Well, it might have been nice to be able to walk ashore, but in truth the marina was pretty rundown, and unbelievably given the arrival of so many blue water yachts ran out of diesel after topping up the first arrival, which was ‘Blue Magic’. In addition, there wasn't a great deal of space, so we had to raft up, and as we were on the inside had a continuous procession across the foredeck. We dealt with all the necessary paperwork with Quarantine, the Harbourmaster, Immigration and Customs all of whom came aboard. That said, it only took about one and a half hours which was mostly spent stamping forms, not to mention providing the necessary number of copies of each. Goodness knows what they do with them but happily we were now legally in Indonesia - 570 miles after we had first entered!
I immediately started to remove and strip the gearbox and was ably assisted by David off ‘Moonshadow’. It wasn't easy to remove it from the engine and drive shaft, not least because of its weight and I was very grateful for his help. The following day, Friday, I completed the dismantling of the last piece of the gearbox and as David and I were finishing up, Paul from ‘Jackamy’ arrived alongside and advised that he could get the necessary spares. His business at home was a hydraulic engineering supply company and his son was arriving from England on a visit on Tuesday – how that is serendipity! We had to measure the bearing that was specific to the gearbox so that it could be machined specially. The micrometre I had in my toolkit was not big enough, so we had to use my Vernier Calliper. The problem was that the difference between 11/2 inches and 38mm is tiny, so we made an educated guess.
We took a taxi to the airport to collect our hire car and returned with fear and trepidation as we drove on Bali roads for the first time. We did find our way back to the marina satisfactorily, but I had never experienced driving on roads where literally thousands of motorbikes came at you from all directions and random angles.
We ventured out to Denpasar, to see if we could find the bearing shop which we did and surprisingly which was open and even more surprisingly had the oil seals that I needed for the gearbox. We were pleased with ourselves in finding our way as there are almost no road signs. This was after having an altercation with a policeman on a motorbike who accused me of violating lane discipline. I refused to pay his fine as I had specifically stopped at the police box on the corner of junction to ask the way and I admit that I shouted at him! It turned out to be a scam most often evident at the end of the month when they were getting short of funds. The scam was best illustrated when Jaime off ‘Bionic’ was fined for not wearing a crash helmet whilst driving his car!
We passed a political rally near to the Governor's residence which was quite exciting and then took the road to Ubud. It was amazing as there was mile after mile of craft shops. One area specialising in silver work, another woodcarving, another stone sculpting, and another batik weaving which no doubt we would need to return to in due course. We had lunch at the Café Lotus, which was heavenly, overlooking stunning lotus ponds. We then drove up to the rice terraces which are a wonderful sight but spoiled for us by being hassled by the local hawkers.
Back on Moonbeam, the following day we had two local guys who came and cleaned all the stainless and the glass fibre as well as the lifelines for US$25. I was tempted to take them home but employed them to clean the hull, which they did for another US$30!
There was no time to waste as the refrigerator needed servicing which revealed that it required a new bearing and I needed to get up the mast to retrieve the halyard and saw off the top of the foil because it had parted and had a sharp edge, which had been the cause of our chafing problem.
Happily, Jaap, off ‘Peter Pan’ had found a local Dutchman who ran a Marine services operation and who undertook to find replacements here in Bali. We drove out to the east of Bali to Tengana, one of the oldest villages here, which enabled us to stumble across the Rama hotel in Candy Dasa, where we had a delightful lunch. The hotel was in an absolutely idyllic setting, and we decided to book to stay for a couple of nights later in the week. We toured around the village which had several long houses, rice barns, shrines and pavilions and a large village meeting hall and of course some shops.
The long drive back to Bali marina had us battling unmade roads and motorbikes darting around and across us with no lane discipline whatever and lorries and cars all over the place, so we had the next day pottering on the boat to recover.
Our sojourn in the Rama hotel was delightful as there were very few other guests and the hotel staff could not do enough to make us comfortable. It helped to recharge our batteries because back on Moonbeam, many of the yachts had already departed and I still had the challenge of rebuilding the gearbox. In addition, not forgetting to replace the bearing in the refrigerator pump and bending on the Yankee with the repaired halyards.
A nerve-racking morning as I started to rebuild the gearbox, ecstatic when one bearing slipped on having left it out in the sun whilst the shaft was in the freezer, but desperately disappointing when the second one split as it cooled. Sadly, there was a disastrous end to the day when it appeared that one of the gears was jammed, and upon dismantling it once more the springs went flying all around the cockpit and fired the bullet-like end pieces all over the place, with one being lost permanently. I now needed two new bearings which would be sent from Jakarta and a new bullet which happily our local Dutchman was able to source. This eventually enabled me to finally reassemble the gearbox. Happily, once it was installed back on the engine, it was run for an hour in neutral and then joy of joys put into forward and reverse and it worked! It was such a great relief to now know that we would be able to depart on the high tide next day.
