A Bula Bula Christmas from Fiji!

My last blog entry was 6 months ago on the 4^th anniversary of buying Pelangi.

We always knew that cruising idyllic islands and following changing monsoons wasn’t something we could do forever and completing a circumnavigation is not on our bucket list.  We were always on the look out for somewhere we could use as a base.  A slice of paradise where the environment was still in tact, where we could live off the land, be part of a community; start a small business perhaps.  It needed to have somewhere to moor Pelangi so we could still enjoy cruising and escape for a while whenever we wanted.  Once we started to look seriously it became clear that we weren’t going find anything in S.E. Asia.  Visa restrictions, dodgy lease agreements and hearing of other misfortunes were enough to conclude we were looking in the wrong place. 

So, just before our visit to NZ earlier this year, we went to Fiji and visited 2 islands looking at properties and land for sale.  Fiji ticked all the boxes.  Due diligence and Commonwealth laws would ensure the safe buying of freehold land.  Building materials and standards are high, the locals are a friendly bunch and the cruising ground is stunning!

Those of you connected via facebook know that as a result of our visit we purchased a lovely 2 unit,
ocean view property in Savusavu on the Fiji’s 2^nd largest island Vanau Levu.  The area is a mix of local villages and nice resorts (owned by the likes of Tony Robbins and Jean Michel Cousteau).  It’s famed for its lush green scenery, waterfalls, superb diving, big game fishing and adventure holidays including trekking, mountain biking and kayaking.

Drawing up the sales and purchase agreement was the easy bit, what followed was over 4 months of frustration as we dealt with bank managers and lawyers who would test the patience of a saint!  Some hold ups were a result of the famed “Fiji Time” (which can be charming when you’re future doesn’t depend on it!!), but mainly due to miscommunication or mismanagement.  By this time we were back living on Pelangi in Puteri Harbour Marina, Malaysia; just across the causeway from Singapore.  It was a great place to be as we had good internet access 24/7, access to printers, scanners, banks and good overseas phone connections which did help to push things along and smooth the way a little.  If we’d been cruising or in a less developed area we don’t think we could have done it.  Pelangi became our floating office.  The sails were put away and shore power was plugged in permanently as we set about overseeing the next chapter in our lives. 

The sale was completed mid October and early November I flew out to take ownership leaving Gareth on the boat to finish some work commitments before joining me for Christmas.  My first month alone here was not without its moments.  My luggage got delayed by 2 days, I arrived on a Friday afternoon so was without power or water for the week end and on my first night I thought I was being attacked by some crazy bush man waving a machete at me from my garden gate.  It turned out to be James, one of the elders from the village and caretaker of surrounding ex pat properties!  He went bare foot all the way back to is village in the pitch black and pouring rain to get me a battery lamp so I could have light in the house – bless him! 

Our belongings and treasures came out of a storage facility in Singapore after 4 ½ years and arrived 2 weeks ago.  This was not without it’s dramas either and worthy of a whole chapter just on it’s own, but when everything was unpacked it was remarkable what good condition everything is in.  Initially, it felt very strange to have TV’s, desk top computers, large oven, huge fridge/freezer, food processor, large shower with continuous hot water etc  after 4 years of minimalism and conservation on the boat.  Whilst it’s enjoyable, we don’t want to loose sight of the simplicity of life and appreciation of our surroundings.  In our garden we have papayas, avocado, aubergine, chillies and pumpkin along with sweet smelling trees and flowers such as frangipani, honeysuckle and night jasmine.  The arrival of our bikes means we can enjoy the winding roads at the base of the green hills, past tethered horses, small bays and even a lagoon that we can we can cool down in.

We feel very lucky and very blessed to be here.  We have lots of ideas for remodeling the house to our style and taste and plan to do some alterations to the 2^nd house and turn it into a self contained holiday villa.  We hope to sail Pangers here eventually, but that will be a big and tricky passage and one that will take time and careful planning.  She’s safe where she is and will continue to be our base in Asia for now.  She is still loved very much!!

With everything that’s happened we’ve lost track of time and almost forgot that tomorrow is Christmas Day!  We hope that you all have a safe and happy holidays and get to spend time with your loved ones during the festive season.

Massive hugs and love to my loved ones Bev and Laura.  I couldn’t have got through all of this without you – you and skypee are the best!!

Bula vinaka and all the best for 2015

Cheers then

Captns G and J XXX

4 years

Four years ago today we signed a piece a paper that would change our lives forever. 

