Go fast or go slow

Shortly after arriving back to Sea Turtle this year (Marina Island, Malaysia), feeling rushed, we realized it would be prudent to postpone our passage to the Mediterranean via the Red Sea this year. It was simply getting too late in the season. This wasn't a difficult decision. Not only did it relieve some anxiety, (after all, isn't this sailing life about slowing down and being stress free?), but postponing meant fitting in some other worthwhile endeavours at a relaxed rate.

We could now explore more of Thailand fabulous cruising areas that we missed out on before Did we mention Thailand is one of our favourite countries for many reasons and it's here we now have time to take advantage of good cheap boat labour in Phuket for some sprucing up of Sea Turtle. And Cambodia...we never did get there or visit the famous jungle ruins of Angkor Wat. So we should have a full and happy experience of SE Asia before departing here around the first of January for the passage to the Mediterranean.

A quote by Pico Iyer seems to say it best:

At some point, all the horizontal trips in the world stop compensating for the need to go deep, into somewhere challenging and unexpected; movement makes most sense when grounded in stillness. In an age of speed, I began to think, nothing could be more invigorating than going slow. In an age of distractions, nothing could feel more luxurious than paying attention. In an age of constant movement, nothing is more urgent than sitting still.

Go fast or go slow? Go slow!

Back to Langkawi

We were just hanging out by Cenang Beach (by the small town of Kampung Lubok Buaya, Langkawi Island, Malaysia) feeling the lazy sailors' life returning to us with the memories of the serious work of the last 10 months having drifted behind us and disappearing in our wake.

Weighing anchor late in the morning of March 21st, we headed out on a short 3-hour jump over to Telaga Harbour, still part of Langkawi Island, arriving at N06°21.754' E099°40.726'.

Getting close to Telaga...

A short 27-second video of us sailing to Langkawi can be seen at this YouTube link: https://youtu.be/DXJioxFb6_g. To see the Google Earth location, Sea Turtle is at approximately N06°19' E099°40'. (The same YouTube link is also at the right of the blog page listed under Other Links.)

Telaga, a nice out-of-the-way little port, is one we've visited before and is the final Malaysian stop, a checkout point for our short passage to the islands of Thailand. The port consists of a small inner harbour with a marina, a few waterfront restaurants, a gas station, and a wharf servicing a small ferry to and from the Thai islands close by. Right in front is an outer anchorage sheltered by 2 small barrier islands where we anchored along with about 30 other boats.

We noticed a few changes to service the increasing traffic and visitors since our last visit at Telaga. Some good and some at the expense of lost serenity.

Something that hasn't changed - the abundance of cute monkey troops! Still scavenging the shores and hanging out along the road to town, they wait for handouts and pose for pictures from passing tourists and locals.

Jordan was kept busy installing our new AIS. For landlubbers, this is an Automatic Identification System used by primarily commercial ships and regular cruisers. The information can be displayed on electronic charts, etc. Ships with this, show reciprocal identification and progress that helps for avoidance and for contact if necessary. Identifying and ship tracking if you will.

This is also helpful as commercial ships don't usually answer a radio call unless they are called by name. Some of Thailand now "requires" all boaters to have AIS installed before checking into their country.

Dayang Bunting Island

We departed Penang Island at 08:30 on March 19th to continue our northward route of Malaysia. At first, we were slightly detoured to head close to shore to avoid several swimmers in the ocean for some type of event. That was a first as our jogs in our tracks are usually to avoid the plentiful fishing boats or commercial ships.

Now with our new Garmin GPS Receiver, we were once again laying down a track on our electronic charts.

With just a bit of wind blowing and the motor running, we put up the sails at noon for an extra push, then soon after, just full sails and no motor for a nice beat in the NW wind. This area was very hazy obscuring any land sighting until within about 10 nautical miles of any shore.

Shortly after dark at 20:15, we rattled the chain for the night at the southeast lee side of Dayang Bunting Island (N06°10.411' E099°49.134'), just south of Langkawi Island. We were awoken just after midnight to a change in wind which was then from the east and made our anchorage exposed and very rolly.

We had no choice but to crawl out of bed, raise the anchor, and sail to where we could re-anchor in a more protected spot. Normally, we don't like moving about islands in the dark but our charts are pretty accurate here and we were heading into a spot where we were once before, so with caution and vigilant attention to charts and depth sounder and with the help of some moonlight, a couple of hours later we dropped anchor on the northwest side of Dayang Bunting Island (N06°11.508' E099°47.192').

