Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Your Christmas Bumper Issue!


It’s been a busy end to the year with visitors, birthdays, weddings and typhoons all coming our way.  Gareth joined the Big 50 club on 20th November and his mum, Bev, was keen to join us and celebrate this momentous occasion, and, as we’d be back in the Philippines by then what better place than Sangat Island, near Bususanga, north of Palawan, where we spent Christmas with Laura last year.  A striking island with a lovely resort and even lovlier resort owner, Andy, and his staff!  Bev was booked into her own cosy beach chalet for the first few nights of her holiday while she found her sea legs so we were on a tight schedule to get there for her arrival on 17th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5th November and needed to do a straight run to Peurto Princessa, Palawan, where we could stock up on food and spend a few days with the wonderful John and Cissy who own Abanico Yacht Club. Many a merry night (and day!) had been spent there the year before and we were keen to catch up with everyone again.  We had a hellish run up, very choppy seas, lots of rain, black clouds and dark nights, lightening and squalls, but Pelangi pushed on through the miserable conditions.  We arrived safely at P.P. midday on 7th, but that second night was really awful.  The wind had died but the seas were confused and choppy and we spent the night rolling around like clothes in a tumble dryer.  Needless to say the first San Miguels with John and Cissy went down a treat!! The bad weather continued but we had little choice than to push on if we were to meet Bev in time and weighed anchor on 13th.  The 1st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14th things started to look up.  We had nice wind so we could cut the engine and actually sail for a bit, the sun came out and it suddenly felt great to be back in our favourite cruising ground!  We made it to Sangat Island on the 17th, just a few hours before Bev arrived.  Our good friend Ben was also at Sangat when we got there on his super, duper, fast catamaran complete with stash of very nice French wines which he was more than generous at sharing with us!  So, G’s big day arrived and we had a lovely time chilling out at the resort.  After dinner a birthday cake was brought out by the entire staff singing “Happy Birthday” with lots of balloons and kisses for the birthday boy.
Soon enough it was time to get Bev out of her lovely cottage and onto Pelangi, and whilst her cabin was somewhat smaller and less salubrious than she’s used to it has a nice big hatch so she could lay in bed at night and stargaze.  Besides, most of our time was spent in the cockpit drinking red wine, eating nibbles or feasting on curries and home - made bread and enjoying fabulous sun sets.  We went to a number of islands where the sand is white and sea is clear with lovely snorkelling.  We met some old friends from our previous visits (this was our 3rd time in Busuanga) and some new ones like Patrick.  He’s an ex pat building a new resort on one of the islands.  He welcomed us to his house (beach hut really) for Sunday lunch where we were greeted and almost licked to death by his 2 gorgeous English bull mastiffs.  We also spent a day cooling off at the local waterfalls, a day cruising on resort owner Andy’s very nice catamaran (on condition that G and me crew!) and spent the last 2 days of Bev’s holiday in Coron town where she could stock up on pressies for the family and get a taste of the “local” flavour unique to this lively town.  It wasn’t all plain sailing and we did have our moments of tension trying to navigate (and hitting!) shallow reef and snatch mooring buoys in strong winds, but crew member Bev came through with flying colours!  Bev, it was fantastic to have you with us on Pelangi.  You were such a good sport, hopping in and out of Dolly like a teenager, keeping showers to a minimum, and putting up with my grumblings about our ancient oven!  We’re so glad you came and welcome you back on board any time!

With Bev gone it was time to think about heading further north as we’d decided to spend Christmas in Peurto Galera, Mindoro island but there was a Super Typhoon brewing just East of the Philippines and heading straight for us.  At first it was a “wait and see” situation, but as the days went by it was looking more and more ominous and was almost sure to hit us, and hit us BIG.  With half a dozen or so yachts in Coron harbour each day was like a scene from Spooks.  People in dinghies could be seen zipping across the harbour from boat to boat, checking the weather, looking at charts and plotting a course of action.  We decided to head for a known typhoon hole that has a resort on shore and very strong mooring buoys.  I’d actually sat there last year during a threatened typhoon that never eventuated (Uno crew, you know it – PDS).  We know the owners of the resort and knew other yachties would be there, so we’d have moral support and good communication should things turn really bad.  We set about stripping Pelangi of anything that could be blown off; both sails, solar panels, spinnaker pole, all lines were tightened; anchors were ready to be deployed if needed.  We then sat and waited for the pasting we were sure we’d get.  24 hours later and all we got were lots of rain and a few strong puffs of wind, nothing worse than a winter’s day in Wellington!  Once we’d put everything back up and headed back to Coron town, we learned that whilst we were fortunate others weren’t so.  The typhoon had hit Mindanao, a large Eastern island. The height of the island had broken the back of it but it had taken almost 700 people at last count with it, either dead or missing.  Our hearts go out to those poor people whom wouldn't really have known what was coming or what hit them.   

