Thai food – fantastic and very reasonably priced. There are always food stalls on streets as the Thias don’t seem to do much cooking at home. Fortunately, it is cheaper to buy delicious food from the stalls than it is to cook it. The rationalisation of eating out: After finding ingediants, buying, carting, cooking, eating and cleaning up it is far cheaper to buy good food on the street. A good green curry and rice would cost less than two dollars.
On a rainy day I ventured for a Thai massage, no hanky panky and no boom boom. The masseuse certainly knew where to find the pressure points. I pretty much felt like I was being run over by a truck. It was a bit like beating the head against the brick wall it felt really good when it was over.
Boat maintenance – Rex and I went to the huge Rolly Tasker sail loft near Phuket town and bought rope and courtesy flags at very reasonable prices. I went to The Boat Lagoon, which has many boat chandlery shops, found a Volvo Penta agent and paid US$140 for an oil filter and two water pump impellers! How can one justify that sort of extortion? Yes, the motor a Volvo 2002, 18HP is around 28 years old. Three years ago I made the mistake of having the engine overhauled, which did not include new rings and bearings. In hindsight I should have replaced the motor then. With this sort of experience I would be unlikely to consider Volvo when it comes time to replace the engine. Yanmar is looking like a far better option.
Thursday 30 September 2010
Phuket Thailand
Since leaving Fremantle on 31 May 2010 and arriving in Phuket Thailand Sadiqi has logged 2,572 nautical miles and 305 engine hours.
After inflating the dingy, attaching the outboard motor and putting up shade awnings I headed to Immigration, Customs and Harbour Master The formalities took less than an hour and about $20 shamelessly disappeared into a back pocket. Mind you for that donation I managed to get a harbour pass for 6 months instead of 3. Thailand, the land of smiles, after Indonesia felt like I had been catapulted back into the 21 century.
For those of you that don’t know Phuket is pronounced “Poo-ket”. Replenishing fuel, water, gas, beer and food. Sadiqi has a 60 litre fuel tank, plus two additional 20 litre jerry cans for diesel. Not having had rain for awhile I also had a couple of hundred litres of water to buy and load. I had to find beer as I had not had a beer for a week, due to bad planning and not being able to buy alcohol in Moslem Northern Sumatra. I needed to do a serious restock on food, as the last time I had loaded up with real food had been in Carnarvon Australia back in June. I had to replace tinned food that was going rusty after having been drowned in the knock down between Carnarvon and Cocos. I had my work cut out for me for a good few days. I was also going to end up with long arms after lumping all this heavy stuff around – one of the joys of cruising.
There are very good supermarkets like Tescos, seven-eleven stores and others a bit pricey but they had pretty much everything. After going shopping I certainly learnt to appreciate the simple pleasures in life again like bacon and eggs, steak and cheese etc.
While loading fuel on Sadiqi I met seppo Rex on “Pequod” who knows Bernard on “Papy Jovial” whom I’d met in Cocos Island – small world. He had sailed from New Zealand, stopping in the Solomon Islands, then non stop through the Torres Strait, up the west coast of Sumatra and onto Phuket taking 79 days. That was a very impressive trip. He had been sailing in the same waters as I had off Sumatra but had not stopped. Rex’s 47 foot motor sailor boasts an engine room with work bench etc. He even has the space to brew beer on board! Rex had been a fisherman and logger in America and Canada. I was pleased when he said that he had had more success fishing in the Pacific Ocean than he had in the Indian Ocean. There was obviously a lot more water between fish in the Indian Ocean than there was in the Pacific.
It was a full moon on Thursday September 24, therefore higher and lower tides. I went ashore to do some more shopping. On the way back to the boat, it was none too difficult to see that the tide was out and the dingy was high and dry. Nothing much for it other than to hangout at the Sand Bar with a beer or six and wait for the tide to come in.
The Sand Bar is run by Aussie Brent who also runs the Phuket Cruising Yacht Club. I met several other Aussies there and managed to get some really good information on how things work and where to get supplies in the area. Going ashore when the tide was out and trying to walk through the muddy ooze seemed funny at the time, wore thin pretty quick when you sink up to the knees in ooze. Having struggled through the ooze once makes for better planning and consulting the tide tables when the tides are low.
The near by Wave Bar was not much more than 4 metres wide by 15 metres deep and boast its on mini pole dancing stage.
One can end up with a very attractive person gyrating in ones lap of possibly dubious or confused gender. The alleged girls were there to sell beer or their services. This had the potential of being a slippery slope that could end in some sort of regret or far worse. There was a proliferation of such “good time” bars near the jetty of Ao Chalong where girls call out and entice people into the seedy bars, pretty much, 24 hours a day and this was the low season.
A week after arriving in Thialand Rex and I ventured to Patong Beach. The taxi dropped us off at a huge shopping centre called Jong Ceylon. The air-conditioning was nice, but other than that is was just a shopping centre. We headed to the beach for a beer and had to walk through the gauntlet of people selling; massages, rolex watches, tailored Armani suits tee shirts etc.,. I thought we could have saved ourselves the taxi fare and just stayed at Chalong Bay where there were not so many tourists. The one good thing, I confess, is there was a Burger King (Hungry Jacks), both Rex and I treated ourselves to a good burger and fries. I had not had a good burger since leaving Fremantle. Oh the decadence.
Much of the time was spent doing maintenance on the boat. I updated the failing sound system on Sadiqi with a new CD/MP3 player system. The new system sounds fantastic and consumes far less power than the previous system with CD changer and cassette deck. This has also freed up more space getting rid of the CD changer and cassettes etc.
After inflating the dingy, attaching the outboard motor and putting up shade awnings I headed to Immigration, Customs and Harbour Master The formalities took less than an hour and about $20 shamelessly disappeared into a back pocket. Mind you for that donation I managed to get a harbour pass for 6 months instead of 3. Thailand, the land of smiles, after Indonesia felt like I had been catapulted back into the 21 century.