We awoke to a glorious morning. Sun shining, not a cloud in the sky, cute black monkeys on shore of the rising cliffs, and not another boat in sight. But don't get us wrong - civilization is close by - but all we could hear was the sound of the tide sloshing against the shore rocks. The peaceful morning tranquility was soon interrupted as we could hear the tourist boats bringing their throngs to the island lake not far away. So we departed at 10:30.

Leaving Dayang Bunting Island

Continuing north, we caught sight of friends Trevor and Jolanta on board SV Magnetic at anchor where we idled by to exchange hellos and the latest. Knowing we would see them soon again, we didn't stop and continued on a bit farther and anchored in front of Kampung Lubok Buaya town (N06°16.498' E099°43.638'), southwest Langkawi Island on March 20th.

THEN - our first jump into the ocean in almost a year! How refreshing!

George Town foray

Even though we were anchored in the wee early hours, we wanted to get an early start for shore duty. After we lowered the dinghy into the water, we headed to the Chew Jetty, the normal dinghy landing. There are about 4 Chinese jetties made up of wooden shanties built over the decades by Chinese to avoid property taxes. Their rickety structures are perched on piling stilts in the shallow mud flats. Now, they are somewhat of a tourist attraction and where most of the residents take advantage of their uniqueness by selling novelties to the sightseers.

On approach to tie up, a resident woman intercepted us and denied us landing rights, saying "Too many work boats need this tie-up so no good for you, no room for you. Go to next jetty." The landing prospect of the next jetty was obviously not suitable. We put 2 and 2 together and knew she expected us to use their boats for a fee to ferry us back and forth. A previous year (July 2014), we tied up there several times and supported the businesses of the jetty and even gave at their donation box, but oh well, not this time though - Boo Chew!

We hesitantly then tied up to the Customs dock close by and walked into George Town. Our first goal was to apply for a 2-month pre-entry Visa for Thailand. We went to our usual agent, signed the forms, and gave her our passports with 2 extra photos which she sent it away for a 24-hour turnaround.

Our second goal was to find help for our non-functional GPS Receiver. A technically knowledgeable young man in the large mall determined it was unfixable and sent us to the Garmin outlet in the same mall.

The extremely friendly and accommodating Chinese shop owner immediately said he could get a Garmin unit sent in from Kuala Lumpur overnight. Problem solved. We paid for it, he ordered it, and then he bought us lunch!

Unlike other parts of Malaysia, George Town has centuries of Chinese mercantile history and consequently a high concentration of Chinese residents that have continued in the proprietorship. Many years of characteristic architecture reflect this unique quality to the extent that UNESCO has given it a designation, and with that, now the old heritage buildings are starting to be restored for the attraction of the tourist.

Needing restoration

Various stages of restoration

On our return to our dinghy, a couple of Customs employees very politely "asked" us to not tie up there again and suggested an adjacent pier that was unused by the local ferry system.

Exhausted after so little sleep the night before and a lot of walking city pavement, it was nice to get back to the boat for rest to finish up the day. We found the heat more bearable here compared to down south at Marina Island, especially now that we had a nice breeze filtering throughout the hatches.

Finally floating

March 10th, after almost a month puttering away at various jobs on Sea Turtle while she was on the hard at Marina Island, we finally splashed her back into her natural environment. The first trip was short...less than a hundred metres to the dock where we would do some final preps (N04°12.690' E100°36.104').

Going to sea

It was so nice to retire aboard to the gentle sea motion that rocked us back into sea life.

Then on March 16th, we cast off at 08:30 for an ebullient first passage north. First stop: George Town of Penang Island (Malaysia).

Everything was working well, albeit 1 item - our GPS Receiver which connects to the computer charts and shows our passage track. So we dug out our handheld GPS - which hadn't been used in years - and occasionally checked lat and long to compare manually on the electronic charts. We felt confident to continue as this passage was familiar to us and planned on fixing the problem there.

We motored half the way before the onshore wind built and then had a glorious 8-hour sail under the watch of a half moon until we entered the lee side of Penang Island after dark. We decided to continue up the well marked and lit channel, and under 2 large bridges, to our anchorage in front of the Chew Jetty (N05°24.629' E100°20.568') in George Town at 02:30.

Malaysia maintenance

After a 10-month stay in Canada, which was longer than we wanted, we are now back at Sea Turtle in Malaysia at Marina Island in the northern part of the infamous Malacca Strait. Our total flight travel time, including layovers, was 23 hours 45 minutes. We routed from Victoria, Vancouver, Hong Kong, and finally Kuala Lumpur. We then boarded a 4-hour bus ride north to Marina Island. Whew - long day. Or should I say 2, as we also lost a day crossing the International Date Line.

