on the next buoy.
Monday 21 Feb – Koh Bungu
At 10am all the speedboats came in and bought heaps of snorkelers. We had a snorkel at lunch time when they had left. Heaps of huge big colourful fish. The reef is pretty much dead but the fish are fabulous. In the afternoon Cilantro collected us in their dinghy and we went across the channel to Island 8 (there are 9 islands in the Similan group) which is where the ranger station is. It has a beautiful beach and big boulders all round and is full of boats and tourists. We had a look around and went up the walk to the high boulders which overlooks both islands (8 and 9). Fabulous view. We had a swim and waited till all the tour boats left – the beach was lovely without anyone on it. Had sundowners on Pacific Express.
Tuesday 22 Feb – Koh Banhu to Koh Miang (island 4) Similans
Had a snorkel at 9am – all the boats came in at 10am and they were hand feeding the turtle with bananas. This explained why the turtle was so friendly!!! We left at 12.15 and motored to Koh Miang (Island 4) where we tied up on a buoy but it was too rough. Cilantro went around the other side of the island and radioed that it was better so we went round there too and tied up to a buoy –anchoring is only allowed in really deep water. We picked Cilantro up in Bob and went to shore for a swim. It is pure white sand with clear aqua water – just gorgeous. We had sundowners on our boat watching schools of lovely fish all around the boat. Had a lovely still night.
Wednesday 23 Feb – Koh Miang Similans
Cilantro left at 6.30 to head back to the mainland. Their visa is almost up and then they return to Australia for three weeks. After they left it got really rough here so we left to circumnavigate the southern three islands. The southern one had a gorgeous beach but only one buoy and unfortunately someone was on it. Came back to Koh Miang and tied up on the buoy Cilantro had been on. Went for a snorkel and saw a huge cow fish red with white spots and also another one with army camouflage and big cow eyes. Not sure if they weren’t some sort of puffer fish or cow fish. But very pretty. Tried snorkelling in a few different places and then back to the boat. The seas have settled a bit but it is still rocky.
Thursday 24 Feb – Koh Miang to Ban Thap Lamu
08°34.144N 098°13.032E
Woke at 2am with very strong winds and lightning high in the clouds all around us but no thunder. The large ketch anchored next to us started dragging backwards at a great rate of knots. We could hear thunder but the storm passed about 10 miles south of us. Daylight found us side on to the swell and rolling quite a bit so dropped the buoy and headed for the mainland. Thought we could see small dolphins frolicking around us but we think they may have been very large tuna! It was a lumpy trip till we got closer to the mainland and then the seas flattened out. We had wind on the nose all the way but just as we were going into Khao Lak it went SW (supposed to be NE) and the sky had a strange look and the weather felt weird so we went another 10nm up to the river at Ban Thap Lamu where the naval base is. We came in a picked up a buoy (which saved us putting our anchor in the mud!) Had a really peaceful night and slept really well.
Friday 25 Feb – Ban Thap Lamu – Khao Lak
It was a beautiful day so we went across the river to the town to get our internet topped up. Its rather a smelly kind of place. The last time we were here there were heaps of fishing boats all rafted up and the river was brown. There’s not half as many boats now and the river is a lovely green. Had lunch and then headed back up to Khao Lak where we hope to catch up with Peter’s cousin from Germany. We anchored off the little plastic jetty and went in for dinner at the beach side restaurant. As soon as we got to the jetty a young man came down to ask us about the boat and where we were from as he is trying to convince his wife to go sailing. He even offered us the use of the shower in his unit! We went for a walk up the street to see a bit of the town and to work out where we are to tell Peter’s cousin Axel and his wife Elisabeth. We last saw them about 27 years ago when we visited them in Germany. We came back and had a lovely dinner chatting to the couple at the table next door as they would like to have a sailing holiday here in December.
Well we have booked ourselves on the Sail Malaysia rally to the East leaving at the end of April. It will take us down the west coast of Malaysia and half way up the east coast and then across to Borneo – Sarawak and Sabah. If you are interested the website is www.sailmalaysia.net. There is also the Rainforest World Music Festival on in July in Kuching (www.rainforestmusic-borneo.com) so have bought three day passes for that. The rally ends in August. There are quite a few boats that we know doing it and at the end of it will be decision time for us all as to which direction we go next.
Meanwhile take care.
Calm seas be careful what you wish for!!
Dell and Peter
We had a really rough night with the swell coming through. A fishing boat had left the big yellow buoy in front of Cilantro so we headed over and took that one up. We jumped in Bob and went up through the channel where the really good coral was supposed to be but it was all dead so we didn’t bother snorkelling. Went back to the beach where we had first been and snorkelled there but the coral was all dead and there weren’t many fish. So we tried the other side near the boats but it was the same. A yacht left so we moved buoys a bit closer in away from where all the fishing boats raft up and give their catch to the waiting boat which must then deliver it to the market. Had sundowners with Cilantro and planned for next day. The Surins were a big disappointment.
Sunday 20 Feb – Surins – Koh Bungu Similan Islands
08°40.524N 097°38.737E
We left at 6.45 in sloppy seas with no wind so we motored. We put the spinnaker up but it was only up for 15 minutes then it fell in the water! Peter hooked a 5 ft wahoo and got it to the back of the boat – biggest fish we have ever seen – but it bit through the wire trace when he tried to gaff it. We tied up on a buoy at Koh Bangu at 4.15. There were fish everywhere under the boat so we jumped in to watch them – big fish and all different sorts. A lady of the German yacht next to us snorkelled by following a turtle and it came right up to her about a foot away from her face. Really beautiful turtle. A lovely place. The rangers came out and collected 400 bht each ($13) and 100 bht for the boat per day. We had a quiet night on board with Cilantro on the next buoy.
Monday 21 Feb – Koh Bungu
At 10am all the speedboats came in and bought heaps of snorkelers. We had a snorkel at lunch time when they had left. Heaps of huge big colourful fish. The reef is pretty much dead but the fish are fabulous. In the afternoon Cilantro collected us in their dinghy and we went across the channel to Island 8 (there are 9 islands in the Similan group) which is where the ranger station is. It has a beautiful beach and big boulders all round and is full of boats and tourists. We had a look around and went up the walk to the high boulders which overlooks both islands (8 and 9). Fabulous view. We had a swim and waited till all the tour boats left – the beach was lovely without anyone on it. Had sundowners on Pacific Express.
Tuesday 22 Feb – Koh Banhu to Koh Miang (island 4) Similans
Had a snorkel at 9am – all the boats came in at 10am and they were hand feeding the turtle with bananas. This explained why the turtle was so friendly!!! We left at 12.15 and motored to Koh Miang (Island 4) where we tied up on a buoy but it was too rough. Cilantro went around the other side of the island and radioed that it was better so we went round there too and tied up to a buoy –anchoring is only allowed in really deep water. We picked Cilantro up in Bob and went to shore for a swim. It is pure white sand with clear aqua water – just gorgeous. We had sundowners on our boat watching schools of lovely fish all around the boat. Had a lovely still night.
Wednesday 23 Feb – Koh Miang Similans
Cilantro left at 6.30 to head back to the mainland. Their visa is almost up and then they return to Australia for three weeks. After they left it got really rough here so we left to circumnavigate the southern three islands. The southern one had a gorgeous beach but only one buoy and unfortunately someone was on it. Came back to Koh Miang and tied up on the buoy Cilantro had been on. Went for a snorkel and saw a huge cow fish red with white spots and also another one with army camouflage and big cow eyes. Not sure if they weren’t some sort of puffer fish or cow fish. But very pretty. Tried snorkelling in a few different places and then back to the boat. The seas have settled a bit but it is still rocky.
Thursday 24 Feb – Koh Miang to Ban Thap Lamu
08°34.144N 098°13.032E
Woke at 2am with very strong winds and lightning high in the clouds all around us but no thunder. The large ketch anchored next to us started dragging backwards at a great rate of knots. We could hear thunder but the storm passed about 10 miles south of us. Daylight found us side on to the swell and rolling quite a bit so dropped the buoy and headed for the mainland. Thought we could see small dolphins frolicking around us but we think they may have been very large tuna! It was a lumpy trip till we got closer to the mainland and then the seas flattened out. We had wind on the nose all the way but just as we were going into Khao Lak it went SW (supposed to be NE) and the sky had a strange look and the weather felt weird so we went another 10nm up to the river at Ban Thap Lamu where the naval base is. We came in a picked up a buoy (which saved us putting our anchor in the mud!) Had a really peaceful night and slept really well.
Friday 25 Feb – Ban Thap Lamu – Khao Lak
It was a beautiful day so we went across the river to the town to get our internet topped up. Its rather a smelly kind of place. The last time we were here there were heaps of fishing boats all rafted up and the river was brown. There’s not half as many boats now and the river is a lovely green. Had lunch and then headed back up to Khao Lak where we hope to catch up with Peter’s cousin from Germany. We anchored off the little plastic jetty and went in for dinner at the beach side restaurant. As soon as we got to the jetty a young man came down to ask us about the boat and where we were from as he is trying to convince his wife to go sailing. He even offered us the use of the shower in his unit! We went for a walk up the street to see a bit of the town and to work out where we are to tell Peter’s cousin Axel and his wife Elisabeth. We last saw them about 27 years ago when we visited them in Germany. We came back and had a lovely dinner chatting to the couple at the table next door as they would like to have a sailing holiday here in December.
Well we have booked ourselves on the Sail Malaysia rally to the East leaving at the end of April. It will take us down the west coast of Malaysia and half way up the east coast and then across to Borneo – Sarawak and Sabah. If you are interested the website is www.sailmalaysia.net. There is also the Rainforest World Music Festival on in July in Kuching (www.rainforestmusic-borneo.com) so have bought three day passes for that. The rally ends in August. There are quite a few boats that we know doing it and at the end of it will be decision time for us all as to which direction we go next.