For those of you that don’t know Phuket is pronounced “Poo-ket”. Replenishing fuel, water, gas, beer and food. Sadiqi has a 60 litre fuel tank, plus two additional 20 litre jerry cans for diesel. Not having had rain for awhile I also had a couple of hundred litres of water to buy and load. I had to find beer as I had not had a beer for a week, due to bad planning and not being able to buy alcohol in Moslem Northern Sumatra. I needed to do a serious restock on food, as the last time I had loaded up with real food had been in Carnarvon Australia back in June. I had to replace tinned food that was going rusty after having been drowned in the knock down between Carnarvon and Cocos. I had my work cut out for me for a good few days. I was also going to end up with long arms after lumping all this heavy stuff around – one of the joys of cruising.
There are very good supermarkets like Tescos, seven-eleven stores and others a bit pricey but they had pretty much everything. After going shopping I certainly learnt to appreciate the simple pleasures in life again like bacon and eggs, steak and cheese etc.
While loading fuel on Sadiqi I met seppo Rex on “Pequod” who knows Bernard on “Papy Jovial” whom I’d met in Cocos Island – small world. He had sailed from New Zealand, stopping in the Solomon Islands, then non stop through the Torres Strait, up the west coast of Sumatra and onto Phuket taking 79 days. That was a very impressive trip. He had been sailing in the same waters as I had off Sumatra but had not stopped. Rex’s 47 foot motor sailor boasts an engine room with work bench etc. He even has the space to brew beer on board! Rex had been a fisherman and logger in America and Canada. I was pleased when he said that he had had more success fishing in the Pacific Ocean than he had in the Indian Ocean. There was obviously a lot more water between fish in the Indian Ocean than there was in the Pacific.
It was a full moon on Thursday September 24, therefore higher and lower tides. I went ashore to do some more shopping. On the way back to the boat, it was none too difficult to see that the tide was out and the dingy was high and dry. Nothing much for it other than to hangout at the Sand Bar with a beer or six and wait for the tide to come in.
The Sand Bar is run by Aussie Brent who also runs the Phuket Cruising Yacht Club. I met several other Aussies there and managed to get some really good information on how things work and where to get supplies in the area. Going ashore when the tide was out and trying to walk through the muddy ooze seemed funny at the time, wore thin pretty quick when you sink up to the knees in ooze. Having struggled through the ooze once makes for better planning and consulting the tide tables when the tides are low.The near by Wave Bar was not much more than 4 metres wide by 15 metres deep and boast its on mini pole dancing stage.
One can end up with a very attractive person gyrating in ones lap of possibly dubious or confused gender. The alleged girls were there to sell beer or their services. This had the potential of being a slippery slope that could end in some sort of regret or far worse. There was a proliferation of such “good time” bars near the jetty of Ao Chalong where girls call out and entice people into the seedy bars, pretty much, 24 hours a day and this was the low season. A week after arriving in Thialand Rex and I ventured to Patong Beach. The taxi dropped us off at a huge shopping centre called Jong Ceylon. The air-conditioning was nice, but other than that is was just a shopping centre. We headed to the beach for a beer and had to walk through the gauntlet of people selling; massages, rolex watches, tailored Armani suits tee shirts etc.,. I thought we could have saved ourselves the taxi fare and just stayed at Chalong Bay where there were not so many tourists. The one good thing, I confess, is there was a Burger King (Hungry Jacks), both Rex and I treated ourselves to a good burger and fries. I had not had a good burger since leaving Fremantle. Oh the decadence.
Much of the time was spent doing maintenance on the boat. I updated the failing sound system on Sadiqi with a new CD/MP3 player system. The new system sounds fantastic and consumes far less power than the previous system with CD changer and cassette deck. This has also freed up more space getting rid of the CD changer and cassettes etc.
Friday 17 September 2010
Sumatra to Phuket
First light Wednesday I was getting ready to motor out of Sabang. I first had to deal with the anchor chain that had wrapped itself around rocks in 12 metres of water. I gently nudged the boat forward and fortunately managed to free the chain minus some galvanising. I motored out of Sabang harbour with a tail wind of 4 knots. The AIS, through the chart plotter, was showing 10 ships within a 20 mile range of Sabang in the Malacca Strait. This was going to be the interesting bit – a 50 mile wide ship highway, without separation lanes and ships travelling between 5 and 25 knots. The motor was running until a 30 knot squall came through, mid afternoon, and I was able to set the sails again. The engine seemed to be running a little hotter than normal. I checked and changed the water pump impeller and tightened hose clamps on the suction side of the water pump. The water pump impeller was not too bad other than the rubber seemed to have become unglued from the bronze bush and was able to rotate. By dinner time we were back motoring again and continued so until 7.00 the next morning. 
There was only one ship that gave me cause for concern as I crossed in front of it. It just seemed to take for ever to see the side of the hull to know that I would not be run over. I had a chuckle at an old joke I heard many years ago; “What’s the last thing that goes through a bugs mind when it hits the windscreen” – It’s backside :o) I avoided any visions of Sadiqi pasted to the front of some ship like a bug on a windscreen. The AIS is a fantastic tool as it provides information on ships speed, course, closest point of approach (CPA) and time of closest point of approach (TCPA).
An Indonesian fishing boat headed toward Sadiqi fairly early in the morning. There were about 8 people onboard trawling quite heavy lines astern. After asking for the usual beer and cigarettes they turned across Sadiqi’s bows. I had started to motor just in case. I turned in the same direction as the fishing boat, doing a large 360 turn to avoid getting tangled in their fishing lines. Fortunately they went on their way.
While crossing the Malacca Strait I noticed a strange phenomenon, which I can only describe as some sort of current convergence. The winds were light less than 10 knots, I started hearing what sounded like a water fall or wind blowing through tall trees from astern. There was a line of white caps, about 100 metres wide, stretching as far as the eye could see to the South East and North West, travelling in a North East direction. The same direction as Sadiqi was headed. There was no perceptible change in wind strength or direction. Sadiqi bounced around in the short chop as the white caps passed. This happened several times during the day and did not seem to relate tides. Sometimes there was a small change in the GPS speed of the ground (SOG). If anyone knows what this was please would you email me and let me know.
