Back Tracking



Anchored in the fiord at Langkawi

We finally completed all our listed tasks, stocked up with hopefully enough cheap booze to last us to the next duty free island then headed out of Rebak for possibly the last time. We decided to go back to the fiord for another look, this anchorage is in a small narrow passage between 2 islands with 200m high cliffs, it’s protected from all winds and boasts some great wildlife like eagles, monkeys and hornbills. After a couple of days of relaxation and checking that systems were again running as they should we decided to head around to Kuah for 1 last meal at our favourite Indian restaurant and get ready to head back south east. A series of squalls followed us from the west and hit just after we were settled, didn’t last long but they came with a punch.



Storm approaching at Kuah Langkawi the day before leaving

The next morning we were up before daylight and away soon after hoping to get some tidal assistance along the way, the 60nm journey to Penang  as we expected was a motor sail with some fluctuating winds but at least coming from north east which was good. The trip was relatively quick and we entered the new Penang marina to our berth well before dark. The marina is a bit out of town on the north side of the island but a hell of a lot better than staying at junk anchorage which is adjacent to Georgetown, the old dilapidated town marina, the ferries and the ever present grease trap smell. A hired motor bike helped shorten the distances.

Local fishing boat tied to fish attractors which are lengths of 100mm diameter bamboo with whatever?? attached below, a real danger at night

One of the reasons for stopping at Penang was to get a health screening at a local hospital, which is big business here. For less than AU$200 you get a full health screening which is much more thorough than back home and comes with free lunch and appraisal. We both passed OK but they did find some things that hadn’t been picked up before in OZ. Nothing that a few extra beers can’t cure, I’m sure that’s what he said. Penang is famous for its assortment of Asian cuisines and we certainly had our fair share in the 5 days we stayed, all quality even the small roadside stalls and cheaper than chips literally.

One of the unwanted guests that frequent Penang waters

Next it was off with the tide down the channel between Penang and the mainland under the huge bridge that links the two together. We overnighted at Jerejak Island which unfortunately reminded us of a tip as floating rubbish passed us by and then came back when the tide reversed.

Looking down the rail tracks from the top of Penang Hill about a 75 degree decline

Next morning we were away at dawn and passed through the opening of the new even longer second bridge between Penang and the mainland. They were piling when we came through in November 2010 so have progressed significantly in the time. The bridge is so long it disappears in the haze before you can see the mainland. We pushed the tide for the full 6+hrs as we rounded the Great Kra Bank a shallow shoal which extends out seaward and increases the distance to our next destination Pangkor Island 75nm south east. By late afternoon we had a good tidal lift and arrived before dark to a pleasant anchorage with 1 other yacht and as we discovered 10 minutes later a ferry to another island with a resort who refused to alter his usual course just because we were anchored. We decided to move and relieve him of any additional stress caused for him to actually steer his boat around us.

One of the monsters unloading mid-stream in Panang

The last time we were at this island we had a storm come in from the southwest which caused a washing machine affect in the bay and since it is now the north east season we did not expect a repeat performance. WRONG!! Next morning in comes another southwester but thankfully not as bad as the previous time and by late afternoon all was back to normal with a light breeze from the northeast and surprisingly cool only 27 degrees. We hung here for a couple of days waiting for the right day without storms forecast before heading off again.

About to go under the main arch of Penang Bridge

Up at 0430 with expectations to leave for the long 87nm run to Port Klang, but to our surprise we  were fogged in with only 1nm visibility, first time we’ve seen this over here so we wait till daylight before leaving and thankfully we did, as fishing boats were everywhere with their nets. It was a long day as we motor sailed southeast with the tide and then against it, we reached the entrance to the port channel just as a ship was leaving so we moved over and made room, a storm was brewing on the mainland and the wind freshened to 20kts from the west which gave us assistance but as we know when the squall heads offshore the winds shift 180 degrees and generally strengthen. We were about 5nm away from an anchorage near the power station amongst the moored ships when it hit with blinding rain and strong winds from the northeast. We motored into it until we found a good clear area just on twilight. The storm faded after a couple of hours and gave the boat and us a good washdown.

The new southern bridge to Penang seems to go for ever

Port Klang is a long narrow port with both a north and south entrance, it’s also the closest to KL so is very busy day and night. We left the next morning expecting to ride the tide through the harbour, unfortunately this wasn’t to be. The tidal flow along the west coast of Malaysia is out of sync with the actual high and low water levels so is very difficult to predict in all areas for even the experts. We were experiencing neap tides at the time so the rate of flow was minimal (2kts max) and if you travel the whole day you generally get both advantage and disadvantage so it should balance however it always seems more when pushing it. When leaving the south entrance we again had to make room for ships, and when we say ships we mean it. These were up to 400m long, displace 500,000 tonne and travel at 20knts, they also put out 3 x 3m high bow waves with a wavelength of about 5m between each so when you hit them you go through like a submarine. So much for our freshly washed decks.