Meanwhile take care.
Calm seas be careful what you wish for!!
Dell and Peter
Monday, February 21, 2011
Sat 12 to Fri 18 Feb - Koh Phayam to Surin Isles
Saturday 12 Feb - Koh Phayam
Bit blowy but sunny. Went ashore at 11 and walked to the middle of the beach where a cement path went up. There are no roads, just wide footpaths and no cars only motorbikes. People are taken to their rooms by motorbike taxi. It was a beautiful walk with a few shops/stores along the way and we noticed lots of cashew nut trees. The nut grows at the end of a fruit. Peter tried to bite the cashew out if its shell but his mouth started burning - we have since found out that they are poisonous! We saw the nuts laid out to dry and then we came across a lady who was shelling them with a machine operated by foot pedal. There are lots of large solar panels everywhere. Also a lot of rubber trees. We walked about 5 km. Stopped at halfway and had a wonderful pineapple shake - lots of ice - which helped soother Peter's lips!!! There are two piers at the village - one has a Bhuddist temple at the end of it and the other is where the tour boats come in. We had a lovely lunch and could see a squirrel in a cage in the street - next thing the people took it down and were kicking it around with the poor little squirrel in it - looked terribly cruel. Then they poured water over it. Seems that it had got covered in green ants and they were trying to get them off - sadly the poor little thing died - was horrible. We took another footpath back - not so well used by bikes and no shops but very interesting - lots of huts where people lived and the odd mansion and we came back out on to the beach at the other end. Came back with a few beer stops and ended up at the Hornbill again where we sat and watched the sun set and shared a couple of appetisers which thankfully were huge. We were sitting on plastic chairs and James got his caught in a crack in the floor and he went over flat on his back! We adjourned to the Froggy restaurant where we were warned that there would be a bit of a wait as they were serving about six people on another table. To cut a long story short we waited 1 ½ hrs watching the other table get heaps of food. When we finally got ours it was very small and one of the worst meals we have ever had. And it was also expensive. The crispy tuna salad appeared to be the dregs that float on the top of the fryer and was totally inedible. The cat even ran away! So our early night ended up very late and was a disappointing finish to a wonderful day.
Bit blowy but sunny. Went ashore at 11 and walked to the middle of the beach where a cement path went up. There are no roads, just wide footpaths and no cars only motorbikes. People are taken to their rooms by motorbike taxi. It was a beautiful walk with a few shops/stores along the way and we noticed lots of cashew nut trees. The nut grows at the end of a fruit. Peter tried to bite the cashew out if its shell but his mouth started burning - we have since found out that they are poisonous! We saw the nuts laid out to dry and then we came across a lady who was shelling them with a machine operated by foot pedal. There are lots of large solar panels everywhere. Also a lot of rubber trees. We walked about 5 km. Stopped at halfway and had a wonderful pineapple shake - lots of ice - which helped soother Peter's lips!!! There are two piers at the village - one has a Bhuddist temple at the end of it and the other is where the tour boats come in. We had a lovely lunch and could see a squirrel in a cage in the street - next thing the people took it down and were kicking it around with the poor little squirrel in it - looked terribly cruel. Then they poured water over it. Seems that it had got covered in green ants and they were trying to get them off - sadly the poor little thing died - was horrible. We took another footpath back - not so well used by bikes and no shops but very interesting - lots of huts where people lived and the odd mansion and we came back out on to the beach at the other end. Came back with a few beer stops and ended up at the Hornbill again where we sat and watched the sun set and shared a couple of appetisers which thankfully were huge. We were sitting on plastic chairs and James got his caught in a crack in the floor and he went over flat on his back! We adjourned to the Froggy restaurant where we were warned that there would be a bit of a wait as they were serving about six people on another table. To cut a long story short we waited 1 ½ hrs watching the other table get heaps of food. When we finally got ours it was very small and one of the worst meals we have ever had. And it was also expensive. The crispy tuna salad appeared to be the dregs that float on the top of the fryer and was totally inedible. The cat even ran away! So our early night ended up very late and was a disappointing finish to a wonderful day.
Sunday 13 Feb - Koh Phayam
Had a very late start to the day then Mandolin Wind called us up on the radio so we waited till they and Braveheart got in. Saw something spiralling towards the water from a great height and were amazed to see it was two eagles joined together just spiralling down. When they were almost at the water they pulled apart and flew away. We went ashore at 2pm. Sandra and Dell walked to the shops up the footpath and bought some sandles, cakes and cashewnuts while the boys settled into a bar. It was a lot hotter today. We walked back to our dinghies and had a swim. At 6.30 we collected Cilantro and met up with Braveheart and Mandolin Wind so all went to the Hornbill restaurant and another English couple joined us. We are amazed at how people actually find these wonderful little out of the way places. It is by no means crowded but all the little huts and units seem to be full. It is a really laid back place. We had a lovely night. As we were coming out in Bob the only wave for the day broke over us and Sandra and Dell got soaked. But a lovely day.
Monday 14 Feb - Koh Phayam
Moved around to Buffalo Bay just around the corner. It is really pretty and is more protected with rocks at the back. Nimbus, Jellyfish and Alpha Centauri are all here. Apparently there had been a village here but it got wiped out by the tsunami so the Government built the village over the other side of the bay and the beach is now laid back little resorts and cabins. The hippy bar has been build out of scraps of wood from the sea. While we were hanging the washing we started hearing shouts for help. We could see a girl pushing through the water to shore and there was a snorkeller behind her. Then we heard what she was saying - help my boyfriend has disappeared and has not come up. So all the dinghies from all the yachts came and we were doing a bit of a grid search. The girl came out in a Thai boat from shore and one of the lads jumped in so we gave him our snorkel. It was becoming pretty clear by now that we were searching for a body and it was the most awful feeling and then there was a shout from out in the bay and there he was on a kayak. The girl was in the most awful case of shock and had cut her feet up pretty badly. When we went ashore a bit later to the hippy bar they turned up to buy us all a beer. Turned out he had followed a snorkeller to shore thinking it was her and when he found it wasn't he had gone to get the kayak to look for her. She meanwhile had followed someone else and when she realised it wasn't him and couldn't find him she panicked. Anyway alls well that ends well and we were all much relieved to see him. We joined Cilantro and Nimbus for dinner at Mr Goa's which was very pleasant indeed. While we walked along the beach a few dogs started howling and being very vocal then dogs came from everywhere and they all had a dog convention all howling for about five minutes and then they appeared happy and dispersed! Very strange.
Tuesday 15 Feb - Koh Phayam
We went to shore at 10.30 and together with Cilantro followed a hard dirt track through the jungle over the saddle in the hill. The jungle was very cool and we saw some monkeys but they ran away - seemed afraid of man. We came out on another beautiful beach with a restaurant and some cabins. One cabin was built on the rocks at the end of the beach - what a perfect spot! We walked the beach then had a swim. The water got deep rather quickly and while we were talking a big pike fish leapt out of the water behind James and Sandra startling all of us including the fish. We adjourned to the restaurant and had a lovely lunch then walked back up through the jungle. There were lots of little offshoot tracks leading down to the various resorts and restaurants. We walked till the track turned into a concrete road and then headed in to the Concept restaurant which was perched on the top of a cliff. It was very rocky offshore here. It was so lovely and cool so we had a drink then went down the stairs and walked around the headland on the rocks along the beach back to our dinghies where we had another swim and then joined Braveheart in a restaurant for a sundowner. We all adjourned back to our boats and met ashore for dinner with Cilantro, Braveheart and Mandolin Wind. Another pleasant evening.
Wednesday 16 Feb - Koh Phaya
Met Cilantro ashore at 1 and walked to the village to buy some fruit for the next section of our journey. We managed to get some warm bread rolls then walked back via the temple jetty. Sandra and James took their supplies back to their boat while we walked down to the Australian's shop to get information re Koh Chang which is the next island up. Unfortunatley they were closed so walked back and met Cilantro and Alpha Centauri at the restaurant. We had a lovely meal and saw the biggest gecko - red spots all over him. They feed him chicken and we didn't have the camera!!! He makes a very loud ge-ko sound.
Thursday 17 Feb - Koh Phayam to Koh Chang
09°50.846N 098°26.347E
We left at 10am and headed 5miles further up to Koh Chang. This is only 2 1/2miles from the Burmese border. We passed a Thai destroyer on the way. We went in between the marked rocks and the beach and it suddenly went very shallow. We think the rocks must continue to the beach. Got back into 7 metres and anchored quite close to the beach. The sand was black and not as nice as Phayam but very laid back. Restaurants and cabins on the beach. We decided to go for a walk but had trouble locating the path. Walked to a dam and instead of tracing our steps we went on and fournd the pier but there were no further footpaths. Suffice to say we walked for four hours - found the gypsy village down a little dirt track through jungle - we didn't mean to find it!!!! Anyway we eventually found our way back to the beach - saw some hornbill birds. Had a beer in three different restaurants - we were gasping and then went back to the first one to eat. Had a lovely meal then an early night!!
Friday 18 Feb - Koh Chang to Surins
Left at 7am and headed out and followed the red line of the border with Burma on the chartplotter. Caused a bit of a dog leg but though it was better to be safe than sorry!! Motored all day- light winds but not in the right direction. Peter actually caught his first fish in 18 months - an 81cm Spanish mackerel. Fish for dinner! We arrived at the Surin Islands (3 clustered islands) at 3.30. Cilantro picked up a big yellow buoy and we went to the other side of the bay and picked up a red buoy not too far from the beach so we are in a top spot.
Hoping you are all well - missing you
Calm seas but a bit of wind would be good
Dell and Peter
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Sunday, February 13, 2011
5 – 11 February – Koh Muk to Koh Phayam
Saturday 5 Feb– Koh Muk to Panwa Bali
Left at 6.30am & stopped at 11.30 to put Bob on board as he was slowing us down. Had a good sail day with intermittent motoring. Peter saw a sailfish break the water. We checked out the fishing island Ko Mai Thon but it was a very small anchorage so we kept going to Panwa Bali which is opposite Ao Chalong and anchored at 5.30pm next to Cilantro who rowed over for sundowners.