Not having topped up with diesel in Sabang I was well aware that I did not have enough fuel to motor to Phuket Thailand. I was short by about 50 miles of the 200 mile trip. With just 5 knots of wind on the port beam I raised the Asymmetrical Spinnaker aka. MPS, Kite or large coloured sail. Fortunately, the water was reasonably flat, except for when the current convergence phenomenon passed by. The wind ranged from 2 to 10 knots and Sadiqi moved through the water at between 2 to 5 knots. Ken the electric autopilot did an exemplary job in the light conditions. The gaffa tape bandaid holding Ken together seemed to do the trick. The wind was too light to use Smithy – the windvane. It was very pleasant sailing ghosting along without the motor running. We sailed like this for around 20 hours until 5.00 in the morning when a gust of wind came through at 12 knots and I dropped the kite. I had set the high wind speed alarm for 12 knots on the TackTick Wind Instruments. I slept far more easily without the engine running as I could hear and feel anything that changed on the boat. I could hear the dolphins blow when they arrived and played in the bow wave.
It was while I was sleeping on the cockpit cushions that I heard and felt a splash of what I thought was water, strange as there were no waves and not much wind. I did not think much else about it until morning, when I saw fairly large dark brown splash marks all over the deck, that looked like they had fallen from the sky. Another mystery. I can only think that Sadiqi may have bumped into a semi submerged soft container that had a liquid in it that spewed up and onto the deck. There was way to much and the wrong colour for it to be a large bird. Whale spew maybe – I have know idea.
It was a little disorienting sailing toward the southern end of Phuket island. I was used to the errors on the C-Map chart cartridges for Sumatra and was anticipating similar errors for Thailand. It was a pleasant surprise and relief to find the Thai charts were accurate. I entered Chalong Bay at low tide and dropped anchor in 3 metres of water, amongst the many other boats, at 12.30 having used the motor for 27 hours of the 52.5 hour trip. There was very little fuel in the tank, which I was pleased about as I could try and rid the fuel tank of the smelly muck the Indonesians call Solar or Diesel. I was not to unhappy about having left Indonesia - dealing with the people there was definitely very trying.
There was only one ship that gave me cause for concern as I crossed in front of it. It just seemed to take for ever to see the side of the hull to know that I would not be run over. I had a chuckle at an old joke I heard many years ago; “What’s the last thing that goes through a bugs mind when it hits the windscreen” – It’s backside :o) I avoided any visions of Sadiqi pasted to the front of some ship like a bug on a windscreen. The AIS is a fantastic tool as it provides information on ships speed, course, closest point of approach (CPA) and time of closest point of approach (TCPA). An Indonesian fishing boat headed toward Sadiqi fairly early in the morning. There were about 8 people onboard trawling quite heavy lines astern. After asking for the usual beer and cigarettes they turned across Sadiqi’s bows. I had started to motor just in case. I turned in the same direction as the fishing boat, doing a large 360 turn to avoid getting tangled in their fishing lines. Fortunately they went on their way.
While crossing the Malacca Strait I noticed a strange phenomenon, which I can only describe as some sort of current convergence. The winds were light less than 10 knots, I started hearing what sounded like a water fall or wind blowing through tall trees from astern. There was a line of white caps, about 100 metres wide, stretching as far as the eye could see to the South East and North West, travelling in a North East direction. The same direction as Sadiqi was headed. There was no perceptible change in wind strength or direction. Sadiqi bounced around in the short chop as the white caps passed. This happened several times during the day and did not seem to relate tides. Sometimes there was a small change in the GPS speed of the ground (SOG). If anyone knows what this was please would you email me and let me know.
Not having topped up with diesel in Sabang I was well aware that I did not have enough fuel to motor to Phuket Thailand. I was short by about 50 miles of the 200 mile trip. With just 5 knots of wind on the port beam I raised the Asymmetrical Spinnaker aka. MPS, Kite or large coloured sail. Fortunately, the water was reasonably flat, except for when the current convergence phenomenon passed by. The wind ranged from 2 to 10 knots and Sadiqi moved through the water at between 2 to 5 knots. Ken the electric autopilot did an exemplary job in the light conditions. The gaffa tape bandaid holding Ken together seemed to do the trick. The wind was too light to use Smithy – the windvane. It was very pleasant sailing ghosting along without the motor running. We sailed like this for around 20 hours until 5.00 in the morning when a gust of wind came through at 12 knots and I dropped the kite. I had set the high wind speed alarm for 12 knots on the TackTick Wind Instruments. I slept far more easily without the engine running as I could hear and feel anything that changed on the boat. I could hear the dolphins blow when they arrived and played in the bow wave.
It was while I was sleeping on the cockpit cushions that I heard and felt a splash of what I thought was water, strange as there were no waves and not much wind. I did not think much else about it until morning, when I saw fairly large dark brown splash marks all over the deck, that looked like they had fallen from the sky. Another mystery. I can only think that Sadiqi may have bumped into a semi submerged soft container that had a liquid in it that spewed up and onto the deck. There was way to much and the wrong colour for it to be a large bird. Whale spew maybe – I have know idea.
It was a little disorienting sailing toward the southern end of Phuket island. I was used to the errors on the C-Map chart cartridges for Sumatra and was anticipating similar errors for Thailand. It was a pleasant surprise and relief to find the Thai charts were accurate. I entered Chalong Bay at low tide and dropped anchor in 3 metres of water, amongst the many other boats, at 12.30 having used the motor for 27 hours of the 52.5 hour trip. There was very little fuel in the tank, which I was pleased about as I could try and rid the fuel tank of the smelly muck the Indonesians call Solar or Diesel. I was not to unhappy about having left Indonesia - dealing with the people there was definitely very trying.