With the typhoon threat gone there was just 1 more thing to do before leaving Coron again, and that was attending the wedding of our friend Jaime who finally married his childhood sweetheart, Tess.  Jaime was Gareth’s dive guide when we first came to Coron (Marty, you’ll remember him too).  He’s still the only guide G’s ever tipped, so he must be good!  He now manages the dive shop at Sea Dive Resort and each time we pass through we make a point of catching up over a beer with him in the Sea Dive bar.  The Sea Dive staff did a great job of decorating the restaurant area of the resort, which has beautiful views over the harbour and a feast was laid out that could have fed the whole town, in fact I think it did!!  He seemed so pleased that we’d stayed the extra days to attend (although we did avoid the 2 ½ hour baptism and church service!) and it was lovely to see all the girls in their beautiful silk dresses and high heels, and boys in their smart suits and colourful shirts.

So, with the Nor Easterlies well and truly set in we island hopped to Peurto Galera in order to gain a point of sail and try to avoid head on winds for the 80 or so miles there.  It worked for the first few days and we motor sailed to some very nice overnight anchorages and visited a local village on the Western side of Mindoro.  Weather predictions were for 2 calm days on 15th and 16th December with strong winds to follow so we couldn’t hang around.  We got round the northern point of Mindoro no problem and thought we were home and dry – ha!  Our 35 mile run - in was a case of short choppy seas and wind on the nose all the way.  Once again Pelangi bashed and splashed her way through 6 hours of more misery.  If she could talk I’m sure she’d report us for abuse!! G’s only comments through the entire trip were “I effin hate sailing!” and “I am NEVER doing this again!”  Still, we managed to get round the point and are here now.  We’ll make this our base for Christmas and New Year and have plenty of options now for going South again when we’re ready to leave.  Mindoro is a big island so we can do lots of overland exploring and P.G is a series of white beach after white beach – some very touristy, others quiet and only accessible by boat.  There’s some nice looking outer island to explore too with lots of diving and snorkelling exploration to be had so it was worth the trip.  The harbour where we’re anchored is mainly mangroves and only a small beach to speak of, but there’s a v. nice yacht club ashore where we’ve already met some colourful ex pat characters and the locals are really friendly too.  Plus, you can get ferries across to Manila from here so it’s a very handy spot. Quite a few yachties we met in Busuanga have headed this way with more hoping to follow so it should be a good place to party over the festive season.

We hope that you have fun wherever you are and whatever you do this festive season, be it on land or sea, and that it’s a safe and happy holidays for you all.  And remember, he’s watching, so if you’re not good he won’t come!!
Merry Christmas and our bestest wishes for 2013
Captns J and G, Pelangi, Dolly, Humphrey, Hoppy and Percy (our New Zealand blue penguin and recently adopted new crew member!)  XXX

Friday, December 14, 2012

Your Christmas Bumper Issue!