Sunday 6 Feb – Panwa Bali to Ko Racha Yai
Unanchored at 10am heading to Ko Racha Yai which was two hours away. It was a very rough trip over but we sailed all the way. A very pretty bay with crystal clear water but awash with tour boats. We anchored and waited till the tour boats left and then went ashore. Tied up to the floating jetty as it was too rocky to get to the beach. There is quite an exclusive resort so everything was expensive, even the beachside bars. As Peter was walking along the path a huge monitor lizard was ambling along in front of him. Apparently there are a lot on this island. We walked to the other side of the island where the bay is too shallow and rocky for boats to get in and there weren’t many people around but the beers were even more expensive. Came back just on dusk and ate a mediocre meal and then back to the boats.
Monday 7 Feb- Ko Racha Yai to Nai Harn
Upanchored at 10am and did a trolling run along the island to no avail (we haven’t caught a fish forever!!!!) and then headed to a very crowded Ao Chalong where we managed to squeeze in among the other yachts. We went to check in to Thailand while Cilantro went to retrieve their dinghy and motor, both of which had been in for repair. Got back to the boats about 3.30 and proceeded around the headland to Nai Harn where we anchored for the night quite close to Braveheart. We went in Cilantro’s dinghy to shore and had a lovely meal which was a little more expensive than usual but that is the difference between high season and low season (still cheap though!!). The waves were small but breaking so it was with trepidation that Dell got in the dinghy!! But we made it out without mishap!
Tuesday 8 February – Nai Harn to Ao Bang Tao
Departed at 8am for Patong – not much wind so motor sailed. We walked to the supermarket and then the wet market to get our supplies then caught a tuk tuk back. Got quite wet getting into Bob to go back to the boat but we are starting to get used to that again!!! We left at 3.30 and sailed to Ao Bang Tao arriving around 5.30. Braveheart and Mandolin Wind were anchored and invited us in to dinner but we had a quiet night on board.
Wednesday 9 February – Ao Bang Tao – Kao Lak
09°10’315N 098°18’476E
Left just after 8 and went around to Nai Yang Bay and said hullo to Wavesweeper and Single Malt who had just returned from where we are going and got some good information from them. Then we continued on up the coast – sailed most of the way with intermittent motoring. Arrived at Kao Lak around 5.30. It was a strange place to get into – lots of rocks - and we had an exhilarating moment when the water shallowed up and depths went all over the place – rocks underneath we think. Went a bit further north and nudged it in to 4m just off a little floating plastic jetty. Cilantro picked us up at 6.30 and we tied up at the jetty as the beach had quite a steep drop off to the water. To the left of the jetty were lots of resorts and to the right of the jetty were lots of little restaurants on the beach. While Patong is full of Russians this place seems to have a German influence and in fact we hope to meet up with Peter’s German cousin here on our return. We walked along the beach and inspected all the menus and came back to the first one which seemed to be the most popular. We asked to see the menu and he snatched them off a couple already seated and gave to us – we hoped they had finished with them!!! We were seated at a table on the beach. We had the loveliest tastiest meal. The boys went down to the water in the dark to “inspect the sea”. The English lady asked “are they inspecting the sea!” She didn’t really but you get my drift!!!! Anyway we got talking to her and her Dutch husband and they joined us at our table It was a very enjoyable evening with very good company and we had quite a laugh. When we went back the jetty was all lit up and it was very pretty.
Thursday 10 Feb – Kao Lak – Ban Pak Chok – Happy Birthday Patrick
09°10’315N 098°18’476E
We left at 8am. We headed back out the way we came in and even then cut a corner a bit fine!! Cilantro headed up the coast through the shallow water and were mostly in 2.5m. The sea was very calm and we motored all day though we did put up our mainsails in hope. We got to the entrance to the channel behind the island of Koh Phra Thong around 1pm. We dropped the mains and we suddenly went down to 2.1m under the keel and we could see the sandy bottom. Once we got into the channel it was deep water again. We motored all the way up the channel arriving at 3.30. It was quite a pretty trip between Koh Phra Thong and the mainland and we saw something that looked as though it may once have been a dirt bunker. Must look up some history on the place. An interesting day seeing places we have never been before. We anchored in 4.3m and had such a still night. The mossies came out so we locked ourselves below with a fan and watched part 1 of The Lord of the Rings.
Friday 11 Feb – Ban Pak Chok – Ko Phayam
09°43’587N 098°23’102E
Left at 8am and went down to 1.3m under the keel on the way out. Motored till the channel came out in the ocean and we sailed for three hours then motored for a while. Two large fishing boats passed us and as they got in front we could smell them – not nice! Dodged a few fish traps – some with flags, some escaped and floating and arrived at Koh Phayam at 3.30. We are now just 6 miles from the Burmese seaward border and around 15 miles from the land border. We are at a lovely island in a sheltered bay. The beach is very hard and motor bikes go up and down it but at the high water mark the sand is lovely and soft and white. There are lots of little restaurants along the beach so we walked half way along the beach and went to one (Joker) and had a beer but couldn’t get served again to order food. So we went to the restaurant next door and ordered two dishes between the four of us then went to Hornbills and ordered another two – beautiful food. Left to try the next restaurant (Froggy) but their kitchen closed at 10 and as it was now 9.30 it was closed! Went back to the Cuisine and had another two meals and the lady told us not many tourists come because there is no air con and no TV. We had noticed a whole stack of batteries so deduced there is only self generated power. We came out to the boat in the dark but couldn’t see or hear James and Sandra so went back in to check. On the way out they had run over the line to a little red boat which was on a buoy. James said to Sandra I think we are towing that boat and sure enough the line had attached itself to them !!! So they took the boat to shore and pulled it high up on the beach – we arrived in time to help. Not sure what the owner of the red boat will say when he finds it way up the beach but at least it’s safe! The beach actually dries a long way out so at low tide its quite a way.
Well we are on our way again on a journey to new places and it feels more like we have a purpose now. Give Jessie, Charlie and our little Rosie cuddles from us – we miss them.
Calm seas and fair winds
Dell and Peter
Left at 6.30am & stopped at 11.30 to put Bob on board as he was slowing us down. Had a good sail day with intermittent motoring. Peter saw a sailfish break the water. We checked out the fishing island Ko Mai Thon but it was a very small anchorage so we kept going to Panwa Bali which is opposite Ao Chalong and anchored at 5.30pm next to Cilantro who rowed over for sundowners.
Sunday 6 Feb – Panwa Bali to Ko Racha Yai
Unanchored at 10am heading to Ko Racha Yai which was two hours away. It was a very rough trip over but we sailed all the way. A very pretty bay with crystal clear water but awash with tour boats. We anchored and waited till the tour boats left and then went ashore. Tied up to the floating jetty as it was too rocky to get to the beach. There is quite an exclusive resort so everything was expensive, even the beachside bars. As Peter was walking along the path a huge monitor lizard was ambling along in front of him. Apparently there are a lot on this island. We walked to the other side of the island where the bay is too shallow and rocky for boats to get in and there weren’t many people around but the beers were even more expensive. Came back just on dusk and ate a mediocre meal and then back to the boats.
Monday 7 Feb- Ko Racha Yai to Nai Harn
Upanchored at 10am and did a trolling run along the island to no avail (we haven’t caught a fish forever!!!!) and then headed to a very crowded Ao Chalong where we managed to squeeze in among the other yachts. We went to check in to Thailand while Cilantro went to retrieve their dinghy and motor, both of which had been in for repair. Got back to the boats about 3.30 and proceeded around the headland to Nai Harn where we anchored for the night quite close to Braveheart. We went in Cilantro’s dinghy to shore and had a lovely meal which was a little more expensive than usual but that is the difference between high season and low season (still cheap though!!). The waves were small but breaking so it was with trepidation that Dell got in the dinghy!! But we made it out without mishap!
Tuesday 8 February – Nai Harn to Ao Bang Tao
Departed at 8am for Patong – not much wind so motor sailed. We walked to the supermarket and then the wet market to get our supplies then caught a tuk tuk back. Got quite wet getting into Bob to go back to the boat but we are starting to get used to that again!!! We left at 3.30 and sailed to Ao Bang Tao arriving around 5.30. Braveheart and Mandolin Wind were anchored and invited us in to dinner but we had a quiet night on board.
Wednesday 9 February – Ao Bang Tao – Kao Lak
09°10’315N 098°18’476E
Left just after 8 and went around to Nai Yang Bay and said hullo to Wavesweeper and Single Malt who had just returned from where we are going and got some good information from them. Then we continued on up the coast – sailed most of the way with intermittent motoring. Arrived at Kao Lak around 5.30. It was a strange place to get into – lots of rocks - and we had an exhilarating moment when the water shallowed up and depths went all over the place – rocks underneath we think. Went a bit further north and nudged it in to 4m just off a little floating plastic jetty. Cilantro picked us up at 6.30 and we tied up at the jetty as the beach had quite a steep drop off to the water. To the left of the jetty were lots of resorts and to the right of the jetty were lots of little restaurants on the beach. While Patong is full of Russians this place seems to have a German influence and in fact we hope to meet up with Peter’s German cousin here on our return. We walked along the beach and inspected all the menus and came back to the first one which seemed to be the most popular. We asked to see the menu and he snatched them off a couple already seated and gave to us – we hoped they had finished with them!!! We were seated at a table on the beach. We had the loveliest tastiest meal. The boys went down to the water in the dark to “inspect the sea”. The English lady asked “are they inspecting the sea!” She didn’t really but you get my drift!!!! Anyway we got talking to her and her Dutch husband and they joined us at our table It was a very enjoyable evening with very good company and we had quite a laugh. When we went back the jetty was all lit up and it was very pretty.