Wednesday 15 September 2010
Pulau Weh (Sabang)
On Monday I left the mooring at Pulau Rubiah and headed for Sabang, an hours motor, across the bay. I had psyched myself up for the formalities of dealing with Immigration, Customs and Harbour master. Alas, they were closed – it had been a public holiday on Friday and it appeared that extended to Monday as well. I did a walking tour of Sabang. On returning to the Sadiqi I noticed another yacht had arrived. I met a young couple; Nelson and Claude from “Black Swan” who sailed from Oman taking 26 days with a brief stop over in the Maldives. They, Nelson originally from Australia and Claude from Belgium, had spent the last 12 years living onboard their boat mainly in Greece and Turkey.
The following day I offered to take Nelson and Claude ashore to get fuel and sort out immigration formalities. They did not have an outboard motor and only a small hard dingy, they also did not have a CAIT for Indonesia. In hindsight it would have been better not to have informed the authorities. Eventually an immigration official arrived and we started the process – around $6.00 slipped under the table somewhere. The Harbour Master arrived at Immigration as they had been informed that three yachts were in Sabang. Glayva was also clearing out. After filling in some extensive Harbour Master forms we were told to return to the Harbour Master at 17.00 to pick up the port clearance certificate. Next we had to find Customs. This is where things got a little complicated as the Customs officials wanted to go onboard and inspect “Black Swan”, Nelson’s boat. I gave Nelson the start lanyard to my dingy to take the official and get that sorted. While we were away from the dingy an enterprising local weasel had removed Nelson’s jerry cans and partial filled them in anticipation for payment – at a higher rate, plus tip, than you could get on the street. Had we not complied with this the police would probably have miraculously appeared, as foreigners are not supposed to buy the subsidised muck they call fuel. At 17.00 I reported to the Harbour Master to get my clearance certificate and another $8.00, supposed administration fee, disappeared under the table. This baksheesh may not sound like much but added up came to several hundred dollars. With everything that had gone on I had not had an opportunity to get any fuel for Sadiqi. It had been a very long day, by 6 o clock in the evening Nelson, Claude and myself adjourned to Sadiqi to enjoy a good takeout dinner and a bottle of red wine.
The following day I offered to take Nelson and Claude ashore to get fuel and sort out immigration formalities. They did not have an outboard motor and only a small hard dingy, they also did not have a CAIT for Indonesia. In hindsight it would have been better not to have informed the authorities. Eventually an immigration official arrived and we started the process – around $6.00 slipped under the table somewhere. The Harbour Master arrived at Immigration as they had been informed that three yachts were in Sabang. Glayva was also clearing out. After filling in some extensive Harbour Master forms we were told to return to the Harbour Master at 17.00 to pick up the port clearance certificate. Next we had to find Customs. This is where things got a little complicated as the Customs officials wanted to go onboard and inspect “Black Swan”, Nelson’s boat. I gave Nelson the start lanyard to my dingy to take the official and get that sorted. While we were away from the dingy an enterprising local weasel had removed Nelson’s jerry cans and partial filled them in anticipation for payment – at a higher rate, plus tip, than you could get on the street. Had we not complied with this the police would probably have miraculously appeared, as foreigners are not supposed to buy the subsidised muck they call fuel. At 17.00 I reported to the Harbour Master to get my clearance certificate and another $8.00, supposed administration fee, disappeared under the table. This baksheesh may not sound like much but added up came to several hundred dollars. With everything that had gone on I had not had an opportunity to get any fuel for Sadiqi. It had been a very long day, by 6 o clock in the evening Nelson, Claude and myself adjourned to Sadiqi to enjoy a good takeout dinner and a bottle of red wine.
Monday 13 September 2010
Pulau Rubiah
I picked up a mooring near “Glayva” at Pulau Rubiah near Pulau Weh – Northern Sumatra. Pulau Rubiah is a beautiful small island with crystal clear blue water and rain forest coming down to the rocky waters edge. By comparison to what I had seen so far in Indonesia this was very civilised and geared to tourists. 
There were restaurants, not food stalls, scuba dive charter boats and glass bottomed viewing boats. In the evening I went ashore with Mark, Rachel, Nomara and Aaron for a beer and a meal. It felt good not to have to cook a meal for a change. At the restaurant we met people from France, Germany and Korea and a couple of expat Aussies working in Jakarta The following day, after doing boat jobs, I ventured out to do some snorkelling, I was amazed at how good the snorkelling was. The best snorkelling I have done in many years – live coral and an abundance of tropical fish. There appears to be a concerted effort to conserve this tropical sea garden. The colours of the coral and proliferation of fish here far outstrip what I saw at Cocos (Keeling) and Babi islands. I spent several hours swimming around just looking at the at this amazing sea garden aquarium.
There were restaurants, not food stalls, scuba dive charter boats and glass bottomed viewing boats. In the evening I went ashore with Mark, Rachel, Nomara and Aaron for a beer and a meal. It felt good not to have to cook a meal for a change. At the restaurant we met people from France, Germany and Korea and a couple of expat Aussies working in Jakarta The following day, after doing boat jobs, I ventured out to do some snorkelling, I was amazed at how good the snorkelling was. The best snorkelling I have done in many years – live coral and an abundance of tropical fish. There appears to be a concerted effort to conserve this tropical sea garden. The colours of the coral and proliferation of fish here far outstrip what I saw at Cocos (Keeling) and Babi islands. I spent several hours swimming around just looking at the at this amazing sea garden aquarium.
Friday 10 September 2010
Sinabang to Banda Aceh
I am updating the blog while on a mooring at beautiful Pulau Rubiah near the island of Weh – Northern Sumatra. I’m down to my last Bintang beer in a Moslem area – not very sadiqi – bad planning on my part! Back to the blog.
