Pheng Nga Bay, Thailand


We connected with an electronics man and he didn't show so we attempted to troubleshoot our SSB problem ourselves. Once again we accept the fact that we a required to be self sufficient as finding help along the way seems impossible at times. Since we redid all the connections on the antennae and cleaned the grounds the only thing else I could think of is to go back and read the operators manual. Voila! OPERATOR ERROR!!!!!. PISS ME OFF.

Our next adventure took us to Ko Phanak, the king of hongs. With anticipation we motored a short distance and anchored near a group of tour boats. There were probably 50 kayaks from all of these boats entering a break in the limestone rock at beach level. The tide was high enough to float over the beach and apparently low enough to allow entrance to the hong at the other end. We were going to wait until the next day to do our hong exploration but a longtail boat with two paddlers in their kayak approached us and asked if we wanted them to take us in. We had to do a lot of bargaining since we had no small change to negotiate a price but for a small price we jumped in and were taken in. The cave was pitch black and only since there were so many other kayaks each with it's own flashlight could we easily navigate to the other end. The ceiling of the cave was high with lots of stalagitites and stalagmites. Bats were living in the cave and it was eerie. After about 200 yards we had to bend down to clear the rock at the exit which opened up into a beach and lagoon. There were a large mangrove and of course tons of other visitors. Our guides continued paddling and before long we found ourselves entering a second cave which was shorter than the first opening into a second lagoon similar to the first. The lighting was not good and we were unable to get any good photos but as we expect to return several times with our company yet to arrive we hope to capture the event photographically. When our guides took us back out through the caves the water was a little higher and we had to duck down to get back into the larger cave before we could head back and out to the sea. It was truly a memorable experience! We hear that Ko Phanak has six hongs so in the coming weeks we hope to explore several more. Nancy thought today was as momentous as our passage through the Panama Canal! That's saying something.

We only stayed two days then off we were to Ko Hyai. We followed the boats again and this time found a large outdoor entrance to the inner lagoon which was spectacularly beautiful. We had great weather and lighting and spent the afternoon in the dinghy messing about taking photos. We also did a small circumnavigation of the island and arrived back on Always Saturday just in time for a longtail to approach us and sell us large shrimp. Thailand is known for it's shrimp and we have been boiling it up and peeling it as we eat. It's a nice feast. The next day we were back in the dinghy but the lighting didn't get any better photos.

We've been having beautiful calm and sunny weather and our only complaint is that we have been sweating constantly which has introduced us to "Pricky Heat". It's also known "Mileria" and is an itchy rash caused by obstructed sweat glands that become inflamed and then itchy. No matter how much talcum powder we use we sill sweat and so far it hasn't improved.

Next we'll be visiting "James Bond Island"

From the Crew of Always Saturday