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Latitudes & Attitudes Magazine- Hobbies Underway
Tanzania is ranked as the most peaceful country in East Africa. We found the local people are generally welcoming and laid-back. The water is clean and there isn’t any of the garbage & debris we saw in Indonesia. The beaches are picturesque, and the culture is rich.
Zanzibar was one of the most exotic destinations I have been to. We had a few packed days of exploring the World Heritage Site of Stone Town, Zanzibar City’s old quarter.
We are big fans of Freddie Mercury (lead vocalist of the rock band Queen…he was born in Zanzibar)
A video tribute to Freddie…People on streets, ee-da-dee-da-day
People on streets, ee-da-dee-da-dee-da-dee-da
Dar es Salaam “Harbour of Peace”
From Zanzibar we sailed to Dar es Salaam to meet up with Martin’s school buddy that he hadn’t seen in 40 years. They had a lot of catching up to do and as old friends do… they managed to pick-up where they left off. We anchored just off the famous Dar es Salaam yacht Club and managed to get registered as a visiting yacht so we could enjoy all the facilities the club had to offer. The pool was a highlight for me, and the restaurant & bar was always the place to be for good food and fun company at this very welcoming and social yacht club.
Mark & Michelle spoiled us from the minute we arrived until our delayed departure. Mark was the former DYC Commodore and had all the connection to help us as well as some of the other visiting yachts. Mark’s wife Michelle is one of those people that everyone is drawn to an incredible person that I am grateful to have met; it was hard to leave after 2 weeks of being completely pampered.
We did only one boat project! We managed to source an outboard engine for our dingy and didn’t hesitate to grab it while it was available. The old “smokey joe” engine still has a few miles on it so we gifted to a local we me that enjoys fishing with his family on the weekends. I hope they get some enjoyment from the 26-year-old engine.
After the break from boat projects and all the good times we had in Dar it is time to get serious about heading South to South Africa. We will try to not sail overnight so to avoid the traditional dowls and fishing boats/ nets that are not lit at night. We have 3 planned stops before we will look for a good weather window to transit the notoriously challenging Mozambique Channel. Next down the line: Mafia Island, Kilwa & Mtwara.
Our string of world party flags came in handy again as our vessels courtesy flag (a courtesy flag is flown by a ship in foreign waters as a token of respect by a vessel that is visiting) because, it was impossible to find a Tanzanian flag in Tanga. However, when we were in the Seychelles the Seychelloise flag was everywhere and when we went to a shop to buy one the shop attendant just gave us the very large flag that was hanging outside her shop, all people on the street got such a kick out of it.
I like shopping for each countries flag once we arrive as opposed to having the flags pre-purchased a head of time. We get to experience the pride and joy of the locals when we shop for their countries flag.
The night before we set sail to Zanzibar the local yachties (about 15 International yachts are in Tanaga at the moment) hosted a Pirate Party for the locals and cruisers complete with roasted goat and live music
Steve & Anna and Tom & Keyla (not pictured)
Everything Happens For a Reason
While we were frustrated and stuck in Padang for almost three weeks waiting for our new boat batteries to be delivered our mates on s/v Destiny set sail from Lombok to the Seychelles. We had buddy boated with Steve & Anna from Fiji to Indonesia and we had plans to leave around the same time as them en route for the Seychelles so, while we waited and waited they had already a 2 week head start on us.
Thank goodness we waited! S/V Destiny ran right into a dangerous low pressure system south of Cocas Keeling that punched constant 35+ winds and much higher gusts, unimaginable confused sea state and sustained wave heights at 5 meters. Destiny arrived safely in The Seychelles after almost 40 days of very rough conditions.
Thank goodness we waited!
What do you do when you are 22 days at sea?
I have been asked what we do onboard during a long passage and I often say “we are actually quite busy” but never really gave it too much thought to what we actually do so, here it is.
First of all we keep a strict watch schedule of 3 hours on 3 hours off so, someone is always in the cockpit. When we aren’t adjusting sails Martin is checking our course, getting weather updates and navigating. We also have to do daily checks on the lines for chafing and other boat maintenance tasks are constant.