So now back at the boat, the enervating temperatures at first had us dragging our butts, however we soon regained acclimation.

Even though Sea Turtle is in a secured marina yard alongside a fleet of other sleeping vessels, leaving her for long periods always makes us nervous worrying about deterioration in heat and humidity. But she fared better than expected. The bigger worries were lots of mold and cockroaches, however there was only a minor amount of mold and absolutely no bugs to deal with.

We immediately opened up all the windows and got to work cleaning her up. She needed a major spring cleaning and some reorganizing both inside and out.

The decks have now been washed clean of dirt and bird droppings, all the rusty stainless steel fittings and bars have been polished bright, the grimy upper hull has been waxed and buffed, the lower hull has been scraped and sanded of old bottom paint. And finally, all cupboards and storage areas have been cleaned and assessed of contents with old stuff discarded.

Bottom painting gave us problem. The heat and breeze made the already fast drying paint thicken up way too fast. The rollers became thick and sticky and the paint was globbing on unevenly. Thinning isn't recommended. So after the first frustrating coat, we postponed our scheduled launching and regrouped.

Jordan sanded out the uneven lumps and scuffed the whole bottom and got everything ready, even thoroughly mixing the paint. Then at daybreak the next morning, we got at it before the sun had a chance to build the heat of the day. This had been our worst experience ever for applying the anti-fouling bottom paint.

BEFORE: part polished, but bottom not yet painted

AFTER: polished and bottom painted

The above "after" photo was taken with Jordan's drone.

We took a room in a nearby hotel while working on the boat for a few reasons. The interior of Sea Turtle is in a tussle while cleaning and reorganizing, the fridge doesn't work while on the hard (keel-cooled type of fridge), and the hotel has a fridge and luxurious air conditioning.

But tomorrow morning we launch, back into the water again, after almost a year!!

Home sweet home

We have been away from Sea Turtle for several months now. The main reason for our 10-month home stint was to develop a small real estate project which was undertaken by Jordan and his son/business partner. They designed and built a duplex that is now for sale.

Jordan 2-phoned busy with subtrades

Deluxe duplex

It wasn't all work though. It was great to get caught up with family and friends. While not working, Jordan wiled away hours playing pool with a good buddy. We spent a fun weekend camping and hiking, taking in the beautiful British Columbia scenery.

Mini me

We reconnected with the Bluewater Cruising Association attending monthly meetings and were guests aboard SV Camdeboo for the summer rendezvous. It was also our pleasure to do a picture presentation of our world travels at one of the meetings and again to a couple of other groups where most of the guests seemed thoroughly entertained.

Warm summer weather seemed a perfect time to take our motorcycle and 2 classic cars out of storage and do some road travelling - with a motorcycle trip up the Sunshine Coast, entering the MGB in the annual rally, and continuing on to sunny Penticton and Alberta for time with our families.

Rocky Mountain road trip

Our rare Ranchero

Have you ever heard of the hoodoos? While in Alberta, my Dad and I took Jordan on a drive to see some of the local landscape including old mining camps, the suspension bridge, and the infamous hoodoos.

Geological formations

We returned again in the winter (via air) when it was much colder, and I helped my Dad make Grandmother's secret family recipe of Danish red cabbage. This is an annual favourite and was enjoyed by all home for the occasion.

Tedious but tasty

Lucky or unlucky - I think I was very lucky when I suddenly developed a case of appendicitis. If it had happened while sailing, it probably wouldn't have ended so fortunate. I'm very glad to be rid of it, after all it's not needed for much anyway.

By the time we finally returned to Malaysia, we had had enough of the winter - Victoria was unusually wet and Alberta of course had many below freezing days.

Anchorages and routes

We have finally re-entered all of Sea Turtle's anchorages and routes travelled since 2009. The anchorages had originally been done with a company whose system crashed and almost all of our anchorages were gone. Luckily, we had kept a copy of our information! Our anchorages, and also our routes, have now been entered with the program Google Earth. Do NOT use for navigation!!

You must have Google Earth - a free program - installed on your computer to view. When you click the word HERE (or as shown at the right side of this page under Sea Turtle Links), you will be directed to a page that asks you to "Download" (as usual with web pages) or "Save to my Dropbox". Simply click download. Then you will be asked to save the link. No problem. Simply save it wherever you want and open.