I departed Sinabang on September 6, I had been watching the weather forecasts hoping for some wind. It was a long trip - 45 miles using the motor. My ears were ringing from the noise of the engine when I arrived in the sheltered bay of Sibigo, toward the northern end of Simeulue Island. Simeulue island is hard, rocky and anchorages are deep. It did not boast the white sandy beaches and coral of the islands further south. Sibigo was not much to write home about other than the bay being very sheltered. As seems usual, one of the locals paddled out toward me in his dugout outrigger canoe and asked to come aboard. We sat and tried to make a conversation with my very limited Bahasa Indonesian and his non existent English. I had bought a Kamus (Inggeris – Indonesian dictionary) in Sibolga. There seems to be some inherent expectation that I give the locals something. However, I quickly learnt that had I given anything, ie. fish hooks, rope etc., I would have had more locals turn up at all hours of the night with the same expectation. After awhile I asked the gentleman to leave so I could get on with cooking my evening meal. One of the problems with the anchorage being so sheltered was the mosquitoes – squadrons of them.
After not the best nights sleep I departed Sibigo early September 7 for the 130 mile trip to the Sumatra mainland and Pulau Raya. The wind was northerly, where I was headed, at 5 to 7 knots – more motoring. The wind is capricious in the doldrums. By midday the wind had picked up a little so I was able to motor sail. Sadiqi was also pushing against a half knot current – the difference between the speed through the water and GPS speed over the ground. In the evening we managed to get several hours of sailing, 4 knots, when the wind increased and swung to the North West. The night routine is to turn on the navigation lights if motoring or the masthead tricolour if sailing, dim all the instrument lights to help with night vision. I heard the blow and splash of dolphins playing in the bow wave. It was a dark and moonless night so to see the streaks of phosphorescence light up in the path of the dolphins was amazing. This surreal light show went on for half an hour before the dolphins tired and went elsewhere to play.
In the morning we were back to motoring as the sails were slatting in the lumpy conditions. I tried the asymmetrical spinnaker again, all for about 10 minutes, and then the wind dropped. Of the 33 hour trip the motor ran for 32 hours! With relief we arrived at Pulau Raya and dropped anchor near the prowlong fishing platforms. When I sleep while sailing or motoring I use an alarm clock set for half an hour. Initially it takes awhile to get to sleep and I usually wake before the alarm. As the night wears on my intermittent sleep pattern improves and I can get almost a full half hour sleep. My body clock has a definite preference for sleep around 5.00am. I sleep mainly during the day and may get half an hour sleep every two hours if sailing conditions permit. When Sadiqi is securely anchored I sleep very heavily, coma like, but still only for 2 hours at a time. This is usually only for the first night after a trip of 24 hours or more, then I revert to a more normal sleeping pattern.
I departed Pulau Raya at first light, 6.30 with winds 4 – 6 knots ESE. By 8.30 the wind had increased to 10 knots from the east and it was time to raise the asymmetrical spinnaker again. By 9.30 the winds had dropped and so had the asymmetrical. By 13.00 the wind had increased to 10 – 12 knots from the south and with some conviction – at last. We had crossed latitude 5 degrees north. I had a look at my log and noticed that the wind pretty much faded out when I was around latitude 5 degrees south prior to entering Indonesian waters - the Doldrums. This meant a band of 10 degrees at the equator with capricious winds if any. One minute = one nautical mile, sixty minutes to one degree gives a band of six hundred miles of potential doldrums conditions, a lot of potential fuel and motoring.
Sadiqi revelled in the 10 – 12 knot wind from the stern sailing at 4.5 knots with only the main up. The fishing line was out in hopeful expectation that some fish would have the temerity to go for the lure. I tried several different lures, the fish, if there were any, were indifferent through lack of any activity. With the improved wind conditions and Sadiqi, very happily sailing along at 5 to 5.5 knots with both full main and headsail, we arrived at Aroih Cut too early. The Aroih Cut is narrow gap at the Northern end of Sumatra very prone to tidal currents and big swell. If heading North East, as I was, go on a rising tide. If heading South West go on the falling tide. As the tide was not rising enough, plus we had good winds I chose the wider gap Arioh Raya just north of the narrow cut. The current movement was impressive not being familiar with such events with sailing off Fremantle. I had brief glimpses of the Arioh cut and it was a veritable bubbling cauldron or white water. As it was, Sadiqi was going against a 3 to 4 knot current and it was nearly slack tide. Another learning experience.
I dropped anchor to the west of Banda Aceh and had a great nights rest. I had been keeping a radio sched with “Glayva” on HF radio at 9.00 and 20.00. Mark and Rachel had arrived at Pulau Weh the same day I had arrived at Banda Aceh – a half days sail away.
I departed Banda Aceh at a civilised 8.30, thinking I would get some good sailing in. Oops. I motored toward the Eastern side of Pulau Weh. By Midday the wind had increased from the south and the asymmetrical spinnaker was up and Sadiqi was sailing along very nicely, well for an hour anyway. The wind dropped and swung to the west. I had started the motor and was setting the jib and main, Sadiqi started to heel, when the motor stopped. Hmm, out of diesel! This was no great surprise as I had not put any fuel in since Labuanbujau on Simeulue some 46 engine hours before. Fortunately the wind had settled and Sadiqi was sailing along very nicely with the reliable Smithy, the Windpilot, at the helm.
I emptied a 20 litre jerry can into the tank, replaced the fuel filter and bled the fuel system before starting the engine again. This was a good exercise in good conditions. I’d hate to think of the consequences of running out of fuel in a situation like going through a narrow channel or crossing busy shipping lanes, something I was going to have to do to get to Thailand.