During the day I have a “schedule” that includes exercises and stretching, working on the computer; editing videos, writing and working on a few “snapfish” projects. We always have a book to read; Martin has a Nook and I have a Kindle so there is no shortage of great books in our libraries. We fish on the calm days which will take up an entire afternoon when we catch a fish; cleaning the fish and the mess it makes onboard then dividing it up to vacuum seal ready for the deep freeze. In the afternoon we start preparing dinner early at around 3:00-4:00 and eat at 5:00pm so the dishes are done and everything is packed away before our night watch schedules begin at 6:00pm. During the afternoon we listen to BBC podcasts I have downloaded from Spotify which is a great conversation/ debate starter and breaks up the monotony.
I don’t count the days at sea; I count the nights because they are the longest and the most challenging of the watches. At night we have to keep a more diligent watch; not just for boats but for squalls you can’t see coming. I find the strain of checking the horizon particularly tedious when there isn’t a moon lit sky. On the other hand a clear star studded night on the open ocean has its own rewards. If I had a dollar for every wish I made on a shooting star during this passage…I could buy us a round of beers at the Seychelles Yacht Club $$$$$
After a fast four weeks in the Seychelles getting the steering wheel fixed and struggling to get our fridge repaired; we left before we had to go through the “boat import” process & without our fridge getting repaired. Off to Tanzania now… we are both excited to get to Africa.
What a horrible trip…10 days of into the wind “motoring” from Lombok to the Mentawai Islands off the West coast of Sumatra. The passage took us so long that we missed meeting Martin’s friends (by 1 day) that had been visiting the Mentawai’s local surf camp all the way from South Africa.
This is what sailing in Indonesia looks like…trying to find clean diesel in every port!
Mentawai- Taupejat was worth the trip
A bit about this video: “Marty” surfed everyday that he could for a month between several of the famous surf breaks: Telescopes, Suicides and Icelands. Kayaking through the mangroves was my pastime. We met many of the local expat community and many foreigners that have businesses in the area. Gidion & Chantal are South African’s that own the Bilou Villas Surf Resort; they were helpful introducing us to the locals and contacts in Padang that would help us get our 6 new Trojan boat batteries that we desperately needed. By far the most interesting character we met owns the property and bungalows that was directly in front of where we anchored…Terry a.k.a The Juggler Smuggler was made famous in the T.V. series Locked Up Abroad after he was busted in Japan smuggling hash in his juggling balls! Terry is a fellow Texan so we had a lot in common and he was seriously one of the most entertaining people I have had the pleasure of knowing. His hospitality was as big as Texas and I’ll never forget our visits with him; particularly when he wanted to show us the massive python he had just caught and caged in one of the bungalows but when we got there the massive 11ft python had escaped!
Exploring Tuapejat
We met all kinds of interesting folks; our anchorage neighbor for three weeks “Witty” from Australia was always up for spearfishing, BBQ & beer (not in that order). Afternoons ashore to visit with locals at “Brad’s Bakery” or at the local Mentawai Surf Bungalows was our regular social outlet. Ashley a South African we met through Marc on s/y Millennium had just finished having a traditional boat built and was excited to show us his new home before it’s maiden launch. Han’s and Kat a young American couple had a similar however much smaller traditional boat built that they intend to live on while they continue to travel and surf many of the Ment’s surf breaks (they have spent “half-years” in the Ment’s for over a decade!).
We got a taste for island living; fresh and delicious eggs from Terry, hand pressed coconut oil delivered to Shenemere, Witty often had fish on the “barbie”, fresh bread from Brad the Baker and a plentiful vegetable market was all we really needed. The memories we made and the stories to be told about our time here was for us what cruising is all about. Priceless!
Exploring Cubadak island while we wait for our new batteries to be delivered
In Padang to pick-up 6 new batteries for Shenemere and top up with fuel & provisions
Padang Harbor was an industrial commercial port however, the upside was the friendly locals that helped us load our new batteries and distribute the old batteries to a few of the fishermen as well the convenience to clear out of Indonesia.
We are now ready to set our sails for the Indian Ocean to the Seychelles & Africa. Anticipating a 30- day passage.
