Last night I was invited to a party at the owner of Coconuts Bar’s house. The bar was closed for the elections that are being held. Pretty silly law, but what can you do? I taxied into Chalong and picked up my laundry and a bite to eat. At the restaurant, they had wi-fi, so I downloaded the soft ware necessary to make my new phone work as a modem for my computer. Then Keith picked me up and we went to the party together. She worked hard and had a lavish buffet with roast duck, pork loin, scalloped potatoes, and a lot of other goodies. I was well fed.
After dinner and chatting, there were three girls visiting from Oot’s original village, and they were trained Thai masseuses. Oot asked me if I would like a massage, and I jumped at the chance. I got worked over for an hour and a half, and found out that I had muscles that I never knew were there. The girl was only about 4’10” tall and just a little thing, but she sure can crunch some bones. After it was done, I felt like new and went for a walk to let things settle down a bit. Keith then took me back to the boat. When I left, I had checked the tide chart, and high tide was as two AM. I did not pull the dink all the way up knowing that, so I only had to turn it around and push it into the rising tide, caught a wave, and I was afloat and paddled out past the surf line. What a treat! The easiest beach launch that I have had and only got wet to below my knees.
When I wrote about the King’s Cup, I forgot to tell about one of the highlights at the Chalong party. There was a fellow there that was fixed up to look like a statue. When I came through the entrance, he was standing there. He is one of those guys that doesn’t move or even blink for long stretches of time. Later, he moved to the stage area wine counter, and we had some fun with him. Cindy figured that she should tip him, so she folded twenty baht and stuck it in his pocket so that it stuck out like a fan. It was breezy, and he didn’t want his tip to blow away, so he did a real quick grab and tuck, and then struck another pose. Someone else gave him a cigarette, and lit it for him. He was smoking with hardly any movement. It was really quite cool. A lot of people posed and took pictures with him.
This morning, the weather is warm and quite breezy. I have seen gusts to 32 knots. Thank God that I’m here and not in Chalong Bay. The boat is moving around a bit and dancing on the anchor line, but actually very pleasant motion. Today, the floors come back up as I am working on the hoses and fittings beneath it. Happy B-Day to Clara's brother Doug, hope he's still keeping track of me with google earth.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Jeff's Log ~ Saturday December 15th, 2007
7 46.518N 98 18.156E Naihan Beach, Thailand
Well, I finally have my new visa, and won’t have to go through this bond affair again. Yesterday I made my visa run to Burma. There were thirty five of us on the bus for the ride to Ranong. On Thursday, I went to immigration in Phuket Town, and had to give them 22,500baht, around 700US, and they gave me my clearance to leave. Next week, I will get 20,000baht returned to me. The visa run costs 1500baht, around 50US, and it is an all day affair.
I got up at 5:00AM and met the driver at 6. It was dead low tide, which meant that I really got a good workout dragging the dink up to the dry sand line. The tides change by 3 meters here which means a 10 foot change in elevation. I had to drag the dingy about 15 yards through the sand, and there was absolutely no one around to ask for help. I really hope that the boat’s dingy gets back soon with the new fold down wheels on it. I took a large bottle of water with me to have after my workout, and by the time the driver got there, I was cooling down a bit. He cranked the ac. down for me, and we drove all around and into Phuket town picking up people in his minibus. He then rendezvoused with a big tour bus and we all got on that.
We left on the big bus at 7. At 9, we stopped at a Lion’s Club for breakfast. It was a buffet with western and Thai selections. The Thai food looked and smelled wonderful, so that’s what I had. I’m not sure of everything’s name, but I do know that one of my favorites, pad thai, was part of it. Then it was back on the bus and we didn’t stop again until Ranong where we cleared out at immigration. They then took us to the boat. The walk from the bus to the boat was through a rather foul smelling alley and warehouse. Inside the warehouse, there were people living in crudely constructed lofts, with five or six people in each family, including many small children. That has something to do with the foul smelling alley, I’m sure.
We all boarded a wooden boat, about forty feet long. There were a few young strong Thai guys to help everyone get on board. After a short trip through a very muddy bay, we came to the dock in Burma in a town called Kawthaung. There, everyone got off the boat, and we all walked across a bridge to the immigration office, got our passports stamped, and got back on the boat. In the short time that we were there, the local natives swarmed on us and were selling everything from local fresh fruit to hard liquor, and trying every tactic in the book to try to get you to buy from them. One pregnant lady had some fine looking fish and chips, so I got some of that for 10baht, about thirty cents. It was really good too!
The lady sitting in front of me was a missionary, and she started handing out 100baht notes to all of the gang. She just about started a riot because the natives became like a flock of sea gulls. She was all smiling though and said she was glad she could bring blessings to such poor people. All I can say is that if it feels good, do it. We chatted all the way back. She was from Kansas, and has been here teaching for three years.
When we got back to the dock, we boarded the bus for the short ride to Ranong immigration and checked back in. I now have a regular tourist visa, so I won’t have to go through the yacht crew bond situation again. There are visa runs that must be made every thirty days though. After check in, another short bus ride to stop at a small lunch buffet. This time, it was rice with a veggie stir fry, or veggie and chicken stir fry, with a fried egg and some watermelon slices. It was really pretty tasty.
The bus ride home was just like the one on the way up. The elevation changes make the road very steep and windy, and thusly slow for a big, high tour bus. I was a little disappointed in the scenery. The road has been there so long that nature has grown right to the road and you can’t see much except a wall of trees and very tall bamboo in the undeveloped sections. There are very few roads, so it seems like you just go from town to town because everything has to be accessible by road. The towns all pretty much look alike. Up north, there does seem to be a little more space, and some wealthier people judging by the look of some of the places we went by. For the most part though, I would call the landscaping zeros cape. What grows grows, what dies dies, and if it’s in the way, it gets burned.
I finally returned to the boat at about 9:30. It was low tide again. So I had to drag the dink all the way down to the water. A young German lad and his girlfriend were nice enough to give me a hand.
I slept very well after my long day of visa run. Next time, I’ll take a book to read.
Well, I finally have my new visa, and won’t have to go through this bond affair again. Yesterday I made my visa run to Burma. There were thirty five of us on the bus for the ride to Ranong. On Thursday, I went to immigration in Phuket Town, and had to give them 22,500baht, around 700US, and they gave me my clearance to leave. Next week, I will get 20,000baht returned to me. The visa run costs 1500baht, around 50US, and it is an all day affair.
I got up at 5:00AM and met the driver at 6. It was dead low tide, which meant that I really got a good workout dragging the dink up to the dry sand line. The tides change by 3 meters here which means a 10 foot change in elevation. I had to drag the dingy about 15 yards through the sand, and there was absolutely no one around to ask for help. I really hope that the boat’s dingy gets back soon with the new fold down wheels on it. I took a large bottle of water with me to have after my workout, and by the time the driver got there, I was cooling down a bit. He cranked the ac. down for me, and we drove all around and into Phuket town picking up people in his minibus. He then rendezvoused with a big tour bus and we all got on that.
We left on the big bus at 7. At 9, we stopped at a Lion’s Club for breakfast. It was a buffet with western and Thai selections. The Thai food looked and smelled wonderful, so that’s what I had. I’m not sure of everything’s name, but I do know that one of my favorites, pad thai, was part of it. Then it was back on the bus and we didn’t stop again until Ranong where we cleared out at immigration. They then took us to the boat. The walk from the bus to the boat was through a rather foul smelling alley and warehouse. Inside the warehouse, there were people living in crudely constructed lofts, with five or six people in each family, including many small children. That has something to do with the foul smelling alley, I’m sure.
We all boarded a wooden boat, about forty feet long. There were a few young strong Thai guys to help everyone get on board. After a short trip through a very muddy bay, we came to the dock in Burma in a town called Kawthaung. There, everyone got off the boat, and we all walked across a bridge to the immigration office, got our passports stamped, and got back on the boat. In the short time that we were there, the local natives swarmed on us and were selling everything from local fresh fruit to hard liquor, and trying every tactic in the book to try to get you to buy from them. One pregnant lady had some fine looking fish and chips, so I got some of that for 10baht, about thirty cents. It was really good too!
The lady sitting in front of me was a missionary, and she started handing out 100baht notes to all of the gang. She just about started a riot because the natives became like a flock of sea gulls. She was all smiling though and said she was glad she could bring blessings to such poor people. All I can say is that if it feels good, do it. We chatted all the way back. She was from Kansas, and has been here teaching for three years.
When we got back to the dock, we boarded the bus for the short ride to Ranong immigration and checked back in. I now have a regular tourist visa, so I won’t have to go through the yacht crew bond situation again. There are visa runs that must be made every thirty days though. After check in, another short bus ride to stop at a small lunch buffet. This time, it was rice with a veggie stir fry, or veggie and chicken stir fry, with a fried egg and some watermelon slices. It was really pretty tasty.
The bus ride home was just like the one on the way up. The elevation changes make the road very steep and windy, and thusly slow for a big, high tour bus. I was a little disappointed in the scenery. The road has been there so long that nature has grown right to the road and you can’t see much except a wall of trees and very tall bamboo in the undeveloped sections. There are very few roads, so it seems like you just go from town to town because everything has to be accessible by road. The towns all pretty much look alike. Up north, there does seem to be a little more space, and some wealthier people judging by the look of some of the places we went by. For the most part though, I would call the landscaping zeros cape. What grows grows, what dies dies, and if it’s in the way, it gets burned.
I finally returned to the boat at about 9:30. It was low tide again. So I had to drag the dink all the way down to the water. A young German lad and his girlfriend were nice enough to give me a hand.
I slept very well after my long day of visa run. Next time, I’ll take a book to read.
Jeff's Log ~ Wednesday, December 12th 2007
Yesterday the day started nice and early with the dingy repair guys coming and telling me that it’s made of Hypalon which is a material that can be repaired. They brought a loner dingy with them, and the boys and I proceeded to switch over the engine and fuel tank. I then went with them to fill out repair order and talk things over with Hans. We agreed on what repairs were necessary, and by that time, the morning was gone. I got a bite to eat, and then tried to get the paperwork needed for my visa at yet another bank. I still do not have what immigration wants, so I went to Rucker’s bungalow and told him of my woes. He gave me his marina’s telephone number, and I called there. The girl there said she could help, but I have to come in person. That will be today’s mission.
In the mean time, the loaner dingy is even harder to pull through the sand, so I decided that I would tie it to the swim area buoy line, and wade out to it on my return, when the tide would be up. Well, here comes another hard earned lesson. When the tide comes in here, it is somewhat captured because of the shape of the bay, so right at the shore line, big rolling waves are generated. The fuel tank does not have a tie down in the loaner, so in the waves, it was free to fly around, and it did. When I came back, the fuel tank was floating upside down attached to the boat with only the fuel line. I didn’t run the engine because I don’t really need salt water getting in the carburetor, so I paddled the dingy back to the boat Indian style, because there are no oar locks on this boat. Thank God that we had put the oars in when we transferred dinghies.
In the mean time, the loaner dingy is even harder to pull through the sand, so I decided that I would tie it to the swim area buoy line, and wade out to it on my return, when the tide would be up. Well, here comes another hard earned lesson. When the tide comes in here, it is somewhat captured because of the shape of the bay, so right at the shore line, big rolling waves are generated. The fuel tank does not have a tie down in the loaner, so in the waves, it was free to fly around, and it did. When I came back, the fuel tank was floating upside down attached to the boat with only the fuel line. I didn’t run the engine because I don’t really need salt water getting in the carburetor, so I paddled the dingy back to the boat Indian style, because there are no oar locks on this boat. Thank God that we had put the oars in when we transferred dinghies.
Jeff's Log ~ Monday, December 12th, 2007
After resting and recovering from the hard race on Saturday, it’s time to get to work again. Today is a holiday here, so banks and government offices are closed. I went to the dingy repair shop and met with the owner, and he is sending a man to look at the poor dink tomorrow morning. The regatta was fun. We were anchored right next to a boat named “Yo Mo”. At the fire plug, we have No- Mow. I’ll send a picture of her. I’ll try to remember to take pictures of some of the yards for you Mike.
Most people don’t have yards fixed up. The wealthier people do, the working people may not even have a yard. Some of the living areas border right on the street with barely enough room to park a car. Some people put up a corrugated steel shack and pay no rent, and have whatever happens to be there for landscaping. This is a relatively poor area. The minimum wage was just increased to 193baht per day. That is about six bucks! The length of the day is not specified either. Some workers put in twelve hour days for that. Very often, there are families of five or six living in one room with a hot plate. A lot of the cooking gets done outdoors under make shift canopies to keep the rain off of the fire. The dirt seems to be a reddish color, but not really clay-like, it seems a little looser in consistency. The sand on the beaches is very fine and smooth and covers everything that it contacts. I remove about a pound of it every day from the dingy when I bail it in the morning. Later this week, I will go back to pulling it out of the water at night again, and then a lot of that will drain when I pull the plug.
Most people don’t have yards fixed up. The wealthier people do, the working people may not even have a yard. Some of the living areas border right on the street with barely enough room to park a car. Some people put up a corrugated steel shack and pay no rent, and have whatever happens to be there for landscaping. This is a relatively poor area. The minimum wage was just increased to 193baht per day. That is about six bucks! The length of the day is not specified either. Some workers put in twelve hour days for that. Very often, there are families of five or six living in one room with a hot plate. A lot of the cooking gets done outdoors under make shift canopies to keep the rain off of the fire. The dirt seems to be a reddish color, but not really clay-like, it seems a little looser in consistency. The sand on the beaches is very fine and smooth and covers everything that it contacts. I remove about a pound of it every day from the dingy when I bail it in the morning. Later this week, I will go back to pulling it out of the water at night again, and then a lot of that will drain when I pull the plug.
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Jeff's Log~ Saturday, December 8th, 2007
Naihan Beach, Thailand, 7 46.515N 98 18.160E
Pipe Dream is in her new home, at Naihan Beach. Chalong Bay just got too rough with the north east winds, and I could not sleep at night with all of the rolling that was going on. We’ve only been here the better part of today, but what a difference.
The King’s Cup Regatta ended today with the last race being a buoy course. It was windward-leeward three times around. This is really the kind of racing that Pipe Dream was designed for and she showed her stuff. There were times when we had more than 20kn of true wind, and we maintained course and speed with a very minimum crew. Today Dave really did a good job on the starting line. We were right on the line going full speed when the gun sounded, and it sure was nice to see the rest of the fleet below us and going a lot slower than we were. The wind kept building throughout the race, and on the third windward leg, Dave did a great job of feathering the boat up to keep her going the right direction.
It’s really quite funny how one good performance can make one forget the past foul-ups . It was nice finishing such a prestigious regatta on an upbeat note. At the after race party, I met people from all over the world, and they all knew the J-boat from the US. Some even commented about the US flag which we flew every day until just before the start. Yacht racing rules technically deny the flying during racing.
We finished in fourth place for the day, but eighth or ninth for the regatta. Not too bad considering we had no racing sails, and a very minimum crew. All in all, it was a very good experience, and definitely something that I would like to do again.
Next week, I begin the necessary repairs on Pipe Dream. She is a good boat, and responds very well to the care that I give her, so I am confident that all will go well. The biggest job is the oil leak from the front seal of the generator, and I actually am looking forward to repairing that. December 6 was my Brother Paul’s birthday, so a belated happy happy to him
Pipe Dream is in her new home, at Naihan Beach. Chalong Bay just got too rough with the north east winds, and I could not sleep at night with all of the rolling that was going on. We’ve only been here the better part of today, but what a difference.
The King’s Cup Regatta ended today with the last race being a buoy course. It was windward-leeward three times around. This is really the kind of racing that Pipe Dream was designed for and she showed her stuff. There were times when we had more than 20kn of true wind, and we maintained course and speed with a very minimum crew. Today Dave really did a good job on the starting line. We were right on the line going full speed when the gun sounded, and it sure was nice to see the rest of the fleet below us and going a lot slower than we were. The wind kept building throughout the race, and on the third windward leg, Dave did a great job of feathering the boat up to keep her going the right direction.
It’s really quite funny how one good performance can make one forget the past foul-ups . It was nice finishing such a prestigious regatta on an upbeat note. At the after race party, I met people from all over the world, and they all knew the J-boat from the US. Some even commented about the US flag which we flew every day until just before the start. Yacht racing rules technically deny the flying during racing.
We finished in fourth place for the day, but eighth or ninth for the regatta. Not too bad considering we had no racing sails, and a very minimum crew. All in all, it was a very good experience, and definitely something that I would like to do again.
