The Mentawais and Surfer Dudes
Huge waves cresting and crashing on coral mean only one thing to sailors: danger. To surfers they might represent a challenge or a thrill. But to really good surfers, the waves in the Mentawais are Nirvana.
A bloke named Martin Daly might be...
A bloke named Martin Daly might be...
Crossing the equator, again
The Telos islands straddle the equator just south of Nias, and they are among some of the prettiest islands we have visited. Meandering channels through mangroves lead to small islands with powdery white sand beaches fringed by coral reefs.
Nias Traditions
Jumping over a 2.1 metre stone pillar without some kind of medal to show for it might seem a strange sport. But in Nias villages, it used to be a matter of victory or death. Warriors would learn how to leap over the walls of neighboring villages in order to...
Welcome Ceremonies
One of the benefits of a sailing rally is the cultural events that are organised at many of the designated stops along our voyage. These have included a Welcoming Ceremony, a Gala Dinner and the option to join a number of tours, school visits, lunches and...
Weh Island Circle Tour
The northernmost point in Indonesia at Kilometer 0 is one of the main tourist attractions on Weh Island. While we made a stop at this surprisingly giant landmark, we also wanted to delve a little deeper into the story of the island. We started with the...
West Sumatra Yacht Rally
After five days in quarantine, our time to explore Sabang is quite short and we are due to depart Wednesday. That is the challenge of a Rally. You have set dates and locations where special welcome ceremonies and cultural activities have been organised. To...
Email Updates
I have now changed our email subscription service for those people interested in subscribing to our blog updates. I have transferred the email addresses from the old service to the new service so hopefully there will be no disruption of service. I have...
Selamat Datang Indonesia
Our first overnight voyage in at least four years took us across the Straits of Malacca from Phuket, Thailand to Sabang, in the Aceh district of Sumatra, Indonesia. With an afternoon departure from Phuket, we had cleared the Thai fishing fleet by sundown and...
AIS Targets Approaching Sabang
Non-eventful motoring passage so far with little wind. On our second night out, as we approach Sabang, we need to cross the shipping lanes as expected. Normally with such heavy traffic there are defined shipping lines much like a highway where ships always...
Underway to Sabang, Indonesia
Finally underway again. We left Nai Harn Beach in Phuket this afternoon after finally getting the new head gasket for the genset. We are headed to Subang, Banda Aceh, Indonesia to join about 20 other boats on this year's West Sumatra Rally. Subang is about...