It’s been a busy end to the year with visitors, birthdays, weddings and typhoons all coming our way.  Gareth joined the Big 50 club on 20th November and his mum, Bev, was keen to join us and celebrate this momentous occasion, and, as we’d be back in the Philippines by then what better place than Sangat Island, north of Palawan, where we spent Christmas with Laura last year.  A striking island with a lovely resort and even lovlier resort owner, Andy, and his staff!  Bev was booked into her own cosy beach chalet for the first few nights of her holiday while she found her sea legs so we were on a tight schedule to get there for her arrival on 17th November. 
We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5th November and needed to do a straight run to Peurto Princessa, Palawan, where we could stock up on food and spend a few days with the wonderful John and Cissy who own Abanico yacht club. Many a merry night (and day!) had been spent there the year before and we were keen to catch up with everyone again.  We had a hellish run up, very choppy seas, lots of rain, black clouds and dark nights, lightening and squalls, but Pelangi pushed on through the miserable conditions.  We arrived safely at P.P. midday on 7th, but that second night was really awful.  The wind had died but the seas were confused and choppy and we spent the night rolling around like clothes in a tumble dryer.  Needless to say the first San Miguels with John and Cissy went down a treat!! The bad weather continued but we had little choice than to push on if we were to meet Bev in time and slipped anchor on 13th.  The 1st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14th things started to look up.  We had nice wind so we could cut the engine and actually sail for a bit, the sun came out and it suddenly felt great to be back in our favourite cruising ground!  We made it to Sangat Island on the 17th, just a few hours before Bev arrived.  Our good friend Ben was also at Sangat when we got there on his super, duper, fast catamaran complete with stash of very nice French wines which he was more than generous at sharing with us!  So, G’s big day arrived and we had a lovely time chilling out at the resort.  After dinner a birthday cake was brought out with the entire staff singing “Happy Birthday” with lots of balloons and kisses for the birthday boy.
Soon enough it was time to get Bev out of her lovely cottage and onto Pelangi, and whilst her cabin was somewhat smaller and less salubrious than she’s used to it has a nice big hatch so she could lay in bed at night and stargaze.  Besides, most of our time was spent in the cockpit drinking red wine, eating nibbles or feasting on curries and home - made bread.  We went to a number of islands where the sand is white and sea is clear with lovely snorkelling.  We met some old friends from our previous visits (this was our 3rd time in Busuanga) and some new ones like Patrick.  He’s an ex pat building a new resort on one of the islands.  He welcomed us to his house (beach hut really) for Sunday lunch where we were greeted and almost licked to death by his 2 gorgeous English bull mastiffs.  We also spent a day cooling off at the local waterfalls, a day cruising on resort owner Andy’s very nice catamaran (on condition that G and me crew!) and spent the last 2 days of Bev’s holiday in Coron town where she could stock up on pressies for the family and get a taste of the “local” flavour unique to this lively town.  It wasn’t all plain sailing and we did have our moments of tension trying to navigate (and hitting!) shallow reef and snatch mooring buoys in strong winds, but crew member Bev came through with flying colours!  Bev, it was fantastic to have you with us on Pelangi.  You were such a good sport, hopping in and out of Dolly like a teenager, keeping showers to a minimum, and putting up my grumblings about our ancient oven!  We’re so glad you came and welcome you back on board any time!
With Bev gone it was time to think about heading further north as we’d decided to spend Christmas in Peurto Galera, Mindoro island but there was a Super Typhoon brewing just East of the Philippines and heading straight for us.  At first it was a “wait and see” situation, but as the days went by it was looking more and more ominous and was almost sure to hit us, and hit us BIG.  With half a dozen or so yachts in Coron harbour each day was like a scene from Spooks.  People on dinghies could be seen flying across from boat to boat, checking the weather, looking at charts and plotting a course of action.  We decided to head for a known typhoon hole that has a resort on shore and very strong mooring buoys.  I’d actually sat there last year during a threatened typhoon that never eventuated (Uno crew, you know it – PDS).  We know the owners of the resort and knew other yachties would be there, so we’d have moral support and good communication should things turn really bad.  We set about stripping Pelangi of anything that could be blown off; both sails, solar panels, spinnaker pole, all lines were tightened; anchors were ready to be deployed if needed.  We then sat and waited for the pasting we were sure we’d get.  24 hours later and all we got were lots of rain and a few strong puffs of wind, nothing worse than a winter’s day in Wellington!  Once we’d put everything back up and headed back to Coron town, we learned that whilst we were fortunate others weren’t so.  The typhoon had hit Mindanao, a large Eastern island. The height of the island had broken the back of it but it had taken almost 700 people at last count with it, either dead or missing.  Our hearts go out to those poor people whom wouldn’t really have known what was coming or what hit them.
With the typhoon threat gone there was just 1 more thing to do before leaving Coron again, and that was attend the wedding of our friend Jaime who finally married his childhood sweetheart, Tess.  Jaime was Gareth’s dive guide when we first came to Coron (Marty, you’ll remember him too).  He’s still the only guide G’s ever tipped, so he must be good!  He now manages the dive shop at Sea Dive Resort and each time we pass through we make a point of catching up over a beer with him in the Sea Dive bar.  The Sea Dive staff did a great job of decorating the restaurant area of the resort, which has beautiful views over the harbour and a feast was laid out that could have fed the whole town, in fact I think it did!!  He seemed so pleased that we’d stayed the extra days to attend (although we did avoid the 2 ½ hour baptism and church service!) and it was lovely to see all the girls in their beautiful silk dresses and high heels, and boys in their smart suits and colourful shirts.
So, with the Nor Easterlies well and truly set in we are planning on island hopping to Peurto Galera in order to gain a point of sail and try to avoid head on winds for the 80 or so miles there.  So long as we get there for Christmas it doesn’t really matter, so we can hold steady and take our time and, if we find some where we like, we can stay for a couple of days and explore.  It’s much more touristy in P.G. than we’re used to, but we’re up for some fun now!  Plus, there’s a great yacht club there, lots of people we’ve met over the last few weeks are heading that way and it seems like a good place to party for a while.  Plus, because we’re further north we’ll have more options for onward passages in the New Year.
We hope that you have fun wherever you are and whatever you do this festive season and that it’s a safe and happy holidays for you all.  And remember, he’s watching, so if you’re not good he won’t come!!
Merry Christmas and our bestest wishes for 2013
Captns J and G, Pelangi, Dolly, Humphrey, Hoppy and Percy (our New Zealand blue penguin and recently adopted new crew member!)  XXX