Thursday 10 Feb – Kao Lak – Ban Pak Chok – Happy Birthday Patrick
09°10’315N 098°18’476E
We left at 8am. We headed back out the way we came in and even then cut a corner a bit fine!! Cilantro headed up the coast through the shallow water and were mostly in 2.5m. The sea was very calm and we motored all day though we did put up our mainsails in hope. We got to the entrance to the channel behind the island of Koh Phra Thong around 1pm. We dropped the mains and we suddenly went down to 2.1m under the keel and we could see the sandy bottom. Once we got into the channel it was deep water again. We motored all the way up the channel arriving at 3.30. It was quite a pretty trip between Koh Phra Thong and the mainland and we saw something that looked as though it may once have been a dirt bunker. Must look up some history on the place. An interesting day seeing places we have never been before. We anchored in 4.3m and had such a still night. The mossies came out so we locked ourselves below with a fan and watched part 1 of The Lord of the Rings.
Friday 11 Feb – Ban Pak Chok – Ko Phayam
09°43’587N 098°23’102E
Left at 8am and went down to 1.3m under the keel on the way out. Motored till the channel came out in the ocean and we sailed for three hours then motored for a while. Two large fishing boats passed us and as they got in front we could smell them – not nice! Dodged a few fish traps – some with flags, some escaped and floating and arrived at Koh Phayam at 3.30. We are now just 6 miles from the Burmese seaward border and around 15 miles from the land border. We are at a lovely island in a sheltered bay. The beach is very hard and motor bikes go up and down it but at the high water mark the sand is lovely and soft and white. There are lots of little restaurants along the beach so we walked half way along the beach and went to one (Joker) and had a beer but couldn’t get served again to order food. So we went to the restaurant next door and ordered two dishes between the four of us then went to Hornbills and ordered another two – beautiful food. Left to try the next restaurant (Froggy) but their kitchen closed at 10 and as it was now 9.30 it was closed! Went back to the Cuisine and had another two meals and the lady told us not many tourists come because there is no air con and no TV. We had noticed a whole stack of batteries so deduced there is only self generated power. We came out to the boat in the dark but couldn’t see or hear James and Sandra so went back in to check. On the way out they had run over the line to a little red boat which was on a buoy. James said to Sandra I think we are towing that boat and sure enough the line had attached itself to them !!! So they took the boat to shore and pulled it high up on the beach – we arrived in time to help. Not sure what the owner of the red boat will say when he finds it way up the beach but at least it’s safe! The beach actually dries a long way out so at low tide its quite a way.
Well we are on our way again on a journey to new places and it feels more like we have a purpose now. Give Jessie, Charlie and our little Rosie cuddles from us – we miss them.
Calm seas and fair winds
Dell and Peter
Thursday, February 10, 2011
15 Jan to 4 Feb - Thailand/Malaysia
Saturday 15 Jan – Happy Birthday Kristen
We got up at 6.30 and went into the beach for a walk. Lots of people sleeping on the beach but nice and quiet and lovely to see it without the crowds. Left at 9.15 and sailed along nicely with the main and headsail - we think we have gained at least 1 – 2 knots in speed since having the boat painted. The deck used to be a pale grey but now it is white and we cant believe the difference it makes – we can actually stand on it now without it burning our feet – its fantastic. The only downside is white tends to get a bit dirty!! Sailed to Ao Chalong , shopped and had dinner at Took’s new restaurant which was a bit embarrassing as it was obvious she wasn’t ready to open yet but cooked us up a good meal anyway.
Sunday 16 Jan
Boat cleaning day getting ready for the survey we have to have on the boat before our insurance company will insure us again. Our insurance company – Yacht Sure set us adrift before Christmas and refused to cover us till we had the survey despite the fact we had paid for a year’s cover. We managed to get the third party reinstated but only after Christmas as no-one was at work. Made us wonder how hard/easy it would be to get help and make a claim! Went to the Anchor Inn for dinner – really good food.
Monday 17 Jan
Brett and I caught the bus to Phuket town – the bus is an open sided truck - and Peter picked up the surveyor. The survey took four hours and went well then Peter checked us all out of Thailand. Meanwhile Brett went to the physio and then we had a lovely lunch. Brett had squid stuffed with pork which turned out to be very nice and we wished we had taken a photo! All back on board, the weather came up a bit so Peter cooked a slap up meal and we ate on board.
Tuesday 18 Jan
We left Ao Chalong in strong winds and larger seas than we had seen in a while. The boys were fine but I went below succumbing to seasickness! The angle of the wind brought us in to Phi Phi Le but there were no spare buoys so just as we were turning away one of the boats dropped a mooring and the boys couldn’t believe their luck and picked it up immediately. We went for a snorkel as conditions were finally perfect! We saw the biggest school of parrot fish with other kinds mixed in and it was a great snorkel and a lovely evening.
Wednesday 19 Jan
Left Phi Phi Le around 9 and anchored at Ko Lanta after 12. We went ashore and found our little bar and the people remembered us from when we were there with Debbie and Phil. We were offered some snake whisky – same snakes in the bottle – they just keep topping up the whisky and so unhygenic!!! We passed on the offer. Had a swim then back to the boat and back in again for dinner. Another pleasant evening on the beach!
Thursday 20 Jan
Motor sailed to Ko Muk and then took Bob around to the Emerald cave. We managed to catch it with hardly any tourists in there. Then we went around the little rocky cove and had a swim. We have never managed to anchor here as there is always a boat in there and it is really only big enough for one boat. Went back to the boat and then to the little local restaurant on the cliff at the end of the beach and had a fabulous cheap meal and watched another gorgeous sunset.
Friday 21 Jan
Departed early and watched the most amazing sunrise – a big orange ball coming up out of the sea. We arrived at Tarutao around 3pm and anchored quite close in and went for a walk. The sandflies attacked Peter. Brett found a soccer ball (or two) washed up on the beach so we had a bit of a kick around then went for a swim to get rid of the sandflies. They stayed with Peter all the way back to the boat!!
Saturday 22 Jan
Left Tarutao and headed for Telaga in Malaysia but it was very crowded with boats and too shallow for spring tides so went to the beaches and nudged our way in and anchored in about 4m. Went ashore and had a look around and ended up eating at Raffi’s bar – best food and a lovely witty waiter named Aslan. There was a live band next door so we ended up there and had a wonderful time. When we came ashore it was low tide so took Bob up the beach and didn’t tie him off and by the time we got back to him – about 1.30am – the water was lapping at his heels!! A great night.
Sunday 23 Jan
Left the beaches around 11 and sailed around to Kuah. Peter checked us into Malaysia while Brett and I shopped. Dined at the local Chinese.
Monday 24 Jan
Saw Braveheart come in so went to say hullo. We did some shopping then met Braveheart to help them celebrate their 84th wedding anniversary – 42 years for Judy and 42 years for Chris!!
Tuesday 25 Jan
Left in a fair amount of breeze and headed back around to the beaches. Nudged in a little bit further and went into dinner at Raffis where Aslan greeted us all by name. A lovely evening.
Wednesday 26 Jan – Happy Australia Day
Headed back round to Telaga hoping to go up in the cable car. Anchored outside the anchorage, took Bob to shore and walked to the cable car, looked around then waited in line till it opened at 12. At 12 a notice went up to say that it was too windy and it wouldn’t be opening! So walked back to Bob and on the way back to the boat the outboard stopped. We thought we were going to have to row the rest of the way but we got it going again – it stopped about three times. Turned out to be dirty fuel but all fixed now. We arrived at Rebak marina and tied up to our berth, checked in, had a welcome shower and then had a slap up meal at the Hard Dock cafe.
Thursday 27 Jan
Brett finally got to go up the mast for Peter to fix a line. It was a little more exhilarating than he expected but he enjoyed the experience and got some good photos. We then caught the launch across to Langkawi, collected our hire car and found a chinese place to have some lunch. Then we took Brett to the airport for his trip home. We really enjoyed his company and I think he enjoyed his time with us – we know he really enjoyed the gastromic experience!!! He loves his food!
Friday 28 Jan – Sun 30th Jan
Started a clean up of the boat putting things where they actually go as we hadn’t had a chance to do that before and getting the boat cleaned and ship shape. Peter serviced the motor, the curtains went back up, the outboard was serviced. Dug our tv out from under the back bunk and worked out how we could install it – its been under the back bunk for almost two years!
Monday 31 Jan
Left Rebak and went back around to Kuah. Caught a taxi to collect our wine from the warehouse and ordered the beer from the jetty lady. Had a wonderful meal at the Asian restaurant and met some yachties who have been up here for some years – interesting people.
Tuesday 1 Feb
Went to town and bought a car stereo dvd / cd player and Peter installed the tv and dvd player and wired it all in so we don’t have wires hanging around everywhere. We did our shopping and found a shop selling cheap dvds. Ate on board and watched a dvd – The Sorcerers Apprentice – because we could!!
Wednesday 2 Feb – Happy Birthday Brett
Quiet boat day and a final shop for supplies.
Thursday 3 Feb
Checked out of Malaysia at 9.30 and headed to Telaga where we took on 300 litres of diesel – 690RM ($230) and headed for Tarutao. Uneventful sailing trip and anchored around 6pm. There was so much phospherence in the water. Saw five monkeys and a pig on the beach and a man camping in a tent in the bushes. Wind gusted very strongly through the night.
Friday 4 Feb
Left at 6.30am – it was just light. Had a good sail in the morning but by afternoon the wind had dropped off and we motored the rest of the way to Koh Muk arriving at 3.30pm. Went to our little restaurant on the hill for dinner. As the tide starting coming in small waves started breaking on the beach so left just on dark while we could still see the waves.
