The marina, after a few phone calls, provided us with class service. They even sent a boat out to make sure we came the right way into the marina. I had waypoints from s/v LeuCat, but was glad to have the expert guidance. Three guys helped us tie up and we were set in no time. No paperwork since the office is closed on Sunday. Awesome!

The marina is located on a man-made island that is home to resort hotels and vacation condos. The island is called, imaginatively, Marina Island. There are also restaurants, a bar, and the boatyard. We’ll find out more about the place in the coming weeks while we are here. For now, we are enjoying the air as the boat cools down with both the shore power air conditioner and our boat’s A/Cs running to accelerate the cooling. We’re going to shower, clean up the boat a bit, and then go ashore and find the bar and restaurant for some well-earned refreshments after 5 days up the Mallacca Straights!

Arrived Pangkor Marina is a post from: Tahina Expedition

We ended up finding a spot to drop our anchor near a developing town called Sekinchan that must have started mostly as a fishing village. We wanted to be near shore so we could pick up Internet. Using Google Earth I discovered this was (and still is) a fishing village which is surrounded by an agricultural area. Interestingly, the crops are criss-crossed with canals and the town itself has several canals going through it. The fishing boats go up these canals for safe harbour and to process their catches. The town has a lot of building going on including what looks like a large hotel. The town already has a new resort hotel just a bit north of town. Quite an interesting place that I wish we had time to see closer. You can see where the town was SE of us in the map below.

We plan to make it all the way to Pangkor today weather permitting. We have just pulled up anchor and are motoring northwest after a night filled with several rain storms and one thunderstorm. We put all our electronics in the microwave oven, but fortunately there were no nearby strikes.

Past Kuala Lumpur is a post from: Tahina Expedition

We not only got to Palau Basar, but kept going and made it all the way to Admiral Marina at Port Dickson by 5 PM. We had gotten a reservation by E-mail on the way. The fuel dock was our first stop and we re-loaded the fuel we spent getting here. We then moved to our assigned slip and soon were checked in and had our A/C unit going. Although, the temperatures were pretty pleasant because of late afternoon showers before we got there. Karen and I took showers next and then walked to the nearby resort restaurant for some dinner.

Before we were done with dinner, I was ready to sleep. I had managed a 2 hour nap later in the day, but was still exhausted. Plus, we had decided we needed to leave at 5 AM for our next passage to Port Klang near Kuala Lumpur.

Stowaway

Earlier in the day, I was sitting at the helm when something shot out of the area above the console (behind our spray dodger). It looked like a lizard or gecko. It move quickly to our sliding glass door and inside the area it slides into. In other words, inside our boat. Maybe he’ll eat some flies or something. Anyway, it was interesting to find we had a stowaway!

We also had some critters try and catch a ride with us. Two bats came by around sunrise and flew through our shrouds and sails and one tried to land on several places. I got a picture of it on the mast for a moment, but they soon both left.

We hope to be in Pangkor by Monday morning. Our haul-out is planned for around noon.

Admiral Marina and Stowaway is a post from: Tahina Expedition

I went over and helped him remove his very bent rudder.  It was bent to 30 degrees in two places!  He made some calls back at his last marina.  They had another boat coming to the island who could watch the boat while he took his rudder ashore to get it repaired.

So he told us it was fine if we left.  We left by noon, but only made about 25 miles due to currents and lack of wind.

Only a Few Hours Delay is a post from: Tahina Expedition

As we arrived, there was a trimaran at anchor at Pasau Pisang – 4 islands with one larger which is home to a lighthouse (see map below). The skipper hailed us and is a Frenchman who has live the last 15 years in California. It turns out he is on a similar schedule and wanted to accompany us up the straight. He also wanted to go to Palau Basar the next day, and like me concluded we would need to leave by 3 AM. So, it meant an early dinner and early to bed.

We had a nearby thunderstorm at sundown, but although it rained and thundered we didn’t see much from it. Unless it was the same storm that hit us at 2 AM. We had a real Sumatra – storms that blow really hard and have lots of rain and lightning. I estimate we saw winds above 40 knots. It blew steady at 30 knots for about 15 minutes after I turned on our instruments. Our anchor held fine though, and we were protected some by the island.

We aborted the plan to leave at 3AM and I told the other skipper we would wait until it stopped raining, or first light. At 5 AM I woke up to find no rain and texted him. We agreed to raise our hooks at 5:20. It was raining a bit, but we proceeded.

Right as we got Tahina’s chain coming up, some winds started blowing – about 15 knots blowing us shoreward. I carefully paid attention to our position while Karen managed watching the anchor raising. She was spraying the anchor with mud while I started backing us away when I got a call on the radio from the other boat. He had run aground! I replied we would re-drop our hook and come help. He asked if the tide was going out or in, and I said out.

We concentrated getting our hook down again and while doing that he said he managed to get free, but his rudder was not working. I told him to get anchored again and we would come help. Once our hook was set, he called to say he thinks his rudder is bent or otherwise compromised. I told him to rest a while and we would look at it at first light (now only an hour or so away). We’ll also try to re-position him as he is still too close to shore. I’ll use the dinghy to do that.

So, not off to a great start today. Hopefully we’ll be able to do something for him and still be able to depart today. Otherwise we are going to have to call the boatyard and delay our haulout. Which we can do if needed.

Here is where we are located:

Sumatra First Night and Aborted Departure is a post from: Tahina Expedition

Today we will be sailing (well, motoring most likely) to an island just up the coast a way about 43 miles away. We’ll make short trips like this (about 7 hours) each day as we make our way to Pangkor about 250 miles away. We just need to be there by Monday for our haul out.