MotoGP- Mandalika, Lombok
The Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix is part of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Championship. It was something I’d never experienced so we took the opportunity to travel to Mandalika and what an experience it was but, for all the wrong reasons. The race was exciting however, a logistical nightmare when the race was over. 80,000 spectators trying to catch a few buses back to their cars took us 7 hours; 2 buses and hiking on the muddy roads in the pitch dark & rain back to our car after a bus got stuck and blocked traffic for miles.
Off to Explore the Southern coast of Lombok: Belongas Bay Beware! Navigational Hazards Afloat
Gerupuk Lombok is home to five surf breaks
This small village is big on fishing within a large inlet made up of several bays. The locals here make their living from commercial fishing or surf tourism. Conditions were favorable for Marty to surf most of our time in Gerupuk.
Gerupuk to Kuta on scooters and some kayaking adventures is what we’ve been needing…
Gili Air, Lombok is known as a popular tourist hotspot; mostly young party goers pre-covid. We arrived to the more traditional Gili Air as most of the hotels and bars were closed and awaiting Indonesia to open up to tourists. The water is crystal clear, the surf was cooperating and the island was ripe for exploring on foot.
BALI
We went to Bali over Christmas and New Years and enjoyed a much needed break from the boat. Exploring Bali’s inland cultural treasures was a real treat. Also, resort accommodations with breakfast included for $18 USD a night! I enjoyed browsing and practicing my bartering skills at the artisan market in the mornings and spending the afternoons strolling through the town. We had a lot of fun at the Monkey Forest; Martin making friends :0
Back to Lombok
We went to Lombok to start the process of stowing the boat in preparation for our trip back to the USA. We got distracted for a few days when Captain SImmone on the mega yacht Immortalis pitched up in the anchorage. Captain Simmone had spent the last 2 years refitting an old Japanese fishing vessel into a recreational charter boat and he was keen to celebrate and show us the ropes on Immortalis. He asked me for help with a video of the boat as it is destined to charter in the near future. This video is the “unprofessional” cut of the video I did for the owner.
Pictures are worth a thousand words…our quick 6 week trip to the states
Back to Indonesia
The trip back was much more cumbersome than the trip to the states. The Quarantine in Jakarta added 4 days to our journey back to Shenemere. Next stage of our sailing journey will involve an Indian Ocean passage to Africa. Blessed to have had the time with friends, family and baby River to help fill our emotional tanks for the next long passage.
Indonesia has 18,000 Isles covering over 2 million square miles…many choices! Martin was keen to check out the famous T-Land surf break on Rote Island. Surf was off so we waited a few days for conditions to improve and enjoyed meeting the local expat community and exploring the traditional side of Rote. Unfortunately, what used to be a thriving tourist hotspot was void of any signs of tourism.
Rote Island to Komodo Island Shark Attack!
Monitor Windvane or Lure? On my watch I was startled by a knock/ bang on the monitor windvane rudder. Then another hit. As I looked off the back of Shenemere I thought initially I was seeing a whale…whatever it was it was fat & long but, that just wasn’t logical. Another hit on the shinny paddle when I realized I was witnessing a massive shark attacking the windvane! Everything slowed down. I attempted to scream for Martin to come up but I had lost my voice to shock. Martin did make it in time to see the enormous black fin as the shark was aborting it’s effort to relieve us from our main mode of steerage.
It was the following day when we arrived at Komodo Island that we lifted the rudder to survey the damage.
#sailing #indonesia #shark #sailingshenemere #Respect
Komodo Island
We were excited to meet up with Lisa and Mark on S/V En Passant in Komodo. Enjoyed having fellow cruisers to explore Komodo National Park and socialize with them at Rinca Island before we all sailed to Flores.
Needing fuel and provisions we headed off to the main town in Flores- Labuan Bajo
Indonesia is not a Muslim nation according to their constitution. The archipelago is a multifaith country and officially recognizes 6 religions. So far in Kupang, Rote & Komodo we didn’t see the majority Muslim population represented…that changed when we got to Flores.