We had had a problem in that there was no diesel available in the marina and it was illegal for petrol stations to sell diesel in jerry cans because of the difference in taxation between road and marine diesel. However, this being Bali, petrol stations were keen to sell us diesel providing it was done out of sight. This meant that several trips after dark was necessary to enable us to get enough diesel to top up the tank. We were lucky to get away with it, as were several others, but the last boat to leave was impounded until €850 in cash was passed to the local chief of police. Of course, no receipt was offered.
So, it was with mixed emotions that we left Bali marina on 11th November, because on the one hand it had been lovely to visit, but on the other the obvious corruption and general tardiness, made us feel pleased to depart. We now had a thousand miles to put behind us until we reached Batam and Nongsa Point Marina where we would leave Indonesia for the last time.
We whisked up the east coast of Bali at times doing more than 11kts before establishing ourselves in the Java Sea. There were several aspects to concern us for the whole trip. Firstly, there were there was lots of shipping, particularly fishing boats, and tugs with tows. Now when I was flying over this area, I often looked down to see literally thousands of lights which I had assumed were fishing boats. Now that I was amongst them at sea level, it was obvious that many did not bother to exhibit lights at all and as for the tugs they were frequently showing lights that had no bearing whatever to the International Collision Regulations. This meant that on several occasions we were close to being in collision with tugs, tows, or both, which we were unable to see at night, let alone figuring out what they were and what they were doing. This made watch-keeping at night, somewhat fraught.
Secondly, the Java Sea is filthy. There were literally millions of plastic bags floating near the surface. We were to learn later, that much of this problem was a relatively new phenomenon because traditionally goods were packed in leaves or bamboo containers which when dumped on the hillside were washed down by the rain and degraded naturally in the ocean. In recent times everything was being packed in plastic bags. However, the means of disposal had not changed and so the rain washed them into the ocean where they do not degrade. As a result of this unsustainable contamination, we understood that fishing was becoming progressively more difficult for the locals with smaller and smaller catches. This meant that there was absolutely no point in putting a line out. This was to remain the case until we were well north of the Malacca Straits.
We only had one incident of which we had been warned, of a fishing boat trying to get rid of his demons. This required the fishing boat to motor directly towards a target boat as quickly as possible and only to turn away at the last moment before ramming it. Happily, on the occasion that Moonbeam was a target, we were able to outrun him and therefore remained demon free.
On this part of our trip one day was very much like another. We had very little wind and consequently had to motor much of the way. The gearbox initially stood up well but towards the end of the trip started leaking ATF oil, so it needed to be watched very carefully. It was clear that on reaching Singapore it would be necessary to have it rebuilt professionally. To add to our problems the engine consistently ran hot and once I had inspected the cooling system from end to end, I concluded that the propeller must have accumulated barnacles or other contaminants. This meant that we had to keep our speed down to ensure that we did not overheat.
We were using fuel at a tremendous rate and so we decided to alter course towards Kumai on the south-west corner of West Kalimantan to get some more. We only stayed there long enough to get 600 litres because we wanted to arrive in Batam, in time to check out of Indonesia with the help of the rally organisers. On 18th November we crossed the equator, to leave the southern hemisphere after spending two years eight months and 16 days there. We gave a glass of bubbles to Neptune, a glass to Moonbeam and we had the rest of the bottle. We were 29,500 miles from home. What fun, what an achievement!
Our arrival in Nongsa Point Marina was uneventful apart from missing two fishing boats with no lights and weaving around big ships that were unloading and tied up on the fuel berth to be met by Tony and his wife from the Blue Water Rally, Tony was an ex-RAF officer and had been involved with the organisation of several of the previous rallies. He advised us how to check out so that we could leave the following day for Singapore. This meant getting up early to visit Immigration, Customs and Quarantine. However, not having paid attention to the fact that there was an hour’s time change, I was there well before they were! Mind you I had always had difficulty with time zones, so Sarah was not surprised.