We’d completed (and passed) our IYT skippers course, we’d been out on a sea trial on a lovely 37ft foot yacht called Pelangi, and today, 4 years ago we signed the sales agreement that would make her our own.  A lot of water has passed under the bridge (and under her hull) since that day.  Some of it calm, beautiful, clear water, and some of it stormy and unpredictable, but we’ve come away from these experiences richer in knowledge and friendships, and with a better understanding of nature and all she throws at us.  Our little boat has been our home and our adventure capsule; she’s taken us to places that some can only dream about and dealt admirably with squalls and rough seas.  She has welcomed many friends who’ve come aboard sometimes just for a sundowner, others for an adventure holiday, we had a pretend pirate outing with The Shenton Family, and even an Indie Disco when Laura was on board!   And let’s not forget the stowaway who swam to our boat for safety once night while trying to swim to shore from a fishing boat in stormy weather!! 

Pelangi has given us so much more than we can ever give back to her, but she hasn’t done too badly out of it!  To date Pelangi has had a new main sail, all new electronic equipment including new auto pilot, new windlass, she’s been re wired and has a new switch panel, bilge pumps, alarm system, all new LED lighting including cockpit light (so I can actually see what I’m eating at night!), a new set of batteries, 4 solar panels, made to measure radar arch, spray dodger and frame, new canvass work and cushions and not forgetting the cuddly toy (for those who remember The Generation Game!).  Even Dolly Dinghy has got in on the act with a new outboard motor and new chaps (cover).  We’ve also experienced 2 haul outs where she has had her bottom scraped and anti fouled, a stern paint job, gel coat repair work and professional polish, plus a galley facelift!

You’d think with all that work we wouldn’t have had much time to sail, but those who have followed our story know we have ventured on many passages across the Gulf of Thailand, Malacca Strait, Balabac Strait, Sulu Sea and South China Sea.  Sailing at night in quiet waters and under a full moon is a very gratifying experience and when dolphins appeared on the bow at first light on one occasion even I was left speechless!.

We have sailed more than 8,660 nautical miles and visited or anchored off more than 243 islands.  The amount of pollution and rubbish in our waters, the attitude of those who continue to rape the seas of all she has, and the rainforest that has been destroyed in the name of commercial gain has saddened us. But mostly we’ve felt truly blessed by the beauty of what we have seen and overwhelmed at times by the kindness of fellow sailors and the welcome from total strangers who have so little compared to us, but seem so happy with their small lot in life – we have much to be grateful for!

Since our last haul out in Penang in December we have spent our time cruising the west coast of Malaysia and Thailand.  It took us 3 attempts to leave Penang before reaching Langkawi due to rough seas and strong head winds, but once we got going there was not stopping us.  We had 15 – 20 knots of wind on the beam most of the way and did some of our best sailing ever on our passage from Langkawi, Malaysia to Krabi, Thailand where we picked up Gareth’s mum, Bev, for her second trip with us.  It wasn’t without it moments, mainly involving getting rather wet on our trips back from shore when Dolly proved just a little too small for the chop and surf that had built unbeknownst to us while enjoying dinner on the shore or duty free shopping – the whisky came in handy quite a few times!!  But Bev took all of the challenges in her stride and proved to be very worthy crew!  She was rewarded for her efforts by days of lovely cruising in light breezes and some stunning anchorages surrounded by mountains towering either side of the boat sometimes with only the moon and stars for company.  Bev abandoned ship for the luxury of hot running water and a comfy bed at a nice beach resort in Langkawi and even got to fly over Pelangi in a microlite  before heading back to NZ.  We then headed back south and left Pelangi in a marina in Johor Bahru, Malaysia (just across the way from Singapore) while we flew to Bali to catch up with our dear friends Nat and Ralph off their lovely yellow boat, Soltutu, and then onto Labuan Bajo, Flores, Indonesia for some diving and snorkeling.  It was superb!  Gareth dived deep and saw all the “big stuff” and I snorkeled and made friends with four turtles on my final swim.  We also encountered Komodo dragons, but decided not to make friends with them as human flesh is a speciality on their menu!!