Next week, I begin the necessary repairs on Pipe Dream. She is a good boat, and responds very well to the care that I give her, so I am confident that all will go well. The biggest job is the oil leak from the front seal of the generator, and I actually am looking forward to repairing that. December 6 was my Brother Paul’s birthday, so a belated happy happy to him
Jeff's Log~ Thursday, December 6th 2007
Yesterday was a better day on the race course. We were only about 45 seconds late for the start, but had the boat moving well. When Dave wanted the jib in against the shrouds, I told him to drive the boat, and I’ll trim the jib. We ended up mid-fleet at the end of a twenty seven mile race. I’m pretty sure that we are the only boat in our class that is not using a spinnaker, and I don’t think that our rating is correct. I’m having fun racing anyway; I’ve been spoiled by all of the winning racing programs that I have been in the last few years. The weather has been nice for sailing, and the scenery that we are sailing around sure is beautiful.
Yesterday was the King’s birthday, so before the start of racing, there was a boat parade past a navy warship which had the whole crew on deck saluting as all of the race boats passed by. Dave got everybody on the crew a yellow shirt. Yellow is the official royal color. We all lined up on the side of the boat and returned the navy’s salute as we passed by. It was a pretty impressive sight.
At the party last night, the food was really good again. This time they had pizza, lasagna, sausage, and a pork loin, as well as a few of my Thai favorites. The desserts were scrumptious as usual. They even had blueberry cheesecake! I must admit that I blew my healthy diet last night, as I had several of those sweet
treats.
On Sunday night, they had the opening skipper’s meeting and a great party. After the party, the rest of the crew went to Dave Rucker’s bungalow, and I got in the dingy to return to Pipe Dream. When we had left the boat, it was in the afternoon and the sun was shining. Going back, the wind had shifted ninety degrees, and it was dark, and I had had a few glasses of wine. I wasn’t driving when we left the boat; I was chatting and looking around at all of the different sights. Well, after the party I was driving around the anchorage for an hour, and could not find the boat. The dingy started running poorly from all of the low speed running, so I decided to give up.
The Kata Beach Hotel was full, but the five star Mom’s Boathouse had a room available. At that point, if the room had been a thousand dollars, I probably would have taken it. The fellow behind the desk took pity on me and discounted the room by 350baht, so my mistake only cost me 12,000baht, around $400USD. The room was gorgeous though. The shower had one of those huge rain shower type of shower heads with a stone floor, a seat, and enough hot water to supply the navy. I think I sat in the shower relaxing for about a half an hour. The bellman had also lit a candle under a scented oil burner, so the aroma was kind of spicy and relaxing too. After my shower the doorbell rang, and another bellman brought a plate of chilled fresh fruit. I enjoyed that little snack while watching TV for the second time since leaving home. It sure was worth the price to sleep in a comfortable bed with the air conditioning turned very cold, without the motion of the ocean for a change.
In the morning, I got up and took another nice, long shower and then went to the restaurant for my free breakfast which was included with the room. They had everything imaginable out to eat. I had some smoked salmon and caviar, along with a lot of fruit, and an extra large espresso. Then I went out to the dingy, and put in the water and quickly found Pipe Dream and began preparing the boat for the day. I did not tell the other guys about losing the boat, so if any of them reads this, hopefully they’ll be gone and I won’t have to deal with the embarrassment, even though it turned into a pleasant experience, costly, but pleasant.
Yesterday was the King’s birthday, so before the start of racing, there was a boat parade past a navy warship which had the whole crew on deck saluting as all of the race boats passed by. Dave got everybody on the crew a yellow shirt. Yellow is the official royal color. We all lined up on the side of the boat and returned the navy’s salute as we passed by. It was a pretty impressive sight.
At the party last night, the food was really good again. This time they had pizza, lasagna, sausage, and a pork loin, as well as a few of my Thai favorites. The desserts were scrumptious as usual. They even had blueberry cheesecake! I must admit that I blew my healthy diet last night, as I had several of those sweet
treats.
On Sunday night, they had the opening skipper’s meeting and a great party. After the party, the rest of the crew went to Dave Rucker’s bungalow, and I got in the dingy to return to Pipe Dream. When we had left the boat, it was in the afternoon and the sun was shining. Going back, the wind had shifted ninety degrees, and it was dark, and I had had a few glasses of wine. I wasn’t driving when we left the boat; I was chatting and looking around at all of the different sights. Well, after the party I was driving around the anchorage for an hour, and could not find the boat. The dingy started running poorly from all of the low speed running, so I decided to give up.
The Kata Beach Hotel was full, but the five star Mom’s Boathouse had a room available. At that point, if the room had been a thousand dollars, I probably would have taken it. The fellow behind the desk took pity on me and discounted the room by 350baht, so my mistake only cost me 12,000baht, around $400USD. The room was gorgeous though. The shower had one of those huge rain shower type of shower heads with a stone floor, a seat, and enough hot water to supply the navy. I think I sat in the shower relaxing for about a half an hour. The bellman had also lit a candle under a scented oil burner, so the aroma was kind of spicy and relaxing too. After my shower the doorbell rang, and another bellman brought a plate of chilled fresh fruit. I enjoyed that little snack while watching TV for the second time since leaving home. It sure was worth the price to sleep in a comfortable bed with the air conditioning turned very cold, without the motion of the ocean for a change.
In the morning, I got up and took another nice, long shower and then went to the restaurant for my free breakfast which was included with the room. They had everything imaginable out to eat. I had some smoked salmon and caviar, along with a lot of fruit, and an extra large espresso. Then I went out to the dingy, and put in the water and quickly found Pipe Dream and began preparing the boat for the day. I did not tell the other guys about losing the boat, so if any of them reads this, hopefully they’ll be gone and I won’t have to deal with the embarrassment, even though it turned into a pleasant experience, costly, but pleasant.
Jeff's Log Tuesday, December 4th contiued
7 48.890N 98 17.603E , Kata Bay, Kata Beach, Thailand
We had kind of a rough day today. At the start of our race, things went sour and just kind of stayed that way. Dave is a good sailor, but sure doesn’t know how to time a start. We were in the perfect starting position, we just got there 15 seconds too early and had to bail out and come around a second time so we would not be over early. That put us in last place, and it’s pretty rough to dig out from there when the competition is as good as the boats we are sailing against. The boat was faster today than we were yesterday. Towards the end of what would have been the first race, we punched a big hole in the jib on a tack, and retired from racing for the day so that the sail could be repaired. Oh well, tomorrow we’ll give ‘er hell again.
The after race parties are really fine affairs with lots of food, wine and beer. There’s a stage show every night with a band and singers. Tonight, I’m skipping the party to rest, as I had a hard day working the jib winch and loading the sail in the dink. After the rest of the crew left, I was left with a trashed boat inside and out, so I had to do a lot of scrubbing. Going to the party is a lot of work too, because I have to beach the dink, and pull it all the way up to the dry sand line. Then after the party, I have to drag it through the sand again and launch it, making sure that I push it to deep enough water to run the engine safely. I just don’t feel like working that hard tonight, or getting wet and full of sand. Tomorrow is the big party. It’s His Majesty the King’s birthday, and a special party is planned for that. I don’t want to miss that one. I guess I’ll have to carry my clothes in and change on the beach, because it’s long pants and collared shirt night.
We had kind of a rough day today. At the start of our race, things went sour and just kind of stayed that way. Dave is a good sailor, but sure doesn’t know how to time a start. We were in the perfect starting position, we just got there 15 seconds too early and had to bail out and come around a second time so we would not be over early. That put us in last place, and it’s pretty rough to dig out from there when the competition is as good as the boats we are sailing against. The boat was faster today than we were yesterday. Towards the end of what would have been the first race, we punched a big hole in the jib on a tack, and retired from racing for the day so that the sail could be repaired. Oh well, tomorrow we’ll give ‘er hell again.
The after race parties are really fine affairs with lots of food, wine and beer. There’s a stage show every night with a band and singers. Tonight, I’m skipping the party to rest, as I had a hard day working the jib winch and loading the sail in the dink. After the rest of the crew left, I was left with a trashed boat inside and out, so I had to do a lot of scrubbing. Going to the party is a lot of work too, because I have to beach the dink, and pull it all the way up to the dry sand line. Then after the party, I have to drag it through the sand again and launch it, making sure that I push it to deep enough water to run the engine safely. I just don’t feel like working that hard tonight, or getting wet and full of sand. Tomorrow is the big party. It’s His Majesty the King’s birthday, and a special party is planned for that. I don’t want to miss that one. I guess I’ll have to carry my clothes in and change on the beach, because it’s long pants and collared shirt night.
Tuesday, 12/4/07, Kata Bay, Thailand
Sunday, we moved Pipe Dream over to Kata Beach for the King’s Cup Regatta. Yesterday, we sailed the first race which was a cruising race from just off Kata beach, around the corner, and between two islands, around the safe water buoy for Ao Chalong, and back to the finish. The race distance was said to be thirty-one miles, as the crow flies. During the race, we broke a jib sheet, and lost a crewman overboard, who was recovered without any drastic maneuvers.
He had been out at the end of the whisker pole repairing a tangle. After completing what was necessary, he started correcting another minor issue that could have waited until the pole was back on deck, when his arms got tired, and…. SPLASH! He did catch a line, however and managed to hang on until I got a good hold of his wrist and dragged him up onto the transom platform and helped him back into the boat. There was a press boat right next to us during the swim and recovery, so maybe some pictures will show up in magazines or something. I must say that when he dropped to the water, he was ten or twelve feet in the air, and I would have to give him high marks for style. It did look really cool. He did lose his red Mount Gay hat from Key West race week though, and sailors hate when that happens.
The racing crew consists of Skipper Dave Brennan aka Grabber, his lovely wife Kendra, Cindy Suanders from Miami, who I have raced with before, Sean Brown, a yacht designer from Miami (and an excellent swimmer) Keith, who lives here in Chalong, Jerry who lives on the north end of Phuket Island, and myself.
Sunday, we moved Pipe Dream over to Kata Beach for the King’s Cup Regatta. Yesterday, we sailed the first race which was a cruising race from just off Kata beach, around the corner, and between two islands, around the safe water buoy for Ao Chalong, and back to the finish. The race distance was said to be thirty-one miles, as the crow flies. During the race, we broke a jib sheet, and lost a crewman overboard, who was recovered without any drastic maneuvers.
He had been out at the end of the whisker pole repairing a tangle. After completing what was necessary, he started correcting another minor issue that could have waited until the pole was back on deck, when his arms got tired, and…. SPLASH! He did catch a line, however and managed to hang on until I got a good hold of his wrist and dragged him up onto the transom platform and helped him back into the boat. There was a press boat right next to us during the swim and recovery, so maybe some pictures will show up in magazines or something. I must say that when he dropped to the water, he was ten or twelve feet in the air, and I would have to give him high marks for style. It did look really cool. He did lose his red Mount Gay hat from Key West race week though, and sailors hate when that happens.
The racing crew consists of Skipper Dave Brennan aka Grabber, his lovely wife Kendra, Cindy Suanders from Miami, who I have raced with before, Sean Brown, a yacht designer from Miami (and an excellent swimmer) Keith, who lives here in Chalong, Jerry who lives on the north end of Phuket Island, and myself.
Monday, December 3, 2007
The 2007 Phuket Kings Cup Regatta
The Thailand's Royal Navy are planning a spectacular sail past in honor of the King Bhumibol Adulyadej's 80th birthday at the 2007 Phuket Kings Cup regatta. King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the Patron of the annual regatta, which runs from December 1-8.
Over 1,000 sailors will take part in Phuket King's Cup Regatta and on Wednesday morning (December 5th) the record fleet of more than 100 yachts will sail past Royal Navy vessels to mark the King's birthday.
In the evening there will be a toast to the King on the Kata beach front, with everyone wearing their yellow shirts and with many holding yellow candles. The evening function will be co-coordinated, as in past years, with many similar tributes held throughout Thailand.
Over 1,000 sailors will take part in Phuket King's Cup Regatta and on Wednesday morning (December 5th) the record fleet of more than 100 yachts will sail past Royal Navy vessels to mark the King's birthday.
In the evening there will be a toast to the King on the Kata beach front, with everyone wearing their yellow shirts and with many holding yellow candles. The evening function will be co-coordinated, as in past years, with many similar tributes held throughout Thailand.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Jeff's log ~ Tuesday, 11/27/07, 7:00AM
Yesterday was another busy day. I was woken up early with a phone call from Rukker. He had some things to take care of in Phuket town, so our leaving time got moved way up. I rushed to get the dink launched and in to Coconuts to meet him. We picked up some of the supplies that arrived for me over there, and by that time it was lunchtime. His girlfriend had lunch prepared at their “bungalow” at noon sharp. They have a real nice home with a small jungle in the backyard, complete with a waterfall, fountains, and coy ponds. In the morning, they had been visited by a monitor lizard, which has a very poisonous bite.
After lunch we were off again. We went to a shopping mall so that I could get a couple tools to make my work a little easier. I also got some business cards, because people have a tendency to lose info when it’s written on pieces of paper. The print shop was very organized, and the cards were ready in twenty minutes. While we were waiting, I picked up some Christmas trimmings for the boat from a selection in the middle of the mall. I’ll wait until after the regatta before I put them up.
I really got a bad case of homesick today. I really need to shake it off, and focus. Talking to Clara helps, but I am still halfway around the world, no matter how you look at it. I found myself beginning to lose patience with the language barrier.
The money is pretty neat here. The bills change in size with the denomination. A twenty baht note is the smallest, and so far the largest is a thousand baht note. The different denominations are also different colors. The coins I haven’t quite got figured out yet, but everywhere I’ve gone, I just pull the change from my pocket and they take the proper ones, while counting it out loud in Thai. The people seem very honest and good Karma is always important. After our shopping trip, I went up to internet store and Dave went home when he came back he had a prepared dinner in a picnic basket. My stomach was a little upset, so I didn’t eat that much, but it was good. Roasted pork with mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans. I had a glass of red wine, too. Then it was time to load up all of my stuff and return home to Pipe Dream.
After lunch we were off again. We went to a shopping mall so that I could get a couple tools to make my work a little easier. I also got some business cards, because people have a tendency to lose info when it’s written on pieces of paper. The print shop was very organized, and the cards were ready in twenty minutes. While we were waiting, I picked up some Christmas trimmings for the boat from a selection in the middle of the mall. I’ll wait until after the regatta before I put them up.
I really got a bad case of homesick today. I really need to shake it off, and focus. Talking to Clara helps, but I am still halfway around the world, no matter how you look at it. I found myself beginning to lose patience with the language barrier.
The money is pretty neat here. The bills change in size with the denomination. A twenty baht note is the smallest, and so far the largest is a thousand baht note. The different denominations are also different colors. The coins I haven’t quite got figured out yet, but everywhere I’ve gone, I just pull the change from my pocket and they take the proper ones, while counting it out loud in Thai. The people seem very honest and good Karma is always important. After our shopping trip, I went up to internet store and Dave went home when he came back he had a prepared dinner in a picnic basket. My stomach was a little upset, so I didn’t eat that much, but it was good. Roasted pork with mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans. I had a glass of red wine, too. Then it was time to load up all of my stuff and return home to Pipe Dream.
Jeff's log ~ Thursday, 11/22/07, Thanksgiving in U.S.A.
Seeing as how today is a holiday, I took it easy. I polished a few of the stainless stantions and did the floors inside and then Rukker and I took off to the boatyard again. I ordered some things I need, and then we had lunch at the food court of the shopping mall. It’s pretty cool, Thai fast food. You give the cashier a hundred baht, and she gives a card that all of the food booths are tied to the computer through. You get what you want, and they take it off your card, and then when finished, you get the balance refunded.
I had roasted duck with dumplings and spinach with gravy. The lunch was very tasty, and then I topped it with a capucinno. Downstairs is the coolest grocery store that I have ever seen. It makes the nicest Publix look barren. Right outside the food store was a little dessert place, so I finally got my piece of cheese cake.
We then went to refuel Dave’s boat and proceeded to run aground about 30 feet from the fuel dock on a falling tide. We ended up sitting there and chatting for about 3 hours while we waited for the tide to change and come up a bit. After fueling and putting his boat back in its slip, we went back to Coconuts, and guess what time it was. Tiger!!!!! Some friends of his were there and we all jumped in the truck and went for Thanksgiving dinner. That’s right; we had an American Thanksgiving Dinner in Chalong, Thailand. Turkey, ham, mash, gravy, cranberry sauce (canned) stuffing, various vegetables, and even pumpkin pie ala mode was served buffet style. The cost was 320 baht, which is just about ten dollars US. We all thoroughly enjoyed it and I even snuck back for seconds on the turkey, mash and gravy. The Thai people were happy too. As they even had a turkey curry that they enjoyed. I tried it, but it just wasn’t appealing to me on Thanksgiving. Maybe some other time, although I’m not sure that turkey and curry really belong together at all.