Construction of the main arch of the southern bridge

It was a pleasant 60nm run down to Port Dickson once we traversed through all the moored ships and barges, the coast is close so a bit more interesting and the water surprisingly clean. Admiral Marina provided us with a huge 25m berth for some unknown reason even though there was an abundance of smaller ones available. When we went north this marina was closed for renovations which at the time sounded odd because maintenance here in Malaysia is unheard of and is considered an unnecessary expense, why maintain when you can just build another with Government subsidy. After discussions with the manager it would appear that times are changing in some of the sultancy’s and more western business philosophies are being adopted most likely due to a crackdown on corruption.

The grand main building at Admiral Marina Port Dickson

Admiral Marina is very up market and the most expensive in Malaysia as it is owned and operated by a resort, it has been built properly similar to Rebak and does have a small haul out facility albeit by mobile crane. It only has 1 restaurant which has a captured market since it’s a 30min walk to any others. We only ate there once and the food was nice but more expensive than usual. We stayed a couple of days had a trip into Port Dickson town in the free shuttle bus and found a friendly Chinese watchmaker who repaired our ships clock which had for some strange reason stopped on happy hour. While we secretly hoped it couldn’t be fixed and it would be stuck forever he did a marvellous job while we waited and reactivated it back to life with a new brain for AU$9, our duty free booze thankfully spared as the numbers were dwindling far too rapidly.

One of the many waterfalls in Malaysia

Rather than doing an overnighter as we did going north and experiencing another storm from hell we decided to day hop south to Danga Bay in Johor and take our chances at anchor. We left at 1030 heading for the Water Islands just south of Malacca. This section of the Malacca Straits has the highest frequency of thunderstorms in the world, the worst of these come from the west and are called ‘Sumatras’, the same as the originating island 30nm away. These sumatras usually hit at 0300hrs at 50-60kts with torrential rain and lightning, a terrifying experience from all accounts. Thankfully few are encounted this time of year but when we left the anchorage the next morning at 0530hrs, 1.5hrs before dawn a menacing thunderhead was looming down from the northwest. We scooted along with the tidal flow dodging fishing boats and nets, some of which showed on the radar and some didn’t. We out ran it and suffered no effects thankfully. We arrived at the next anchorage at 1500hrs with the option of staying or continuing on to another unknown anchorage amoungst the moored ships adjacent to Singapore Strait, which we wouldn’t reach till after dark. We decided to stay and tackle what came our way. Pulau Pisang (Banana) Island was shallow and rolly from the passing ships but was quiet and peaceful, NO!! call to prayer, which we had to endure the previous night at Pulau Besar. The Mufti treated it like Karaoke and in typical Asian fashion was hellishly off key sounding more like a slow dying goat bleeting for its life.

You can see why they create such a large bow wave

The night passed without disruption and again before dawn a nasty thunderhead full of lightning began to bear down on us from the northwest. We up anchored and headed off with the final 40nm to the marina hopefully before the tide turned to run out. We motor sailed to Selat Johor the strait between Johor and Singapore weaving our way through the myriad of moored ships. The strait is pretty dirty with rubbish because it doesn’t flush properly due mainly to the well-known causeway that was once the only link between Singapore and the mainland of Asia. There are plans a-foot to remove the causeway which would be great from our point of view as it would allow dual access from both east and west, cleaning the water way as well.

Weaving our way through the mass of ships enroute to Johor Strait

We arrived at Danga Bay Marina just after the top of the tide which was lucky as the area east of the marina has silted up considerably due to the ongoing works to the foreshore. We had 1.5m under the keel which when we left last time would have been 3m. We would have hit the bottom this time if we’d arrived at low water. We were given a berth by Captain Ron the marina manager again 25m long and the same dock as previous. That afternoon at 1600hrs in came a storm from the northeast with heavy rain and lightning but this time we were safety tied up and out of harm’s way.



Most southern tip of the Asian Continent which we rounded before heading up the Johor Strait

Danga Bay has been and still is undergoing a major redevelopment with foreshore reclamation and construction of many high rise apartment blocks all targeted towards the wealthy Singaporean middle class. The plan is to create a world class living environment equal to say Darling Harbour in Sydney. Whether this can be achieved only time will tell. Already many of the older more local restaurants which we used to frequent have given way to the development which is sad so we have to venture further for our local cuisine at the right price.

A night at the local Danga Bay Bar with entertainers/yachties John and Shelley from Townsville bringing back memories of dock parties back home

We now have about 6 weeks to kill before the season is right to head east so will blog again before we leave.

Bye for now.

Beers and Cheers in this case a soothing Guiness

J&J