A few weeks after our return we left Pelangi and Dolly once more and flew to Sydney where we spent some long overdue time with Gareth’s wonderfully entertaining Uncle Robert, better known as Doctor Bob.  His apartment on Coogee beach, just down from Bondi is a fantastic place for headland walks, people watching, café brunches, wood fired pizza and cheap and delicious red wine, which we took full advantage of!  It was also great to catch up with good friends and fellow sailors Fred and Kat and their new crewmember; 6 month old Louisa.  From there we flew to NZ and really enjoyed quality family time with brother, sisters, nephews and nieces who seem to have eaten rather a lot of Jack’s Beans as they have all grown so much!!  We also caught up with old friends and enjoyed cheap and delicious NZ white and red wines, macro brewed beer, pies and fish and chips.  I think Pelangi’s water line was reduced when we got back on her!!

And so today sees Pelangi moored in a marina just like she was the first day we saw her only a bit more “lived in” and with more than a few tales to tell if she could talk!  And we are all the richer for our friendships and (possibly) a little wiser for our experiences.  We know that the next 4 years will bring new challenges and are planning an extensive passage through Indonesia and beyond.

I have just finished a novel and one of the lines reads “I am limited only by what I can dream and allow myself to risk”.  Dream big!!

Cheers then

Captns J and G XXX

Has it really been a year?

We are currently 6ft up in the air on a hardstand, in a boatyard on the historic island of Penang, West Malaysia.  We’ve been here almost 6 weeks now giving Pelangi a bit of face lift; adding some new stuff, upgrading some old stuff and getting her ready for our 2014 sailing adventures.  We bumped into some old friends of ours last week, Sheila and Michael off SY Kantala, who wanted to know why we’d taken them off our mailing list.  I knew I hadn’t written a blog entry for a while, but a whole year ago?  When I checked, my last posting was 18^th December last year, and we’d just made a rather arduous sail against the wind to make it to Puerto Galera,  Northern Philippines in time for Christmas. 

So, for those of you who’ve been waiting with baited breath a whole year, or just thought you’d fallen off our mailing list here’s a brief history of 2013. Starting with Christmas in P.G.; we shared the festive season with 2 other yachting couples – the fabulous Nat and Ralph on Saltotu and Linda and Tony who were amazing hosts on Christmas Day on their aptly named boat Amazing Grace.  They pulled off a full roast for the 6 of us and we had a great day drinking, eating, and partying into Boxing Day!

We ended up spending over 2 months in P.G., most of the time with very windy/cloudy and rainy weather so we all became locals of the nearby Rock N Roll Bar and P.G.  Yacht Club!  We did have some nice days though and managed a “girls day out” shopping in the main township, snorkeling, motor cycling round the picturesque bays and G managed to get in a few days diving.  When we got our break in the weather, G and I made a run for it and headed back South to our old (and favourite) sailing ground of Bususanga.  Lucky we did, as on 6^th March I got a dreaded phone call from Our Bev telling me that Mum was dying.  Mum was 86 and had been ill for some time, so it wasn’t unexpected, but it doesn’t make it any easier to accept when you’re so far away and all you want is to be with your family and say one last good bye.  We were able to leave Pelangi on a mooring buoy with friends looking after her for the unknown amount of time we’d be away.  We made the dash to Manila airport, but were too late.  Mum passed away before I’d even managed to check in.  It was heartbreaking.  I arrived in the UK to the coldest spring on record and the highest the temperature got to in the 6 weeks I was there was 8 degrees, even the dog wouldn’t go out one day it was that cold!  We farewelled Mum with a small service that she would have liked; playing her favourite songs and sharing memories with family and close friends. 

We returned to Pelangi to thaw out at the end of April and she willingly took us to El Nido, a gorgeous spot North West of Palawan Island with lots of small islands to visit, fabulous coral reef to snorkel, a beautiful lagoon and even a secret beach which you swam though a cave opening to get to.  It was a wonderful trip and a fitting end to our time in the Philippines.  We needed to head back into Malaysia before the winds changed or we would get stuck there and after the typhoon that just went through we’re glad we did!

We crossed the Balabac Strait and entered Malaysian waters on 23rd May and headed south down a now familiar route of the east coast of Borneo then across to Tioman Island which we reached on 25^th June.  We had plenty of dolphins to keep us company almost every day and lots of bird life too on what was a very nice passage. 

