The last sail with our buddy boat, Ellida, was quite challenging. After we left the luxurious Admiral Marina, the winds were light and the seas calm for 23 of the 26 hours it took to complete our passage north to Pangkor Island Marina. We motored with the mainsail raised. Sometimes it filled. As it went dark we had to alter course to avoid two small fishing boats guarding drift nets. These nets can be a quarter of a mile long! Then we had to pass lots of anchored ships one or two of which were moving to and from the nearby shipping lane. I came up on watch at midnight and there were so many lights ahead, I might have been approaching a city. These were the large fishing boats which mainly stay on station but sometimes move. Other ships and ferries pass through them as well as tugs towing large, unlit barges. I called Jeremy up to help when I found myself sandwiched between a barge and a ship. Fortunately, the ship was anchored. Having left the fishing grounds behind, Jeremy checked the battereries and found one had overheated. He disconnected it at 4.00am. Two hours later, he had just lowered the mainsail and put the last tie on it when SD was hit with 33knots of wind accompanied by heavy rain, thunder and lightning. This is known as a "sumatera" and is a feature of sailing in the Straits of Melaka. The sea was rough for the next three hours until we reached the channel between the mainland and Pulau Pangkor. The marina is on its own island on land reclaimed from the sea. That evening we enjoyed a superb dinner hosted by the marina. The next day all the Sail Malaysia participants were ferried across to Pangkor Island and treated to a tour and lunch at a Chinese restaurant.
We saw this anchorage at Teluk Nipah on the west side of Pulau Pangkor when we were on the tour. It was very sad saying farewell to Liz and Graham after 4 months of travelling together and sharing so many experiences. Ellida was to be lifted out at the end of November and Liz and Graham were flying home to see their new grandchild. However, they were going to join us at Penang for the tour and dinner. We spent 2 nights at the anchorage shown before setting off for Pulau Penang at 3.00 am.
The last sail with our buddy boat, Ellida, was quite challenging. After we left the luxurious Admiral Marina, the winds were light and the seas calm for 23 of the 26 hours it took to complete our passage north to Pangkor Island Marina. We motored with the mainsail raised. Sometimes it filled. As it went dark we had to alter course to avoid two small fishing boats guarding drift nets. These nets can be a quarter of a mile long! Then we had to pass lots of anchored ships one or two of which were moving to and from the nearby shipping lane. I came up on watch at midnight and there were so many lights ahead, I might have been approaching a city. These were the large fishing boats which mainly stay on station but sometimes move. Other ships and ferries pass through them as well as tugs towing large, unlit barges. I called Jeremy up to help when I found myself sandwiched between a barge and a ship. Fortunately, the ship was anchored. Having left the fishing grounds behind, Jeremy checked the battereries and found one had overheated. He disconnected it at 4.00am. Two hours later, he had just lowered the mainsail and put the last tie on it when SD was hit with 33knots of wind accompanied by heavy rain, thunder and lightning. This is known as a "sumatera" and is a feature of sailing in the Straits of Melaka. The sea was rough for the next three hours until we reached the channel between the mainland and Pulau Pangkor. The marina is on its own island on land reclaimed from the sea. That evening we enjoyed a superb dinner hosted by the marina. The next day all the Sail Malaysia participants were ferried across to Pangkor Island and treated to a tour and lunch at a Chinese restaurant.
We saw this anchorage at Teluk Nipah on the west side of Pulau Pangkor when we were on the tour. It was very sad saying farewell to Liz and Graham after 4 months of travelling together and sharing so many experiences. Ellida was to be lifted out at the end of November and Liz and Graham were flying home to see their new grandchild. However, they were going to join us at Penang for the tour and dinner. We spent 2 nights at the anchorage shown before setting off for Pulau Penang at 3.00 am.
1 comment:
Hello Jeremy and Kathy,
We haven't met, but my Dad, Spencer Lloyd, followed your travels with great interest. Sadly he died last February, but I would like to continue seeing your blogs. Our daughter Heather is working in central Thailand. Happy (belated) Christmas! Margaret and David Simmons
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