I departed Sinabang on September 6, I had been watching the weather forecasts hoping for some wind. It was a long trip - 45 miles using the motor. My ears were ringing from the noise of the engine when I arrived in the sheltered bay of Sibigo, toward the northern end of Simeulue Island. Simeulue island is hard, rocky and anchorages are deep. It did not boast the white sandy beaches and coral of the islands further south. Sibigo was not much to write home about other than the bay being very sheltered. As seems usual, one of the locals paddled out toward me in his dugout outrigger canoe and asked to come aboard. We sat and tried to make a conversation with my very limited Bahasa Indonesian and his non existent English. I had bought a Kamus (Inggeris – Indonesian dictionary) in Sibolga. There seems to be some inherent expectation that I give the locals something. However, I quickly learnt that had I given anything, ie. fish hooks, rope etc., I would have had more locals turn up at all hours of the night with the same expectation. After awhile I asked the gentleman to leave so I could get on with cooking my evening meal. One of the problems with the anchorage being so sheltered was the mosquitoes – squadrons of them.
After not the best nights sleep I departed Sibigo early September 7 for the 130 mile trip to the Sumatra mainland and Pulau Raya. The wind was northerly, where I was headed, at 5 to 7 knots – more motoring. The wind is capricious in the doldrums. By midday the wind had picked up a little so I was able to motor sail. Sadiqi was also pushing against a half knot current – the difference between the speed through the water and GPS speed over the ground. In the evening we managed to get several hours of sailing, 4 knots, when the wind increased and swung to the North West. The night routine is to turn on the navigation lights if motoring or the masthead tricolour if sailing, dim all the instrument lights to help with night vision. I heard the blow and splash of dolphins playing in the bow wave. It was a dark and moonless night so to see the streaks of phosphorescence light up in the path of the dolphins was amazing. This surreal light show went on for half an hour before the dolphins tired and went elsewhere to play.
In the morning we were back to motoring as the sails were slatting in the lumpy conditions. I tried the asymmetrical spinnaker again, all for about 10 minutes, and then the wind dropped. Of the 33 hour trip the motor ran for 32 hours! With relief we arrived at Pulau Raya and dropped anchor near the prowlong fishing platforms. When I sleep while sailing or motoring I use an alarm clock set for half an hour. Initially it takes awhile to get to sleep and I usually wake before the alarm. As the night wears on my intermittent sleep pattern improves and I can get almost a full half hour sleep. My body clock has a definite preference for sleep around 5.00am. I sleep mainly during the day and may get half an hour sleep every two hours if sailing conditions permit. When Sadiqi is securely anchored I sleep very heavily, coma like, but still only for 2 hours at a time. This is usually only for the first night after a trip of 24 hours or more, then I revert to a more normal sleeping pattern.
I departed Pulau Raya at first light, 6.30 with winds 4 – 6 knots ESE. By 8.30 the wind had increased to 10 knots from the east and it was time to raise the asymmetrical spinnaker again. By 9.30 the winds had dropped and so had the asymmetrical. By 13.00 the wind had increased to 10 – 12 knots from the south and with some conviction – at last. We had crossed latitude 5 degrees north. I had a look at my log and noticed that the wind pretty much faded out when I was around latitude 5 degrees south prior to entering Indonesian waters - the Doldrums. This meant a band of 10 degrees at the equator with capricious winds if any. One minute = one nautical mile, sixty minutes to one degree gives a band of six hundred miles of potential doldrums conditions, a lot of potential fuel and motoring.
Sadiqi revelled in the 10 – 12 knot wind from the stern sailing at 4.5 knots with only the main up. The fishing line was out in hopeful expectation that some fish would have the temerity to go for the lure. I tried several different lures, the fish, if there were any, were indifferent through lack of any activity. With the improved wind conditions and Sadiqi, very happily sailing along at 5 to 5.5 knots with both full main and headsail, we arrived at Aroih Cut too early. The Aroih Cut is narrow gap at the Northern end of Sumatra very prone to tidal currents and big swell. If heading North East, as I was, go on a rising tide. If heading South West go on the falling tide. As the tide was not rising enough, plus we had good winds I chose the wider gap Arioh Raya just north of the narrow cut. The current movement was impressive not being familiar with such events with sailing off Fremantle. I had brief glimpses of the Arioh cut and it was a veritable bubbling cauldron or white water. As it was, Sadiqi was going against a 3 to 4 knot current and it was nearly slack tide. Another learning experience.
I dropped anchor to the west of Banda Aceh and had a great nights rest. I had been keeping a radio sched with “Glayva” on HF radio at 9.00 and 20.00. Mark and Rachel had arrived at Pulau Weh the same day I had arrived at Banda Aceh – a half days sail away.
I departed Banda Aceh at a civilised 8.30, thinking I would get some good sailing in. Oops. I motored toward the Eastern side of Pulau Weh. By Midday the wind had increased from the south and the asymmetrical spinnaker was up and Sadiqi was sailing along very nicely, well for an hour anyway. The wind dropped and swung to the west. I had started the motor and was setting the jib and main, Sadiqi started to heel, when the motor stopped. Hmm, out of diesel! This was no great surprise as I had not put any fuel in since Labuanbujau on Simeulue some 46 engine hours before. Fortunately the wind had settled and Sadiqi was sailing along very nicely with the reliable Smithy, the Windpilot, at the helm.
I emptied a 20 litre jerry can into the tank, replaced the fuel filter and bled the fuel system before starting the engine again. This was a good exercise in good conditions. I’d hate to think of the consequences of running out of fuel in a situation like going through a narrow channel or crossing busy shipping lanes, something I was going to have to do to get to Thailand.
Sunday 5 September 2010
Sinabang (Simeulue)
It was good to have wind for a change, 17 knots NE, and give the old motor a rest. The approach to Sinabang which sits in a large sheltered bay on the east coast of Semeulue was interesting. I did not have paper charts for the island Simeulue. 
It did not instil a great deal of confidence seeing a small ship aground on an island near the entrance to the bay. I motored as close as I could to a Starboard Lateral navigation marker to mark and get an idea of the error between actual physical points and the C-Map charts. Actual marks were approximately 66 degrees magnetic (ENE) and 0.3 nautical miles from the mark shown on C-Map. I very gingerly navigating through the islands and rocks, without hitting anything, headed for the town of Sinabang. “Glayva” had, probably wisely, stayed in Labuhanbajau. 