It’s over 2 years since we were last on Tioman and not much has changed; some of the old sailing fraternity was back in the marina along with some new drinking partners (Tioman is a duty free island after all!), most notably the ever-helpful and philosophical Larry and his lovely partner Cordula.  Larry has recently found out that there’s no such thing as a cheap boat and a lot of patience and a sense of humour goes a long way when each day of boat repair presents a new challenge.  We spent 3 months in total there doing some much needed and long-awaited maintenance of our own and as the season transitioned we headed south around Singapore to Johor Bahru, West Malaysia  in the company of 2 other yachts.  This trip is notorious for the amount of heavy traffic and VERY big container ships that you get to tango with on your way through the shipping lanes so a daytime passage is always recommended.  Trying to decipher what’s moving and what’s at anchor is the main game you play for the 50 - odd mile journey, and you do get honked at rather loudly by impatient tanker captains if you dare get in their way!  There were a few incidents to make the journey a memorable one, but eventually all 3 yachts were safely berthed in Danga Bay marina on 10^th October.

Compared to the idyllic Tioman marina with its pretty setting, clear blue water, and nice beaches Danga Bay is a dirty hole with filthy water and a depressing town center.  The last straw was when a full sized, tethered dead cow came floating by the outer docks one smoggy morning – absolutely true!  Time to go!! So we slipped our lines sharpish and continued our journey north towards Penang.  It was a lovely 10 day passage with dolphins playing round Pelangi on our first morning out of Danga Bay.  We enjoyed some nice evenings anchored off small, uninhabited islands, spent a day in Port Dickson stocking up on provisions and enjoyed 2 days on Pangkor Island with lots of sunshine and beach walking.  Pelangi’s haul out had been pre arranged and at 2.00pm on 18^th November the travel lift gently plucked her out of the water and onto 5 hardstands.  She’s getting very spoilt here with bottom scraping and anti fouling, a new galley, a specially designed radar arch with room for 4 solar panels, a spray hood/dodger so we can stay dry on wet days, plus lots of TLC from me and G as we sand, scrape, glue and paint all sorts of extra bits.  She also has a new bimini (sun shade) cover, new sail bag and even Dolly has got in on the act with new chaps (covers). If we have any money left over after all this lot we hope to cruise around the island of Langkawi 60 nautical miles away for Christmas, then onto the islands off Thailand and around the Andaman sea.  G’s mum Bev has decided to join us for part of this trip.  This will be her 2^nd time aboard Pangers so the 1^st time can’t have been that bad!

So there you have it, a mixed year for us with new friendships founded, old ones re kindled, wonderful sailing, heartbreak, some very precious time with my family in Devon, lots of maintenance and long stopovers and much to look forward to.  My log shows we sailed/motored over 2,110 nautical miles and visited/ anchored off 27 islands, so not bad mileage for a slow sailing year!  There’s not enough brain cells left to count the number of beers, red wine, rum, vodka, gin and whiskey drunk over the same period, but I do recall drinking a can of coke one day!!

As for all those of you reading this, we hope you’ve had a good year with travels, adventures and special times of your own to look back on and new beginnings to look forward to.  

I’d like to dedicate this posting to the memory of my mum.  Her and dad brought me up to believe that I was as good as anyone else and could do and be anything I wanted.  I wouldn’t be living the life I do without them, their love, support and that belief.

Christmas cheers then

Captns J and G 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 20^th 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 17^th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5^th 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 7^th, 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 13^th.  The 1^st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14^th 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 17^th, 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 15^th and 16^th 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

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 20^th 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 17^th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5^th 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 7^th, 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 13^th.  The 1^st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14^th 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 17^th, 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 20^th 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 17^th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5^th 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 7^th, 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 13^th.  The 1^st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14^th 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 17^th, 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 20^th 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 17^th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5^th 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 7^th, 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 13^th.  The 1^st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14^th 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 17^th, 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 20^th 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 17^th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5^th 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 7^th, 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 13^th.  The 1^st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14^th 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 17^th, 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 20^th 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 17^th November. 

We finally bade farewell to Malaysia on 5^th 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 7^th, 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 13^th.  The 1^st day back out at sea was pretty much a repeat of our earlier passage, but on 14^th 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 17^th, 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

Up The river Without a Paddle

When I checked the blog I couldn’t believe it’s almost 3 months since I posted anything – slacker!!  I can’t even use the excuse that we’ve been cruising, out of internet coverage, living it up wildly…….  In fact our sailing season pretty much came to a standstill shortly after getting Pelangi back in the water.  We’ve been up and down the West Borneo coast on various missions to collect or fit new gear after malfunctioning equipment and purchasing up-grades.  No wonder Pelangi’s smiling she now has; 2 new hatches, 6 new jammers, a new winch and new lines, new engine mounts fitted, new autopilot control and computer (begrudgingly bought I might add!), 4 brand new new deep cycle batteries, battery generator/alternator, battery monitor, all new interior cushion covers and even more stuff to come!!