So download and save. That's it, easy.

The link takes you to a copy of our Google Earth page where we add or delete stuff, instead of just the globe. If you make any changes, additions, or deletions to the file by accident or on purpose, your changes will NOT save to our linked file. When you close Google Earth, you have the choice to "discard" or "save".

Discarding will remove the copied file from your computer's Google Earth but will NOT remove Google Earth from your computer. Saving will save the file (and any changes you have made to the file) to your computer, not to our link.

So don't worry about moving any anchorages, etc. by mistake. It won't change our original linked file. You can simply close (discard) the file and re-open it from the link on the right where it says "Click HERE..." if you mess it up!

Have fun with Google Earth. Zoom in and visit the places we have been to. You can see the sandy beaches, marinas, anchorages, cities, etc. and share our dream...

Mr. Ted is Dead

In memory of my Dad who recently passed, I (Jordan) have been asked to compose a brief entry for our blog. For a while now, I have been wondering what to say, wanting to avoid a repetitively hollow and cliché piece.

Pondering the subject, 2 compositions that I had heard come to mind that I thought might give me some inspiration. Both were short yet unusual.

One was about Mr. Head (pronounced "Heed" in the Scottish vernacular). After Mr. Head from Bitterhead Scotland died, Mrs. Head thought she should post an obituary with the local village news rag. And when she inquired as to the cost, the clerk said it cost by the word. So Mrs. Head wanted to keep it short. When she suggested that the obit should read "Mr. Head from Bitterhead is dead" the clerk tactfully suggested that it was a little curt and offered to add 3 words more at no charge. So after a brief moment of thought, Mrs. Head revised her submission as follows: "Mr. Head from Bitterhead is dead. Volvo for sale."

The other, a true story, was a posthumous obit written by the person himself posted in the local paper after his death. Apparently he was a jovial fellow and all who knew him weren't surprised by his words. His self-composed obit simply read "John is Dead" under a picture of him with a broad smile.

Now this I think makes more sense than the usual and typical "Theodore David Mills, born...blah blah blah..." because obits are only meaningful to people who knew the deceased and they probably know everything that you might want to say anyways. So words can be an inadequate substitute.

I could bore you and say that Dad was an extremely steadfast and honest father (which in fact he was) and that I couldn't conceive of a better Dad (which in fact I couldn't). And I could add that because of this and by his lead, he taught us there could be a balance in being responsible and enjoying R & R activities. But for those who knew him, knew that his "quiet love" was unequivocally evident without showy displays. I suppose, as a simple description that says it all, I could say this: "If all earth's inhabitants were of Dad's nature, there would be peace without strife and conflict."

Or for the sake of brevity, and in light of Dad's scriptural belief in the life after: "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." (Matthew 5.5)

Or...I could just say...

"Mr. Ted is Dead"

Put to bed

We tied Sea Turtle up to a dock on April 13th, the first time in many months, at Marina Island, a 318-acre man-made island. Here, we prepared her to be put up on the hard at the family-owned Pangkor Marina.

We hauled out on an unusual but very efficient Sea-Lift, a first for us. Jordan manoeuvred Sea Turtle onto the air-filled bunks and the operator of the lift first raised and then directed Sea Turtle up the ramp and out of the ocean - all with his remote control! No scratches, bumps, or nicks. After a bottom power wash, she was settled on the hard.

Jordan powering onto Sea-Lift

Soft and easy lift

In the humid heat with the daily predictable afternoon showers, we continued preparing Sea Turtle for a long sleep. We found relief from the heat by taking an air-conditioned hotel room and an occasional swim in another hotel's swimming pool!

We felt comfortable with the security of Pangkor Marina's yard knowing Sea Turtle would be in good company for the months to follow, nestled in with other yachts from all parts of the world, some from Canada too.

With a sad goodbye to Sea Turtle on April 20th, it was a cheery hello to family and friends in Canada where we will be until approximately November to complete a project.

Back to Malaysia

We needed to travel a couple of days south from Koh Lipe of Thailand to the Pangkor Marina of Malaysia. So on April 10th, we checked out of Thailand, and with a breeze on our nose, we first motorsailed for the Langkawi group of islands about 5 hours away. Halfway there though, we decided to bypass Langkawi and do an overnighter south for our check-in at Penang Island of Malaysia.