It’s been a busy end to the year with visitors, birthdays, weddings and typhoons all coming our way.  Gareth joined the Big 50 club on 20th November and his mum, Bev, was keen to join us and celebrate this momentous occasion, and, as we’d be back in the Philippines by then what better place than Sangat Island, north of Palawan, where we spent Christmas with Laura last year.  A striking island with a lovely resort and even lovlier resort owner, Andy, and his staff!  Bev was booked into her own cosy beach chalet for the first few nights of her holiday while she found her sea legs so we were on a tight schedule to get there for her arrival on 17th November. 
We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5th November and needed to do a straight run to Peurto Princessa, Palawan, where we could stock up on food and spend a few days with the wonderful John and Cissy who own Abanico yacht club. Many a merry night (and day!) had been spent there the year before and we were keen to catch up with everyone again.  We had a hellish run up, very choppy seas, lots of rain, black clouds and dark nights, lightening and squalls, but Pelangi pushed on through the miserable conditions.  We arrived safely at P.P. midday on 7th, but that second night was really awful.  The wind had died but the seas were confused and choppy and we spent the night rolling around like clothes in a tumble dryer.  Needless to say the first San Miguels with John and Cissy went down a treat!! The bad weather continued but we had little choice than to push on if we were to meet Bev in time and slipped anchor on 13th.  The 1st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14th things started to look up.  We had nice wind so we could cut the engine and actually sail for a bit, the sun came out and it suddenly felt great to be back in our favourite cruising ground!  We made it to Sangat Island on the 17th, just a few hours before Bev arrived.  Our good friend Ben was also at Sangat when we got there on his super, duper, fast catamaran complete with stash of very nice French wines which he was more than generous at sharing with us!  So, G’s big day arrived and we had a lovely time chilling out at the resort.  After dinner a birthday cake was brought out with the entire staff singing “Happy Birthday” with lots of balloons and kisses for the birthday boy.
Soon enough it was time to get Bev out of her lovely cottage and onto Pelangi, and whilst her cabin was somewhat smaller and less salubrious than she’s used to it has a nice big hatch so she could lay in bed at night and stargaze.  Besides, most of our time was spent in the cockpit drinking red wine, eating nibbles or feasting on curries and home - made bread.  We went to a number of islands where the sand is white and sea is clear with lovely snorkelling.  We met some old friends from our previous visits (this was our 3rd time in Busuanga) and some new ones like Patrick.  He’s an ex pat building a new resort on one of the islands.  He welcomed us to his house (beach hut really) for Sunday lunch where we were greeted and almost licked to death by his 2 gorgeous English bull mastiffs.  We also spent a day cooling off at the local waterfalls, a day cruising on resort owner Andy’s very nice catamaran (on condition that G and me crew!) and spent the last 2 days of Bev’s holiday in Coron town where she could stock up on pressies for the family and get a taste of the “local” flavour unique to this lively town.  It wasn’t all plain sailing and we did have our moments of tension trying to navigate (and hitting!) shallow reef and snatch mooring buoys in strong winds, but crew member Bev came through with flying colours!  Bev, it was fantastic to have you with us on Pelangi.  You were such a good sport, hopping in and out of Dolly like a teenager, keeping showers to a minimum, and putting up my grumblings about our ancient oven!  We’re so glad you came and welcome you back on board any time!
With Bev gone it was time to think about heading further north as we’d decided to spend Christmas in Peurto Galera, Mindoro island but there was a Super Typhoon brewing just East of the Philippines and heading straight for us.  At first it was a “wait and see” situation, but as the days went by it was looking more and more ominous and was almost sure to hit us, and hit us BIG.  With half a dozen or so yachts in Coron harbour each day was like a scene from Spooks.  People on dinghies could be seen flying across from boat to boat, checking the weather, looking at charts and plotting a course of action.  We decided to head for a known typhoon hole that has a resort on shore and very strong mooring buoys.  I’d actually sat there last year during a threatened typhoon that never eventuated (Uno crew, you know it – PDS).  We know the owners of the resort and knew other yachties would be there, so we’d have moral support and good communication should things turn really bad.  We set about stripping Pelangi of anything that could be blown off; both sails, solar panels, spinnaker pole, all lines were tightened; anchors were ready to be deployed if needed.  We then sat and waited for the pasting we were sure we’d get.  24 hours later and all we got were lots of rain and a few strong puffs of wind, nothing worse than a winter’s day in Wellington!  Once we’d put everything back up and headed back to Coron town, we learned that whilst we were fortunate others weren’t so.  The typhoon had hit Mindanao, a large Eastern island. The height of the island had broken the back of it but it had taken almost 700 people at last count with it, either dead or missing.  Our hearts go out to those poor people whom wouldn’t really have known what was coming or what hit them.
With the typhoon threat gone there was just 1 more thing to do before leaving Coron again, and that was attend the wedding of our friend Jaime who finally married his childhood sweetheart, Tess.  Jaime was Gareth’s dive guide when we first came to Coron (Marty, you’ll remember him too).  He’s still the only guide G’s ever tipped, so he must be good!  He now manages the dive shop at Sea Dive Resort and each time we pass through we make a point of catching up over a beer with him in the Sea Dive bar.  The Sea Dive staff did a great job of decorating the restaurant area of the resort, which has beautiful views over the harbour and a feast was laid out that could have fed the whole town, in fact I think it did!!  He seemed so pleased that we’d stayed the extra days to attend (although we did avoid the 2 ½ hour baptism and church service!) and it was lovely to see all the girls in their beautiful silk dresses and high heels, and boys in their smart suits and colourful shirts.
So, with the Nor Easterlies well and truly set in we are planning on island hopping to Peurto Galera in order to gain a point of sail and try to avoid head on winds for the 80 or so miles there.  So long as we get there for Christmas it doesn’t really matter, so we can hold steady and take our time and, if we find some where we like, we can stay for a couple of days and explore.  It’s much more touristy in P.G. than we’re used to, but we’re up for some fun now!  Plus, there’s a great yacht club there, lots of people we’ve met over the last few weeks are heading that way and it seems like a good place to party for a while.  Plus, because we’re further north we’ll have more options for onward passages in the New Year.
We hope that you have fun wherever you are and whatever you do this festive season and that it’s a safe and happy holidays for you all.  And remember, he’s watching, so if you’re not good he won’t come!!
Merry Christmas and our bestest wishes for 2013
Captns J and G, Pelangi, Dolly, Humphrey, Hoppy and Percy (our New Zealand blue penguin and recently adopted new crew member!)  XXX