To help pay for some of this I did pick up a bit of training work for Estee Lauder which included a trip to Frankfurt (don’t EVER fly with Lufthansa unless you have to) and delivery of a training course in Singapore.  However, I did fork out a fair amount in new, grown up shoes, lippy and mascara, new pants and a cardi, so the fee didn’t go as far as it should have.  Mind you, I did get a free bottle of DKNY perfume for me and Tommy Hilfiger aftershave for G – just what you need when you’re trying to keep the mozzies at bay!  Still, it’s v. nice smellies and it was quite good to get “back into the corporate saddle” for a bit.

In between all of this activity we did manage a week away from things work related and enjoyed our first river trip with The Pangers and Dolly.  The Klias River cuts through the wetlands of Western Sabah and is home of the proboscis monkey, that’s the one with the big nose and round belly.  As with most river entrances the water level is low and shifts a lot, so you need to time entry very carefully and enter on a rising tide and even then it’s a buttock clenching 0.5 meters under the keel!  Once in the river proper it’s important to remember that the water is highest on the outer edge of the bend so you basically zigzag your way through.  We had a nice breakfast stop on the first day just inside the river proper.  The first thing we noticed was the quietness; we were the only humans there nestled into the bush enjoying bacon butties and mugs of tea.  We went about 15 miles on day 1 and the evidence of man’s destruction became clearer the further up we went.  What was once miles and miles of lush rainforest has been chopped down and replaced with palm trees for the production of palm oil.  Palm oil is now Malaysia’s number 1 income earner with these plantations popping up on every piece of spare land possible.  This means that the home and food source for the monkeys and bird life in Malaysia is disappearing at an alarming rate.  It wasn’t until day 2 when we were about 25 miles up the Klias river that we spotted our first furry family.  Our spirits were lifted by the sight of these cute and funny proboscis monkeys.  The whole family where swinging through the branches of a small patch of original forest that still exists just across from where we anchored – very cool!  We watched them for quite a few hours and just as beer o’clock was upon us half a dozen boats pulled up filled with tourists who had obviously come to see the same family at play.  Funnily enough, at the sight of us anchored and enjoying a coldie in the cockpit drew more attention than the local wildlife as cameras clicked and people waved frantically at us – 1 guy asked us to put the kettle on for him and another wanted to know what we were having for tea.  We were the Posh and Becks of River Cruising for about 20 minutes!  We were in for another treat as darkness fell; hundreds of fireflies lit up the trees like Christmas lights.  We turned off all the lights in the boat to look at them and a few actually flew into the cockpit like flecks of pixie dust floating through the air – magical!  On day 3 we took Dolly further up the river to get even closer to the riverbank.  Once again we were disappointed by the lack of animal or bird life but did get very close to a proboscis monkey enjoying his breakfast of leaves.  He didn't seem bothered at all by the sound of our outboard or us gawking at him at such close quarters, just kept on chompin!  After lunch we turned around and started to head back, the only sound coming from our engine as we puttered slowly along enjoying the serenity of our surroundings.  Day 4 saw us back at our breaki stop and we decided to stay there the night.  The tide was going out again now and we saw a group of baby Macaque monkeys playing near the water’s edge.  Very close and very cute!  Another ride on Dolly brought us closer to another group playing in a ravine before we headed back for dinner.  So after another new experience and a trip well worth the time effort despite the disappearing landscape, day 5 was a return butt clencher to the duty free island of Labuan where we could stock up on the beers we’d consumed without dipping too deeply into the disappearing maintenance budget!

Once the remainder of our new equipment has arrived and been expertly fitted by the very clever G we can continue to travel north before the north easterlies kick in back towards the Philippines and what we hope will be another 6 months of (maintenance free) beautiful cruising.  With over 7,000 islands to choose from we will be visiting some old favourites from last year – Palawan and Bususanga before continuing further north to new places such as Peurto Galera which gets rave reviews from fellow cruisers.  So, lots to look forward to including a new member joining us for 2 weeks YAY!!  Bev, G’s mum is on a mini Asian tour including Singapore and HK and is joining us in Busuanga for some R N R on the beach and sun downers on the deck!  She will get here just in time for Captn G’s 50^th on 20^th November.  We’re keeping our fingers crossed for light winds and sunny days in this beautiful part of the world.