Throughout the night, we kept a vigilant eye to avoid nocturnal fishing boats and nets. Then as the day broke and we cut through the haze as we entered the Penang Strait, it was the freighters we had to give way to. We anchored in front of George Town at Penang Island (Malaysia) around noon (N05°24.646' E100°20.569').

At George Town, having previously seen its sights, we made haste and did our Malaysia check-in and our port check-out all at once for a quick departure to resume our southbound track. The afternoon departure was good timing. Just! We picked up a southbound tidal current that pushed up under both bridges while we watched an ominous black squall intensify just over our shoulder. Realizing we couldn't outrun it, we pulled over in the shallows as close to shore as we could and dropped the hook (N05°16.321' E100°17.524') just as the wind and rain hit.

Looked lower than it was!

Once the squall abated, we lifted the hook at 23:00 and continued to motorsail until we reached Pangkor Island (N04°14.696' E100°34.344') where we anchored on April 12th for one evening. The next morning, we dinghied to the nearby man-made island (Marina Island), where we confirmed our reservation and then motored Sea Turtle over (N04°12.688' E100°36.109').

This would be Sea Turtle's home for awhile...

In stitches!

April 7th was an interesting day at Koh Adang of Thailand. Early in the morning, many longtail tourist boats passed Sea Turtle on her mooring ball heading to various shores for their passengers to snorkel in the nearby coral or stroll on the uninhabited beaches. We counted at least 20 boats, sometimes 5 all together!

Tourist transportation

We were excited to get into the water for some long-awaited coral reef snorkelling. But as Jordan was about to attach the dinghy wheels, he stumbled when a wave from a passing boat bobbed the dinghy and he stepped on a sharp bolt head which was part of the dinghy wheel bracket. It sliced and ripped into the bottom of his little toe. The diced flesh was bleeding profusely, and upon examining it, it was obvious that it needed stitches. Koh Adang was uninhabited so it was back to Koh Lipe for medical attention.

Back at the village, we went to the closer of 2 clinics along Koh Lipe Walking Street, later wishing we had tried the second one. For 8 stitches in a small toe, including doctor and nurse, it cost $350!! Plus they wanted another $200 for antibiotics and anti-inflammatories, which we succinctly declined.

We returned to Koh Adang immediately afterwards where I snorkelled for the next 2 days with Jordan following me, peering down below from in the dinghy. I felt so bad for him not being able to get into salt water because of his wound, but at least he had snorkelled this same area previously when I was in Canada.

Evening sunset

From Koh Adang, we once again returned to the white sandy beaches of Koh Lipe (N06°29.074' E099°18.009') for one last evening.

Koh Lipe and Adang

After checking out of Telaga (Malaysia) on April 5th, we pulled the hook, and 6 hours later were in Thailand at the island of Koh Lipe (N06°29.076' E099°18.058'). Here the anchorage depth was 22 metres in clear clean waters before the bottom rose abruptly to the shallow coral reef that pre-empted the beautiful sandy beach.

Anchorage real estate was in demand at this busy destination and great care was needed in dropping the hook, because at that depth, at least 60 metres of chain was prudent so swinging radii ate up the available bay.

The first night required close watch as swirling tide and variable winds swung boats around and at times too close for comfort from each other. Competing crafts included longtail shuttle boats, day tourist speed boats, ferries, dive boats, supply vessels, and a few sailboats.

With last night's full moon, tide changes were extreme. There was oodles of coral near the shore so to avoid our dinghy's prop meeting coral, we had to wait for a higher tide before going to or leaving shore.

This was my first visit to Koh Lipe but Jordan had stopped here while I was back in Canada. Ashore, I "met" the Asian girl that Jordan confessed to kissing and groping during my absence...

Caught!

I forgave him! LOL!

Koh Lipe is a small out-of-the-way tourist island destination. Its main attraction is the powder fine sandy beach where visitors' whims are satisfied by the many bars, restaurants, and places to stay that range from very basic huts to fine resorts. It can be defined as a stroller's dream destination as its arteries are built for pedestrians where they can stop at leisure for a massage, a drink, a meal, book a dive, or even get medical treatment. For us, it was also a required immigration check-in port.

Beautiful white sandy beach of Koh Lipe

We did our official checking-in the morning after we arrived but soon left for quieter anchorage dibs an hour away on Koh Adang, the next Thai island just to the north where we grabbed a mooring ball (N06°32.139' E099°16.860').

The first thing we did was jump in the water where we had to hang on to the dinghy rope attached to Sea Turtle as the current was so strong it would have pulled us away from the boat and out into the ocean. But it was so refreshing and the water was so clear you could almost see the bottom at 15 metres.