Crossing the Singapore Straits was made interesting by the fact that we were surrounded by thunderstorms and on occasion the visibility was poor and the radar full of shipping. This challenge was relieved by watching Sarah dancing on the foredeck, because she was so relieved to be out of Indonesia. In fairness we had been really stressed until we had been properly cleared into Indonesia in Bali. As a complete contrast, our check-in to Singapore took five minutes with no money changing hands. How civilised! We were directed immediately to our pontoon in Keppel Bay Marina. This was a newly constructed marina, and the staff were outstanding in their hospitality and provision of services, which included tight security.
Our arrival in Singapore marked the start of 2 1/2 weeks of rushing around. We started with the inevitable shopping which included pearls for Sarah's birthday, and a new computer for the boat. As this was Sunday, we took ourselves off to have the delicious champagne brunch in the Equinox in the Swissotel, Stamford on the 67th floor. This to my mind was the best place for Sunday brunch anywhere in the world only closely followed by the Oriental in Bangkok. To my amazement and great pleasure, one of my ex-colleagues walked into the restaurant with his partner, later to be his wife. I had done a lot of Bill Barrett's command training and recognised him to be one of the worlds really nice guys, so it was a delight to see him again. We had checked into the Stamford to stay there overnight as a special treat and the following morning went across to the Long Bar in the Raffles Hotel for a beer and some lunch before returning to the boat. We had originally stayed in the Raffles on the way back from a posting at a time when there was no air conditioning. Now it would be hard to recognise the original hotel.
Bill and Kate visited us on Moonbeam, once a runner from security had checked with us that it was OK to let them in. They presented us with a cake and a bottle of champagne. We ate the cake, but I undertook to keep the champagne until we completed our circumnavigation, which indeed we did.
With so much shipping in Singapore it was easy to find a dealership and engineering works for the manufacturers of the gearbox, who undertook to rebuild it for me, and so I left it with them the following day. We had a wonderful evening with Val and David off ‘Angel’ and Dick and Sarah off ‘Moonshiner’ and John and Gillian off ‘Spirit of Nina’. Val had come to fame because whilst she was on watch in the Indonesian islands, she was busy knitting and put Angel on the rocks, happily without too much damage. They had lived here in Singapore when David was working and his ex-PA hosted a trip to the Long Bar for Singapore Sling, followed by dinner in an excellent Chinese restaurant. They had picked us up from the marina and drove us down Orchard Road, which had the most magnificent Christmas lighting we had ever seen. It was like a ceiling of constantly changing colours.
Over the next couple of days there was a general exodus of the Blue Water Rally boats with only ‘Island Kia’ and ‘Peter Pan’ left to keep us company. Jaap from ‘Peter Pan’ joined us for a meal on Moonbeam and we reviewed the management or lack of it of the Blue Water Rally. The latest fiasco was that Indian visas which were necessary for boats wishing to visit anywhere in India were no longer available in Singapore as they once used to be, nor had they been for the previous two years. This meant that the nearest consulate where these could be obtained would be in Colombo in Sri Lanka. He was, along with other participants, really disparaging about the whole organisation.
Happily, the pumps I had ordered from New Zealand arrived in Singapore and cleared customs and when fitted we were able to run the air-conditioning once more which was bliss. Sarah's computer was repaired in Sim Lim Square which was a high-rise shopping complex dedicated to electronics, and I was finally able to upload Max Sea (the navigation platform) to the new computer and connect it generally with the sat phone and AIS.
We dropped the main early in the morning just after sun-up whilst it was still quite cool in order to mend a small tear that we had spotted, when last flying the main. The tear was along a seam where the stitching had com adrift and was easily managed by our sewing machine. This exercise had the bonus of revealing a problem with the foil at the bottom of the mast. We had been puzzling the mystery of some screws which had turned up on the deck some time ago, which is always a worry. They turned out to be from the bottom of the foil, where it attached to the furler and was thus easily fixed, which would not have been the case if the main had jammed half-way out.
A trip to the engineering shop, was disappointing in that they needed spares for the clutch which would take a minimum of three weeks to be sent from Germany. We could not stay that long, so I told them just to rebuild the gearbox with new bearings and seals and I would deal with the clutch later on. Once that was done, I refitted the gearbox onto the engine and happily it worked without any problem.
All sorts of odds and ends were bought from various chandleries including a new dyneema halyard for the Yankee and a new outboard motor starter which was in stock!
We had spent lots of time renewing my acquaintance with Singapore from my flying days and finding many new places to visit, very often in torrential rain. Our last day in Singapore was spent topping up supplies of food and buying Christmas stocking presents from Chinatown. We had advised the marina of our intention to leave, and they came around to give us a photo that they had taken of us and fixed it inside a card, to wish us bon-voyage. What a nice touch!
