Pulau Bawean Update
13 October 2022 | Labuhan Beach, Pulau Bawean, Indonesia
Alison Stocker | Photo: Students at an arts-oriented high school in Bawean work on a batik cloth
With the southeast monsoon season drawing to a close, we can no longer rely on the steady southeast winds that were allowing us to sail west reasonably comfortably. Instead, there is either not enough wind, necessitating more motoring that we would like, or there are thunderstorms and squalls that can increase the wind suddenly and dramatically. One such squall very much demanded our attention as we made our passage here to Pulau Bawaen.
We had enjoyed the rest of our stay in Bali, with a productive two-day road-trip that provided Randall with a temporary tooth (made of white filling material) and a pleasant overnight stay at a hotel in Ubud. The following morning, we were joined by another couple on the Bali Birdwalk which was led by the spectacularly enthusiastic and energetic Su. Walking us through rice paddies on the edge of the town, she identified 26 species of birds, numerous butterflies, spiders, and other creatures, and gave us a full explanation of how rice is grown and how the communal irrigation is organized.
The night before leaving Lovina, we had a rally group dinner at a restaurant where we bade farewell to Rob and Mick who were staying there for a while longer. Although by now, the rally had lost quite a few boats, we were picking up some late arrivals, and new boats such as Soggy Paws. Sherry and Dave are well-known in the cruising community for her excellent blogs, compendia for various regions, and generally very helpful online information.
On Thursday (6th October) we left Lovina early with Watusi 2 and Rambler just behind, to make a day-motor-sail west to Pulau Menjangan which is part of West Bali National Park. With highly variable winds, we had to dodge quite a few FADs and drifting nets (tended by fishing outrigger-boats), but it was definitely worthwhile. From the anchorage we could see native deer on the beaches on Bali and Menjangan. That afternoon and the next morning, we snorkeled with Sharon in very clear water over good coral and an interesting drop-off. Adding at least four new species to our life-list for reef fish further increased my satisfaction.
As we finished our second snorkel, park rangers asked us to visit their office on the Island. They expected us to have purchased admission tickets to the National Park at one the of the two Park offices on Bali, but neither of them was accessible by boat. Most visitors arrive as part of tours that include the admission tickets which are presented to the rangers on arrival at Menjangan. With the translation-help of a kind guide from a tour-boat, a compromise was reached whereby we bought activity-tickets for our snorkeling, which they could sell us, and we made a “donation” instead of having the proper Park admission tickets. Any donation seemed acceptable (including none), but Randall and I paid the same as we would have for entry tickets for one day. It may have gone straight into the Rangers’ pockets but given how accommodating and un-officious they were being, that seemed perfectly satisfactory to us.
On Saturday, with Soggy Paws, Rambler, and Watusi 2, we had a day-sail north to Pulau Raas. This was a site that was not included in our cruising guide…perhaps for good reason. Arriving fairly late in the day and finding water that was not very clear, it was a bit nerve-wracking trying to find a suitable patch of sand within the fairly shallow coral in which to anchor. Rally boats Zoe Zoe and Kimberly Cat were already there, and Soggy Paws discovered that it was too shallow just inshore of them. While they had to wait for the tide to rise a bit before they could move again, we stayed further away from the shore. I was not thrilled about the anchorage and the nearby village had very loud calls to prayer, but it was tolerable for one night.
It was the following afternoon that we experienced a sudden change in wind conditions during our overnight sail to Pulau Bawean. Soggy Paws was leading our group of six boats and warned us of the approaching squall (seen on a satellite image) and the increasing winds. This advice was crucial as it allowed us to reef the sails and put up the Bimini windows. The whole squall lasted between 30 and 60 minutes with at least 20 minutes of winds of 30 to 40 knots and one gust of 50 knots. Randall had to fight the wheel with all his strength while hand-steering, trying to keep us turned downwind so that we could run with the wind and waves behind us. Luckily, there was room for this for a short time, but it could have been very awkward if we had been closer to shore.
Fortunately, everyone in our group survived all right although all were a bit shaken at the suddenness and severity of the wind. One seam between two panels near the top of our mainsail came unstitched so had to be repaired with sail-tape and hand-sewing in the anchorage (a bit of a pain as it meant having to take down the whole mainsail.) The one good aspect of the event was that it happened during daylight, it would have been really alarming at night. The wind eventually diminished so much that we had to motor throughout the night in the still sloppy seas.
Arriving early Monday afternoon at Labuhan Beach on the northern coast of Pulau Bawean, we found Calagorm, Laya, SuAn, and two other non-rally boats already there. Happily, there was plenty of room although it was not until after we had anchored that we noticed nearby some FADs just under the water surface. Hopefully, the anchor rode will not have got tangled with them and we will be able to avoid them when we leave. Although it was calm for most of our stay, on Tuesday afternoon it was horribly rolly, presumably as the result of squall further north.
Ashore we found a group of very enthusiastic high-school students had been assigned to organize the rally events. Many of the girls spoke fairly good English and wanted to practice with us. The boys were a not quite as chatty but some of them were keen to help us pull our dinghies in and out of the water.
The students were perhaps not very experienced in planning tours. There was a one-day tour around the Island (which Randall wisely declined) the transportation for which included a choice of moped, bemo (covered back of a truck with two benches running parallel to the road), or car. I volunteered to go in the Bemo which was not particularly good for enjoying the views, but it was much drier than the mopeds in the torrential rain that caught up with us.
Several sites had been listed on the tour’s itinerary but the first two, a visit to a traditional market (something we do in most towns we visit) and stop at a high school that specializes in arts such as batik and dance, took so much longer than planned that we did not have lunch until about 2 pm. We only visited one of the other sites and did not stop at viewpoints to take the sorts of photos that we would have liked as we circumnavigated the lush, hilly Island (about 58 km). Still, it was one of those events where the enthusiasm of the student-guides overcame the vague disappointment of missing a waterfall, lake, and hot-springs. Many rally participants took mopeds and student-guides to see these places the following day…while we were fixing our mainsail and other necessary boat projects.
I did get to enjoy one snorkel on the reef by the anchorage, where I saw several fish that were new to me. Once the rally activities were over, it was time to get the boat ready for a 2-day, 1-night passage to the Kumai River at the southwest corner of Kalimantan (the Indonesian part of Borneo). Sadly, there may not be much wind so we will probably have to motor much of the way. We are keeping our fingers crossed that we can avoid any more nasty squalls and the many fishing vessels and nets reported in this part of the Java Sea. It is certainly an area that demands full attention, both day and night.