We all rolled our way out and went back to Coconuts for a night cap. I had left my clear glasses on Dave’s boat, so going back to the boat in the dingy was a slow adventure. Pipe Dream seemed to be hiding in the shadows, and when I took sunglasses off, I had no clue where I was, let alone finding the boat. I knew that I was close, naturally, but the boats moored around us continually change, and the trip from the dock was made at a much slower pace than usual, due to the darkness. I found her though, and I do have an extra pair that I switched to before lifting the dink from the water.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYBODY!!!!
I had roasted duck with dumplings and spinach with gravy. The lunch was very tasty, and then I topped it with a capucinno. Downstairs is the coolest grocery store that I have ever seen. It makes the nicest Publix look barren. Right outside the food store was a little dessert place, so I finally got my piece of cheese cake.
We then went to refuel Dave’s boat and proceeded to run aground about 30 feet from the fuel dock on a falling tide. We ended up sitting there and chatting for about 3 hours while we waited for the tide to change and come up a bit. After fueling and putting his boat back in its slip, we went back to Coconuts, and guess what time it was. Tiger!!!!! Some friends of his were there and we all jumped in the truck and went for Thanksgiving dinner. That’s right; we had an American Thanksgiving Dinner in Chalong, Thailand. Turkey, ham, mash, gravy, cranberry sauce (canned) stuffing, various vegetables, and even pumpkin pie ala mode was served buffet style. The cost was 320 baht, which is just about ten dollars US. We all thoroughly enjoyed it and I even snuck back for seconds on the turkey, mash and gravy. The Thai people were happy too. As they even had a turkey curry that they enjoyed. I tried it, but it just wasn’t appealing to me on Thanksgiving. Maybe some other time, although I’m not sure that turkey and curry really belong together at all.
We all rolled our way out and went back to Coconuts for a night cap. I had left my clear glasses on Dave’s boat, so going back to the boat in the dingy was a slow adventure. Pipe Dream seemed to be hiding in the shadows, and when I took sunglasses off, I had no clue where I was, let alone finding the boat. I knew that I was close, naturally, but the boats moored around us continually change, and the trip from the dock was made at a much slower pace than usual, due to the darkness. I found her though, and I do have an extra pair that I switched to before lifting the dink from the water.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYBODY!!!!
Jeff's log ~ Wednesday, 11/21/07, 7 49.209N 98 21.272E Ao Chalong, Thailand
Today is the day before Thanksgiving at home, but here it’s just another Wednesday. Yesterday was a very successful day. Actually, the last couple of days have been good. I hired two young lads for the afternoon the day before yesterday. We started at 12:30 in the afternoon and by 4:00 had the mainsail and the #2 jib to the sail loft a few miles away to be measured for the King’s Cup Regatta, which starts on the 2nd of December. The boys worked pretty hard, and we had to use a halyard and a winch to get the #2 out of the sail locker because it was pretty jammed in there between the hull and a stainless pipe that retains the sails as well as reinforces the chain locker bulkhead.
The mainsail we removed from the boom and folded on deck. I found the upper batten broken and some seems beginning to come apart, so it’s a good thing we are doing this. The mainsail is extremely heavy. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s probably around 375 to 400 lbs.. We got it all bricked up and one of the tropical squalls came ripping through. We managed to get the sail mostly under the cockpit dodger, so It didn’t get too wet. The little squall dumped so much rain in a half hour that the dingy had about six inches of water filling it. Instead of the usual little dingy bailer that I use, I grabbed a regular full size bucket to bail it out, and it still took a little while. We then loaded the main and ourselves in the dink and took off for the beach. I’m starting to get the hang of beaching the dink to load and unload cargo. Look out Jaques Custaue. (I’m sure that’s not spelled right, but you know what I mean!!!)
We dropped the main off on the launching ramp and went back for jib and main cover. Those both fit nicely, and one of my helpers laid on top of them on the way in so that the cover would not blow out. Dave Rukker picked us up and took us to Rolly Tasker’s sail loft which has to be seen to be appreciated. The place is huge! And spotless inside and out. We were greeted at the door by an attractive Thai lady in a security type of uniform, and she grabbed the jib and put it on a hand truck by herself and took it inside. Don’t think I would mess with her, she probably can break every bone in my body with one hand. She came back out and the boys and her carried the main in because it was too big to stay on the cart.
I filled out the necessary paperwork and we were off to the neighbor of coconuts bar to get the sail cover- called a “stack- pack”- repaired. The fellow that does this is from California and actually speaks English. We laid it out and discussed what type of repairs would be done, and instead of a zipper, he is going to use those plastic snap clips that you see just about on every back pack. They of course will be sized accordingly. Then there will be a Velcro flap to complete the closure. No more messing with a stubborn, mangled Zipper, Yea!!!
Of course, by now I’m sure everybody knows what came next…… Tiger beer of course. A couple of beers and then it was back to the boat for some food, a call to Clara, and some rest.
By the way, The two guys worked for a total of 11 man-hours for 500baht which is a little less than twenty dollars US, and were very happy and bought me a beer. That’s 250baht each.
Yesterday, Dave took me back to the sail loft to drop off the batten, so they can get it right, and then we went to Phuket Town and got what I needed to repair hot water heater leak and looked around at all of the yachty stuff. This place will hold it’s own against any marina that I’ve been to in the states. Very clean and organized, and the quality of workmanship that I saw is second to none. Every worker seems to have a great pride in the job they are doing, and it really shows. I love America, but if I owned a yacht, I think I would seriously consider bringing it here for it’s refit, because of the high quality of workmanship.
On the way back, we picked up Dave’s twin, sort of adopted grand daughters, from the Montessori School that he sends them to. These kids are not five yet and are beginning to speak English and Chinese as well as being able to converse with adults in their native tongue. The school sits right on Chalong Bay, and is a very nice place with a gorgeous view of the bay and outer islands. They have a high concrete wall with a locked gate to keep the kids in and luckily it kept the tsunami out.
Then it was…… you guessed it "Tiger" time and the internet café to start getting caught up with communication.
The mainsail we removed from the boom and folded on deck. I found the upper batten broken and some seems beginning to come apart, so it’s a good thing we are doing this. The mainsail is extremely heavy. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s probably around 375 to 400 lbs.. We got it all bricked up and one of the tropical squalls came ripping through. We managed to get the sail mostly under the cockpit dodger, so It didn’t get too wet. The little squall dumped so much rain in a half hour that the dingy had about six inches of water filling it. Instead of the usual little dingy bailer that I use, I grabbed a regular full size bucket to bail it out, and it still took a little while. We then loaded the main and ourselves in the dink and took off for the beach. I’m starting to get the hang of beaching the dink to load and unload cargo. Look out Jaques Custaue. (I’m sure that’s not spelled right, but you know what I mean!!!)
We dropped the main off on the launching ramp and went back for jib and main cover. Those both fit nicely, and one of my helpers laid on top of them on the way in so that the cover would not blow out. Dave Rukker picked us up and took us to Rolly Tasker’s sail loft which has to be seen to be appreciated. The place is huge! And spotless inside and out. We were greeted at the door by an attractive Thai lady in a security type of uniform, and she grabbed the jib and put it on a hand truck by herself and took it inside. Don’t think I would mess with her, she probably can break every bone in my body with one hand. She came back out and the boys and her carried the main in because it was too big to stay on the cart.
I filled out the necessary paperwork and we were off to the neighbor of coconuts bar to get the sail cover- called a “stack- pack”- repaired. The fellow that does this is from California and actually speaks English. We laid it out and discussed what type of repairs would be done, and instead of a zipper, he is going to use those plastic snap clips that you see just about on every back pack. They of course will be sized accordingly. Then there will be a Velcro flap to complete the closure. No more messing with a stubborn, mangled Zipper, Yea!!!
Of course, by now I’m sure everybody knows what came next…… Tiger beer of course. A couple of beers and then it was back to the boat for some food, a call to Clara, and some rest.
By the way, The two guys worked for a total of 11 man-hours for 500baht which is a little less than twenty dollars US, and were very happy and bought me a beer. That’s 250baht each.
Yesterday, Dave took me back to the sail loft to drop off the batten, so they can get it right, and then we went to Phuket Town and got what I needed to repair hot water heater leak and looked around at all of the yachty stuff. This place will hold it’s own against any marina that I’ve been to in the states. Very clean and organized, and the quality of workmanship that I saw is second to none. Every worker seems to have a great pride in the job they are doing, and it really shows. I love America, but if I owned a yacht, I think I would seriously consider bringing it here for it’s refit, because of the high quality of workmanship.
On the way back, we picked up Dave’s twin, sort of adopted grand daughters, from the Montessori School that he sends them to. These kids are not five yet and are beginning to speak English and Chinese as well as being able to converse with adults in their native tongue. The school sits right on Chalong Bay, and is a very nice place with a gorgeous view of the bay and outer islands. They have a high concrete wall with a locked gate to keep the kids in and luckily it kept the tsunami out.
Then it was…… you guessed it "Tiger" time and the internet café to start getting caught up with communication.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Jeff's Note to Everyone
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Hey everybody, I finally got to spend some time on line and catch up with E-mails and such. Thanks for leaving comments. I really enjoy them, No-Mow, you're the best. I really chuckle out loud when I read yours. I want to congratulate my Big Brother, Paul on his impressive shooting. He and his wife Pat will be in town and I'm sure that Clara knows exactly when. He's a firefighter from Wisconsin and ya'all will be able to say hello when they are there.
I do get homesick, and hearing from you guys really helps with that, so please get some more to join in and leave comments. It's pretty cool now that the instructions for signing up are in Thai on my computer. I hope that these still come through in English!!!
mung mee sree suk............ which reportedly means everything is happy and well.
Jeff
Hey everybody, I finally got to spend some time on line and catch up with E-mails and such. Thanks for leaving comments. I really enjoy them, No-Mow, you're the best. I really chuckle out loud when I read yours. I want to congratulate my Big Brother, Paul on his impressive shooting. He and his wife Pat will be in town and I'm sure that Clara knows exactly when. He's a firefighter from Wisconsin and ya'all will be able to say hello when they are there.
I do get homesick, and hearing from you guys really helps with that, so please get some more to join in and leave comments. It's pretty cool now that the instructions for signing up are in Thai on my computer. I hope that these still come through in English!!!
mung mee sree suk............ which reportedly means everything is happy and well.
Jeff
Jeff's Log ~ Sunday 11/18/07
Sunday, 11/18/07
Sunday’s are definitely a day of rest around here. Most of the businesses ashore are closed, or if they are open, it’s just because the help lives in the back or upstairs. I was going to try to get online, but the internet café was closed. The German bakery was open, however, so I decided that I might as well have breakfast. They have a few small tables to sit at, so I ordered coffee and breakfast. In about thirty seconds the coffee was there, and in about four minutes, my breakfast was in front of me. There was not too much going on in the streets, so I went back to the boat and did some chores so that tomorrow, I’ll be all caught up and will b e working on getting the sails off of the boat for measuring. While that happens, it will be the perfect time for working on the roller furling and the mainsail “stack-pack”.
Yesterday was spent getting completely frustrated trying to speak to people who insisted they could speak English on the telephone. I basically just wasted a few hours of time and got absolutely no where. I decided the only way to find parts is to take a taxi to Phuket town and see what I can find once I am there.
I am beginning to get the lay of the land down and should be able to start getting shopping and errands down pat. Communication is mostly through sign language and pictures. Patience and humor are absolutely necessary to have in abundance. As long as you smile and be polite, the people here will try to help with anything.
Last night after dinner, I was returning to the boat to find a fellow at the dingy dock who had his hands full of five or six dingy lines. The tide had changed, and all of the dinks got tangled up together. I was pretty lucky. Our tender was one of the larger ones in the mess. So we took all of the lines loose and I went down and pulled them all over to the boarding area. It looked like a mother dink with a bunch of dinklings following behind. All of the other lines were tangled around the lower unit of the outboard. As soon as I tipped it up, it just took a couple of minutes to straighten out, and we were both on our way, after tying the other boats back to the dock.
Today, I parked on the other side so that I could keep some separation. I had lunch and dinner on the boat. Just a little soup and cheese and crackers for lunch and a fresh veggie stir fry for dinner with veggies from a small stand up the street. One strange one was like miniature eggplant, but very tasty all of them. I think that I’ll be an expert rice cooker soon, because that’s a lot more plentiful than potatoes so far. I can hardly wait to hit the grocery on Tuesday.
Tonight, I think I’m going to have an ice cream or something like that for desert ashore. I’ll have to see what the selection is like. Mmmm maybe if I’m lucky, I’ll find cheese cake……or maybe some nice rich chocolate cake…..or…..
Sunday’s are definitely a day of rest around here. Most of the businesses ashore are closed, or if they are open, it’s just because the help lives in the back or upstairs. I was going to try to get online, but the internet café was closed. The German bakery was open, however, so I decided that I might as well have breakfast. They have a few small tables to sit at, so I ordered coffee and breakfast. In about thirty seconds the coffee was there, and in about four minutes, my breakfast was in front of me. There was not too much going on in the streets, so I went back to the boat and did some chores so that tomorrow, I’ll be all caught up and will b e working on getting the sails off of the boat for measuring. While that happens, it will be the perfect time for working on the roller furling and the mainsail “stack-pack”.
Yesterday was spent getting completely frustrated trying to speak to people who insisted they could speak English on the telephone. I basically just wasted a few hours of time and got absolutely no where. I decided the only way to find parts is to take a taxi to Phuket town and see what I can find once I am there.
I am beginning to get the lay of the land down and should be able to start getting shopping and errands down pat. Communication is mostly through sign language and pictures. Patience and humor are absolutely necessary to have in abundance. As long as you smile and be polite, the people here will try to help with anything.
Last night after dinner, I was returning to the boat to find a fellow at the dingy dock who had his hands full of five or six dingy lines. The tide had changed, and all of the dinks got tangled up together. I was pretty lucky. Our tender was one of the larger ones in the mess. So we took all of the lines loose and I went down and pulled them all over to the boarding area. It looked like a mother dink with a bunch of dinklings following behind. All of the other lines were tangled around the lower unit of the outboard. As soon as I tipped it up, it just took a couple of minutes to straighten out, and we were both on our way, after tying the other boats back to the dock.
Today, I parked on the other side so that I could keep some separation. I had lunch and dinner on the boat. Just a little soup and cheese and crackers for lunch and a fresh veggie stir fry for dinner with veggies from a small stand up the street. One strange one was like miniature eggplant, but very tasty all of them. I think that I’ll be an expert rice cooker soon, because that’s a lot more plentiful than potatoes so far. I can hardly wait to hit the grocery on Tuesday.
Tonight, I think I’m going to have an ice cream or something like that for desert ashore. I’ll have to see what the selection is like. Mmmm maybe if I’m lucky, I’ll find cheese cake……or maybe some nice rich chocolate cake…..or…..
Jeff's Log ~ Saturday, 11/17/07
Saturday, 11/17/07
Yesterday, I took my first real day off in a long time. In the morning, I stopped at a waterfront restaurant for breakfast. While eating, some beautiful wild parrots were messing about in the trees, and all of the excursion and fishing boats were loading up on supplies and passengers. Whoever told me I wouldn’t be able to get decent coffee here was mistaken. Every cup that I have had ashore has been delightful. After breakfast, I decided that I have had it with this long hair, so I stopped at this little beauty salon up the street, and asked the woman there if she cut men’s hair. She didn’t speak a lick of English, so we communicated with gestures, and snip snip. No massage chairs for the pedicure, but she really did a fine job cleaning me up. Along with the haircut was a shampoo and head and neck massage. When she was finished with me, the bartender and customers from the little bar directly behind stood up and clapped. I guess the change was pretty dramatic. It sure made me feel like a million, I’ll tell you.
After all of that, it was time to celebrate the day with an ice cold Tiger beer. The bartender at coconuts took my picture in front of the Christmas tree that they had just completed decorating complete with “snow”. She called a friend with a car service for me and I was off on my excursion. The first stop was the Phuket zoo. It’s very small, but I enjoyed a quick walk through. I was there just in time for the gator show, and the guy was putting his head in the gator’s mouth. They had feeding stations all over where you could buy expensive food for the animals and hand feed them. The tiger photo booth was really cool. For 200baht, you can sit next to the tiger and get a Polaroid picture. I snuck around the back and took the tiger’s picture, and he seemed really interested in me as he did not take his eyes off of me while I was there. While the people are sitting with him, he is trained to growl on cue. I thought that was cool.
From there, we went up to the big Buddha that I can see from the boat. As the crow flies, it’s about two miles away. By the road it’s about twelve miles, because of the winding necessary with the elevation change. Buddha is up almost two thousand feet above sea level. The scenery from up there was really something, and the camera sure doesn’t do it justice. There were multiple shrines and a big meeting hall with photo displays. There were some pictures of Bill Clinton taken when he visited, along with various other heads of state.