We should have some 3G connections along the way, so we can make reports if anything interesting happens along the way.

Departing Now is a post from: Tahina Expedition

Since we’ve started the trip, we often would use the dinghy on a regular basis. The engine would start every day no problem. But, every once in a while we would go home for a month or two, and in others we would go traveling without the boat for a few weeks. When we would return, I would always have a hard time starting the dinghy motor. I would have to pull the starter cord about 20 or 30 times before it would finally start.

Well, yesterday I thought after 6+ months of not using the dinghy I should put it in the water and try to start it. I had read that some boaters recommended taking the fuel filter lid off and filling it with fuel after a long storage. I guess that the fuel evaporates and/or settles after long use. I took off the engine cover and looked. I noticed the fuel line went straight to the fuel filter of course. But, I didn’t see an easy immediate way to fill the fuel filter. I also squeezed the fuel bulb on our fuel line a bit like I usually do to help get it started. I noticed air came out when I did this. So, I squeezed the bulb multiple times until all the air came out. Guess what? The motor started right up! I have no idea why it never occurred to me that I would have to squeeze the bulb more and that this was the problem with it not starting. But, now it all makes sense.

So, if you’re having problem starting the engine, and it’s been a while – look at the filter and if isn’t filled with fuel carefully add fuel to it, or use the squeeze bulb if you have one. Be careful not to overfill or it will flood the engine.

Dinghy Motor Started is a post from: Tahina Expedition

Meanwhile, we finally heard from the boatyard and have a haul-out scheduled for Monday next week. Last week we went to Singapore for one last trip for Karen’s physical therapy. I managed to play my game for a couple of hours, and we went to dinner at the Chili’s at Sentosa one last time. We spent the night this time because her appointment was in the morning. We also got a few hard-to-find items in Malaysia while we were there.

Last week we did a big shopping run and got two weeks worth of provisions for the trip to Pangkor. I also spent time working on various little projects like a new water filtration system for getting shore water, continuing to clean and wax the top sides of the boat, putting new radiator fluid in the engine that had the water problem a while back, checking the engines/oils before a passage, filing for health insurance benefits, working on our finances, etc., etc.

I fixed a problem with the Google Earth file for our maps. It was a bug in our migration to the new server a while back. It’s working again. I’ve also worked on our photo archives a lot, but nothing really notable to share. Mostly database management and minor refinements to photos that I wanted to improve.

Anyway, we should be leaving day after tomorrow. Tonight we’re going out with a bunch of the boat crews here at the marina now to have drinks and dinner.

Preparations to Leave Complete is a post from: Tahina Expedition

I started going to the gym as soon as we got back. I’m already feeling much more fit after only 3 weeks. My exercise hasn’t been confined to just the gym though. I started cleaning the boat a few days ago, and also waxing. The deck scrubbing and wax on/wax off is also giving me quite a work out – especially considering the outdoor temperatures around here. At least with the cleaning and waxing you get a very satisfying result to look at. And the wax has the advantage of reducing the amount of cleaning needed for the near term.

If those things weren’t keeping me busy enough, the preparations for our eventual boat haul-out have begun in earnest. I’ve been making calls and e-mails every day trying to get things organized. The hard part is not just identifying parts, but trying to find suppliers and convince them to ship in time for the parts to arrive at the right location. This is one of the less joyful parts of sailing, but is very necessary.

Going to the Gym is a post from: Tahina Expedition

LeuCat

When LeuCat first arrived, we went out to dinner that night at a new restaurant called Olive that just opened off the new Traders Hotel (which hasn’t opened yet). Olive is not an Italian restaurant, it’s an Indian restaurant. Since they just opened, they are trying extra hard to please. The wait staff is almost too eager, but friendly so it’s not too annoying. We have been very pleased too with the food, and have been there twice. LeuCat has even gone a third time they like it so much. Yesterday we went over to LeuCat to play cards. They are big card players and their favorite game is a variation called Hand and Foot. We’ve played with them before, and it was a fun 6 hour session yesterday. I was honored that David shared with me his last Bintang beer – one of our favorite beers which was available widely in Indonesia. David writes a blog about their journeys as well and writes even more often than me: LeuCat’s Blog.

Boat Projects

Have been working to coordinate the projects for the boat. This includes ordering boat parts and supplies and attempting to fix things so I know what else I might need. I attempted once again to fix our aft starboard head. Discovered a piece of plastic that holds the seals was cracked, which I’m sure was the cause of the leaking problem. So, I’m now attempting to secure that part. Our fuel gauges just stopped working (they were finicky up until now). We have this system called “Tank Tender” which uses little air tubes and air pressure to calculate tank levels. The problem is the probes into the tank are a different stainless steel and the different metal causes corrosion over time. I went to inspect the tanks, and both probes were so corroded the bolt broke off at the head when I just touched them. Unfortunately, the company doesn’t want to offer warranty replacement (I’m probably out of warranty anyway), so I have to order new ones. Meanwhile, I’m still trying to arrange the delivery of our sails, but the supplier hasn’t been answering E-mails. I’m not in a hurry on those though.

I can’t believe how dirty the boat gets here. They have construction going on all around us, so it shouldn’t be surprising. But, in the last two days, that I’ve been cleaning the boat, I’m amazed at the amount of dirt coming off! I’ve also started waxing the boat which will take me several weeks. All this manual labor has to be done either on a rainy day like yesterday, or in the early mornings/evenings. Otherwise its just too, too hot! I had hoped to hire a local (who are much more used to the temperatures) to help do the work, but no luck identifying a candidate so far. Too bad because they usually work for a very reasonable daily rate.

Where did the week go? is a post from: Tahina Expedition