Weatherly Sailing Adventures
Flat sea and hardly any wind so motored most of the way to Langkawi, arriving just after dark. It was so dark in Kuah anchorage and I couldn't make out the many small yachts without lights on, so anchored way out at the back. Made dinner and went to sleep.
Spent almost 2 weeks there, as I continued to have troubles with the glow plugs. Sometimes it started easily and other times just wouldn't kick. After scraping around in the mucky bilge water to recover a glow plug nut I accidentally dropped there, I noticed the earth strap was badly torn. I then realised that my starting batteries were earthed to the engine bearers, not to the engine block, and the dodgy earth strap may not have allowed the current to return from the starter motor.
Re-attached the negative wire to the engine block, and, brrrummm! engine kicked first go.
This was after many late mights and days checking and swapping plugs and a lot of frustrations. I still am not confident this is the last of the glow plug problems, because I noticed a worn thread mark on the insulated tip of 2 plugs, and this is where the element may be shorting out.
I've ordered 2 more plugs from Australia, made in Ireland (not India - where I had problems with them before), bringing my spares total to 6. Checked for the Trojan batteries, but now the chandlery doesn't sell that type, only the new, sealed, no-maintenance batteries. The new type is not compatible with my one year-old ones. I think this is a trick by chandleries to sell more stock, by continually upgrading models. So I didn't replace my batteries, and will just persevere with the ones I had nearly given up on earlier. They seem to be holding charge ok - only one cell is a little down after nursing them since Lumut.
Met my friends Steve and his Thai girlfriend, Fern, again. First met them with Steve's dad last year, and enjoyed many evenings on their lovely big ketch, Seander, and at drinks at "the Pier" restaurant and the ABC cafe in Kuah. I rented a motorbike for a few days and biked over to the waterfall with them one day. Steve has a big, low revving bike which sounds like a Harley. It was a Friday, the day off here in Northern Malaysia. So, full of people swimming in the pool and yahoo-ing. Most were navy sailors, in Langkawi for the Lima airforce and navy show - as I saw them change into white sailor's uniforms. Every day fighter jets have been zooming overhead in formation, and fast military boats charging past, inconsiderately rocking all the anchored yachts wildly.
After filling my spare containers and main tank with diesel, and the rain filled my water tanks nicely, I felt ready to go. Cleared out of Malaysia at Immigration/Customs and Harbour master, at the jetty behind the huge concrete statue of the sea eagle. Then had a pleasant motor through the south channel and forested passageways to the undeveloped side of Langakawi. Sea eagles soared overhead, and fishermen waved as they motored past or sat at anchor.
I made my way around to a narrow gap in the cliffs called "Hole in the Wall". In the late afternoon sun, it was truly magnificent to see the cliffs open up to a perfect mangrove wilderness with several rivers branching off from the deep main passageway. There were perhaps 20 yachts tethered to moorings upriver. I recognised several, and remembered the characters who owned them, off back home earning some money or travelling.
Enjoyed the most tranquil night I've had on Weatherly - hardly a ripple stirring the water, and listened to the crabs making their strange cracking/dripping noises from the vast mangrove forest.
In the morning enjoyed a breakfast of sweet corn on toast, while looking around at the mangrove forest and a panorama of mountains and creeks. Fantastic I finally made it to this place.
Navigated out through the cliffs, through the shallow channel parallel to the shore, then out into the straight between Malaysia and Thailand. I had aimed to anchor on the west side of Ko Tarutao, but the wind was very light and tide unfavourable, so drifted/sailed along at 3 knots without the noisy engine running, until the wind finally died.
Motored up the east side of the island - in Thailand! Then the wind piped up to 18 knots, so set the genoa to pull the yacht along into the chop at 5 knots. Some Thai trawler fishermen gave me the thumbs up when they saw me powering past them under sail and after sign language confirming I was on my own. Anchored under the lee of a large cliff at the end of a deserted beach.
Cooked up a roast beef dinner - oven very slow, but over-estimated the timing, so rib-eye steak a little dry. Baked onions and (purple) sweet potatoes were just right. Finished off with mangoes, bananas and ice-cream. Wouldn't call the king my uncle !