Back to Telaga

After a few days exploring the south islands in the Langkawi anchipelago, we made it back to Telaga Harbour (N06°21.711' E099°40.832'). As our next trip would be over to Thailand islands, Telaga is an official "check-out-of-Malaysia" port.

Telaga is an out of the way port with a nice secure anchorage ringed with beaches. The numerous anchored boats are protected from sea waves by 2 small breakwater islands and the pleasant scene is marked by steep verdant mountains overlooking us from the north. From the anchorage, one takes their dinghy in past a faux lighthouse and resident monkeys scampering on the rocks eager for tossed treats, then through a short channel to the inner harbour marina.

Sea Turtle anchored at Telaga

Monkey mania

Once inside, we took advantage of the facilities which, among other things, were happy hours at the various harbourside restaurants, the fuel and laundry facilities, convenience store, and of course the official government border control offices.

And Telaga is where we could once again play badminton to get a bit of exercise...

No, that's not a halo!

As soon as the sun sets, the ocean horizon lights up with a multitude of green lights from local fishing boats, out for the night's bounty that the lights attract. No chance of anyone running into these fishermen in the dark! But what they did not have was the "longtail" motor which gives these boats their name. Sadly, almost all of them now in this Malaysian area have regular motors.

The lake

We rose to another hot and sunny day that began with a 10-minute dinghy ride to a jetty already swarming with tourists shuttled by longtail boats from Langkawi (Malaysia). The attraction was the 10-hectare freshwater lake on Pulau Dayang Bunting, the largest freshwater lake and the second largest island of the Langkawi archipelago.

It was a short walk from the jetty, up an incline, through a draw in the cliffs, then down some 100 steps to the rafts on the lake - along the route were many monkeys, some with adorable new infants! Signs at the lake indicated Lifejackets Must Be Worn which seemed strange to us having spent so much time swimming without such things and even au natural. Was it that many visitors don't know how to swim?

However after diving into the cool blue water, we realized right away that the freshwater, compared to seawater, made us much less buoyant and required some definite expense of energy to simply stay afloat.

Freshwater for a change

After swimming, we walked the boardwalk nature trail along the lake shore to a spot called the Miracle Border where we could see the ocean at a level some 12 m (40 feet) below separated by only a thin ridge of rock.

We diverted our return to our Sea Turtle to explore a cluster of smaller islands. There we spotted a cute romp of otters hanging out beneath a cut in the limestone formations with just their curious heads peering out at us. Above the otters, we admired the grey limestone cliffs textured with hanging gardens of streaming 30-metre (100-foot) long vines, palms, and bushes interspersed with weeping limestone stalagmites. We again dinghied right inside a couple of caves carved out by ions of erosion.

Dinghy spelunking

We left later in the day to return to Singa Besar for a relaxing evening.

Another day done

Here and there

On March 30th after enjoying our experiences at the Hole in the Wall in the northeast of Langkawi Malaysia, we sailed back around to the west side and to the smaller private island of Rebak best known for its marina.

As of late, we've been taking it easy which is a nice way of saying we have been lazy and consequently certain boat jobs have been ignored. But there was one job that was impossible to ignore. The hydraulic steering showed signs of being "mushy" and lacked appropriate response from the wheel and/or auto pilot. It was just a matter of adding fluid, but it begged the question of where it was leaking, albeit slowly. Something that would have to be later traced and remedied.

Our bottom (the boat's bottom, that is) also needs to be painted as it's been 2 years since haul-out in New Zealand. Other big jobs that can't be ignored too much longer are new deck paint, stainless steel polishing, and teak wood refinishing. Sea Turtle seems to be lapsing into poor fettle and in need of some tender loving care!

Our initial plans had been to haul out soon at Rebak Island Marina but now we have decided it will be necessary to wait. More on that later.

We anchored on a lea shore off Rebak Island and the breakwater to the marina entrance (N06°17.382' E099°41.546') at 15:45. With an onshore wind, we would only leave the boat for a short time to meet up with Trevor and Jolanta of sailing vessel Magnetic which was on the hard. We walked the nature trail to the swimming pool of the marina and resort where we caught up on past travel adventures and tried to solve some of the world problems.

Then back to Sea Turtle to re-anchor in more protected waters (N06°16.175' E099°43.712') about an hour away from Rebak - at the spot where I had re-joined Jordan when I returned from Canada.