It’s been a busy end to the year with visitors, birthdays, weddings and typhoons all coming our way.  Gareth joined the Big 50 club on 20th November and his mum, Bev, was keen to join us and celebrate this momentous occasion, and, as we’d be back in the Philippines by then what better place than Sangat Island, north of Palawan, where we spent Christmas with Laura last year.  A striking island with a lovely resort and even lovlier resort owner, Andy, and his staff!  Bev was booked into her own cosy beach chalet for the first few nights of her holiday while she found her sea legs so we were on a tight schedule to get there for her arrival on 17th November. 
We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5th November and needed to do a straight run to Peurto Princessa, Palawan, where we could stock up on food and spend a few days with the wonderful John and Cissy who own Abanico yacht club. Many a merry night (and day!) had been spent there the year before and we were keen to catch up with everyone again.  We had a hellish run up, very choppy seas, lots of rain, black clouds and dark nights, lightening and squalls, but Pelangi pushed on through the miserable conditions.  We arrived safely at P.P. midday on 7th, but that second night was really awful.  The wind had died but the seas were confused and choppy and we spent the night rolling around like clothes in a tumble dryer.  Needless to say the first San Miguels with John and Cissy went down a treat!! The bad weather continued but we had little choice than to push on if we were to meet Bev in time and slipped anchor on 13th.  The 1st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14th things started to look up.  We had nice wind so we could cut the engine and actually sail for a bit, the sun came out and it suddenly felt great to be back in our favourite cruising ground!  We made it to Sangat Island on the 17th, just a few hours before Bev arrived.  Our good friend Ben was also at Sangat when we got there on his super, duper, fast catamaran complete with stash of very nice French wines which he was more than generous at sharing with us!  So, G’s big day arrived and we had a lovely time chilling out at the resort.  After dinner a birthday cake was brought out with the entire staff singing “Happy Birthday” with lots of balloons and kisses for the birthday boy.
Soon enough it was time to get Bev out of her lovely cottage and onto Pelangi, and whilst her cabin was somewhat smaller and less salubrious than she’s used to it has a nice big hatch so she could lay in bed at night and stargaze.  Besides, most of our time was spent in the cockpit drinking red wine, eating nibbles or feasting on curries and home - made bread.  We went to a number of islands where the sand is white and sea is clear with lovely snorkelling.  We met some old friends from our previous visits (this was our 3rd time in Busuanga) and some new ones like Patrick.  He’s an ex pat building a new resort on one of the islands.  He welcomed us to his house (beach hut really) for Sunday lunch where we were greeted and almost licked to death by his 2 gorgeous English bull mastiffs.  We also spent a day cooling off at the local waterfalls, a day cruising on resort owner Andy’s very nice catamaran (on condition that G and me crew!) and spent the last 2 days of Bev’s holiday in Coron town where she could stock up on pressies for the family and get a taste of the “local” flavour unique to this lively town.  It wasn’t all plain sailing and we did have our moments of tension trying to navigate (and hitting!) shallow reef and snatch mooring buoys in strong winds, but crew member Bev came through with flying colours!  Bev, it was fantastic to have you with us on Pelangi.  You were such a good sport, hopping in and out of Dolly like a teenager, keeping showers to a minimum, and putting up my grumblings about our ancient oven!  We’re so glad you came and welcome you back on board any time!
With Bev gone it was time to think about heading further north as we’d decided to spend Christmas in Peurto Galera, Mindoro island but there was a Super Typhoon brewing just East of the Philippines and heading straight for us.  At first it was a “wait and see” situation, but as the days went by it was looking more and more ominous and was almost sure to hit us, and hit us BIG.  With half a dozen or so yachts in Coron harbour each day was like a scene from Spooks.  People on dinghies could be seen flying across from boat to boat, checking the weather, looking at charts and plotting a course of action.  We decided to head for a known typhoon hole that has a resort on shore and very strong mooring buoys.  I’d actually sat there last year during a threatened typhoon that never eventuated (Uno crew, you know it – PDS).  We know the owners of the resort and knew other yachties would be there, so we’d have moral support and good communication should things turn really bad.  We set about stripping Pelangi of anything that could be blown off; both sails, solar panels, spinnaker pole, all lines were tightened; anchors were ready to be deployed if needed.  We then sat and waited for the pasting we were sure we’d get.  24 hours later and all we got were lots of rain and a few strong puffs of wind, nothing worse than a winter’s day in Wellington!  Once we’d put everything back up and headed back to Coron town, we learned that whilst we were fortunate others weren’t so.  The typhoon had hit Mindanao, a large Eastern island. The height of the island had broken the back of it but it had taken almost 700 people at last count with it, either dead or missing.  Our hearts go out to those poor people whom wouldn’t really have known what was coming or what hit them.
With the typhoon threat gone there was just 1 more thing to do before leaving Coron again, and that was attend the wedding of our friend Jaime who finally married his childhood sweetheart, Tess.  Jaime was Gareth’s dive guide when we first came to Coron (Marty, you’ll remember him too).  He’s still the only guide G’s ever tipped, so he must be good!  He now manages the dive shop at Sea Dive Resort and each time we pass through we make a point of catching up over a beer with him in the Sea Dive bar.  The Sea Dive staff did a great job of decorating the restaurant area of the resort, which has beautiful views over the harbour and a feast was laid out that could have fed the whole town, in fact I think it did!!  He seemed so pleased that we’d stayed the extra days to attend (although we did avoid the 2 ½ hour baptism and church service!) and it was lovely to see all the girls in their beautiful silk dresses and high heels, and boys in their smart suits and colourful shirts.
So, with the Nor Easterlies well and truly set in we are planning on island hopping to Peurto Galera in order to gain a point of sail and try to avoid head on winds for the 80 or so miles there.  So long as we get there for Christmas it doesn’t really matter, so we can hold steady and take our time and, if we find some where we like, we can stay for a couple of days and explore.  It’s much more touristy in P.G. than we’re used to, but we’re up for some fun now!  Plus, there’s a great yacht club there, lots of people we’ve met over the last few weeks are heading that way and it seems like a good place to party for a while.  Plus, because we’re further north we’ll have more options for onward passages in the New Year.
We hope that you have fun wherever you are and whatever you do this festive season and that it’s a safe and happy holidays for you all.  And remember, he’s watching, so if you’re not good he won’t come!!
Merry Christmas and our bestest wishes for 2013
Captns J and G, Pelangi, Dolly, Humphrey, Hoppy and Percy (our New Zealand blue penguin and recently adopted new crew member!)  XXX