While we were sailing/ motoring to Flores there was a violent volcanic eruption at Mt. Semeru off of Java that killed 48 people. A week later there was an undersea quake off of Sumatra triggering panic in Indonesia. In addition to seismic activity in the region we have to contend with navigational hazards including Fish Attracting Devices, fishing nets, unlit fishing boats and floating debris have made sailing at night likely to have unfortunate consequences :0
Next to Lombok-Gili Air and Bali for Christmas.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Breakage Was Our Constant Companion
Years of “day sailing” might be equal to the amount of wear we had on all the boat’s systems during this 29 day passage
We Ate Well- Tuna and Wahoo
Wine, cheese and cheers shared.
Jimmy was our local go-to-guide for pretty much everything we needed. Kupang was too spread out and the language was a barrier for immigration, phones, stamps and boat repairs etc. Jimmy was always there to watch our dingy and organize what was needed. We took him out to the Triple 9 Club the night before we left to thank him for all his help.
Indonesia changed the quarantine from 8 days to 3 days however, it still took us 12 days to get completely checked-in. Two PCR tests, Health, Quarantine, Immigration, Customs & Harbor Master officials all work independently. Pre-Covid it cost about $200 to check into Indonesia now it costs about $2000.
First Impressions & Highlights of Our Brief Visit to Kupang
We quickly filled up with fuel/ propane, provisioned with veggies and had the Monitor wind vane welded before we set sail to Roti.
David and Martin showed the local kids how to fly the drones
We enjoyed visiting with the kids on Makogai. The kids were keen to fly the drone and showed me their homemade “blow dart guns” (pvc pipe with corked steel darts) they basically shot-to- kill anything on the island with trained proficiency.
Beachcombing at it’s best
Beach Daze
“Our new normal” is having to burn our rubbish just like the locals. No garbage collected and the “garbage dumps” on the main islands are just large fires to throw your garbage on. So now we take the trash to the beach and burn it. Rik and Saunne from SV Incentive joined us for our rubbish burn, beach combing, kayaking/SUP and snorkeling adventures on Makogai.
First stop at the top of the Yasawa Group: Sawi-i-Lau
Sawi-i-Lau is the odd limestone island amid a string of high volcanic islands. We came here to explore the caves but, we weren’t received by any locals and we didn’t want to approach the village uninvited so we had to explore on our own. On the way to Sawi-i-Lau we sailed into a large pod of Pilot Whales with their babies.
Nanuya Lailai- home to the celebrity of all the Yasawa’s beaches,
the Blue Lagoon
Beautiful Blue Lagoon where Brooke Shields gave fame to this crystalline and glossy beach in the movie Blue Lagoon did not disappoint. However, most of the beaches were private resorts (Turtle Island Resort $2,700 per night) and even though there aren’t any guests here due to boarder closures there were security guards protecting most of the beaches.
We met the Aussie owner Ivan that was maintaining the Nanuya Island Resort during the boarder closures by keeping a shop open for the locals & employees to taking care of the property. We were invited to make an order of veggies and he would get together what he could for us. We came back in the afternoon to a huge box of eggplants, bananas, cilantro, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, oranges and potatoes! We had been down to one cucumber and three carrots so the fresh veggies were a culinary celebration!
CASTAWAY ISLAND
DENARAU ISLAND MARINA & RESORTS
Marty Surfs Restaurants with only yachtie’s in the lineup
Vinaka Fiji
Thank you Fiji.
Sincere gratitude to all the wonderful people we met in Fiji. It would be so easy to Stay in Fiji however, this would be our third time here and we are drawn to unchartered waters as the cyclone season is imminent. We have set our sails for Indonesia.
XXOO to all the amazing yachtie’s we met this cruising season. It was an intimate-quickly acquainted community of cruisers, surfers & kayakers. We all seemed to embraced the “Silver Lining” of Covid Cruising/ FIJI BLUE LANES CRUISING. We are grateful to have the unique opportunity to sail through the islands of Fiji and truly appreciate the Fijians for their fortitude. BLUE LANES allowed cruisers to explore Fiji by water while the country remained in various levels of lockdown.
Cheers to all the cruisers we chilled with…fondest memories XO #Galliant #Brave #Heritage #Patches#Periguine #Incentive #HooDoo #Indigo #India #Wildthing #Sequia #Ibis #FlipFlops #Hallabaloo of Normandy #Seaglub #SpiritofMillenium #Persuasion
Sailing Shenemere 