So, at 1000 on Sunday, 5th December we departed Keppel Bay Marina for our trip to Phuket. It was a relief in some ways, but we had had a really enjoyable time in Singapore particularly at the Raffles and the Equinox and took with us some special memories. We were required to anchor in the West Customs Anchorage, where we put our passports and documents into a net being held by one of the crew of a customs launch which rafted alongside. Happily, they were returned a few minutes later without getting wet. It highlighted just how well organised and efficient the officialdom in Singapore was, and how it contrasted with Indonesia.
Once clear we motored out through the anchorage and alongside the busy shipping lanes. It was an incredible experience, with mile after mile of super-tankers, car transporters and freight carriers which would be en-route to all parts of the world. Au revoir Singapore!
Our first night was a real awakening to how treacherous this passage was going to be. Just outside the main shipping lanes there were dozens and dozens of fishing boats and nets, many of which were unlit. A few miles further on it was possible to find a net with a flashing light in the middle, but with no boat which made is almost invisible against the background of waves and the lights of the shipping. It was really confusing, and we decided to stop in the afternoon off Port Dickson.
It was nothing like we remembered of the time we had been here 30 odd years ago. There were many tall buildings lining the coast and several oil rigs not far offshore. The anchorage was a bit roly-poly, but it was a welcome break, and we had a good sleep to make up for the night before. We continued tracking the shipping lanes into quite a strong current and of course the wind, but finally the Straits opened up and the shipping dispersed.
We were still tending to experience the engine overheating, and I figured out there were four possibilities of the likely cause. It was either the thermostat, the heat exchanger, a fouled propeller, or Moonbeam's hull being heavily contaminated with weed. This was clearly going to have to be sorted out as soon as possible.
We anchored for a break in Teluk Belango Bay on Pangkor Island, where I changed the thermostat and popped over the side to look at the propeller which appeared to be clean but sadly the hull was really grubby with lots of weed and barnacles on her.
After a restful sleep we woke up to pouring rain which continued for the rest of the morning we actually put on our oily jackets, whilst weaving in and out of dozens of fishing boats. This continued throughout the following night, and at one point I had to do a 180° crash turn to avoid hitting one, which I couldn't see because he wasn't showing any lights! However, the reward in the morning was to see the islands south of Langkawi which was a really beautiful sight with quite stunning shapes of the rocks and narrow passageways into the bay of Langkawi. We motored up to the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club Marina and checked in with them and went to the ferry terminal to clear. The harbourmaster, customs and immigration were grouped together in this very busy terminal with lots of people travelling to and from the mainland in high-speed ferries.
Two of the rally boats were already here so we invited everyone for supper, but first went shopping with Eva. Eva and her husband were circumnavigating but decided to stop here in Langkawi. Her husband, who she stayed with once a week, set up a charter business. Eva had bought an old, actually very old motorboat, which she had renovated and converted into a day charter boat, which she operated with one other crewmember. She kindly drove us from place to place so that we could stock up on duty free wine and beer, flour for breadmaking, fresh vegetables meat from the cold storage shop. We would never have found any of these without her help and we had a very pleasant couple of hours at a bar where she described their life here in Langkawi. Apparently, her boat was popular with Muslim men who arrived with their wives in their Abayas, but as soon as the boat was out of sight of land, the women would go down below to change into the skimpiest of bikinis. The male crew member was clearly considered to be invisible!
After four days we left the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club, but not before we had employed a diver to clean the hull. He used a small compressor with a long tube to enable him to breath whilst under the water. As we set off there were stunning views of Langkawi, and we could see the cable car glinting in the sun that goes up to one of the highest peaks on the island.
We stopped just as it was getting dark north-east of Ko Rok island, in the bay south of Rok Island where we found ‘Peter Pan’ at anchor. The water was in incredibly clear, and we could see the coral heads below which was something that had not been possible since the Pacific Islands. For the first time I would be happy to dive here under Moonbeam as I would be able to see approaching marauding sharks or crocodiles! The delight on the trip from Langkawi is that Moonbeam was back up to her hull speed with the engine running normally. This proved that our overheating problem was because the engine had to work too hard because of the weed on her hull.
We were up before light and left the bay quietly and slowly but for a change all the fishing boats were showing lights which made it somewhat less stressful. We had a brisk motor sail up to Phuket, passing some stunning rocks pointing out of the water and then past Phi Phi Don island which I am sure we will return to with Tom. We tracked up the shallow channel to Yacht Haven Marina and was met by Tony, last seen in Batam who took our lines and briefed us on our arrival.