In the meantime there’s a bit more hard work for G as he continues to sweat and swear his way through cutting, sawing and running cables in the least accessible parts of the boat while at anchor with the sea churning underneath us and power boats flying past every 2 minutes– not easy I can tell you!

Hope all is well with you after such a long time.  As always drop us line –it’s been a while since we heard from you too you know.

Take care and get ready for that Christmas countdown – Ouch!!

Cheers then

Captns J and G XXX

On The Hard

At 8.00am on 28^th June the travel lift picked up Pelangi, took her off the concrete blocks she’d been sitting on for 69 days and carefully lowered her back into the water. 

When we hauled her out we thought we’d be a few weeks in the boatyard then on to a safe anchorage while Gareth undertook a few new assignments and I went back to the UK to visit my family.  A quick sand down, slap on a few new coats of anti foul and she’d be right for another few years.  However, close inspection of the hull revealed blistering that needed serious attention.  Plus some rudder repairs were in order.  So, armed with some heavy duty grinding and sanding equipment G set to in 40 degree heat to take her back to bare and start the repair process.

We left her to “dry out” and G headed to Malaysia’s interior and Hong Kong while I went on to the UK for some long overdue “family time”.  Our Bev and Neil are still running their fantastic Guest House (Sampson Barton – or Sammy B’s to us) in beautiful North Devon and Mum lives with them, but is kept clear of the guests as she is getting a bit absent minded (shall we say) in her old age!.  I was really lucky to have great weather the whole time I was there so was able to take Mum on days out to the beach and long drives through the rolling countryside and over the moors of Exmouth. 

With guests fed and watered for the day we also had the chance of a few family days out to traditional cobbled stone villages and yummy pub lunches as the seaside.  Laura managed a week end visit to Sammy B’s and at the end of the trip I was able to spend 3 days in London with her and meet her fab flat mate Bridget and hunky new boyfriend Dave.  On my last Sunday Laura, Dave and I caught up with my old Wellie friends Nyki and Mat who been living in London for a few years now.  We met them on Hampstead Heath on a schorcher of a day and ended it drinking Pimms in a local pub beer garden.  Mat assures me that he reads all my blogs, so a questionnaire will be sent to you Mat in 6 hours on the content of this post!!

It was fantastic to see my wonderful family again and heartbreaking to leave them, but then it always is!!  After a 3 day trip back G was waiting at Kudat airport which made it a bit easier.  Although Pelangi was still in a grotty boatyard with the same concrete block and step ladder to negotiate it was great to be back on board.  With all prep work done we set about getting the anti foul on and getting her spruced up for a re launch.  I varnished the companionway and stairwell and gave the interior a few licks of paint to brighten her up and she was ready to go.

We stayed in Kudat a few extra days as there was a Sunset Music Festival being held on the Tip of Borneo.  We’ve actually sailed round here and it’s a fantastic spot with a gorgeous, long white sand beach just before the headland, then the sea crashing on the rocks at the actual tip.  A stage had been built on which the KK Philharmonic Orchestra played and accompanied most of the performers.  The youngest was an 8 year old violinist whose feet couldn’t even touch the ground – cute!  The festival was great with music ranging from classical to folk to jazz to contemporary and the setting was perfect.  A great night out and definitely worth hanging back for.

Since then we’ve slowly made our way back down the Borneo coast.  When I checked our log we made this passage 11 months ago on our way up to the Philippines, so some of the anchorages were familiar.  We did find a beautiful spot on Gaya Island off Kota Kinabalu which we hadn’t seen before.  A sheltered golden sand bay with fringing reef and very nice resort ashore.  We went over for dinner one night and got spoilt by the friendly staff and lovely food.  From there we re visited Tiga Island, a remote and deserted place which is only a few hours from the duty free port of Labuan.  We stocked up today so we can leave tomorrow for the dry state of Brunei with plenty of liquid refreshments on board, so the sundowners can continue!  We also have a few friends there who we’re looking forward to meeting up with again.

So with our first haul out experience under our belt and Pelangi gliding swiftly through the water with her new bottom we look forward to new and good times on the water.

For those of you interested, or who might be visiting the UK any time soon Sammy B’s link is always on the bottom of this blog.  You’d be made very welcome and would definitely put on a few pounds after all that country fayre!

Cheers then

Captns J and G XXX