First, I had to find somewhere to anchor, without the benefit of having friendly yachties to advise me. I ended up anchoring in 8 metres of water near a large power vessel also at anchor. Next I had to find a place to park the dingy so I could walk to the town. After a lap of the water front I chose a, respectable looking, jetty where fuel was sold. With much gesticulating I managed to ask if I could leave my dingy on their jetty. For a charge of RP5,000 or around AU$0.50 per day I could come and go as I pleased knowing the dingy would be safe. Before I could do any shopping I needed to change some money. It was Saturday, there where two banks, at least at is all I found, and they were closed and the ATM did not take my VISA card. Well at least the town had an ATM. I unsuccessfully prowled the streets trying to find anyone who could speak English. I eventually approached a shop owner selling mobile phones, asked if he wanted to change American dollars – success eventually. Armed with Indonesian Rupiah I went shopping and had a hair cut.
Sinabang is part of Aceh province and is predominantly Moslem. The chanting/wailing coming from the mosques must be an acquired taste. To me it sounded like a good laxative was required to alleviate the apparent pain that these people seemed to be enduring. Not very PC, but hey, you should have heard some of the karaoke wailing! Oh and it is Ramadan, as well, where followers fast during the day. The normal food stalls were not open. Sinabang was an interesting town, more like it should have come out of a Hollywood wild west town without the bars - no alcohol.
It did not instil a great deal of confidence seeing a small ship aground on an island near the entrance to the bay. I motored as close as I could to a Starboard Lateral navigation marker to mark and get an idea of the error between actual physical points and the C-Map charts. Actual marks were approximately 66 degrees magnetic (ENE) and 0.3 nautical miles from the mark shown on C-Map. I very gingerly navigating through the islands and rocks, without hitting anything, headed for the town of Sinabang. “Glayva” had, probably wisely, stayed in Labuhanbajau. 
First, I had to find somewhere to anchor, without the benefit of having friendly yachties to advise me. I ended up anchoring in 8 metres of water near a large power vessel also at anchor. Next I had to find a place to park the dingy so I could walk to the town. After a lap of the water front I chose a, respectable looking, jetty where fuel was sold. With much gesticulating I managed to ask if I could leave my dingy on their jetty. For a charge of RP5,000 or around AU$0.50 per day I could come and go as I pleased knowing the dingy would be safe. Before I could do any shopping I needed to change some money. It was Saturday, there where two banks, at least at is all I found, and they were closed and the ATM did not take my VISA card. Well at least the town had an ATM. I unsuccessfully prowled the streets trying to find anyone who could speak English. I eventually approached a shop owner selling mobile phones, asked if he wanted to change American dollars – success eventually. Armed with Indonesian Rupiah I went shopping and had a hair cut.
Sinabang is part of Aceh province and is predominantly Moslem. The chanting/wailing coming from the mosques must be an acquired taste. To me it sounded like a good laxative was required to alleviate the apparent pain that these people seemed to be enduring. Not very PC, but hey, you should have heard some of the karaoke wailing! Oh and it is Ramadan, as well, where followers fast during the day. The normal food stalls were not open. Sinabang was an interesting town, more like it should have come out of a Hollywood wild west town without the bars - no alcohol.
Labuhanbajau (Simeulue)
The island of Simeulue near where the earthquake that triggered the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami happened. Judging by some of the coral high and dry I got the distinct impression the earth did move.
My itchy, sand fly bitten leg became very painful and swollen. It is very difficult not to scratch. Thanks to the suggestions from the ever helpful Rachel I decided to put myself onto a course of antibiotics to avoid any infections. This was not a place I wanted to spend anytime looking for doctors or finding a hospital if there was one.
Friday September 3, it rained – it bucketed down. I could have had a rain water bath in the dingy had I not already had a rainwater shower. Sadiqi’s water tanks were full again. I needed to change money and get some fresh supplies before the two day voyage to the northern end of Sumatra, I headed for Sinabang the largest town on the island of Simeulue.
My itchy, sand fly bitten leg became very painful and swollen. It is very difficult not to scratch. Thanks to the suggestions from the ever helpful Rachel I decided to put myself onto a course of antibiotics to avoid any infections. This was not a place I wanted to spend anytime looking for doctors or finding a hospital if there was one.
Friday September 3, it rained – it bucketed down. I could have had a rain water bath in the dingy had I not already had a rainwater shower. Sadiqi’s water tanks were full again. I needed to change money and get some fresh supplies before the two day voyage to the northern end of Sumatra, I headed for Sinabang the largest town on the island of Simeulue.
Babi
Pulau Babi and the neighbouring island of Lasia are absolutely beautiful – the water was crystal clear – I could see every detail of Sadiqi’s anchor in 7 metres of water, great for snorkelling.
These two islands are not permanently inhabited and have mainly natural vegetation – no coconut plantations or cultivation. After several days at Babi I, literally, got itchy feet. I went ashore to burn rubbish and was bitten by sand flies, something I react quite badly to. To compound it I also had a prickly heat rash so the itch was all over!I left Pulau Babi and passed the island of Lasia onTuesday August 31, headed for Labuhanbajau the southern end Pulau Simeulue. I tried trawling for fish as I motored north, even tried several different lures. Judging by the fish jumping out of the water, not too far away, and birds feeding on them I did not have the right lure or technique.
Banyaks
We arrived at a sheltered anchorage on Tuangku island at 2.00am after pretty much motoring for 18 hours. I can’t say I had the best nights sleep due partly to the sound of mosquitoes. The motor was overdue for its 100 hour service. It had been exactly a month since I had last changed the engine oil before entering Indonesian waters. After servicing the engine I followed “Glayva” to the Bay of Plenty (BOP) – a beautiful, safe anchorage with 3 surf breaks – two lefts and a right. BOP had more natural vegetation than other anchorages as there was less habitation and coconut palm plantation. There were several freshwater creeks entering the bay – great for doing the laundry. There was not much swell the first few days so lazy days were spent on the beach in the cool shade of the trees, exploring and watching the antics of the many hermit crabs. I was able to fill the water tanks on “Sadiqi” as it rained heavily on one day. The one day the old dog attempted the new trick, surfing, again he got a right drowning and bounced over the reef. A little too shallow for the old dog!