After all of that Buddha stuff, it was time for some lunch, so Tu took me to a restaurant with a spectacular view of Karon Beach on the west side of the island. Food was really good too. I really like Thai food. The spiciness kind of creeps up on you slowly, and it’s a minute or two before you really taste it. So far, I think I’ll be eating good for the duration of my stay. The next stop was Kata Beach overlook. I don’t know how high this was, but it sure was great scenery. There were some guys with a sea falcon and a sea eagle there and again, for two hundred baht, you could get a Polaroid. I just took a picture of the birds. We stopped at the Phuket yacht club for a look around, but the place was way too stuffed shirt for me, so we didn’t stay.
Then, it was back to coconuts for another Tiger. I picked up the rest of the laundry, got some more time on my phone, and then back to the boat. The bay was quite rough as I was heading back to the boat, so when I got there, I just picked the dink out of the water, and called it a day. I gave Clara a call while I had the generator running to make a little water and charge the batteries, and then hit the sack for a very good night’s sleep.
Yesterday, I took my first real day off in a long time. In the morning, I stopped at a waterfront restaurant for breakfast. While eating, some beautiful wild parrots were messing about in the trees, and all of the excursion and fishing boats were loading up on supplies and passengers. Whoever told me I wouldn’t be able to get decent coffee here was mistaken. Every cup that I have had ashore has been delightful. After breakfast, I decided that I have had it with this long hair, so I stopped at this little beauty salon up the street, and asked the woman there if she cut men’s hair. She didn’t speak a lick of English, so we communicated with gestures, and snip snip. No massage chairs for the pedicure, but she really did a fine job cleaning me up. Along with the haircut was a shampoo and head and neck massage. When she was finished with me, the bartender and customers from the little bar directly behind stood up and clapped. I guess the change was pretty dramatic. It sure made me feel like a million, I’ll tell you.
After all of that, it was time to celebrate the day with an ice cold Tiger beer. The bartender at coconuts took my picture in front of the Christmas tree that they had just completed decorating complete with “snow”. She called a friend with a car service for me and I was off on my excursion. The first stop was the Phuket zoo. It’s very small, but I enjoyed a quick walk through. I was there just in time for the gator show, and the guy was putting his head in the gator’s mouth. They had feeding stations all over where you could buy expensive food for the animals and hand feed them. The tiger photo booth was really cool. For 200baht, you can sit next to the tiger and get a Polaroid picture. I snuck around the back and took the tiger’s picture, and he seemed really interested in me as he did not take his eyes off of me while I was there. While the people are sitting with him, he is trained to growl on cue. I thought that was cool.
From there, we went up to the big Buddha that I can see from the boat. As the crow flies, it’s about two miles away. By the road it’s about twelve miles, because of the winding necessary with the elevation change. Buddha is up almost two thousand feet above sea level. The scenery from up there was really something, and the camera sure doesn’t do it justice. There were multiple shrines and a big meeting hall with photo displays. There were some pictures of Bill Clinton taken when he visited, along with various other heads of state.
After all of that Buddha stuff, it was time for some lunch, so Tu took me to a restaurant with a spectacular view of Karon Beach on the west side of the island. Food was really good too. I really like Thai food. The spiciness kind of creeps up on you slowly, and it’s a minute or two before you really taste it. So far, I think I’ll be eating good for the duration of my stay. The next stop was Kata Beach overlook. I don’t know how high this was, but it sure was great scenery. There were some guys with a sea falcon and a sea eagle there and again, for two hundred baht, you could get a Polaroid. I just took a picture of the birds. We stopped at the Phuket yacht club for a look around, but the place was way too stuffed shirt for me, so we didn’t stay.
Then, it was back to coconuts for another Tiger. I picked up the rest of the laundry, got some more time on my phone, and then back to the boat. The bay was quite rough as I was heading back to the boat, so when I got there, I just picked the dink out of the water, and called it a day. I gave Clara a call while I had the generator running to make a little water and charge the batteries, and then hit the sack for a very good night’s sleep.
Jeff's Log ~ Friday, 10/19/07
Friday, 10/19/07 13 04.9N 52 00.6E
Another day of sailing in the Gulf of Aden. We had a rain shower this afternoon. It was the first rain that Pipe Dream has seen in months. It didn’t last long, but the boat sure did brighten up a bit. After the shower, when I came on watch, I noticed a warship on the starboard horizon. Our angle to the course happened to get very bad at about the same time, so we tacked and our new heading took us right past the Augsburg, which is a German warship. As we got close, they pulled ahead of our port bow and did a complete circle around us. When they came around our stern, They were less than a boat length [one of ours, not theirs.] away from us. Their crew was all on deck, and on the loud speaker they wished Pipe Dream and her crew a good voyage. The wind was up at the time, and they had to put some turns on to keep up with us. It made all of us feel very comfortable, and I was in awe from just sailing a boat in that close proximity to a beautiful warship. That was quite a salute to us on their behalf also. They gave us a big blast on their horn too. After our meeting, they went back on station, and we sailed on for the Maldives, and watched as our protectors disappeared off our transom. We should be entering the Indian Ocean tomorrow.
Another day of sailing in the Gulf of Aden. We had a rain shower this afternoon. It was the first rain that Pipe Dream has seen in months. It didn’t last long, but the boat sure did brighten up a bit. After the shower, when I came on watch, I noticed a warship on the starboard horizon. Our angle to the course happened to get very bad at about the same time, so we tacked and our new heading took us right past the Augsburg, which is a German warship. As we got close, they pulled ahead of our port bow and did a complete circle around us. When they came around our stern, They were less than a boat length [one of ours, not theirs.] away from us. Their crew was all on deck, and on the loud speaker they wished Pipe Dream and her crew a good voyage. The wind was up at the time, and they had to put some turns on to keep up with us. It made all of us feel very comfortable, and I was in awe from just sailing a boat in that close proximity to a beautiful warship. That was quite a salute to us on their behalf also. They gave us a big blast on their horn too. After our meeting, they went back on station, and we sailed on for the Maldives, and watched as our protectors disappeared off our transom. We should be entering the Indian Ocean tomorrow.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Jeff's Log updates ~ Finally have internet service trying to play catch up
Monday, 10/29/07, 10:30pm, Galle, Sri Lanka
We’re here, we’re here! We arrived at Galle, Sri Lanka at about 12:30PM local time and were greeted by two patrol boats with machine guns mounted. Two navy officers came on board and searched the boat. I was up on the boom, closing the sail cover and removing the main halyard when they arrived. Scott hates dealing with officials, but didn’t wait for me to get down. They weren’t searching for bombs or guns; they were searching to see how much liquor and cigarettes we had on board. They walked off the boat with two bottles of rum “for the captain, not for me”. Next, was the customs guy. All he wanted was two bottles of rum. Scott gave him one. Next was port security. Two guys, they wanted booze. I told them we weren’t a liquor store, and they should go talk to the Navy. I gave them each a pack of Marlboros.
Now for the bright side, we went to dinner tonight at the hard rock café. It’s a quaint little place on the beach a short tuk-tuk ride from here. My driver, Edgar is a nice 32 year old chap with a wife he adores, and three children. He promised to take me for a day trip when I get a day off. He’s going to help me find a nice gift for Clara, as he is hooked up with people that guarantee their goods in writing. He also invited Scott and me for dinner at his house, when he learned that Dave and Kendra will be gone. I paid him 10 dollars US at the end of the evening, which is just a ton of money here, and he promised that He would take extra care of me when I take my day trip.
We are the only yacht boat in the general vicinity. We’re all alone on a floating dock that the Navy uses. It’s about a half mile walk to the gate through some muddy dirt roads, but very secure. At night, they drag this anti-personnel net over the entrance to the harbor, and at unspecified intervals, they explode anti-personnel depth charges in the harbor. The guys at the gate are all heavily armed with a variety of weapons. Everybody that we have met treats us very well, and even people on the street will go out of their way to welcome us. It sure is a far cry from what you read or see on TV. So far, I like the food too!
Tuesday, 10/30.07 8:30PM Galle, Sri Lanka
I had a full night’s sleep [except for the antipersonnel grenades that sometimes shook the boat] and boy did I feel chipper this morning. Dave and Kendra left to go to the mountains, and I helped with their luggage and road with them to the gate. On the way, there was a tuna boat being offloaded, and we stopped to let Dave take pictures. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera with me, but maybe I’ll be able to get them from Dave.
I made the arrangements to refuel the boat, and that will happen tomorrow morning. In the mean time, I emptied the forepeak sail locker and cleaned it again. I had a little fuel spillage up there as we were leaving Aden. When the high water problem came into play, the fuel problem got a lot larger, as it floats. Just call it another lesson learned, as that mistake will never happen again on my watch.
After that, Scott took me to lunch at the Hard Rock. We ordered the same thing that was real good last night, and today, the squid was tough and chewy. The house fried rice was excellent, however, and the drinks were strong, so everything kind of balanced out. Chukka, our driver gave us a little sightseeing tour, and the whole experience was very pleasant and relaxing. The view from the beach at the Hard Rock is very tropical and romantic. It sure made me miss Clara a little more than normal. Chukka hooked me up with a Sri Lankan sim card for my phone. And it is now fairly economical to call home. I took advantage of that immediately and talked for an extra bit.
Tomorrow will be fairly busy with the refueling. After that, I am going to change the oil in the main engine, so all of the dirty jobs will be done in one swoop.
Saturday, 11/03/07
We are under way again to the next destination which is Puckett, Thailand. We departed from Galle at about 10:00AM. The mainsail cover would not unzip, so I had to climb up on the boom and wrestle it open. In Thailand, it will have to be replaced.
Sailing along the coast of Sri Lanka was very nice. We were close enough to the island to watch the coastline go by.
Before we left, I had to go in to the agent’s office to pick up our sailing permission. Chukka and Edgar were both there to say goodbye. Windsor the agent was running late, so I returned to the boat and he brought the paperwork to us. Then the Navy came and checked for any stowaways we might have and we were off.
We’re here, we’re here! We arrived at Galle, Sri Lanka at about 12:30PM local time and were greeted by two patrol boats with machine guns mounted. Two navy officers came on board and searched the boat. I was up on the boom, closing the sail cover and removing the main halyard when they arrived. Scott hates dealing with officials, but didn’t wait for me to get down. They weren’t searching for bombs or guns; they were searching to see how much liquor and cigarettes we had on board. They walked off the boat with two bottles of rum “for the captain, not for me”. Next, was the customs guy. All he wanted was two bottles of rum. Scott gave him one. Next was port security. Two guys, they wanted booze. I told them we weren’t a liquor store, and they should go talk to the Navy. I gave them each a pack of Marlboros.
Now for the bright side, we went to dinner tonight at the hard rock café. It’s a quaint little place on the beach a short tuk-tuk ride from here. My driver, Edgar is a nice 32 year old chap with a wife he adores, and three children. He promised to take me for a day trip when I get a day off. He’s going to help me find a nice gift for Clara, as he is hooked up with people that guarantee their goods in writing. He also invited Scott and me for dinner at his house, when he learned that Dave and Kendra will be gone. I paid him 10 dollars US at the end of the evening, which is just a ton of money here, and he promised that He would take extra care of me when I take my day trip.
We are the only yacht boat in the general vicinity. We’re all alone on a floating dock that the Navy uses. It’s about a half mile walk to the gate through some muddy dirt roads, but very secure. At night, they drag this anti-personnel net over the entrance to the harbor, and at unspecified intervals, they explode anti-personnel depth charges in the harbor. The guys at the gate are all heavily armed with a variety of weapons. Everybody that we have met treats us very well, and even people on the street will go out of their way to welcome us. It sure is a far cry from what you read or see on TV. So far, I like the food too!
Tuesday, 10/30.07 8:30PM Galle, Sri Lanka
I had a full night’s sleep [except for the antipersonnel grenades that sometimes shook the boat] and boy did I feel chipper this morning. Dave and Kendra left to go to the mountains, and I helped with their luggage and road with them to the gate. On the way, there was a tuna boat being offloaded, and we stopped to let Dave take pictures. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my camera with me, but maybe I’ll be able to get them from Dave.
I made the arrangements to refuel the boat, and that will happen tomorrow morning. In the mean time, I emptied the forepeak sail locker and cleaned it again. I had a little fuel spillage up there as we were leaving Aden. When the high water problem came into play, the fuel problem got a lot larger, as it floats. Just call it another lesson learned, as that mistake will never happen again on my watch.
After that, Scott took me to lunch at the Hard Rock. We ordered the same thing that was real good last night, and today, the squid was tough and chewy. The house fried rice was excellent, however, and the drinks were strong, so everything kind of balanced out. Chukka, our driver gave us a little sightseeing tour, and the whole experience was very pleasant and relaxing. The view from the beach at the Hard Rock is very tropical and romantic. It sure made me miss Clara a little more than normal. Chukka hooked me up with a Sri Lankan sim card for my phone. And it is now fairly economical to call home. I took advantage of that immediately and talked for an extra bit.
Tomorrow will be fairly busy with the refueling. After that, I am going to change the oil in the main engine, so all of the dirty jobs will be done in one swoop.
Saturday, 11/03/07
We are under way again to the next destination which is Puckett, Thailand. We departed from Galle at about 10:00AM. The mainsail cover would not unzip, so I had to climb up on the boom and wrestle it open. In Thailand, it will have to be replaced.
Sailing along the coast of Sri Lanka was very nice. We were close enough to the island to watch the coastline go by.
Before we left, I had to go in to the agent’s office to pick up our sailing permission. Chukka and Edgar were both there to say goodbye. Windsor the agent was running late, so I returned to the boat and he brought the paperwork to us. Then the Navy came and checked for any stowaways we might have and we were off.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Monday, November 12th, 2007
5:45 PM In Thailand and the 5757nm leg from Crete to Phuket has ended. Crossing theIndian Ocean was my 15th ocean crossing. A second potential typhoon is now brewing in the Bay of Bengal behind us but our crossing was fairly uneventful. We were making fast miles with an 11 kt reach but with PhuketJust 65 miles ahead the wind quit and then blew dead on the nose. So we dropped all sail for the first time and powered in. RPM was set so we would arrive at dawn and so we did. I have sailed here before but still was struck by the pure lush tropical beauty. David Brennan will stay on and do the Kings Cup. Afterward Jeff will baby-sit the boat till I return in March. Then we begin the final leg of the 4th circum navigation. From Thailand to Alaskavia Borneo, China and Japan.
Captain Scott ~ Sunday, November 4th, 2007
11:35 PM Monday 2 days out of Galle: As we left the harbor we passed the Swan 53 coming in. She was "Who Dares Wins" the same boat we passed in the Gulf of Aden. She took exactly 5 days longer to get to Galle I guess they didn’t dare enough. So while they were being shaken down by the Navy we sailed east ward along the coast of Sri Lanka. As pretty a coast as there is--tropical, lush,white beaches, palm trees, crashing surf, mountains behind. By nightfall we were at the SE corner of the Island and leaving the shore. The pretty daytime sail turned frustrating---the sea became lumpy in a lot of current, frequent rain squalls returned, 1000 fishing boats knew that we were in the best spot for fish, AND 3 1/2 kts of current against us!! If we sailed at 6kts through the water, our SOG was only 2 1/2! The ETA read out for Phuket was for sometime in 2008. So we had to use the engine to get the boat speed up to 9 kts. Even with this we only covered 120 miles in the first day. Day 2 and 50 miles off the coast. Rain and lighter wind saw us use the engine full time. But now away from fishing boats and the adverse current was down to 2 kts. Monday and the weather cleared and adverse current down to a manageable knot. We are running wing and wing under sunny skies and all is right in the world.
Captain Scott ~ Friday, November 2nd, 2007
9:28 AM We leave in the morning. The Brennan’s had a great time in the mountains. Cold at night, old tea plantations, high water falls, elephant, orphanage, Buddhist temples(including one that has his tooth). Their big purchase is a300 lb statue 18th century of Ganech. Back in Galle the big story is theTsunami. Most people we met lost one or more family member. The train was washed off the tracks with a thousand dead and so it goes. The USA gets local credit for its aid. 3 yachts were here and all destroyed. I spent the last 3 days down the coast on one of the prettiest beaches that I’ve ever seen. All travel by Tok Tok--a 3 wheel motor bike. Refuel by Jerry can. 120gal is a lot of jerry cans. 6 Tuna boats in port all Malaysian owned. They unload 75 tons of tuna each. It takes days to off load the catch which all goes by air to Japan or the USA. I wrote earlier that this is Typhoon season. One has formed behind us heading for Oman. No problem for us. 1100nmto Thailand.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Jeff ~ Monday, October 29th, 2007
I just got off the phone with Jeff, he sends his love to everyone. He's in Sri Lanka and said that he's having a great time. He said to tell you that even though you hear that people outside of the US are anti-American, he's found it to be just the opposite. He said the people he's met have gone out of their way to make them feel welcome. Jeff's a little homesick and misses everyone however, it's still a trip of a lifetime and he's happy with his choice to take on this adventure.