Well we have almost brought you up to date. We are at the stage where we need to do some serious cruising again. Heading up to the Burmese border and then out to the islands next week and trying to decide what we will do this year. The Eastern Malaysian rally is looking good at the moment. Quite a few boats are heading up through the Red Sea at the moment but that is something which is off our agenda. Anyway hope you all came through the cyclone ok. The weather here is coming good at last.
Take care
Dell and Peter
May the wind be always at your back
We got up at 6.30 and went into the beach for a walk. Lots of people sleeping on the beach but nice and quiet and lovely to see it without the crowds. Left at 9.15 and sailed along nicely with the main and headsail - we think we have gained at least 1 – 2 knots in speed since having the boat painted. The deck used to be a pale grey but now it is white and we cant believe the difference it makes – we can actually stand on it now without it burning our feet – its fantastic. The only downside is white tends to get a bit dirty!! Sailed to Ao Chalong , shopped and had dinner at Took’s new restaurant which was a bit embarrassing as it was obvious she wasn’t ready to open yet but cooked us up a good meal anyway.
Sunday 16 Jan
Boat cleaning day getting ready for the survey we have to have on the boat before our insurance company will insure us again. Our insurance company – Yacht Sure set us adrift before Christmas and refused to cover us till we had the survey despite the fact we had paid for a year’s cover. We managed to get the third party reinstated but only after Christmas as no-one was at work. Made us wonder how hard/easy it would be to get help and make a claim! Went to the Anchor Inn for dinner – really good food.
Monday 17 Jan
Brett and I caught the bus to Phuket town – the bus is an open sided truck - and Peter picked up the surveyor. The survey took four hours and went well then Peter checked us all out of Thailand. Meanwhile Brett went to the physio and then we had a lovely lunch. Brett had squid stuffed with pork which turned out to be very nice and we wished we had taken a photo! All back on board, the weather came up a bit so Peter cooked a slap up meal and we ate on board.
Tuesday 18 Jan
We left Ao Chalong in strong winds and larger seas than we had seen in a while. The boys were fine but I went below succumbing to seasickness! The angle of the wind brought us in to Phi Phi Le but there were no spare buoys so just as we were turning away one of the boats dropped a mooring and the boys couldn’t believe their luck and picked it up immediately. We went for a snorkel as conditions were finally perfect! We saw the biggest school of parrot fish with other kinds mixed in and it was a great snorkel and a lovely evening.
Wednesday 19 Jan
Left Phi Phi Le around 9 and anchored at Ko Lanta after 12. We went ashore and found our little bar and the people remembered us from when we were there with Debbie and Phil. We were offered some snake whisky – same snakes in the bottle – they just keep topping up the whisky and so unhygenic!!! We passed on the offer. Had a swim then back to the boat and back in again for dinner. Another pleasant evening on the beach!
Thursday 20 Jan
Motor sailed to Ko Muk and then took Bob around to the Emerald cave. We managed to catch it with hardly any tourists in there. Then we went around the little rocky cove and had a swim. We have never managed to anchor here as there is always a boat in there and it is really only big enough for one boat. Went back to the boat and then to the little local restaurant on the cliff at the end of the beach and had a fabulous cheap meal and watched another gorgeous sunset.
Friday 21 Jan
Departed early and watched the most amazing sunrise – a big orange ball coming up out of the sea. We arrived at Tarutao around 3pm and anchored quite close in and went for a walk. The sandflies attacked Peter. Brett found a soccer ball (or two) washed up on the beach so we had a bit of a kick around then went for a swim to get rid of the sandflies. They stayed with Peter all the way back to the boat!!
Saturday 22 Jan
Left Tarutao and headed for Telaga in Malaysia but it was very crowded with boats and too shallow for spring tides so went to the beaches and nudged our way in and anchored in about 4m. Went ashore and had a look around and ended up eating at Raffi’s bar – best food and a lovely witty waiter named Aslan. There was a live band next door so we ended up there and had a wonderful time. When we came ashore it was low tide so took Bob up the beach and didn’t tie him off and by the time we got back to him – about 1.30am – the water was lapping at his heels!! A great night.
Sunday 23 Jan
Left the beaches around 11 and sailed around to Kuah. Peter checked us into Malaysia while Brett and I shopped. Dined at the local Chinese.
Monday 24 Jan
Saw Braveheart come in so went to say hullo. We did some shopping then met Braveheart to help them celebrate their 84th wedding anniversary – 42 years for Judy and 42 years for Chris!!
Tuesday 25 Jan
Left in a fair amount of breeze and headed back around to the beaches. Nudged in a little bit further and went into dinner at Raffis where Aslan greeted us all by name. A lovely evening.
Wednesday 26 Jan – Happy Australia Day
Headed back round to Telaga hoping to go up in the cable car. Anchored outside the anchorage, took Bob to shore and walked to the cable car, looked around then waited in line till it opened at 12. At 12 a notice went up to say that it was too windy and it wouldn’t be opening! So walked back to Bob and on the way back to the boat the outboard stopped. We thought we were going to have to row the rest of the way but we got it going again – it stopped about three times. Turned out to be dirty fuel but all fixed now. We arrived at Rebak marina and tied up to our berth, checked in, had a welcome shower and then had a slap up meal at the Hard Dock cafe.
Thursday 27 Jan
Brett finally got to go up the mast for Peter to fix a line. It was a little more exhilarating than he expected but he enjoyed the experience and got some good photos. We then caught the launch across to Langkawi, collected our hire car and found a chinese place to have some lunch. Then we took Brett to the airport for his trip home. We really enjoyed his company and I think he enjoyed his time with us – we know he really enjoyed the gastromic experience!!! He loves his food!
Friday 28 Jan – Sun 30th Jan
Started a clean up of the boat putting things where they actually go as we hadn’t had a chance to do that before and getting the boat cleaned and ship shape. Peter serviced the motor, the curtains went back up, the outboard was serviced. Dug our tv out from under the back bunk and worked out how we could install it – its been under the back bunk for almost two years!
Monday 31 Jan
Left Rebak and went back around to Kuah. Caught a taxi to collect our wine from the warehouse and ordered the beer from the jetty lady. Had a wonderful meal at the Asian restaurant and met some yachties who have been up here for some years – interesting people.
Tuesday 1 Feb
Went to town and bought a car stereo dvd / cd player and Peter installed the tv and dvd player and wired it all in so we don’t have wires hanging around everywhere. We did our shopping and found a shop selling cheap dvds. Ate on board and watched a dvd – The Sorcerers Apprentice – because we could!!
Wednesday 2 Feb – Happy Birthday Brett
Quiet boat day and a final shop for supplies.
Thursday 3 Feb
Checked out of Malaysia at 9.30 and headed to Telaga where we took on 300 litres of diesel – 690RM ($230) and headed for Tarutao. Uneventful sailing trip and anchored around 6pm. There was so much phospherence in the water. Saw five monkeys and a pig on the beach and a man camping in a tent in the bushes. Wind gusted very strongly through the night.
Friday 4 Feb
Left at 6.30am – it was just light. Had a good sail in the morning but by afternoon the wind had dropped off and we motored the rest of the way to Koh Muk arriving at 3.30pm. Went to our little restaurant on the hill for dinner. As the tide starting coming in small waves started breaking on the beach so left just on dark while we could still see the waves.
Well we have almost brought you up to date. We are at the stage where we need to do some serious cruising again. Heading up to the Burmese border and then out to the islands next week and trying to decide what we will do this year. The Eastern Malaysian rally is looking good at the moment. Quite a few boats are heading up through the Red Sea at the moment but that is something which is off our agenda. Anyway hope you all came through the cyclone ok. The weather here is coming good at last.
Take care
Dell and Peter
May the wind be always at your back
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Thailand - New Year to 15 Jan
New Year
We went to shore at Patong with Cilantro, Bach & Byte and Single Malt and found a restaurant where we had a meal and then went down the happening street in Patong. The place was crowded and everyone was having fun. Bach & Byte went back to the boats to watch the fireworks from there but we all stayed and wandered around the various bars and had a lot of fun. Getting towards midnight we all headed down to the beach amongst the crowd and watched the fireworks go off – overhead. We were pleased we weren’t closer to the beach as the fireworks are not organised – just people letting them off and it went on for ages. There were hundreds of peace lanterns being let go into the sky as well and it was just amazing standing underneath the whole thing. The crowd was huge but very well behaved. When that was over we headed back up the happening street and didn’t get back to the boat till 4.30am!!! It was a new year celebration to remember.
After that we headed south as the wind had really come up and made our way around towards Phang Nha bay. The next day we went to Phanak and introduced Brett to the hongs and the very long scary tunnel into it. We timed the tides right and managed to see them all though the weather wasn’t all that good. Spent a couple of nights here then went to the gypsy village. We had intended to come back to Koh Hong and James Bond island but we never did make it back. Brett had his photo taken with a gibbon and there was a celebration going on at the school. We watched children in the water all hanging on to protruding sticks in the water in a net compound. Then about six ducks were thrown n and the children had to catch them (a bit like catch the greasy pig!!!). The poor ducks almost drowned as children holding them by the necks swam back to the boat!! It was however entertaining to watch (but not so much for the ducks). We took Bob (dinghy) and went and looked at the cave paintings just across from where we anchored. A longtail had previously offered to take us there and around for an hour for 1200 baht ($40!!!!).
Sunday 9 Jan
Left around 10am and stopped at lunch time at a place we hadn’t managed to anchor at and took Bob around to look at the hong and were going to swim until we saw the sea lice and made a hasty retreat. The weather improved and the seas were calm when we anchored at Ko Pak Bia – one of our favourite places. We had a snorkel but the visibility was bad so went back to the boat and watched people set up for a wedding and then watched a lovely beach wedding. They left it a bit late to leave and the boat used all its engines to get off the beach throwing a wall of water into the air back on to the beach. Half the people had to get off the boat so they could get it out and we think they may have burned out an engine! Had a good night playing texas holdem. I went out early but Brett and Peter went on till the early hours of the morning accompanied by Captain Morgan! until Brett managed to beat his father.