Your Christmas Bumper Issue!


It’s been a busy end to the year with visitors, birthdays, weddings and typhoons all coming our way.  Gareth joined the Big 50 club on 20th November and his mum, Bev, was keen to join us and celebrate this momentous occasion, and, as we’d be back in the Philippines by then what better place than Sangat Island, north of Palawan, where we spent Christmas with Laura last year.  A striking island with a lovely resort and even lovlier resort owner, Andy, and his staff!  Bev was booked into her own cosy beach chalet for the first few nights of her holiday while she found her sea legs so we were on a tight schedule to get there for her arrival on 17th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5th November and needed to do a straight run to Peurto Princessa, Palawan, where we could stock up on food and spend a few days with the wonderful John and Cissy who own Abanico yacht club. Many a merry night (and day!) had been spent there the year before and we were keen to catch up with everyone again.  We had a hellish run up, very choppy seas, lots of rain, black clouds and dark nights, lightening and squalls, but Pelangi pushed on through the miserable conditions.  We arrived safely at P.P. midday on 7th, but that second night was really awful.  The wind had died but the seas were confused and choppy and we spent the night rolling around like clothes in a tumble dryer.  Needless to say the first San Miguels with John and Cissy went down a treat!! The bad weather continued but we had little choice than to push on if we were to meet Bev in time and slipped anchor on 13th.  The 1st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14th things started to look up.  We had nice wind so we could cut the engine and actually sail for a bit, the sun came out and it suddenly felt great to be back in our favourite cruising ground!  We made it to Sangat Island on the 17th, just a few hours before Bev arrived.  Our good friend Ben was also at Sangat when we got there on his super, duper, fast catamaran complete with stash of very nice French wines which he was more than generous at sharing with us!  So, G’s big day arrived and we had a lovely time chilling out at the resort.  After dinner a birthday cake was brought out with the entire staff singing “Happy Birthday” with lots of balloons and kisses for the birthday boy.
Soon enough it was time to get Bev out of her lovely cottage and onto Pelangi, and whilst her cabin was somewhat smaller and less salubrious than she’s used to it has a nice big hatch so she could lay in bed at night and stargaze.  Besides, most of our time was spent in the cockpit drinking red wine, eating nibbles or feasting on curries and home - made bread and enjoying the spectacular sunsets.  We went to a number of islands where the sand is white and sea is clear with lovely snorkelling.  We met some old friends from our previous visits (this was our 3rd time in Busuanga) and some new ones like Patrick.  He’s an ex pat building a new resort on one of the islands.  He welcomed us to his house (beach hut really) for Sunday lunch where we were greeted and almost licked to death by his 2 gorgeous English bull mastiffs.  We also spent a day cooling off at the local waterfalls, a day cruising on resort owner Andy’s very nice catamaran (on condition that G and me crew!) and spent the last 2 days of Bev’s holiday in Coron town where she could stock up on pressies for the family and get a taste of the “local” flavour unique to this lively town.  It wasn't all plain sailing and we did have our moments of tension trying to navigate (and hitting!) shallow reef and snatch mooring buoys in strong winds, but crew member Bev came through with flying colours!  Bev, it was fantastic to have you with us on Pelangi.  You were such a good sport, hopping in and out of Dolly like a teenager, keeping showers to a minimum, and putting up my grumblings about our ancient oven!  We’re so glad you came and welcome you back on board any time!