Captain Scott ~ Monday, October 29th, 2007
Galle, Sri Lanka: The last 2 1/2 days getting here was for the most part anti climatic--boring. For 3 days before we had surfed with main only doing 200 mile days but with the goal in site, the wind shut down. So a lot of the last 2 days was under engine, downwind, in left over seas. Downwind in light air is the worst as the apparent wind is so light that the sails slat and the boat rolls without wind pressure to hold her. But frequent squalls woke us up. One night a heavy rain squall hit with 30 kts of steady cold wind and driving rain. I was as happy as a pig in...a squall. Pitch black--no visibility--the boat leapt ahead at 13kts--the red glow of the instruments was all I could see--really fun and I literally sang in the rain. Our dragonfly resurfaced and Kendra screamed when it landed on her. So Dave caught it and threw it overboard. The boat was doing 10--the wind 18--and a half hour later the dragon fly flew back through a hatch. So it lived till Sri Lanka. Hope we are not the cause of the Sri Lankin Dragon Fly Plague. Aden to Galle13 days 4 hours--2,282nm
Galle: I have been here before in 99. It's a Navy base and a civil war is going on with the Tamil Tigers. The fighting kills many daily but Westerners are left alone--as long as they are not in the wrong place at the wrong time--like a Navy base. So we were greeted by 2 patrol boats with mounted machine guns and told to anchor for inspection. The inspection by 2 Navy officers was to see what we had that was worth extorting. Rum. They demanded 4 bottles and got 2. Then customs came aboard and demanded 2 and got one.Then the port authority wanted some--a rapacious lot. My son in law Brad tells me that this mail gets forwarded to people who do not know me. They are puzzled by the references to rum. To set the record straight--it’s my crew that needs the rum--not me. The base is sealed at night. Anti sub and personal nets close the entrance. 4 patrol boats move around. A bunker at the entrance uses a search light and has a 50mm cannon. But it’s the anti personal depth charges that go off irregularly that makes sleep difficult. Dave and Kendra will go inland to the mountains tomorrow.
It’s a beautiful country--the spice island
Galle: I have been here before in 99. It's a Navy base and a civil war is going on with the Tamil Tigers. The fighting kills many daily but Westerners are left alone--as long as they are not in the wrong place at the wrong time--like a Navy base. So we were greeted by 2 patrol boats with mounted machine guns and told to anchor for inspection. The inspection by 2 Navy officers was to see what we had that was worth extorting. Rum. They demanded 4 bottles and got 2. Then customs came aboard and demanded 2 and got one.Then the port authority wanted some--a rapacious lot. My son in law Brad tells me that this mail gets forwarded to people who do not know me. They are puzzled by the references to rum. To set the record straight--it’s my crew that needs the rum--not me. The base is sealed at night. Anti sub and personal nets close the entrance. 4 patrol boats move around. A bunker at the entrance uses a search light and has a 50mm cannon. But it’s the anti personal depth charges that go off irregularly that makes sleep difficult. Dave and Kendra will go inland to the mountains tomorrow.
It’s a beautiful country--the spice island
Captain Scott ~ Thursday, October 25th, 2007
Thursday, 8 18n 68 08e Commanders alerted us to a low forming ahead and so we are diverting a little south to keep on its good side. The north tip of the Maldives is only 290 ahead. Last night the winds increased to 20/28kts from the NW and we are humming along. All day today the seas have built and the wind 25/32kts. Also the barometer has fallen some and squalls are moving through. Typhoons form here this time of year so we are watchful. We can always bailout to the south. We rolled up the jib, eased the main, and were soon seeing 13.5kts of speed. Max wind in the squall was 44. At exactly this exciting moment I spotted a pod of whales. We flew by them. I counted 9 spouts. Possibly each whale had time to blow twice so maybe there were only 4 1/2 whales
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Tuesday, October 23, 2007
At 1300 we reached the half way point 1132 miles traveled and 1132 to get to Sri Lanka. At about the exact same time we turned the engine off after 30hrs of powering through flat calm seas. Now 10 kts of wind on the beam propel us at 7 kts on seas with only ripples. Just lovely. In the last 30hours each person has done their laundry. Kendra only needed 75 gallons of water to wash her 12 items.
After leaving the Gulf of Aden we have not seen one other ship. The water has taken on a deep blue purple color and the surface is alive with flying fish. Zillions of them ---mostly very small. This morning we found a flying fish in the cabin that had flown through the window last night. Also found on the deck were squid. We also have an adult dragon fly on board that was seen today for the first time---and where did he come from?
After leaving the Gulf of Aden we have not seen one other ship. The water has taken on a deep blue purple color and the surface is alive with flying fish. Zillions of them ---mostly very small. This morning we found a flying fish in the cabin that had flown through the window last night. Also found on the deck were squid. We also have an adult dragon fly on board that was seen today for the first time---and where did he come from?
Monday, October 22, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Monday, October 22nd, 2007
After waving goodbye to the Augsburg, we had a pretty sail all night. Saturday morning found us 11 miles off the coast of Socotra, a large Yemen island. The wind failed and we had an entire day under engine passing Socotra. Sunset saw us by the island and clear into the Arabian Sea. We are now so far behind schedule that I set a course for Sri Lanka, by passing the Maldives. Galle was 1616 NM ahead and we had gone 615 since leaving Aden. Saturday night became our best sail of the trip - close reaching in smooth water at 9 kts. However, with sunrise Sunday came unsettled weather. Rain squalls kicked the seas up and the wind veered so we were no longer able to hold course. Beating again in rough water. Confused seas continually broke over the deck and we were all buttoned up. Close and sticky below with lots of motion.
Then suddenly we began to take on water. We picked up all the floorboards, removed drawers, emptied closets, inspected every thru-hull, and finally found the source - my old nemesis the forepeak. J boats in their wisdom put a watertight bulkhead behind the forepeak. Then they drilled a large hole in it to pass wiring forward. So we dropped al lsail, stopped the boat, turned downwind, and opened the forepeak hatch. And there was 3 ft of water sloshing around and pouring aft through the wiring conduit. Much to our chagrin and relief, we found the forepeak bilge pumphad been turned off. So with a flip of the switch our problem was solved. By Sunday night, the wind and sea had dropped making it a pleasant night. The wind has slowly decreased and now is 8-11 kts from 60 degrees. This makes a hard on the wind but moving effortlessly along at 6 kts. If Commanders weather is correct, we will be calmed by noon with at least 24 hours of motoring forecast.
Then suddenly we began to take on water. We picked up all the floorboards, removed drawers, emptied closets, inspected every thru-hull, and finally found the source - my old nemesis the forepeak. J boats in their wisdom put a watertight bulkhead behind the forepeak. Then they drilled a large hole in it to pass wiring forward. So we dropped al lsail, stopped the boat, turned downwind, and opened the forepeak hatch. And there was 3 ft of water sloshing around and pouring aft through the wiring conduit. Much to our chagrin and relief, we found the forepeak bilge pumphad been turned off. So with a flip of the switch our problem was solved. By Sunday night, the wind and sea had dropped making it a pleasant night. The wind has slowly decreased and now is 8-11 kts from 60 degrees. This makes a hard on the wind but moving effortlessly along at 6 kts. If Commanders weather is correct, we will be calmed by noon with at least 24 hours of motoring forecast.
Friday, October 19, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Friday, October 19th, 2007
Warship Augsburg came along side at sunset. We are beating east ward in and out of rain squalls--the first rain we have seen since May. Now we are Just past the "Horn of Africa" which is its most eastern point of Africa. Hense Africa and Somilia are behind us. We still have to get around Socotra Island which is ahead. By tomorrow night we should be free of the Gulf of Aden and be able to set a course to the Maldives. The German warship circled us and came within 25 yds with all her crew on deck. Great photo op as we were doing 8kts to windward with rail down and old glory streaming.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Wednesday, October 17th, 2007
Now, 36 hours out of Aden. A reasonable beat--comfortable, but still a beat. Last night had build ups over Yemen with lightning but its been crystal clear since. We are just entering the pirate high risk area and will be in it for the next 2 1/2 days. Somalis transport illegal immigrants across hereabouts and pirate anything they can catch on the way. For sailboats it’s the #1 pirate area in the world (Malacca Straits for commercial). However, we have good reason to feel safe. We have called Collation forces on the phone and are giving them daily positions. As a result we got over flown by military aircraft this morning and talked to it on VHF. There is a German Frigate on patrol in these waters and she knows we are here--and we have a direct telephone line to her. We are also far off the Somali coast and there are lots of freighters about. So it’s all bad news for those of you who were betting on the pirates!!
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Tuesday, October 16th, 2007
We left at 0600 at dawn on a beautiful day. Aden is on an extinct volcano. We sailed down the coast of high sheer crater walls with a central spine that looked like the back of a giant sleeping lizard.
We had a wood plank that we used to get on and off the boat when we med moored. But from here on there will be no use for it as we will always be anchored out and using the dingy.We took it ashore thinking someone could use a nice piece of wood. But the gate guard insisted that we take it to customs first and pay duty on it. So we float tested it.
Back in Massawa the gate guard insisted on looking at our shore passes which he pretended to read. So we always handed him the passes upside down. Aden was a joy but we are yet another day behind schedule. Now sailing, beating to weather in 14kts witch with the small jibis perfect. Pretty as a picture, just like poetry!!
We had a wood plank that we used to get on and off the boat when we med moored. But from here on there will be no use for it as we will always be anchored out and using the dingy.We took it ashore thinking someone could use a nice piece of wood. But the gate guard insisted that we take it to customs first and pay duty on it. So we float tested it.
Back in Massawa the gate guard insisted on looking at our shore passes which he pretended to read. So we always handed him the passes upside down. Aden was a joy but we are yet another day behind schedule. Now sailing, beating to weather in 14kts witch with the small jibis perfect. Pretty as a picture, just like poetry!!
Monday, October 15, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Monday, October 15th, 2007
Few people work during the month of Ramadan. The week after Ramadan is the Eid festival and nobody works. It is their most important holiday and the town is filled with country folk looking to party. And Oct 14th is their independence day. With holiday on top of holiday we are having trouble getting some basics to leave. Dinner ashore is movie stuff. Its packed and everyone dressed up. The women all wear berkas which is new in the past 6 years--Saudi influence. The men wear a large belt with an even larger curved dagger. The dagger is upright over the navel.
Dave bought this outfit and the locals loved it. I got my dagger my last time through. One local showed us his belt which had bullets on it. Just like a cowboy he grinned. Not many bars in town but we found one. A Russian Surgeon sat down with us and...Well no one out drinks a Russian. As a military officer he was stationed in Iraq and in Afghanistan. Everyone seems very happy to see us and we feel very safe. So as the only yacht in the harbor I have decided to fly the flag. Noted that the Cole was blown up here only 300 ft from where we are anchored
Dave bought this outfit and the locals loved it. I got my dagger my last time through. One local showed us his belt which had bullets on it. Just like a cowboy he grinned. Not many bars in town but we found one. A Russian Surgeon sat down with us and...Well no one out drinks a Russian. As a military officer he was stationed in Iraq and in Afghanistan. Everyone seems very happy to see us and we feel very safe. So as the only yacht in the harbor I have decided to fly the flag. Noted that the Cole was blown up here only 300 ft from where we are anchored
Captain Scott ~ Monday, October 15th, 2007
We have an expanding list of boat projects that we have spent the last several days working on. We broke a jib sheet coming in. On any real jib it's an easy exchange but on this sail the clew is unreachable. We replaced the sheet using a bosuns chair. We can’t calibrate the high pressure on the 110 freezer and have given up. And our secondary bilge pump needs parts that we aren’t going to get. When Jeff washed out the bilge replacing the watermaker membranes back in Jordan, we found some fresh oil mixed in. This led to a leaking seal on the gen set. The rear seal was replaced in Turkey and the new leak is in the front seal. As we have no way of fixing it, the generator gets diapers for the near term. The alternator bracket on the main engine has always been a problem. Mark Jones found all 3 attachments to the alternator fractured and got this fixed last year. Now the 2 bolts that hold the other end to the engine broke. Dave has spent 2 days drilling out the old bolts, finding new ones the exact size, taping and solving the problem.He is really happy when presented with such a challenge and I am even happier to have him. We had tea and then dinner with Roy Facey who is a mysterious, well connected Englishman. He gave us up to date pirate info. 2years ago an American was boarded by a pirate. The American blew him away with his shotgun and became a local hero. Pirates don’t have civil rights here--or Yemen has few attorneys. We will have a 48 hour danger area that will start on the 2nd day out of Aden. We hope to depart tomorrow AM
Message from Jeff ~ Sunday, October 14th 2007
Jeff called on Sunday and sends his best to everyone. He said he's working really hard but is enjoying the trip and having fun. It's a trip of a lifetime and the experience is priceless. He'll try to keep in touch as best as he can. Keep the comments coming, when he does not have internet access I read them to him when he calls.
Be Safe
Clara
Be Safe
Clara
Captain Scott ~ Saturday, October 13th, 2007
We have had nothing but light air until we were 50 miles from Aden. Then suddenly the wind came in with a big sea. 22kts on the nose. A blessing as we were able to beat our way into Aden by Friday afternoon. Still we were a little beat up and in need of a vacation. 10 hours of sleep and Saturday dawned a lot brighter. The customs man came aboard for the sole purpose of extorsion and the fuel dock manager wanted an extra 10% under the table to open during a holiday---the entire week after Ramadan is a holiday.
The fuel dock was filthey and we waited 2 hours while the manager went to the bank to make sure our money was good. Finally a guy wearing a sheet with a towel on his head showed up to pump fuel. The hose was for super tankers and covered with oily filth. But fuel we got!!
Like Scarlet Ohara in Gone with the Wind said " I sware I'll never be hungry again". And so fuel is everywhere. Tanks overflowing, 7 jerry cans filled and a few pickle jars will see us to the Maldives.
The fuel dock was filthey and we waited 2 hours while the manager went to the bank to make sure our money was good. Finally a guy wearing a sheet with a towel on his head showed up to pump fuel. The hose was for super tankers and covered with oily filth. But fuel we got!!
Like Scarlet Ohara in Gone with the Wind said " I sware I'll never be hungry again". And so fuel is everywhere. Tanks overflowing, 7 jerry cans filled and a few pickle jars will see us to the Maldives.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Captain Scott ~ Thursday, October 11th, 2007
at 2100. Now in Gulf of Aden. Aden 100 ahead. Pirates should leave us alone as we are a little cranky. Ran port tank bone dry (till engine quit). But enough in starboard that we no longer have a problem--other than the fact that the rum supply is marginal.
Aden by Friday---maybe, wind speed only 5kts
Aden by Friday---maybe, wind speed only 5kts
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Captain Scott ~ October 11th, 2007
Note to all.... Until they reach a Port with internet access the only logs that will be posted are from Captain Scott, since he is using e-mail delivered via satellite phone using GMN's XGate software.
Pipe Dream left Massawa 3 days ago and is now 50 miles from the exit of the Red Sea called Bab El Mander or The Gate of Tears. Aptly named, as it's been a trial for sailors for all time. The wind blows hard into the Red Sea funneling between the 2 headlands and the current always runs into the Red Sea. Ancient sailors might spend months trying to get out. We currently have the problem of lack of wind but I expect to exit tonight.We have used the engine only to charge the batteries and consequently both tanks now read empty. There is some fuel remaining after the gauge reads empty. However, I have never run them lower than this and am not sure how much remains and/or how much is useable. Pipe Dream has 2 main tanks and 2 bladders. This morning we emptied the lazarette to inspect the bladders in hopes of finding a gallon or 2 of trapped fuel. No luck. They are bone dry. Next, I have shifted the return on my port main tank to return to the starboard. This will hasten the complete emptying of the port tank and I will know that all remaining fuel is in the starboard tank. We have cut off non-essential systems. The freezer is off and we will lose all the frozen food. In addition, we have made no new water and may run out before Aden. However, rum, although in short supply is available to the superior officer and his guests. If we lose battery charge then we will lose essential items like GPS and running lights. However, as Kendra pointed out, that's not a problem because the Gulf of Aden is a major pirate area and we did not plan to use the running lights anyway.