Monday 10 Jan
Went over to Koh Hong Krabi and got a buoy. Brett and Peter took Bob to see the hong and to go around the island then we went ashore where we got charged 200bht each for landing on the island (national park). We did the nature walk and had a swim. There were lots of little fish and one bit me on the back of the leg! We stayed the night as Brett wanted to see the beach in the morning without the crowds.
Tuesday 11 Jan
Hearing dreadful news from home about the floods. Went to shore next morning. A big cruise ship turned up and also we could see lots of sound equipment on the beach. The big ship moved to the other side of the island out of view of the beach as it turned out they were doing a bollywood movie!! We weren’t allowed on that part of the beach. The tide was way out so we left and headed to Krabi. There were so many people on the beach you could hardly walk along it. A few longtail boats had set themselves up as floating snackbars which was a good idea. We headed around to the rock climbing beach and went ashore and found a bar with good ambience and settled for an hour or two listening to good music. Changed for dinner and had the best cheapest food at Mamas up the alley. We walked up the road and discovered there were more bars and bungalows along the road. Came back to the beach and spent a couple of hours at the Chill Out reggae bar listening to a live performer.
Wednesday 12 Jan
Dreadful news from home about the floods – feeling we should be there but there’s nothing we could really do. Headed off towards Phi Phi Don and were going past the Bamboo Island when we saw a buoy so grabbed it and went ashore to a beautiful white beach and an area was cordoned off for snorkelling. There were plenty of fish and I saw my first snake!! Black and white bands. I lost sight of it and next thing Brett dives down to look at something and looks up to see the snake coming towards him on one side and a moray eel on the other!! He back pedalled very quickly!! We then headed for Klang reef but there were no buoys though we nudged our noses in and I let us go in a bit too far but a quick port turn and we got out ok!! Headed to Phi Phi Don and went in to dinner and for a look around.
Thursday 13 Jan
We headed back round to Klang reef and anchored in 17.5m and took Bob in and snorkelled the reef for an hour. Then we headed around Phi Phi Don and stopped at a nice bay and went ashore but there was nothing of interest so headed to Phi Phi Le getting there at 4.30 but there was no chance of getting a buoy so headed back to Phi Phi Don where we could see a storm approaching. Stayed onboard as it was raining and quite windy.
Friday 14 Jan
Moved anchor as we were too close to a dive boat on a buoy then we went to shore to see if we could get a longtail. Found one which left at 9am (this was 8.45am). There were 14 people onboard and we went to a beach just near where we were anchored where there were a couple of monkeys, one of which took someone’s water bottle, took the lid off and drank from it. Went to the beach at Phi Phi Le (where the movie the beach was made) and it was so crowded!! We walked across to the other side of the island – stayed an hour till the longtail left and then went round the other side of the island to snorkel. The fish were great, the only worry being hit by a longtail or another boat!! Then went to a lovely long hong and had a swim – it was absolutely beautiful and a place that we would not have been able to see in our boat. It was a great morning out and very good value. We left late in the afternoon to see if we could get a buoy in Phi Phi Le and just as we got there a big cat released one so we grabbed it – couldn’t believe our luck. Quite swelly and water murky. There was quite a party on the beach that night with the sleep on the beach tour group – they were still doing fire twirling at 12.30am!
Will bring you up to date shortly, meanwhile our thoughts are with you all at home with the devastating floods and we hope you all manage to avoid that incredibly frightening cyclone which is bearing down on Queensland tonight.
Much Love
Dell and Peter
We went to shore at Patong with Cilantro, Bach & Byte and Single Malt and found a restaurant where we had a meal and then went down the happening street in Patong. The place was crowded and everyone was having fun. Bach & Byte went back to the boats to watch the fireworks from there but we all stayed and wandered around the various bars and had a lot of fun. Getting towards midnight we all headed down to the beach amongst the crowd and watched the fireworks go off – overhead. We were pleased we weren’t closer to the beach as the fireworks are not organised – just people letting them off and it went on for ages. There were hundreds of peace lanterns being let go into the sky as well and it was just amazing standing underneath the whole thing. The crowd was huge but very well behaved. When that was over we headed back up the happening street and didn’t get back to the boat till 4.30am!!! It was a new year celebration to remember.
After that we headed south as the wind had really come up and made our way around towards Phang Nha bay. The next day we went to Phanak and introduced Brett to the hongs and the very long scary tunnel into it. We timed the tides right and managed to see them all though the weather wasn’t all that good. Spent a couple of nights here then went to the gypsy village. We had intended to come back to Koh Hong and James Bond island but we never did make it back. Brett had his photo taken with a gibbon and there was a celebration going on at the school. We watched children in the water all hanging on to protruding sticks in the water in a net compound. Then about six ducks were thrown n and the children had to catch them (a bit like catch the greasy pig!!!). The poor ducks almost drowned as children holding them by the necks swam back to the boat!! It was however entertaining to watch (but not so much for the ducks). We took Bob (dinghy) and went and looked at the cave paintings just across from where we anchored. A longtail had previously offered to take us there and around for an hour for 1200 baht ($40!!!!).
Sunday 9 Jan
Left around 10am and stopped at lunch time at a place we hadn’t managed to anchor at and took Bob around to look at the hong and were going to swim until we saw the sea lice and made a hasty retreat. The weather improved and the seas were calm when we anchored at Ko Pak Bia – one of our favourite places. We had a snorkel but the visibility was bad so went back to the boat and watched people set up for a wedding and then watched a lovely beach wedding. They left it a bit late to leave and the boat used all its engines to get off the beach throwing a wall of water into the air back on to the beach. Half the people had to get off the boat so they could get it out and we think they may have burned out an engine! Had a good night playing texas holdem. I went out early but Brett and Peter went on till the early hours of the morning accompanied by Captain Morgan! until Brett managed to beat his father.
Monday 10 Jan
Went over to Koh Hong Krabi and got a buoy. Brett and Peter took Bob to see the hong and to go around the island then we went ashore where we got charged 200bht each for landing on the island (national park). We did the nature walk and had a swim. There were lots of little fish and one bit me on the back of the leg! We stayed the night as Brett wanted to see the beach in the morning without the crowds.
Tuesday 11 Jan
Hearing dreadful news from home about the floods. Went to shore next morning. A big cruise ship turned up and also we could see lots of sound equipment on the beach. The big ship moved to the other side of the island out of view of the beach as it turned out they were doing a bollywood movie!! We weren’t allowed on that part of the beach. The tide was way out so we left and headed to Krabi. There were so many people on the beach you could hardly walk along it. A few longtail boats had set themselves up as floating snackbars which was a good idea. We headed around to the rock climbing beach and went ashore and found a bar with good ambience and settled for an hour or two listening to good music. Changed for dinner and had the best cheapest food at Mamas up the alley. We walked up the road and discovered there were more bars and bungalows along the road. Came back to the beach and spent a couple of hours at the Chill Out reggae bar listening to a live performer.
Wednesday 12 Jan
Dreadful news from home about the floods – feeling we should be there but there’s nothing we could really do. Headed off towards Phi Phi Don and were going past the Bamboo Island when we saw a buoy so grabbed it and went ashore to a beautiful white beach and an area was cordoned off for snorkelling. There were plenty of fish and I saw my first snake!! Black and white bands. I lost sight of it and next thing Brett dives down to look at something and looks up to see the snake coming towards him on one side and a moray eel on the other!! He back pedalled very quickly!! We then headed for Klang reef but there were no buoys though we nudged our noses in and I let us go in a bit too far but a quick port turn and we got out ok!! Headed to Phi Phi Don and went in to dinner and for a look around.
Thursday 13 Jan
We headed back round to Klang reef and anchored in 17.5m and took Bob in and snorkelled the reef for an hour. Then we headed around Phi Phi Don and stopped at a nice bay and went ashore but there was nothing of interest so headed to Phi Phi Le getting there at 4.30 but there was no chance of getting a buoy so headed back to Phi Phi Don where we could see a storm approaching. Stayed onboard as it was raining and quite windy.
Friday 14 Jan
Moved anchor as we were too close to a dive boat on a buoy then we went to shore to see if we could get a longtail. Found one which left at 9am (this was 8.45am). There were 14 people onboard and we went to a beach just near where we were anchored where there were a couple of monkeys, one of which took someone’s water bottle, took the lid off and drank from it. Went to the beach at Phi Phi Le (where the movie the beach was made) and it was so crowded!! We walked across to the other side of the island – stayed an hour till the longtail left and then went round the other side of the island to snorkel. The fish were great, the only worry being hit by a longtail or another boat!! Then went to a lovely long hong and had a swim – it was absolutely beautiful and a place that we would not have been able to see in our boat. It was a great morning out and very good value. We left late in the afternoon to see if we could get a buoy in Phi Phi Le and just as we got there a big cat released one so we grabbed it – couldn’t believe our luck. Quite swelly and water murky. There was quite a party on the beach that night with the sleep on the beach tour group – they were still doing fire twirling at 12.30am!
Will bring you up to date shortly, meanwhile our thoughts are with you all at home with the devastating floods and we hope you all manage to avoid that incredibly frightening cyclone which is bearing down on Queensland tonight.
Much Love
Dell and Peter
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Happy New Year – Happy Birthday Amy! - 28 Nov – 29 Dec
The good news is we managed to get back on the water by Christmas! We had a few little dramas along the way such as our 22 month old sail which Peter had stored under our boat was eaten by rats – looked like one of those paper doll cutouts and we were pretty devastated. But a lovely chap named Ket managed to patch it up beautifully for a small sum of money and that made us pretty happy. Brett arrived on the 3rd and stayed a couple of nights and then took himself off to a couple of islands on the eastern side of Thailand – Ko Tao where he gained his advanced open water scuba diving licence and then to Ko Phangan for the full moon party which he described as epic!!!!