Fishing – One thing I have discovered is that in order to catch a fish you have to first get the hook wet. I actually bought a fish off some local fisherman for a change in diet. My one attempt at fishing at Sipika delivered me a horrible slimy sucker fish. I had tried trawling a lure several times with little success. Something that I am going to have to work on – the catching of fish that is. I started to get itchy feet again and it was time to move on. Friday August 27 I departed BOP and headed to Babi Island followed by “Glayva” This was a day motor – 40 miles passing the uninhabited island of Bangkaru on the way.
Fishing – One thing I have discovered is that in order to catch a fish you have to first get the hook wet. I actually bought a fish off some local fisherman for a change in diet. My one attempt at fishing at Sipika delivered me a horrible slimy sucker fish. I had tried trawling a lure several times with little success. Something that I am going to have to work on – the catching of fish that is. I started to get itchy feet again and it was time to move on. Friday August 27 I departed BOP and headed to Babi Island followed by “Glayva” This was a day motor – 40 miles passing the uninhabited island of Bangkaru on the way.
Sibolga
I had to clear into Indonesia – Immigration and Customs. Fortunately, the ever helpful Mark and Rachel had advised me about what to do and where to go. “Glayva” had arrived several hours before “Sadiqi”, being a larger faster yacht.
Sibolga being a large town the challenge can be find a place where to put the dingy when going ashore. Fortunately, enterprising Mama Devy had a small jetty and kept an eye on the dingy for a price, I took a peddle power becak to Immigration. I had forgotten that I would be risking my life in the Indonesian traffic – chaotic to say the least. The bureaucracy can be very tedious and a real run around, being tired does not help. The visa cost US$25. After a good nights sleep I would attempt to get to Customs and the Harbour Master to clear “Sadiqi” in. Oh yes, the customs official don’t speak English and of course I don’t speak much Indonesian – interesting. August 17 is Indonesian Independence Day. Sibolga’s main religion is Islam and many of the population were partaking in Ramadan – fasting during the day. With the chanting coming from the mosques, think some of the imams, should work on their singing :o) Fortunately some of the shops were open. 
I met Nick on yacht “Lavinia”, another solo yachtsman and surfer. He took me for a good tour of the markets and shops. It rained a fair bit while in Sibolga, this enabled me to fill up the water tanks. Not having had much rain out on the islands I was grateful for the opportunity. Sibolga receives around 4,500mm of rainfall a year. Customs proved a challenge as the wheels needed to be lubricated (US$40) due to me not having Sibolga on my CAIT documentation. I live and learn. Prior to leaving Sibolga I had to visit the Harbour Master to get a clearance certificate to the next port. This was an exercise in patience, something for which I’m not known for. Again, I had to get numerous copies of passports, ship registration, CAIT etc., All this information was laboriously transcribed by hand into several ledgers, a large, ancient typewriter, best suited to a museum, was used to painstakingly produce the clearance certificate. It was a step back in time to before the arrival of computers. Once I had reprovisioned and refuelled I was able to wander around the town and take in some of the sites. I’d have to say that Sibolga was not exactly a tourist Mecca. There were several hotels, Surf charter operators pick up their clients form Sibolga for the trip out to the islands. “Glayva” and “Sadiqi” departed Sibolga on Saturday August 21, the day of the Australian election, headed for the Banyak group of islands. I have to commend the autopilot “Ken” for working well when there was no wind, which, alas, was most of the time off Sumatra. “Smithy” the windpilot had a well earned rest from steering the boat.
Sibolga being a large town the challenge can be find a place where to put the dingy when going ashore. Fortunately, enterprising Mama Devy had a small jetty and kept an eye on the dingy for a price, I took a peddle power becak to Immigration. I had forgotten that I would be risking my life in the Indonesian traffic – chaotic to say the least. The bureaucracy can be very tedious and a real run around, being tired does not help. The visa cost US$25. After a good nights sleep I would attempt to get to Customs and the Harbour Master to clear “Sadiqi” in. Oh yes, the customs official don’t speak English and of course I don’t speak much Indonesian – interesting. August 17 is Indonesian Independence Day. Sibolga’s main religion is Islam and many of the population were partaking in Ramadan – fasting during the day. With the chanting coming from the mosques, think some of the imams, should work on their singing :o) Fortunately some of the shops were open. 
I met Nick on yacht “Lavinia”, another solo yachtsman and surfer. He took me for a good tour of the markets and shops. It rained a fair bit while in Sibolga, this enabled me to fill up the water tanks. Not having had much rain out on the islands I was grateful for the opportunity. Sibolga receives around 4,500mm of rainfall a year. Customs proved a challenge as the wheels needed to be lubricated (US$40) due to me not having Sibolga on my CAIT documentation. I live and learn. Prior to leaving Sibolga I had to visit the Harbour Master to get a clearance certificate to the next port. This was an exercise in patience, something for which I’m not known for. Again, I had to get numerous copies of passports, ship registration, CAIT etc., All this information was laboriously transcribed by hand into several ledgers, a large, ancient typewriter, best suited to a museum, was used to painstakingly produce the clearance certificate. It was a step back in time to before the arrival of computers. Once I had reprovisioned and refuelled I was able to wander around the town and take in some of the sites. I’d have to say that Sibolga was not exactly a tourist Mecca. There were several hotels, Surf charter operators pick up their clients form Sibolga for the trip out to the islands. “Glayva” and “Sadiqi” departed Sibolga on Saturday August 21, the day of the Australian election, headed for the Banyak group of islands. I have to commend the autopilot “Ken” for working well when there was no wind, which, alas, was most of the time off Sumatra. “Smithy” the windpilot had a well earned rest from steering the boat.
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