Pipe Dream left Massawa 3 days ago and is now 50 miles from the exit of the Red Sea called Bab El Mander or The Gate of Tears. Aptly named, as it's been a trial for sailors for all time. The wind blows hard into the Red Sea funneling between the 2 headlands and the current always runs into the Red Sea. Ancient sailors might spend months trying to get out. We currently have the problem of lack of wind but I expect to exit tonight.We have used the engine only to charge the batteries and consequently both tanks now read empty. There is some fuel remaining after the gauge reads empty. However, I have never run them lower than this and am not sure how much remains and/or how much is useable. Pipe Dream has 2 main tanks and 2 bladders. This morning we emptied the lazarette to inspect the bladders in hopes of finding a gallon or 2 of trapped fuel. No luck. They are bone dry. Next, I have shifted the return on my port main tank to return to the starboard. This will hasten the complete emptying of the port tank and I will know that all remaining fuel is in the starboard tank. We have cut off non-essential systems. The freezer is off and we will lose all the frozen food. In addition, we have made no new water and may run out before Aden. However, rum, although in short supply is available to the superior officer and his guests. If we lose battery charge then we will lose essential items like GPS and running lights. However, as Kendra pointed out, that's not a problem because the Gulf of Aden is a major pirate area and we did not plan to use the running lights anyway.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Captain Scott ~ October 5th, 2007
At anchor off an island in the Suakin group called Talla Talla Kabir--lat 1848 N lon 38 10 E.. We have stopped for several reasons. Mainly we can not get to Massawa before dark tomorrow. So now we will slow and smell the Roses and plan to arrive in Eritrea at 7am on the 7th. We all have just snorkeled a very virgin reef. Large grouper will let you close. We are watching the sun set with a drink in hand. There is so much dust/sand in the air that sunset/sunrise have a wonderful red glow. A chicken is roasting in the oven. We will not get under way till after diner. With lack of wind we have failed to make up any of the days DHL cost us. As a result I am considering by passing Aden to make up for the lost days. November is a typhoon month in the Indian Ocean and a significant concern. We hope to contract with Commanders weather service for a private weather consult daily via satellite phone. My Skymate is getting iffy as it works on either European Satellites or Malaysia and we will be in between.
Jeff and we all say happy birthday to Clara.
Jeff spent the day getting the 2nd water maker membrane installed--successfully. Yesterday 2 swallows landed on board and huddled together. The female was all done in and I could touch her. The male kept leaving and then returning to her. She spent the night in the cockpit not minding us stepping all around her. In the morning her mate returned and she tried making short weak flights. I tried giving her cookie crumbs and water but she died before noon. The male returned with 3 others (we are now 50 miles off shore) and they camped out all over the boat. I steered for an island and got close to shore. 3 of them made land but the 4th was too weak and died later. An hour later and 7 miles from the island all 3 returned to the boat. A yellow breasted bird has just landed but we are anchored a halfmile off the beach. And so, it’s their problem.
On the last night into Eritera we picked up a flight of 9 more swallows and they camped and pooped everywhere. By morning 2 more had kicked the bucket. And with the dawn we were off the entrance to Massawa. Another cruising sailboat entered with us. Unusual only in that we have not seen another cruiser since we left Abu Tig nearly 3 weeks ago. Eritera became a nation in 1999 when it broke away from Eitheopa in a civil war. Bombed out buildings are everywhere and others show advanced decay. In the 6 day passage from Jordan I used the engine 107 hrs because of calm wind. Also the generator was heavily used to power the ACs---its brutially hot. I had planned to refuel in Massawa. But Eritera has no diesel left. In fact the shops are bare as the country is broke. The port was empty. My port fuel tank reads empty and the other reads 1/8. We have a major problem. Of course we can sail but some fuel is needed to charge the batteries and make water. So we left ASAP headed across the Red Sea to Yemen. I have no guarentees there either and so we are not happy campers. Last night we beat in light air never being able to steer to course as the wind is ahead. We left 16 hours ago and sailed 75 miles. Lots of tacking but otherwise pleasant.
Jeff and we all say happy birthday to Clara.
Jeff spent the day getting the 2nd water maker membrane installed--successfully. Yesterday 2 swallows landed on board and huddled together. The female was all done in and I could touch her. The male kept leaving and then returning to her. She spent the night in the cockpit not minding us stepping all around her. In the morning her mate returned and she tried making short weak flights. I tried giving her cookie crumbs and water but she died before noon. The male returned with 3 others (we are now 50 miles off shore) and they camped out all over the boat. I steered for an island and got close to shore. 3 of them made land but the 4th was too weak and died later. An hour later and 7 miles from the island all 3 returned to the boat. A yellow breasted bird has just landed but we are anchored a halfmile off the beach. And so, it’s their problem.
On the last night into Eritera we picked up a flight of 9 more swallows and they camped and pooped everywhere. By morning 2 more had kicked the bucket. And with the dawn we were off the entrance to Massawa. Another cruising sailboat entered with us. Unusual only in that we have not seen another cruiser since we left Abu Tig nearly 3 weeks ago. Eritera became a nation in 1999 when it broke away from Eitheopa in a civil war. Bombed out buildings are everywhere and others show advanced decay. In the 6 day passage from Jordan I used the engine 107 hrs because of calm wind. Also the generator was heavily used to power the ACs---its brutially hot. I had planned to refuel in Massawa. But Eritera has no diesel left. In fact the shops are bare as the country is broke. The port was empty. My port fuel tank reads empty and the other reads 1/8. We have a major problem. Of course we can sail but some fuel is needed to charge the batteries and make water. So we left ASAP headed across the Red Sea to Yemen. I have no guarentees there either and so we are not happy campers. Last night we beat in light air never being able to steer to course as the wind is ahead. We left 16 hours ago and sailed 75 miles. Lots of tacking but otherwise pleasant.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Captain Scott ~ October 3rd, 2007
October 1st:
While waiting on DHL we bled the hydrolic lines on the autopilot and the unit seemed to work at the dock. To test it outside the marina the Jordian Navy required us to leave our passports and restricted where we could go. The autopilot did not work but this time we got a rudder responce alarm. This allowed us to find the problem and fix it. My dive trip was at a nearby marine park. There was a sunken 300ft freighter on its side. Max depth possible was 100 ft and the upper side was about 40 ft under the surface. The coral reefs here are all young. I have never seen such brillent colored coral and almost all of it alive. Late sunday afternoon we got our packages from DHL. They have been in Jordan for 8 days. Insult to inury--we were charged 300 dollors for handling fees. Pipe Dream covered only 330nm in the first 2 days after leaving Jordan. This was due to running under engine only at low rpm in flat calm. We never saw another ship during the first night in the Gulf of Aqaba but saw plenty the second night in the Red Sea. The mirror like water reflected starlight and we were visited by several pods of dolphins.
We left Aqaba monday morning bound for Massawa in Eritria 1000 miles away. I wanted to touch Saudi Arabia to collect another new country. As we got close in we were stopped by 3 patrol boats. The crew all agreed that if we were thrown out of the place, we must have been there. So I'm counting it #114. Now powering down the Gulf ofAqaba in flat calm. At dawn on the 3rd of Oct we picked up our first breeze and are now running wing and wing toward the Sudan boarder. It’s hard to imagine being more tranquil on a sailboat. We are now south of Miami’s latitude and hope to see the Southern Cross by tomorrow night. NATO warships are conducting exercises in the area. We have yet to see them but have heard an American carrier on the radio. A Yemen volcanic island was shaken by quakes and volcanic eruption on Sunday. Of the 7 soldiers on the island there is only 1 survivor. The Island is in the middle of the Red Sea near Massawas latitude. So we are going there to see for ourselves.
While waiting on DHL we bled the hydrolic lines on the autopilot and the unit seemed to work at the dock. To test it outside the marina the Jordian Navy required us to leave our passports and restricted where we could go. The autopilot did not work but this time we got a rudder responce alarm. This allowed us to find the problem and fix it. My dive trip was at a nearby marine park. There was a sunken 300ft freighter on its side. Max depth possible was 100 ft and the upper side was about 40 ft under the surface. The coral reefs here are all young. I have never seen such brillent colored coral and almost all of it alive. Late sunday afternoon we got our packages from DHL. They have been in Jordan for 8 days. Insult to inury--we were charged 300 dollors for handling fees. Pipe Dream covered only 330nm in the first 2 days after leaving Jordan. This was due to running under engine only at low rpm in flat calm. We never saw another ship during the first night in the Gulf of Aqaba but saw plenty the second night in the Red Sea. The mirror like water reflected starlight and we were visited by several pods of dolphins.
We left Aqaba monday morning bound for Massawa in Eritria 1000 miles away. I wanted to touch Saudi Arabia to collect another new country. As we got close in we were stopped by 3 patrol boats. The crew all agreed that if we were thrown out of the place, we must have been there. So I'm counting it #114. Now powering down the Gulf ofAqaba in flat calm. At dawn on the 3rd of Oct we picked up our first breeze and are now running wing and wing toward the Sudan boarder. It’s hard to imagine being more tranquil on a sailboat. We are now south of Miami’s latitude and hope to see the Southern Cross by tomorrow night. NATO warships are conducting exercises in the area. We have yet to see them but have heard an American carrier on the radio. A Yemen volcanic island was shaken by quakes and volcanic eruption on Sunday. Of the 7 soldiers on the island there is only 1 survivor. The Island is in the middle of the Red Sea near Massawas latitude. So we are going there to see for ourselves.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Jeff's Log ~ September 29, 2007
9:25pm
Today, things went pretty well. I got a lot accomplished. The forepeak, which if this was a race boat would be the sail locker, I got repacked with more than used to be in there, and still had a lot more room left than was there previously. Thusly, I moved some things that had been in the lazarrette up to the forepeak and life on board should be a little easier.
After Dave bled the autopilot, we were all feeling pretty secure that it would function correctly. Well, this morning we decided to sea trial and see if in fact it did work. Before we could leave the marina, the Navy had to be notified, and we were given strict guidelines as to where we could and could not go. The pilot still did not function, and because of the symptoms, I decided that a look at various items that are completely hidden should be checked. Lo and behold, the rudder position sensor arm pivot stud had corroded and broken, and the poor autopilot had no idea what the boat was doing. I had more important tasks, and proceeded with repairing a main engine coolant leak, and dumped the pilot off on Dave. He loves that sort of thing anyway. He went to a small repair shop and got a new bolt welded to the old pivot, drilled out the broken piece, and it looks like we’ll have auto pilot for the 900 mile journey to the next port which is Massava in the country of Atria.
If all goes to the current plan, we will be leaving here on Monday, around 10 am. I personally feel like I’m going to leave a little of my family here, because I’ve gotten very close with Alla, Iz, and Ammar. For the short time I have known these gentlemen, I feel that there will be a lifetime bond. I don’t think that any one of us will ever forget the others, and if I am ever within a thousand miles of here, I feel that a visit will become part of my travel plans.
Due to the fact that the next leg of our journey is a fairly long one Ya all won’t be hearing from me for a while. With fair winds, we can easily cover 200 miles a day, but I don’t know about access in that remote part of the world.
I think about everybody and look at pictures regularly. Please remember though, that this still is a job, and I’m not on vacation! I’ll send more first chance I get.
Today, things went pretty well. I got a lot accomplished. The forepeak, which if this was a race boat would be the sail locker, I got repacked with more than used to be in there, and still had a lot more room left than was there previously. Thusly, I moved some things that had been in the lazarrette up to the forepeak and life on board should be a little easier.
After Dave bled the autopilot, we were all feeling pretty secure that it would function correctly. Well, this morning we decided to sea trial and see if in fact it did work. Before we could leave the marina, the Navy had to be notified, and we were given strict guidelines as to where we could and could not go. The pilot still did not function, and because of the symptoms, I decided that a look at various items that are completely hidden should be checked. Lo and behold, the rudder position sensor arm pivot stud had corroded and broken, and the poor autopilot had no idea what the boat was doing. I had more important tasks, and proceeded with repairing a main engine coolant leak, and dumped the pilot off on Dave. He loves that sort of thing anyway. He went to a small repair shop and got a new bolt welded to the old pivot, drilled out the broken piece, and it looks like we’ll have auto pilot for the 900 mile journey to the next port which is Massava in the country of Atria.
If all goes to the current plan, we will be leaving here on Monday, around 10 am. I personally feel like I’m going to leave a little of my family here, because I’ve gotten very close with Alla, Iz, and Ammar. For the short time I have known these gentlemen, I feel that there will be a lifetime bond. I don’t think that any one of us will ever forget the others, and if I am ever within a thousand miles of here, I feel that a visit will become part of my travel plans.
Due to the fact that the next leg of our journey is a fairly long one Ya all won’t be hearing from me for a while. With fair winds, we can easily cover 200 miles a day, but I don’t know about access in that remote part of the world.
I think about everybody and look at pictures regularly. Please remember though, that this still is a job, and I’m not on vacation! I’ll send more first chance I get.
Jeff's Log ~ Friday, September 27, 2007
Today, I had a day off. No boat repairs, scrubbing, or polishing were done today. I got up and had coffee, and then went to the western neighbor’s dive boat, where a fellow by the name of Iz works. He and I have become friends and he invites me for coffee every morning. He is a young lad who is working to put himself through college. During Ramadan, his instructors have rescheduled his normal evening classes to afternoon, and he has not been able to attend because of job. He has been venting his frustration and I have been being a good listener and try to help cheer him up.
The Jordanians that I’ve interacted with have all been very friendly and most have been extremely helpful. The dive boat to the east of us is owned by another nice guy by the name Alla, and his driver is Ammar. Today, Scott and I went out on Alla’s boat with them. They had a small charter group and asked us to come along. It was a very pleasant day with slight overcast and light breeze. We went down the coast about 4 miles and anchored on a mooring buoy attached to the wreck of a freighter lying on her side. It was about 40 ft. to the top of the wreck, and could be clearly seen from the surface.
Scott and I swam the length of the wreck and then went towards shore to snorkel some shallow coral reef. The coral was the prettiest I have ever seen. There was red, yellow, orange, and the most beautiful shade of purple that you can imagine. I was truly impressed, and while it’s not the Great Barrier Reef, it made me feel good that there is still something like this alive within 200ft. of shore.
Tomorrow is back to work. In the course of our stay here in Aqaba, my projects have progressed nicely. The top of the fuel tanks no longer leak, though the starboard tank took several tries before it was finally sealed. Well meaning persons trying to seal it before just kept tightening the screws, causing pretty heavy distortion of a surface that I ended up having to make flat again. The lower running lights now work, and the forepeak sail locker and the aft lazarette have both been emptied, cleaned and allowed to dry out. I now have my own cabin with drawers and a double bunk. Life is good.
Tomorrow, all of the stuff from those compartments must be repacked, because we are going for a short sail tomorrow to prove the autopilot which thanks to Dave has been bled. Our parts shipment has been released from customs, so I’ll take a walk to DHL and see if I can get it tomorrow instead of Sunday.
My friend Alla took me into town yesterday, and I picked up some hose and splices to repair a coolant leak that I found on the main engine. I was floored when The bill for 4mtr hose and two splice connectors was only about $20. I also had lunch at McDonalds, and it compares with USA. The only big difference is instead of apple pie, they have fig pie, which I actually enjoyed more. Also ate at Quizno’s, and they’re a little skimpy with the meat.
Hello to everybody, and Happy birthday Dad on the 21st, in case that e-mail didn’t make it, and I’m really glad they finally let you go home.
The Jordanians that I’ve interacted with have all been very friendly and most have been extremely helpful. The dive boat to the east of us is owned by another nice guy by the name Alla, and his driver is Ammar. Today, Scott and I went out on Alla’s boat with them. They had a small charter group and asked us to come along. It was a very pleasant day with slight overcast and light breeze. We went down the coast about 4 miles and anchored on a mooring buoy attached to the wreck of a freighter lying on her side. It was about 40 ft. to the top of the wreck, and could be clearly seen from the surface.
Scott and I swam the length of the wreck and then went towards shore to snorkel some shallow coral reef. The coral was the prettiest I have ever seen. There was red, yellow, orange, and the most beautiful shade of purple that you can imagine. I was truly impressed, and while it’s not the Great Barrier Reef, it made me feel good that there is still something like this alive within 200ft. of shore.
Tomorrow is back to work. In the course of our stay here in Aqaba, my projects have progressed nicely. The top of the fuel tanks no longer leak, though the starboard tank took several tries before it was finally sealed. Well meaning persons trying to seal it before just kept tightening the screws, causing pretty heavy distortion of a surface that I ended up having to make flat again. The lower running lights now work, and the forepeak sail locker and the aft lazarette have both been emptied, cleaned and allowed to dry out. I now have my own cabin with drawers and a double bunk. Life is good.
Tomorrow, all of the stuff from those compartments must be repacked, because we are going for a short sail tomorrow to prove the autopilot which thanks to Dave has been bled. Our parts shipment has been released from customs, so I’ll take a walk to DHL and see if I can get it tomorrow instead of Sunday.
My friend Alla took me into town yesterday, and I picked up some hose and splices to repair a coolant leak that I found on the main engine. I was floored when The bill for 4mtr hose and two splice connectors was only about $20. I also had lunch at McDonalds, and it compares with USA. The only big difference is instead of apple pie, they have fig pie, which I actually enjoyed more. Also ate at Quizno’s, and they’re a little skimpy with the meat.
Hello to everybody, and Happy birthday Dad on the 21st, in case that e-mail didn’t make it, and I’m really glad they finally let you go home.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Captain Scott ~ September 26th, 2007
On the 21st we powered up the last few miles of the Gulf of Aqaba to theRoyal Yacht Club of Jordan. Now 115,645 nm under the keel and Jordan is the113th country collected. We circle a small island on the way that is covered with a Crusaders castle.