The next morning to the throb of the engine, we headed south for some island gunkholing. First anchorage an hour away was at Singa Besar Island (N06°13.854' E099°44.738') where we dinghied around some nearby rock islands. Singa Besar is a wildlife sanctuary for monkeys, deer, snakes, lizards, and birds. The island is also rich in unique rock formations and mangrove plants.

Another Langkawi anchorage

Then on April 2nd, we motored a little further south through mystical karst islands whose sheer limestone cliff faces rose straight out of the waters.

No beach here!

We dropped the hook in a narrow but calm channel between the 2 islands of Gubang Darat and Dayang Bunting where their cliffs towered above us (N06°11.366' E099°47.257').

As the cool of the evening approached, we saw a troop of monkeys exploring the rocky shore and night was ushered in by sweet avian chatter...

Maze of mangroves

We left Telaga Harbour of Langkawi Island (Malaysia) on March 28th at 14:30, arriving 4.5 hours later at the northeast corner of Langkawi Island (N06°27.433' E099°49.943'), near our destination of a place locally known at the Hole in the Wall.

We tucked into a very quiet anchorage, drinking in the beauty and serenity with only 1 other boat anchored, a trimaran from Canada. We noticed construction happening which appeared to be the making of an extension to the area.

The next morning, with computer and GPS in hand, we jumped in the dinghy to find the Hole in the Wall. Why a computer and GPS? This geopark area is a real maze of creeks and narrow gorges surrounded by gnarled mangroves and precipitous limestone karsts which are 480 million years old! So if we got lost, at least we would be able to find our way around and also our way back to Sea Turtle. Jordan only confirmed his navigation twice with the computer and we were spot on.

There were many tour boats with paying customers but we in our dinghy got the advantage of a free ride. Our first sighting was a sky full of majestic white and golden orange coloured eagles swooping with celerity down to the water, making it very difficult to capture them photographically.

As we continued onward, there were numerous troops of monkeys among the mangroves watching all the boats, staring back anxiously expecting handouts as everyone stopped for the perfect photo.

Mangrove monkey

We soon slowly went through a narrow man-made cut...

Cut through the karsts

We finally made it to the Hole in the Wall where on the cliffs of the entrance was a natural form resembling a human face.

Guarding the entrance

We pulled our dinghy up to one of several basic floating open-air restaurants all in a line. The one we stopped at had an interesting fish farm. Below in the water in nets were blue blooded horseshoe crabs with helmet shaped heads, LARGE grouper fish, local sting rays that would glide to the top of the water to be hand-fed, and many more varieties. The blood of horseshoe crabs is bright BLUE, not red, due to the presence of copper in their blood. This blood is presently worth $60,000 a gallon in the global industry for medical uses.

Crab's eye is dark spot at center (copied from internet)

What I found to be the most startling was a small fish called an archerfish. I have never heard of it before but Jordan has seen them on nature shows in the past. A employee of the fish farm would stick a piece of fish flesh to a board overhanging the water. The fish would circle around eyeing it up. Then with incredible accuracy, they would spit a shot of water up about a meter for a direct hit knocking it into the water where it would be gobbled up. Amazing!! What is intriguing to biologists is that light rays refract when they enter the water and somehow the archerfish naturally adjust its aim to compensate.

2 archerfish shooting at crickets (copied from internet)

We found our way back through the mangrove maze to Sea Turtle without the use of computer or GPS, and along the way, we also found a low tunnel (one of many tunnels and caves) that we dinghied through. Cool!

Nature's tunnel

It rained later in the evening, an indication of the rainy season that is slowly approaching...

Back on board

I spent 6 weeks back in Canada with family and friends where I even had the opportunity to go up to northern country to visit my Grandson and Great Granddaughter. She loves to have her photo taken, but my Grandson hates to have his taken!

More beautiful everyday

The weather back home was exceptionally good for winter time, but of course Jordan was in hot and humid Malaysia. When I arrived back on February 28th to the thick heat, I found walking only a couple of blocks exhausting and where time was the only means to acclimate.

But getting back out on the water and being back with my loving Captain was the most welcoming home coming. Jordan had anchored (N06°16.435' E099°43.663') conveniently close to the village, but many seadoos and motor boats pulling para-sailors speedily through the sky all about created agitated seas that rocked and rolled us till dusk. We soon decided it was time for quietude so we headed out to some ideal spots around the Langkawi archipelago.

March 6th arrived with sunlit seas and favourable winds as we sailed the entire 3 hours northward to Telaga Harbour (N06°21.717' E099°40.696').