The Tuesday before Christmas we were pretty despondent as work on our boat was going so slowly so had a word with Mr Samran and he pulled a lot of people on to our boat and things started forging ahead although with only one week to go till the 21st no-one thought we would make it and we weren’t sure! We stayed two extra nights in our unit and the boys worked overtime and a few corners were cut – the mast went back on the 20th and Peter worked till midnight the next two nights putting the boat back together and I packed up the unit and hired a ute to move all the gear back. Peter was pulling the chain out from under the boat that we had Bob (our new tender) attached by and nearly pulled one of the things holding the boat out! Chom laughed his head off. The 23rd – Amy’s birthday – at 10am saw the travel lift come to collect us and we were in the water (with paint still wet!!! )with the pilot and off by 12 noon. We were very happy to have the pilot as the way was narrow and snaked around via pylons but not clearly marked. We headed down to Nai Harn and anchored beside Cilantro in the afternoon followed in by Whistle Down the Wind – quite a reunion. We headed in to shore in the evening to have dinner and collect Brett who was making his way down to meet us when we saw a very big wave come up behind us and Bob was totally flipped. One minute I was sitting in the tender and the next I was on my back totally under water!! We managed to get Bob upright and the crew of Sailmaker came to give a hand. Brett found us very wet in the restaurant and we all had dinner before having to make our way back out again. The motor wouldn’t start so James (Cilantro) helped swim us past the breakers and we were able to row out without incident. Peter stripped the engine the next morning and it was good – hadn’t been under for very long. The next night we went to another beach with Single Malt, Whistle Down the Wind and Cilantro to go up the Cape for sunset and dinner. As we came in Cilantro went almost over and James came out of their tender, however somehow Sandra came back down and was still seated so got in ok but when I saw them go I bailed and then got knocked down by the wave and the boys rode it up nicely in Bob and didn’t get wet. Once again a very wet night though the boys did buy me some new clothes!!! Apart from that it was a lovely night.
Christmas morning was a lovely day and we had our Christmas tree and then had a sausage on bread for lunch then met Cilantro at 4.30 – went ashore at the beach via the rocks which was much safer and started a restaurant crawl which went till 11.30pm being joined by Whistle half way through so it was a really nice evening but nothing traditional about it and friends and family missed!
Another tender got rolled this day and others tied their tenders to the swimming buoys and a few of them got rolled so all in all it was difficult landing at Nai Harn this year!!! We headed up the coast and had a couple of nights at Kamala Beach – went out the first night and then went up to Nai Yang where Cilantro joined us and we had a lovely night out. We are currently at Patong Beach on the northern side where it is quieter and will stay here for New Year and then head around into Phang Nha bay.
Hoping you all had a lovely Christmas and the New Year is kind to you.
Much Love
May the wind be always at your back
Dell and Peter
The Tuesday before Christmas we were pretty despondent as work on our boat was going so slowly so had a word with Mr Samran and he pulled a lot of people on to our boat and things started forging ahead although with only one week to go till the 21st no-one thought we would make it and we weren’t sure! We stayed two extra nights in our unit and the boys worked overtime and a few corners were cut – the mast went back on the 20th and Peter worked till midnight the next two nights putting the boat back together and I packed up the unit and hired a ute to move all the gear back. Peter was pulling the chain out from under the boat that we had Bob (our new tender) attached by and nearly pulled one of the things holding the boat out! Chom laughed his head off. The 23rd – Amy’s birthday – at 10am saw the travel lift come to collect us and we were in the water (with paint still wet!!! )with the pilot and off by 12 noon. We were very happy to have the pilot as the way was narrow and snaked around via pylons but not clearly marked. We headed down to Nai Harn and anchored beside Cilantro in the afternoon followed in by Whistle Down the Wind – quite a reunion. We headed in to shore in the evening to have dinner and collect Brett who was making his way down to meet us when we saw a very big wave come up behind us and Bob was totally flipped. One minute I was sitting in the tender and the next I was on my back totally under water!! We managed to get Bob upright and the crew of Sailmaker came to give a hand. Brett found us very wet in the restaurant and we all had dinner before having to make our way back out again. The motor wouldn’t start so James (Cilantro) helped swim us past the breakers and we were able to row out without incident. Peter stripped the engine the next morning and it was good – hadn’t been under for very long. The next night we went to another beach with Single Malt, Whistle Down the Wind and Cilantro to go up the Cape for sunset and dinner. As we came in Cilantro went almost over and James came out of their tender, however somehow Sandra came back down and was still seated so got in ok but when I saw them go I bailed and then got knocked down by the wave and the boys rode it up nicely in Bob and didn’t get wet. Once again a very wet night though the boys did buy me some new clothes!!! Apart from that it was a lovely night.
Christmas morning was a lovely day and we had our Christmas tree and then had a sausage on bread for lunch then met Cilantro at 4.30 – went ashore at the beach via the rocks which was much safer and started a restaurant crawl which went till 11.30pm being joined by Whistle half way through so it was a really nice evening but nothing traditional about it and friends and family missed!
Another tender got rolled this day and others tied their tenders to the swimming buoys and a few of them got rolled so all in all it was difficult landing at Nai Harn this year!!! We headed up the coast and had a couple of nights at Kamala Beach – went out the first night and then went up to Nai Yang where Cilantro joined us and we had a lovely night out. We are currently at Patong Beach on the northern side where it is quieter and will stay here for New Year and then head around into Phang Nha bay.
Hoping you all had a lovely Christmas and the New Year is kind to you.
Much Love
May the wind be always at your back
Dell and Peter
Monday, November 29, 2010
Phuket Boat Lagoon – Sat 27 Nov 2010
My last missive was from Renmark and that already seems so long ago. Rosie and I made it through to Burra. We had a wonderful trip together and while it was wonderful to see the Thomas’ again it was tinged with sadness at the thought of once again having to leave my beautiful little Rosie. The trip made me feel that I would really like to do a road trip to Perth in the not too distant future – its on the list!!!
Andy, Robyn and Katie dropped me at the airport on Sunday 14th and I stayed at a lovely hotel near the airport in Melbourne and flew out to Kuala Lumpar on Monday 15th. Suffice to say it was a long and tedious trip exacerbated by the fact that there was absolutely no wine on board and after a huge delay while we located our plane (Gate 8, gate 4 then we found it at gate 7!) that wasn’t helpful! Arrived at KL about 2 hours late and my bag was about the last one off the plane so ran upstairs to get the connecting flight to Phuket which turned out to be a lovely hour and ten minutes with bags already there when we got off and no customs and straight through. Peter had only just arrived!
Peter had done a lovely thing and organised a surprise belated birthday party for me (it was a big one – 60 - can you believe it!!!) for Tuesday night. I thought we were just going out to dinner the two of us and when we got there Geoff, May and their daughter Ruth off Wave Sweeper were there and James and Sandra from Cilantro and Bryan off Kristie 1 so that was a huge surprise. Peter had organised all the food and asked them to get a birthday cake which turned out to be a Svenson ice cream cake – so yummy. So everyone by all accounts had a wonderful time.
While I had been working my tail feathers off in Brisbane Peter had been doing it pretty tough in Boat Lagoon staying on the boat climbing over all the stuff from the shed (back of boat) every night to get to bed. He had to pull off all the fittings on deck and the mast was removed. We are out for a full paint but they found more rust than we anticipated and Peter had the entire toe rail cut off and stainless soldered back on. Then they found a big hole in the steel above the companionway hatch and that had to be cut out which meant that the ceiling had to come down and all in all the boat is a huge mess. Peter had to sit inside the boat when they were grinding to put out any spot fires which started in the paint so he had a pretty tough time. Then he went to book a unit for us only to find that there weren’t any available until the 21st. One of the Kiwis took pity on him and let us have his unit while he was away which was a lifesaver!! We moved into a lovely unit overlooking the marina on the 21st ($580/mth) so are well ensconced in the air conditioning! – At least I am – Peter is over at the boat working. They have made us both honorary Samran workers and given us both a Samran work jumper – Peter at least has earned his. Yesterday when I went over he had the jumper on, the breathing apparatus on and the rag tied around his head and the only way you could tell it was him was by the pants!!! I had tried to do some sanding but the carpenters came after me and redid it so there is really not a lot I can do at the moment. My time will come when we have to clean up the inside.
Peter is desperately trying to move things along as it looked as though we were going to be stuck here for Christmas but should get out the week before. Boats can only leave here on high tides as the channel is not dredged and is very shallow and there are only a couple of opportunities with the tide over the next few weeks. The boys are all working very hard though and work is progressing well. They are a lovely bunch and although there is not much English spoken they all have a huge sense of humour.
Our new tender was delivered a few days ago – a rib which has a hard bottom and he has been named Bob (thanks Phil). We have his name here ready to go on when we dig him out from under the tarp where he is hiding from all the paint and dust.
We have been eating out every night – the food is fantastic and we really look forward to Brett arriving on the 3rd December. Cilantro left Friday – went out at 12 o’clock on a 2.8 metre tide. They reported that they went down to 0m but didn’t touch bottom! When I left the unit at 11.20 I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye behind the pile of sheets which had been taken out of the rooms and next thing a metre + long snake took off and headed to the units on the other side (we are on the third floor!!). Extremely disconcerting!!!!!
Peter and Bryan did a visa run last week. A minibus picked them up at 10.15pm on Sunday night along with 6 other people and they drove through the night to Penang in Malaysia, dropped their passports off at the Embassy, had a night in a lovely hotel, collected their passports at 2pm on Monday and were back here at 10.30 Monday night. All meals were included and they thought it was pretty good value for $150. Peter now has another two months on his visa.
The Freedom III came in last week pretty well patched up all over the front of her. She was the huge cat which hit the other boat in the tsunami. The boys were telling us how huge the wave was. Couldnt imagine seeing a boat of that size bearing down on you as well as the huge wave – terrifying stuff.