The Israeli make us backtrack and go 5 miles out of our way so as to not touch any of their water. The Jordanians on the other hand give us a warm welcome. We are in Aqaba and the Israeli town of Eilat is just a mile away. We travel inland for 5 days to visit Petra and WadiRum. Near Petra we stay at the Sofitel Taybet Zaman witch is a reconstructed old Ottoman stone village. They literally bought an entire village and remade each stone house into a luxury hotel room. Petra itself is hewn fromor into multicolored sandstone cliffs that line a narrow canyon. We walked (12 miles one day alone), climbed, and explored for 3 days. And one night we walked down the ravine to the Treasury in silence by candlelight. Thousands of candles lit up the canyon. Bedouin music was the played on original instruments.
Yesterday we drove around and camped out in Wadi Rum. This is the desert area where Lawrence of Arabia hung out and from where he launched his attack on Aqaba in WW1 its home only to the Bedouin and to stay you must camp out--as in tents. High sheer cliffs jut out of the desert. The desert at night was magic.
Today the 26th of Sept we are back on the boat but we can not move on. We must wait on water maker parts that are on their way--somewhere
The Israeli make us backtrack and go 5 miles out of our way so as to not touch any of their water. The Jordanians on the other hand give us a warm welcome. We are in Aqaba and the Israeli town of Eilat is just a mile away. We travel inland for 5 days to visit Petra and WadiRum. Near Petra we stay at the Sofitel Taybet Zaman witch is a reconstructed old Ottoman stone village. They literally bought an entire village and remade each stone house into a luxury hotel room. Petra itself is hewn fromor into multicolored sandstone cliffs that line a narrow canyon. We walked (12 miles one day alone), climbed, and explored for 3 days. And one night we walked down the ravine to the Treasury in silence by candlelight. Thousands of candles lit up the canyon. Bedouin music was the played on original instruments.
Yesterday we drove around and camped out in Wadi Rum. This is the desert area where Lawrence of Arabia hung out and from where he launched his attack on Aqaba in WW1 its home only to the Bedouin and to stay you must camp out--as in tents. High sheer cliffs jut out of the desert. The desert at night was magic.
Today the 26th of Sept we are back on the boat but we can not move on. We must wait on water maker parts that are on their way--somewhere
Monday, September 24, 2007
Jeff’s Log ~September 22nd, 2007 Position: 29 31.71 N 34 59.90 E
Today is Saturday, and we are now in Aqaba, Jordan at the Royal Jordanian Yacht Club. Don’t let the name fool you. It’s really just a little marina, although there is a fancy restaurant and a pool with lounge chairs and nice showers upstairs from the pool. Everyone has left the boat to go inland and tour Petra, so I am alone on the boat for a change. Again, I have some projects to do, the most important being resealing the top plates of the fuel tanks. They have been oozing fuel, so that there is a fuel odor, but not really enough to show as a liquid.
I did screw up pretty badly in Abu Tig. I had too much of the boat apart and did not have the boat back together when the boss and his guests arrived. I thought they were due to return later than they did (at least they know I was working) I think now that they have gotten over it. But believe me; I won’t let that happen again! The refrigeration has been working ok. Now the water maker has gone and broken. I’m trying to find a qualified guy to look at it, but it seems like I’m more qualified than the technicians are.
The trip here was mostly motor sailing because wind and waves were right on the nose the whole trip. The night before last, we spent in Taba Heights Marina, which is a small 20 boat marina built by the same people that built Abu Tig. The military guys stationed there were all anxious to talk and see photos of family, and shared their cold water very generously. While taking care of customs business, anyone that walked by the office would stop and shake hands and welcome. Because of Ramadan, dinner at the restaurant had to be ordered in advance, so Kendra and Scott’s wife Gill, ordered for everybody when they went to shower. The food was very good with excellent fresh tomatoes.
The most interesting part of the trip was a fort built on an island during the crusades. We circled it and I took some pictures. Shortly after that, on our way to Jordan, we entered Israeli waters. Shortly there after, a call came on the radio for us to turn 180 degrees and leave. We turned around and began trying to change course to cut the corner to Jordanian water, but the nasty little Israelis would have none of that, so we had to cross their southern border, and then go to Jordanian water.
As we were approaching Jordan, we realized that this is possibly the only place in the world where four countries can be seen at one time. You can see Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia all at the same time. Aqaba is very clean and compact. The business district is about a five minute walk from the marina. There is a McDonalds just to the left of the gate along with a Quizno’s. I saw a wonderful open fruit and vegetable market and will try to shop tomorrow. I was driving with the shore agent when I went by. I did notice some great looking peaches as we passed.
We are med moored next to a local dive boat. The water at the quay is too shallow for our 2.5 meter rudder, so we cannot use our gangway to go to shore because we’re too far from the quay. We rigged a line to the neighbor’s boat and took it to our jib winch. Now when anyone wants to leave, or return to the boat, it can just simply be winched close. Unfortunately, they went out this afternoon, and I was left stranded on the boat. Needless to say, I did get a bunch of work done, so it was a blessing in disguise. Internet has to be purchased from the Swedish hotel called movin pick, so I’ll just have to wait till I can get there to send this. Tomorrow, hopefully the neighbors will stay in. Their engineer is coming to look at water maker in the am.
Hello to everyone love the comments :)
I did screw up pretty badly in Abu Tig. I had too much of the boat apart and did not have the boat back together when the boss and his guests arrived. I thought they were due to return later than they did (at least they know I was working) I think now that they have gotten over it. But believe me; I won’t let that happen again! The refrigeration has been working ok. Now the water maker has gone and broken. I’m trying to find a qualified guy to look at it, but it seems like I’m more qualified than the technicians are.
The trip here was mostly motor sailing because wind and waves were right on the nose the whole trip. The night before last, we spent in Taba Heights Marina, which is a small 20 boat marina built by the same people that built Abu Tig. The military guys stationed there were all anxious to talk and see photos of family, and shared their cold water very generously. While taking care of customs business, anyone that walked by the office would stop and shake hands and welcome. Because of Ramadan, dinner at the restaurant had to be ordered in advance, so Kendra and Scott’s wife Gill, ordered for everybody when they went to shower. The food was very good with excellent fresh tomatoes.
The most interesting part of the trip was a fort built on an island during the crusades. We circled it and I took some pictures. Shortly after that, on our way to Jordan, we entered Israeli waters. Shortly there after, a call came on the radio for us to turn 180 degrees and leave. We turned around and began trying to change course to cut the corner to Jordanian water, but the nasty little Israelis would have none of that, so we had to cross their southern border, and then go to Jordanian water.
As we were approaching Jordan, we realized that this is possibly the only place in the world where four countries can be seen at one time. You can see Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia all at the same time. Aqaba is very clean and compact. The business district is about a five minute walk from the marina. There is a McDonalds just to the left of the gate along with a Quizno’s. I saw a wonderful open fruit and vegetable market and will try to shop tomorrow. I was driving with the shore agent when I went by. I did notice some great looking peaches as we passed.
We are med moored next to a local dive boat. The water at the quay is too shallow for our 2.5 meter rudder, so we cannot use our gangway to go to shore because we’re too far from the quay. We rigged a line to the neighbor’s boat and took it to our jib winch. Now when anyone wants to leave, or return to the boat, it can just simply be winched close. Unfortunately, they went out this afternoon, and I was left stranded on the boat. Needless to say, I did get a bunch of work done, so it was a blessing in disguise. Internet has to be purchased from the Swedish hotel called movin pick, so I’ll just have to wait till I can get there to send this. Tomorrow, hopefully the neighbors will stay in. Their engineer is coming to look at water maker in the am.
Hello to everyone love the comments :)
Friday, September 21, 2007
Captain Scott ~ September 20th, 2007
I’m so far behind that it's hard to catch up. We had 10 days on the Nile. Our most up river or southern point was the 1st caterack which is Aswan. Now the old British dam and the new Russian one stops all water traffic. The huge granite boulders that define the old rapids jut up everywhere. Lake Nasser behind the Dam is the largest man made lake in the world. It now floods all of ancient Nubia and extends into the Sudan.
Of the 20 temples flooded, 19 were saved by moving them to higher ground.
We flew to Abu Simbel to the most spectacular. This temple had 4 figures of
Ramses the 2nd each 75 ft tall (the same guy that let Moses go) and 4 more
of his Nubian bride Nefertiti. Moving this temple was a greater feat than building it.
Our last night was in the Old Winter Palace in Luxor. Hallways wider than the streets, huge chandlers, coat and tie required for diner, a hundred acres of grounds----we will never see the likes of this again. And then back by convoy to Pipe Dream. The summer heat is beginning to break and the sail out is delightful to the lee of an island on the 18th. The next day carries us across the Red Sea and around the southern tip of the Sinai and then NE up the Gulf of Aqaba. Saudi Arabia is on our right and the Egyptian Sinai on our left.
We are amazed to find this narrow waterway up to 5,000 ft deep with high mountains on either side. Wind and sea are fitfull. Sometimes we sail pleasantly and other times we power into steep waves and 30 kt headwinds. This morning we made only 16 miles of progress in 4 hours underfull power slamming into steep seas. In the afternoon we had a glorious sail at 9 kts and now in Taba. Israel is JUST ahead on the left and our destination, The Royal Yacht Club of Jordan, is JUST ahead on the right. As I write this, we have Muslim prayers being sung from the dock behind us--its Ramadan
Of the 20 temples flooded, 19 were saved by moving them to higher ground.
We flew to Abu Simbel to the most spectacular. This temple had 4 figures of
Ramses the 2nd each 75 ft tall (the same guy that let Moses go) and 4 more
of his Nubian bride Nefertiti. Moving this temple was a greater feat than building it.
Our last night was in the Old Winter Palace in Luxor. Hallways wider than the streets, huge chandlers, coat and tie required for diner, a hundred acres of grounds----we will never see the likes of this again. And then back by convoy to Pipe Dream. The summer heat is beginning to break and the sail out is delightful to the lee of an island on the 18th. The next day carries us across the Red Sea and around the southern tip of the Sinai and then NE up the Gulf of Aqaba. Saudi Arabia is on our right and the Egyptian Sinai on our left.
We are amazed to find this narrow waterway up to 5,000 ft deep with high mountains on either side. Wind and sea are fitfull. Sometimes we sail pleasantly and other times we power into steep waves and 30 kt headwinds. This morning we made only 16 miles of progress in 4 hours underfull power slamming into steep seas. In the afternoon we had a glorious sail at 9 kts and now in Taba. Israel is JUST ahead on the left and our destination, The Royal Yacht Club of Jordan, is JUST ahead on the right. As I write this, we have Muslim prayers being sung from the dock behind us--its Ramadan
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Jeff's Log ~ September 12th, 2007
9/12/07
Today things began showing just little teeny signs that maybe I can get something accomplished. Andrea and I had a chat this morning, and lo-and-behold, the dock attendants came to pick up the fuel jugs. The air conditioning service tech actually came at about 1:03 this afternoon. I had been working on the refrigeration since finishing coffee at about 7:30. I finally figured out how to get gas in the system so that I could leak check it. I found the leak where a stainless hose clamp was rubbing on a copper line.
Thank goodness that the line was a short one because I do not have the size tubing which is required. The a/c guy is going to repair the line for me and bring it back tomorrow. I also was successful in obtaining two new Schroeder valves for the silly charging ports in the even sillier unnecessary valve assy. The local dive shop had a tool for replacing them. One thing I never thought about bringing was a Schroeder valve tool. Guess that’ll teach me!
The GPS coordinates of the boat right now are: 27 24.42N 33 40.5E Google earth should be able to zoom right in on us. If you look close, I’ll be on deck waving at all of you!
My other projects are coming along well, although it seems like everything takes 4 times longer than it should. Tonight after six, I can pick up the laundry, so tomorrow; I’ll send a picture of me in a pressed t-shirt just for my friend No-mow Mike.
It sounds like Scott and company are having fun on their trip up the Nile. I certainly don’t eat as good when I do the cooking. Tonight for dinner I made spaghetti and meat sauce, the meat being chopped and sautéed frankfurters. Around here there are no onions, so I have to struggle along and use shallots instead. Just wish there was some wine left. That's one thing I can't buy around here, is alcohol. You can get it at the restaurants, with meals, but you can't go to the store and get wine, beer, or any other booze. I'll be all dried out soon, and then I'll be a real cheap date when I see you.
The wind has finally slowed down considerably. This morning for the first time, the deck didn’t look like a sandbox. There was just a light dusting of sand.
Thanks for leaving comments on the blog page as it is very nice to hear from all of you. If anybody wants to comment, just click on “comments”.
Today things began showing just little teeny signs that maybe I can get something accomplished. Andrea and I had a chat this morning, and lo-and-behold, the dock attendants came to pick up the fuel jugs. The air conditioning service tech actually came at about 1:03 this afternoon. I had been working on the refrigeration since finishing coffee at about 7:30. I finally figured out how to get gas in the system so that I could leak check it. I found the leak where a stainless hose clamp was rubbing on a copper line.
Thank goodness that the line was a short one because I do not have the size tubing which is required. The a/c guy is going to repair the line for me and bring it back tomorrow. I also was successful in obtaining two new Schroeder valves for the silly charging ports in the even sillier unnecessary valve assy. The local dive shop had a tool for replacing them. One thing I never thought about bringing was a Schroeder valve tool. Guess that’ll teach me!
The GPS coordinates of the boat right now are: 27 24.42N 33 40.5E Google earth should be able to zoom right in on us. If you look close, I’ll be on deck waving at all of you!
My other projects are coming along well, although it seems like everything takes 4 times longer than it should. Tonight after six, I can pick up the laundry, so tomorrow; I’ll send a picture of me in a pressed t-shirt just for my friend No-mow Mike.
It sounds like Scott and company are having fun on their trip up the Nile. I certainly don’t eat as good when I do the cooking. Tonight for dinner I made spaghetti and meat sauce, the meat being chopped and sautéed frankfurters. Around here there are no onions, so I have to struggle along and use shallots instead. Just wish there was some wine left. That's one thing I can't buy around here, is alcohol. You can get it at the restaurants, with meals, but you can't go to the store and get wine, beer, or any other booze. I'll be all dried out soon, and then I'll be a real cheap date when I see you.
The wind has finally slowed down considerably. This morning for the first time, the deck didn’t look like a sandbox. There was just a light dusting of sand.
Thanks for leaving comments on the blog page as it is very nice to hear from all of you. If anybody wants to comment, just click on “comments”.
Captain Scott ~ September 12th, 2007
Sept 12th the day after 9/11, and the day before Ramadan. We have encountered no hostility. I have now been in more than a dozen Islamic countries and have felt safe. Egypt is the second safest behind Turkey. The armed convoys are for show and reassurance.
Tourism is their life blood.
The 5 guys on this cruise are all from BBYC: Finley Matheson, Ken Hegy, Rick Bertold, David Brennan and Scott Piper. We regret sailing without a burgee. And sail we do. The Nile flows from the south to the north and the wind blows in the opposite direction. So we are doing what Egyptians have done for thousands of years--sail south then float back north with the current. Sometimes we slow to a standstill in lighter winds or stronger current but the miles pass by as we head for Aswan.
Two nights ago we stopped on an island for dinner and ate ashore by candle light. Music came from across the Nile from a wedding. Last night we stopped by an old Quarry with many rock tombs all of which we explored in the cool of this mornings dawn.
Tourism is their life blood.
The 5 guys on this cruise are all from BBYC: Finley Matheson, Ken Hegy, Rick Bertold, David Brennan and Scott Piper. We regret sailing without a burgee. And sail we do. The Nile flows from the south to the north and the wind blows in the opposite direction. So we are doing what Egyptians have done for thousands of years--sail south then float back north with the current. Sometimes we slow to a standstill in lighter winds or stronger current but the miles pass by as we head for Aswan.
Two nights ago we stopped on an island for dinner and ate ashore by candle light. Music came from across the Nile from a wedding. Last night we stopped by an old Quarry with many rock tombs all of which we explored in the cool of this mornings dawn.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Jeff's Log ~ September 11th, 2007
9/11/07
Trying to get anything done around here is like pulling teeth. The people in charge promise you the moon, but the Chiefs never speak to the Indians. Yesterday, my friend Andrea in the office had her day off. The fellow that takes her place when she is off told me that the refueling task would be no problem. Today, the fuel cans are right on the quay where I left them and haven’t been touched. He also told me he would send a maintenance man to see me and look at the refrigeration valve. That guy never showed up either.