Several boats were in the Harbour well protected by 2 small outer islets with sandy beaches. Nearby was a mock lighthouse that marked the narrow channel into the marina restaurants and other facilities. One evening on one of the little islets, we had a fire and potluck supper with fellow boaters. A little relaxing mellifluous guitar music by another boater provided some entertainment.

Occasionally the wind piped up, causing the sea to lave the shores with small agitated waves.

Ashore internet was available and was usually not too bad. We were unable to connect from Sea Turtle. Price was inexpensive at 5 Ringgits per 24 hours ($1.35) or even better at 18 Ringgits for an entire week ($4.87). Laundry service was available as well as several nice Harbour view restaurants, a store with basically "junk food" items, and a gas station. Other than that, Telaga is somewhat out of the way and with that it provides a certain calm atmosphere.

We found an area that had a badminton net set up under shade. We spent several early evenings batting the birdie back and forth and then quenching our thirst with delicious, tall, strong, 2 for 1 margaritas at a restaurant afterwards. This bit of exercise gave us a break from what was becoming a daily routine of just hanging out.

A couple of times we rented a motorscooter for the 15-minute ride to the small town of Peland or a little further to Kuah where we could find a good variety of groceries and supplies. In the park of Kuah, is a beautiful lily pond where the lilies were in bloom.

Even the bees found them attractive!

Island cruising

With me still back in Canada, Jordan and his visiting friend and author Rik continued their activities. As well as Langkawi Malaysia, they spent 3 days in the Thailand archipelago of the Butang Group, just a 7-hour sail away to the northwest out in the Andaman Sea.

There, the crystalline waters displayed an abundance of marine life making it an excellent diving destination. Jordan and Rik wanted to snorkel but unfortunately Rik had developed a condition with a symptom that gave him anxiety attacks when he attempted to snorkel. He succumbed to his fears but relaxed on board while Jordan took in the wonderment of the aqua environment...

2 corals dancing in the current

Shades of blue

As well as colourful coral (which isn't always around), fish were in abundance. An attention grabber was the lionfish with its display of feathery fins. It can live for 16 years and the male mates with several females whose eggs hatch in only 2 days. Those beautiful fins, though nice to look at, need respect as they are spiked with deadly poison so can't get too close for photos!

Sneaking up on the lionfish...

Quickly leaving the lionfish...

Of course, the cutest fish must be the clown fish aka Nemo from the movie! These 3 are swimming above their habitat of the sea anemone. Curiously, they are immune to the stings of the anemone.

Clowning around

At the quaint little beach village on Koh Lipe with its white sand beach as fine as flour, sea of sapphire, and pedestrian paths and alleys instead of roads, Jordan and Rik ambled from cafe to bar to massage spa.

After Rik's departure of the 19th, Jordan was once again alone with Sea Turtle, waiting for my return.

Visitor aboard

During my absence while I was back home in Canada, the 6-month time limit to have the boat in Thailand was due so Jordan sailed Sea Turtle from Phuket Thailand to Langkawi Malaysia. It took him 3 easy days in which he had winds to sail most of that. Each night he was able to rest at island anchorages along the way.

Jordan enjoyed the cornucopia of the green hued water below while sailing through Thailand before reaching Malaysia.

Bright blue fish

Did you know that moray eels can live for 10 to 30 years! This fish (not reptile) eats meat and likes to hide in crevices, but here he is peeking out at Jordan.

Secretive moray eel

These giant clams, once they fasten to a spot on a reef, are there for the rest of their lives. They come in such a variety of bright or mundane colours and patterns. They are male for a year and then possess both male and female reproductive organs, but they do not fertilize themselves!

A pair of giant clams

Once in Malaysia, his time was occupied with boat jobs, daily workouts, and regular routines all at the easy pace of the cruisers' clock.

During my time away, Jordan's friend and author, Rik, flew down from China for a 10-day sojourn to experience cruising life, wile away the hours in philosophic palaver, and catch up on old times. They hadn't seen each other for about 13 years.

Most of their time was spent around Pulau Langkawi where Jordan showed Rik the typical interesting sites including the SkyBridge perched high up on a peak, accessed by a cable car lift. (Last year when Jordan and I visited the SkyBridge, it was having maintenance work performed so unfortunately we could not access it - see our blog posting of July 18, 2014 titled Scooting around Langkawi.)

Spectacular SkyBridge

This sunset silhouetting Sea Turtle and 2 longtail boats is an example of the ending to many of the days for Jordan and Rik.

Sea Turtle at sunset