Anyway work continues. I will try to do something with the photos soon. Hope this finds you all well.
Much Love
May the wind be always at your back
Dell and Peter
Andy, Robyn and Katie dropped me at the airport on Sunday 14th and I stayed at a lovely hotel near the airport in Melbourne and flew out to Kuala Lumpar on Monday 15th. Suffice to say it was a long and tedious trip exacerbated by the fact that there was absolutely no wine on board and after a huge delay while we located our plane (Gate 8, gate 4 then we found it at gate 7!) that wasn’t helpful! Arrived at KL about 2 hours late and my bag was about the last one off the plane so ran upstairs to get the connecting flight to Phuket which turned out to be a lovely hour and ten minutes with bags already there when we got off and no customs and straight through. Peter had only just arrived!
Peter had done a lovely thing and organised a surprise belated birthday party for me (it was a big one – 60 - can you believe it!!!) for Tuesday night. I thought we were just going out to dinner the two of us and when we got there Geoff, May and their daughter Ruth off Wave Sweeper were there and James and Sandra from Cilantro and Bryan off Kristie 1 so that was a huge surprise. Peter had organised all the food and asked them to get a birthday cake which turned out to be a Svenson ice cream cake – so yummy. So everyone by all accounts had a wonderful time.
While I had been working my tail feathers off in Brisbane Peter had been doing it pretty tough in Boat Lagoon staying on the boat climbing over all the stuff from the shed (back of boat) every night to get to bed. He had to pull off all the fittings on deck and the mast was removed. We are out for a full paint but they found more rust than we anticipated and Peter had the entire toe rail cut off and stainless soldered back on. Then they found a big hole in the steel above the companionway hatch and that had to be cut out which meant that the ceiling had to come down and all in all the boat is a huge mess. Peter had to sit inside the boat when they were grinding to put out any spot fires which started in the paint so he had a pretty tough time. Then he went to book a unit for us only to find that there weren’t any available until the 21st. One of the Kiwis took pity on him and let us have his unit while he was away which was a lifesaver!! We moved into a lovely unit overlooking the marina on the 21st ($580/mth) so are well ensconced in the air conditioning! – At least I am – Peter is over at the boat working. They have made us both honorary Samran workers and given us both a Samran work jumper – Peter at least has earned his. Yesterday when I went over he had the jumper on, the breathing apparatus on and the rag tied around his head and the only way you could tell it was him was by the pants!!! I had tried to do some sanding but the carpenters came after me and redid it so there is really not a lot I can do at the moment. My time will come when we have to clean up the inside.
Peter is desperately trying to move things along as it looked as though we were going to be stuck here for Christmas but should get out the week before. Boats can only leave here on high tides as the channel is not dredged and is very shallow and there are only a couple of opportunities with the tide over the next few weeks. The boys are all working very hard though and work is progressing well. They are a lovely bunch and although there is not much English spoken they all have a huge sense of humour.
Our new tender was delivered a few days ago – a rib which has a hard bottom and he has been named Bob (thanks Phil). We have his name here ready to go on when we dig him out from under the tarp where he is hiding from all the paint and dust.
We have been eating out every night – the food is fantastic and we really look forward to Brett arriving on the 3rd December. Cilantro left Friday – went out at 12 o’clock on a 2.8 metre tide. They reported that they went down to 0m but didn’t touch bottom! When I left the unit at 11.20 I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye behind the pile of sheets which had been taken out of the rooms and next thing a metre + long snake took off and headed to the units on the other side (we are on the third floor!!). Extremely disconcerting!!!!!
Peter and Bryan did a visa run last week. A minibus picked them up at 10.15pm on Sunday night along with 6 other people and they drove through the night to Penang in Malaysia, dropped their passports off at the Embassy, had a night in a lovely hotel, collected their passports at 2pm on Monday and were back here at 10.30 Monday night. All meals were included and they thought it was pretty good value for $150. Peter now has another two months on his visa.
The Freedom III came in last week pretty well patched up all over the front of her. She was the huge cat which hit the other boat in the tsunami. The boys were telling us how huge the wave was. Couldnt imagine seeing a boat of that size bearing down on you as well as the huge wave – terrifying stuff.
Anyway work continues. I will try to do something with the photos soon. Hope this finds you all well.
Much Love
May the wind be always at your back
Dell and Peter
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
On the road again!!!!
To all those people wondering if we are ok yes we are and to all those people we did not manage to catch up with many apologies. We flew back into Australia on 4th August and collected our car and Rosie from Andy and Robyn in South Australia. Drove home via Sydney to see the kids and then it was home and a whole lot of work. Peter worked on the house and we managed to get a bit of babysitting in with our beautiful grandchildren. Peter flew back to Langkawi on 19 September to take the boat single handed to Phuket to haul out to do some work on her. Following is an email I had from Peter:
Well what a day. We were delayed by one day as Brian snapped his throttle cable. Went into town and luckily sourced a new one and had it installed by 3.30pm. We departed Rebak at 7.30 and made our way to Telaga so Brian could get fuel. When we left there we were half way up the west side of Langkawi when I started taking on water, lots of it. Checked all the hoses on the motor but eventually found that water was gushing in at the propellor shaft seal. Had the big electric bilge pump going and also the hand bilge pump and made the 2 hours back to the marina. Tim off Raven gave me a hand as it was still gushing in tied up to the dock and the travel lift wasn't working today. Found the cause and fixed it. The two grommet screws which hold the pressure ring against the shaft seal had worked loose and the ring moved up the prop shaft separating it from the seal and allowing lots of water in. Eventually fixed it, phew and left Rebak at 1.15. Going the clappers to get to the anchorage before dark when Brian broke a fan belt. He eventually installed a new one and we got into the anchorage at 7.00pm, still light. Brian just called and he has cooked his batteries, they are smoking. Have to wait for them to cool down before he tries to find the problem. Hope tommorrow is a better day.
Well he finally made it and put the boat up on the hard only to discover that we had a heck of a lot more rust than we ever knew! So Peter has been working super hard on the boat at times holding the fire extinguisher to make sure none of the sparks from the grinding etc caught the boat alight. He has been living aboard among the dust and the grime. They have to use water when they are grinding and this turns to a nasty sludge in the boat. Anyway grinding has finished and Peter has cleaned out the sludge - a huge job by all accounts and now they can start on the original job of painting the boat - obviously a bit behind schedule and a blow out on the budget!!
I have been working very hard on our house getting ready for new tenants and also moving all our furniture from one storage facility to another one - financially it was worth it but it was a huge job. Many thanks to Darren, Stuart and Brett for all the help. Couldnt have done it without you all. It was so lovely to be surrounded by all our wonderful family. Will miss you all terribly especially little Jessie (such a wonderful little boy - missing your cuddles) and little Charlie (such a happy cheeky little girl).
I am currently writing this in Renmark - Rosie and I have been on a road trip to drive to Andy's. Finally finished packing the house up on Thursday night and stayed with Stuart - what a relief to finally be finished. Friday night was with Judy in Yamba and then Saturday drove all day in the rain to Sydney so stayed Sunday as well. We camped at Narrandera and then last night at Renmark and today we make Andy and Robyn's. I fly to Melbourne on Sunday 14th and on Monday 15th will be back in Phuket to inspect all the work!!!
Anyway time to get back on the road again
Cheers
Dell
>
Well what a day. We were delayed by one day as Brian snapped his throttle cable. Went into town and luckily sourced a new one and had it installed by 3.30pm. We departed Rebak at 7.30 and made our way to Telaga so Brian could get fuel. When we left there we were half way up the west side of Langkawi when I started taking on water, lots of it. Checked all the hoses on the motor but eventually found that water was gushing in at the propellor shaft seal. Had the big electric bilge pump going and also the hand bilge pump and made the 2 hours back to the marina. Tim off Raven gave me a hand as it was still gushing in tied up to the dock and the travel lift wasn't working today. Found the cause and fixed it. The two grommet screws which hold the pressure ring against the shaft seal had worked loose and the ring moved up the prop shaft separating it from the seal and allowing lots of water in. Eventually fixed it, phew and left Rebak at 1.15. Going the clappers to get to the anchorage before dark when Brian broke a fan belt. He eventually installed a new one and we got into the anchorage at 7.00pm, still light. Brian just called and he has cooked his batteries, they are smoking. Have to wait for them to cool down before he tries to find the problem. Hope tommorrow is a better day.
Well he finally made it and put the boat up on the hard only to discover that we had a heck of a lot more rust than we ever knew! So Peter has been working super hard on the boat at times holding the fire extinguisher to make sure none of the sparks from the grinding etc caught the boat alight. He has been living aboard among the dust and the grime. They have to use water when they are grinding and this turns to a nasty sludge in the boat. Anyway grinding has finished and Peter has cleaned out the sludge - a huge job by all accounts and now they can start on the original job of painting the boat - obviously a bit behind schedule and a blow out on the budget!!
I have been working very hard on our house getting ready for new tenants and also moving all our furniture from one storage facility to another one - financially it was worth it but it was a huge job. Many thanks to Darren, Stuart and Brett for all the help. Couldnt have done it without you all. It was so lovely to be surrounded by all our wonderful family. Will miss you all terribly especially little Jessie (such a wonderful little boy - missing your cuddles) and little Charlie (such a happy cheeky little girl).
I am currently writing this in Renmark - Rosie and I have been on a road trip to drive to Andy's. Finally finished packing the house up on Thursday night and stayed with Stuart - what a relief to finally be finished. Friday night was with Judy in Yamba and then Saturday drove all day in the rain to Sydney so stayed Sunday as well. We camped at Narrandera and then last night at Renmark and today we make Andy and Robyn's. I fly to Melbourne on Sunday 14th and on Monday 15th will be back in Phuket to inspect all the work!!!
Anyway time to get back on the road again
Cheers
Dell
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