I called the refrigeration company in the states, and he told me that the troublesome valve could be eliminated, and the system would function just fine. I asked him why they put an unnecessary valve in and he told me that that it was a redundant over pressure safety. So now, I’m trying to find the hardware that I need to put the system back together.There seems to be no such things as hardware stores in this part of the world. I did find an air conditioner store and tried to get the repair or installation tech to come to the boat. The salesman wrote info down to send him tomorrow between twelve and one o’clock, but that’s prayer time, so I guess I’ll just have to wait and see.
Today Andrea was in the office and I spoke to her about fuel. Hopefully, I’ll see some results soon. In the mean time, I am repairing the lower navigation lights and the wiring going to them.The boat on our starboard side left today to finish their trip to Dubai. After they left, the mooring buoy on the starboard bow lost a lot of pressure, so the boat ended up meeting the dock on an angle. I readjusted the bowlines and everything is fine now. Yesterday, a boat came in on our port side and the people aboard were from Austria. They have a two year old son who is just adorable. They gave me a dozen eggs, so as not to throw them away. They all left for the airport early this morning to return to Austria. The boat stays here until they go sailing again.
I dropped the laundry off this morning while making my rounds, and on the way back to the boat I stopped at the “best way” grocery store. I was trying to decide what to have for lunch when I came upon good ol’ Kraft MACARONI AND CHEESE. Well I bet you know what I had for lunch. The box was all in English, but they put a sticker over the instructions with Egyptian directions. Good thing I remembered how to make it, because I can’t read Egyptian.
Trying to get anything done around here is like pulling teeth. The people in charge promise you the moon, but the Chiefs never speak to the Indians. Yesterday, my friend Andrea in the office had her day off. The fellow that takes her place when she is off told me that the refueling task would be no problem. Today, the fuel cans are right on the quay where I left them and haven’t been touched. He also told me he would send a maintenance man to see me and look at the refrigeration valve. That guy never showed up either.
I called the refrigeration company in the states, and he told me that the troublesome valve could be eliminated, and the system would function just fine. I asked him why they put an unnecessary valve in and he told me that that it was a redundant over pressure safety. So now, I’m trying to find the hardware that I need to put the system back together.There seems to be no such things as hardware stores in this part of the world. I did find an air conditioner store and tried to get the repair or installation tech to come to the boat. The salesman wrote info down to send him tomorrow between twelve and one o’clock, but that’s prayer time, so I guess I’ll just have to wait and see.
Today Andrea was in the office and I spoke to her about fuel. Hopefully, I’ll see some results soon. In the mean time, I am repairing the lower navigation lights and the wiring going to them.The boat on our starboard side left today to finish their trip to Dubai. After they left, the mooring buoy on the starboard bow lost a lot of pressure, so the boat ended up meeting the dock on an angle. I readjusted the bowlines and everything is fine now. Yesterday, a boat came in on our port side and the people aboard were from Austria. They have a two year old son who is just adorable. They gave me a dozen eggs, so as not to throw them away. They all left for the airport early this morning to return to Austria. The boat stays here until they go sailing again.
I dropped the laundry off this morning while making my rounds, and on the way back to the boat I stopped at the “best way” grocery store. I was trying to decide what to have for lunch when I came upon good ol’ Kraft MACARONI AND CHEESE. Well I bet you know what I had for lunch. The box was all in English, but they put a sticker over the instructions with Egyptian directions. Good thing I remembered how to make it, because I can’t read Egyptian.
Captain Scott ~ September 11th, 2007
Sailing around the world requires continual repair. We exchange crew often and every new arrival carries necessary spares that can not be obtained locally. For example Pat and Gill flew into Egypt. They brought new membranes for the water maker. A new AC water pump. A toggle for the main sail headboard (custom machined and welded and hand delivered to Pat at the airport). New hinges for the head door, new sea strainer for main engine,(The old one cracked and was leaking into the bilge). Gaskets for leaking fuel tank, Regulator to replace broken one on propane tanks, New grease gun,Mainsail track cars. Also we carry items that are non essential such as coffee and peanut butter. When Gill found out how much the AC pump weighed, she complained about being my mule. There is no free lunch.And while we are floating down the Nile, Jeff is rebuilding the refrig-freezer with rolls of copper tubing, 134a gas, and soldering tools all of which he carried over. He will also put on 120 gal of diesel all by jerry can from a gas station in the city. The good news is diesel is 1.32 per gal. He will also replace the bearings in the jib roller furler, rewire bilge pumps, have main sail coverzipper replaced, bleed air out of autopilot hydraulic lines. All this heavyduty work while yours truly asks the steward for another drink. Yesterday we sailed all day which was glorious as the heat has abated. Most Nile cruises are 3 or 4 days but we will be on her for 8.
Jeff's Log ~ Sunday, September 9th 2007
9-9-07
I've been up since six and found that my hunch was right about the refrigeration. There is a bad valve block that won't allow refrigerant to circulate. I'll have to wait until tomorrow afternoon before I can call the company and see if there is any way to repair what I have or what ever.
Either way, life will go on. Today, this place looks like a graveyard. There is nobody around and the shops all seem to be closed. The high winds are continuing. It's been blowing since the second day here and has not slowed down. Wind is a steady 20kn, with gusts to 35kn. Boat is rocking a lot from the wind in the rig. Cockpit looked like a sandbox this morning, so I had to hose it down. We do not use the dock water in our tanks, so I ran the hose from the dock through the vent hatch in the head so that I can shower with the hose. That way the water we made which is in the tanks will last until we get back out to sea and can run the water maker.
Tomorrow, my main job is going to be getting the boat refueled. Diesel fuel is only 33cents a liter here, including taxes. There is no fuel dock, so all the fuel will have to be carried in cans. I think that 80 to 90 gals. Ought to do it, so there will be a few trips necessary. The marina staff is doing the running, so all I have to worry about is getting fuel from the cans into the tanks. While I'm waiting for them to run, there are several other little projects to do. There are some lights to fix and things like that, just on-going maintenance items. That's why I'm here!
I have to get the laundry done too. There's a laundry service here in the marina that is very reasonable, and they not only wash, dry and fold, they even iron everything that is not underwear, even t-shirts. I'll look really spiffy with sharply creased t-shirts!
Well, that's all for now from beautiful Abu Tig, Egypt. I'll attach some pictures again, so you all can see some of the things I’ve seen.
I've been up since six and found that my hunch was right about the refrigeration. There is a bad valve block that won't allow refrigerant to circulate. I'll have to wait until tomorrow afternoon before I can call the company and see if there is any way to repair what I have or what ever.
Either way, life will go on. Today, this place looks like a graveyard. There is nobody around and the shops all seem to be closed. The high winds are continuing. It's been blowing since the second day here and has not slowed down. Wind is a steady 20kn, with gusts to 35kn. Boat is rocking a lot from the wind in the rig. Cockpit looked like a sandbox this morning, so I had to hose it down. We do not use the dock water in our tanks, so I ran the hose from the dock through the vent hatch in the head so that I can shower with the hose. That way the water we made which is in the tanks will last until we get back out to sea and can run the water maker.
Tomorrow, my main job is going to be getting the boat refueled. Diesel fuel is only 33cents a liter here, including taxes. There is no fuel dock, so all the fuel will have to be carried in cans. I think that 80 to 90 gals. Ought to do it, so there will be a few trips necessary. The marina staff is doing the running, so all I have to worry about is getting fuel from the cans into the tanks. While I'm waiting for them to run, there are several other little projects to do. There are some lights to fix and things like that, just on-going maintenance items. That's why I'm here!
I have to get the laundry done too. There's a laundry service here in the marina that is very reasonable, and they not only wash, dry and fold, they even iron everything that is not underwear, even t-shirts. I'll look really spiffy with sharply creased t-shirts!
Well, that's all for now from beautiful Abu Tig, Egypt. I'll attach some pictures again, so you all can see some of the things I’ve seen.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
September 5th, 2007 ~ Captain Scott
Port Suez is at the southern end of the canal and we arrived at sunset.There was no practical way to go ashore and so we spent the night on amooring buoy adjacent to an Arab disco. The music was all Arab done in awestern style and beat. Men danced in groups and it was loud. We sailed 3days down the Gulf of Suez stopping each night.
The Sinai on our left was visible as we sailed close to the coast on the right to stay out of the freighter traffic lanes.It was windy but it was an easy lazy sail under mainonly and auto pilot. We sailed through oil fields in poor viability. Boatssailing north would have had a miserable beat. By the afternoons the heatwas oppressive and our ACs saw a lot of use.
The most memorable event was when we were engulfed in a crane migration. Each bird was 3 feet long, black and white, long legs necks and beaks. They flew low over the water coming from the Sinai going westward. The flock was many miles long and divided around us passing very close. Millions of birds as far as the eye could see. Our last night out was in the lee of an island. We had planned to explore ashore. But 30 kt winds, hot desert winds, kept us aboard. On the 4th we arrived at Abu Tig a luxuryresort. Its quite upscale. About half the guests are Arab. Seeing a man driving a small rental powerboat with a woman in a berka was a sight. On the 7th we travel inland to Luxor.
The Sinai on our left was visible as we sailed close to the coast on the right to stay out of the freighter traffic lanes.It was windy but it was an easy lazy sail under mainonly and auto pilot. We sailed through oil fields in poor viability. Boatssailing north would have had a miserable beat. By the afternoons the heatwas oppressive and our ACs saw a lot of use.
The most memorable event was when we were engulfed in a crane migration. Each bird was 3 feet long, black and white, long legs necks and beaks. They flew low over the water coming from the Sinai going westward. The flock was many miles long and divided around us passing very close. Millions of birds as far as the eye could see. Our last night out was in the lee of an island. We had planned to explore ashore. But 30 kt winds, hot desert winds, kept us aboard. On the 4th we arrived at Abu Tig a luxuryresort. Its quite upscale. About half the guests are Arab. Seeing a man driving a small rental powerboat with a woman in a berka was a sight. On the 7th we travel inland to Luxor.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Jeff's Log ~ September 4, 2007 ~ Egypt
We arrived in Abu Tig, Egypt which is where I'll be staying for a couple of weeks. Weather has been really good for sailing, with the wind and waves behind us all the way. We stayed at a couple of places along the Suez Canal. The first was Port Said. That is right at the north end. When we went to go across the canal we got stopped by the cops on the way out of the marina. It seems like he was just doing his job, but Dave got really mad about it. He got over it real soon, and we went across on one of those ferry boats that you hear about, kind of made me feel like I was in a movie.
The town of Port Said [cy-eed] was hustle bustle and packed with people. None of the drivers have their lights on at night, and I think that their horn and brake pedal must be tied together. I've never seen or heard anything like it. The streets are very narrow, and most are one-way. Surprisingly, we did not see any wrecks. The four of us all stayed together and we had our dinner at a falafel stand that looked like it was a restaurant at one point of its life. We were sampling all of the different stuff that they had and ended up eating in their basement with charming, 1950's era oilcloth table cloths and even older tables and chairs. The cooks just kept bringing down bowls full of all of the items sampled that we really liked. One of them had to literally run down the street a block to get us a couple rounds of cokes. We finished what turned out to be a feast for four, and our total check came to 20 Egyptian pounds, which is around $4.00us. We were all stuffed, so we walked around and found a really nice grocery store and stocked up on provisions for the rest of our trip down the Suez.
Kendra and Ken both love to cook so the food has been really good. Lots of wine too! I'm trying to be good, so I only have a glass or two with dinner. It's really hard to stay hydrated properly because of the heat and wind while sailing. I'm still not getting full nights of sleep because of all of the changing of conditions, sounds and motion. I have been getting nice naps in while not on watch though, so it all works out.
The last two nights, we anchored in the Gulf of Suez because of low visibility and unlit oil rigs. Night before last, anchorage was somewhat unprotected and we did a lot of rocking. Last night, we were in a real pretty, sheltered cove, but the wind came up to thirty-five knots, so I awoke several times to make sure we didn't drag anchor. The Suez Canal is a ditch through a desert, so the trip through was relatively uneventful. Saw lots of military, two bridges, and a revolving train bridge. Still, it is really cool to be here, doing what I’m doing. SteveI'm about two thirds done with "two years before the mast" and enjoying it.
HI to everybody from me!!!! :)
The town of Port Said [cy-eed] was hustle bustle and packed with people. None of the drivers have their lights on at night, and I think that their horn and brake pedal must be tied together. I've never seen or heard anything like it. The streets are very narrow, and most are one-way. Surprisingly, we did not see any wrecks. The four of us all stayed together and we had our dinner at a falafel stand that looked like it was a restaurant at one point of its life. We were sampling all of the different stuff that they had and ended up eating in their basement with charming, 1950's era oilcloth table cloths and even older tables and chairs. The cooks just kept bringing down bowls full of all of the items sampled that we really liked. One of them had to literally run down the street a block to get us a couple rounds of cokes. We finished what turned out to be a feast for four, and our total check came to 20 Egyptian pounds, which is around $4.00us. We were all stuffed, so we walked around and found a really nice grocery store and stocked up on provisions for the rest of our trip down the Suez.
Kendra and Ken both love to cook so the food has been really good. Lots of wine too! I'm trying to be good, so I only have a glass or two with dinner. It's really hard to stay hydrated properly because of the heat and wind while sailing. I'm still not getting full nights of sleep because of all of the changing of conditions, sounds and motion. I have been getting nice naps in while not on watch though, so it all works out.
The last two nights, we anchored in the Gulf of Suez because of low visibility and unlit oil rigs. Night before last, anchorage was somewhat unprotected and we did a lot of rocking. Last night, we were in a real pretty, sheltered cove, but the wind came up to thirty-five knots, so I awoke several times to make sure we didn't drag anchor. The Suez Canal is a ditch through a desert, so the trip through was relatively uneventful. Saw lots of military, two bridges, and a revolving train bridge. Still, it is really cool to be here, doing what I’m doing. SteveI'm about two thirds done with "two years before the mast" and enjoying it.
HI to everybody from me!!!! :)
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Captain Scott’s Log ~ August 27, 2007
4th circumnav resumed.
We arrived with Ken Hegy and Jeff Fredrich. Jeff is the new mate and engineer and the first professional to be aboard in the past 2 years.
The 5 of us spent Saturday provisioning. Every locker is crammed as we are leaving the Western world. Sunday we left Ayos Nickalos and sailed 50 nm to Zakaros a small cove on the eastern coast of Crete. It was a wonderful sail but the wind increased to 35 kts.
We are snug anchored just off the beach as the wind howls down from the surrounding high mountains. Today, Monday 27 Aug, we will depart for the Suez Canal and begin the leg that will end in Thailand 6000nm away==via Egypt, Jordan, Sudan, Yemen, Maldives and Shira Lanka
We arrived with Ken Hegy and Jeff Fredrich. Jeff is the new mate and engineer and the first professional to be aboard in the past 2 years.
The 5 of us spent Saturday provisioning. Every locker is crammed as we are leaving the Western world. Sunday we left Ayos Nickalos and sailed 50 nm to Zakaros a small cove on the eastern coast of Crete. It was a wonderful sail but the wind increased to 35 kts.
We are snug anchored just off the beach as the wind howls down from the surrounding high mountains. Today, Monday 27 Aug, we will depart for the Suez Canal and begin the leg that will end in Thailand 6000nm away==via Egypt, Jordan, Sudan, Yemen, Maldives and Shira Lanka
Jeff's In Greece ~ August 24, 2007
Arrived in Crete without any problems. One amusing thing that happened was in the airport, after a long hassle with authorities, Scott had to check the bag he was carrying because of some duty-free liquor he had purchased in Atlanta. When we got to the baggage claim in Crete, The first bag to come up the chute was Scott’s red bag. It came up the chute like it had been shot from a gun and one of the bottles broke. The look on Scott’s face was priceless!
Crete is quite a rugged looking place. Mountains and rocks, and very tough looking vegetation.
The marina where Pipe Dream IX is staying is quaint and charming, and everyone is friendly. We had dinner at a small, outdoor restaurant. The food was really good, and at the end of the meal, the waiter surprised us with a complimentary dessert and an after-dinner shot of some clear liquor that had a mule like kick to it.
Tomorrow we are heading around the corner about 40 miles. Names of towns will have to wait, as I do not want to wake the crew by getting charts out.
Morning now, Ayos Nikolaos is where I met boat. Plans changed, we are staying the day here, and will depart for Kato Zakros tomorrow.
Crete is quite a rugged looking place. Mountains and rocks, and very tough looking vegetation.
The marina where Pipe Dream IX is staying is quaint and charming, and everyone is friendly. We had dinner at a small, outdoor restaurant. The food was really good, and at the end of the meal, the waiter surprised us with a complimentary dessert and an after-dinner shot of some clear liquor that had a mule like kick to it.
Tomorrow we are heading around the corner about 40 miles. Names of towns will have to wait, as I do not want to wake the crew by getting charts out.
Morning now, Ayos Nikolaos is where I met boat. Plans changed, we are staying the day here, and will depart for Kato Zakros tomorrow.
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