With Bev gone it was time to think about heading further north as we’d decided to spend Christmas in Peurto Galera, Mindoro island but there was a Super Typhoon brewing just East of the Philippines and heading straight for us.  At first it was a “wait and see” situation, but as the days went by it was looking more and more ominous and was almost sure to hit us, and hit us BIG.  With half a dozen or so yachts in Coron harbour each day was like a scene from Spooks.  People on dinghies could be seen flying across from boat to boat, checking the weather, looking at charts and plotting a course of action.  We decided to head for a known typhoon hole that has a resort on shore and very strong mooring buoys.  I’d actually sat there last year during a threatened typhoon that never eventuated (Uno crew, you know it – PDS).  We know the owners of the resort and knew other yachties would be there, so we’d have moral support and good communication should things turn really bad.  We set about stripping Pelangi of anything that could be blown off; both sails, solar panels, spinnaker pole, all lines were tightened; anchors were ready to be deployed if needed.  We then sat and waited for the pasting we were sure we’d get.  24 hours later and all we got were lots of rain and a few strong puffs of wind, nothing worse than a winter’s day in Wellington!  Once we’d put everything back up and headed back to Coron town, we learned that whilst we were fortunate others weren’t so.  The typhoon had hit Mindanao, a large Eastern island. The height of the island had broken the back of it but it had taken almost 700 people at last count with it, either dead or missing.  Our hearts go out to those poor people whom wouldn’t really have known what was coming or what hit them.

With the typhoon threat gone there was just 1 more thing to do before leaving Coron again, and that was attend the wedding of our friend Jaime who finally married his childhood sweetheart, Tess.  Jaime was Gareth’s dive guide when we first came to Coron (Marty, you’ll remember him too).  He’s still the only guide G’s ever tipped, so he must be good!  He now manages the dive shop at Sea Dive Resort and each time we pass through we make a point of catching up over a beer with him in the Sea Dive bar.  The Sea Dive staff did a great job of decorating the restaurant area of the resort, which has beautiful views over the harbour and a feast was laid out that could have fed the whole town, in fact I think it did!!  He seemed so pleased that we’d stayed the extra days to attend (although we did avoid the 2 ½ hour baptism and church service!) and it was lovely to see all the girls in their beautiful silk dresses and high heels, and boys in their smart suits and colourful shirts.

So, with the Nor Easterlies well and truly set in we are planning on island hopping to Peurto Galera in order to gain a point of sail and try to avoid head on winds for the 80 or so miles there.  So long as we get there for Christmas it doesn’t really matter, so we can hold steady and take our time and, if we find some where we like, we can stay for a couple of days and explore.  It’s much more touristy in P.G. than we’re used to, but we’re up for some fun now!  Plus, there’s a great yacht club there, lots of people we’ve met over the last few weeks are heading that way and it seems like a good place to party for a while.  Plus, because we’re further north we’ll have more options for onward passages in the New Year.

We hope that you have fun wherever you are and whatever you do this festive season and that it’s a safe and happy holidays for you all.  And remember, he’s watching, so if you’re not good he won’t come!!

Merry Christmas and our bestest wishes for 2013
Cheers then
Captns J and G, Pelangi, Dolly, Humphrey, Hoppy and Percy (our New Zealand blue penguin and recently adopted new crew member!)  XXX

Your Christmas Bumper Issue!


It’s been a busy end to the year with visitors, birthdays, weddings and typhoons all coming our way.  Gareth joined the Big 50 club on 20th November and his mum, Bev, was keen to join us and celebrate this momentous occasion, and, as we’d be back in the Philippines by then what better place than Sangat Island, north of Palawan, where we spent Christmas with Laura last year.  A striking island with a lovely resort and even lovlier resort owner, Andy, and his staff!  Bev was booked into her own cosy beach chalet for the first few nights of her holiday while she found her sea legs so we were on a tight schedule to get there for her arrival on 17th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5th November and needed to do a straight run to Peurto Princessa, Palawan, where we could stock up on food and spend a few days with the wonderful John and Cissy who own Abanico yacht club. Many a merry night (and day!) had been spent there the year before and we were keen to catch up with everyone again.  We had a hellish run up, very choppy seas, lots of rain, black clouds and dark nights, lightening and squalls, but Pelangi pushed on through the miserable conditions.  We arrived safely at P.P. midday on 7th, but that second night was really awful.  The wind had died but the seas were confused and choppy and we spent the night rolling around like clothes in a tumble dryer.  Needless to say the first San Miguels with John and Cissy went down a treat!! The bad weather continued but we had little choice than to push on if we were to meet Bev in time and slipped anchor on 13th.  The 1st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14th things started to look up.  We had nice wind so we could cut the engine and actually sail for a bit, the sun came out and it suddenly felt great to be back in our favourite cruising ground!  We made it to Sangat Island on the 17th, just a few hours before Bev arrived.  Our good friend Ben was also at Sangat when we got there on his super, duper, fast catamaran complete with stash of very nice French wines which he was more than generous at sharing with us!  So, G’s big day arrived and we had a lovely time chilling out at the resort.  After dinner a birthday cake was brought out with the entire staff singing “Happy Birthday” with lots of balloons and kisses for the birthday boy.
Soon enough it was time to get Bev out of her lovely cottage and onto Pelangi, and whilst her cabin was somewhat smaller and less salubrious than she’s used to it has a nice big hatch so she could lay in bed at night and stargaze.  Besides, most of our time was spent in the cockpit drinking red wine, eating nibbles or feasting on curries and home - made bread and enjoying the spectacular sunsets.  We went to a number of islands where the sand is white and sea is clear with lovely snorkelling.  We met some old friends from our previous visits (this was our 3rd time in Busuanga) and some new ones like Patrick.  He’s an ex pat building a new resort on one of the islands.  He welcomed us to his house (beach hut really) for Sunday lunch where we were greeted and almost licked to death by his 2 gorgeous English bull mastiffs.  We also spent a day cooling off at the local waterfalls, a day cruising on resort owner Andy’s very nice catamaran (on condition that G and me crew!) and spent the last 2 days of Bev’s holiday in Coron town where she could stock up on pressies for the family and get a taste of the “local” flavour unique to this lively town.  It wasn't all plain sailing and we did have our moments of tension trying to navigate (and hitting!) shallow reef and snatch mooring buoys in strong winds, but crew member Bev came through with flying colours!  Bev, it was fantastic to have you with us on Pelangi.  You were such a good sport, hopping in and out of Dolly like a teenager, keeping showers to a minimum, and putting up my grumblings about our ancient oven!  We’re so glad you came and welcome you back on board any time!

With Bev gone it was time to think about heading further north as we’d decided to spend Christmas in Peurto Galera, Mindoro island but there was a Super Typhoon brewing just East of the Philippines and heading straight for us.  At first it was a “wait and see” situation, but as the days went by it was looking more and more ominous and was almost sure to hit us, and hit us BIG.  With half a dozen or so yachts in Coron harbour each day was like a scene from Spooks.  People on dinghies could be seen flying across from boat to boat, checking the weather, looking at charts and plotting a course of action.  We decided to head for a known typhoon hole that has a resort on shore and very strong mooring buoys.  I’d actually sat there last year during a threatened typhoon that never eventuated (Uno crew, you know it – PDS).  We know the owners of the resort and knew other yachties would be there, so we’d have moral support and good communication should things turn really bad.  We set about stripping Pelangi of anything that could be blown off; both sails, solar panels, spinnaker pole, all lines were tightened; anchors were ready to be deployed if needed.  We then sat and waited for the pasting we were sure we’d get.  24 hours later and all we got were lots of rain and a few strong puffs of wind, nothing worse than a winter’s day in Wellington!  Once we’d put everything back up and headed back to Coron town, we learned that whilst we were fortunate others weren’t so.  The typhoon had hit Mindanao, a large Eastern island. The height of the island had broken the back of it but it had taken almost 700 people at last count with it, either dead or missing.  Our hearts go out to those poor people whom wouldn’t really have known what was coming or what hit them.

With the typhoon threat gone there was just 1 more thing to do before leaving Coron again, and that was attend the wedding of our friend Jaime who finally married his childhood sweetheart, Tess.  Jaime was Gareth’s dive guide when we first came to Coron (Marty, you’ll remember him too).  He’s still the only guide G’s ever tipped, so he must be good!  He now manages the dive shop at Sea Dive Resort and each time we pass through we make a point of catching up over a beer with him in the Sea Dive bar.  The Sea Dive staff did a great job of decorating the restaurant area of the resort, which has beautiful views over the harbour and a feast was laid out that could have fed the whole town, in fact I think it did!!  He seemed so pleased that we’d stayed the extra days to attend (although we did avoid the 2 ½ hour baptism and church service!) and it was lovely to see all the girls in their beautiful silk dresses and high heels, and boys in their smart suits and colourful shirts.

So, with the Nor Easterlies well and truly set in we are planning on island hopping to Peurto Galera in order to gain a point of sail and try to avoid head on winds for the 80 or so miles there.  So long as we get there for Christmas it doesn’t really matter, so we can hold steady and take our time and, if we find some where we like, we can stay for a couple of days and explore.  It’s much more touristy in P.G. than we’re used to, but we’re up for some fun now!  Plus, there’s a great yacht club there, lots of people we’ve met over the last few weeks are heading that way and it seems like a good place to party for a while.  Plus, because we’re further north we’ll have more options for onward passages in the New Year.

We hope that you have fun wherever you are and whatever you do this festive season and that it’s a safe and happy holidays for you all.  And remember, he’s watching, so if you’re not good he won’t come!!

Merry Christmas and our bestest wishes for 2013
Cheers then
Captns J and G, Pelangi, Dolly, Humphrey, Hoppy and Percy (our New Zealand blue penguin and recently adopted new crew member!)  XXX