STRUGGLING TO GO WEST

31 October 2023

It’s been a while since I posted a log.  I have been working hard for not much gain and not been inclined to socialise much.  I have entered a depressed state due to high temperatures and lack of wind, frustration has set in.  Being hot and frustrated is Aaaagh!  I need something to jolt me back into full mojo mode. 

The heat and lack of productive breeze saps the energy, making normal easy tasks a bothersome chore.  I have no one to blame but myself.  I have left it too late in the season to head west, the trade winds have disappeared, it will be calm periods for the next month as we transition to the NW monsoon.  I am also a bit disappointed in myself for changing my plan to head up towards Raju Ampat.  The winds are favorable for going north and I could have spent the monsoon period up there as originally planned.

However, I bowed to outside pressure and agreed to a meet-up in Bali.  It was too difficult to get to Sorong, a long plane trip.  It appeared much easier for me to sail/motor over a thousand miles to Bali.  Decision made, l have to live with it, suck it up and carry on.  I am going to be motoring most of the way to Bali by the looks of it and not much time to stop off along the way and enjoy the sights.  I did say that I was never again going to put myself under pressure to meet at a time and place but here I am doing it again. 

We sailed from Saumlaki on the morning of the 21^st October, just a light breeze and we ghosted the twenty four miles to Pulau Selaru where we anchored for the night.  The anchorage turned out to be not that nice with a very uneven bottom and no water clarity.  The night turned calm as the breeze dropped at dusk.  I was happy to get the anchor up clean and getting away early the following morning.

From Pulau Selaru my next destination was Pulau Babar, about ninety miles to the west.  The first day we had a very light SE’ly breeze just keeping us moving and by midnight had clocked off forty-seven miles.  Overnight the wind died and we drifted in between puffs, hard work to keep moving.  By midday on the second day we were caught is some tide rips and got pushed to the north.

The day was getting late, I gave up trying to get into Palau Babar and headed on towards Palau Romang a further one hundred and thirty miles west.  The wind came and went but never more than eight knots.  Sails went up, down and in, out to try and catch some wind.  Our twenty-four hour run was fifty miles.  The next twenty-four hours saw us clock off forty miles followed by a sixty mile day.  On the fourth day we arrived at Hila on Palau Romang after motoring for the last three hours against the tide.

I was exhausted, every inch of the way had to be fought for.  The wear and tear on the boat is awful, sails slatting, boom constantly working, chafe and relentless constant repetitive snatch loads on blocks and lines.

The next morning I tried to have a lie in but it was too hot to be comfortable, the guys at the mosque were also up early for the morning call.  Instead, I set about making a good breakfast, fried eggs, toast, and marmalade with fresh coffee.  Feeling much better and refreshed I decided to sail across to Perai on the island of Wetar.  When I went to weigh anchor I found it was fouled on the seabed some twenty five meters below.  After forty minutes of working it around and back and forth it came free.  Relief would be an understatement!  I was quite happy to see Palau Romang disappear astern – slowly of course, there was not much wind.

At noon the wind filled in from the SE.  The first time in thirteen days and over seven hundred miles of sailing that the wind has been over ten knots.  Glorious full sail and for a few hours the trials of the last few days were forgotten.  Of course, the wind was teasing me, it went light again.

After two days and some interesting encounters with tide rips and a lee shore we anchored in Perai.  The anchorage here is very uneven and after a couple of attempts I finally anchored in thirty meters of water.  I have decided to stay here for two nights, I need a rest and there are some maintenance issues to attend to.  In the afternoon I was visited by some of the local children hoping for some treats. 

On the second day the Harbour Master came out to have a chat.  He was surprised to see a sailing boat anchored and wanted to know what I was doing in his port.  He seemed happy that I was resting and didn’t want to see any paperwork.  When the Harbour Master arrived I was just about to go ashore in the dinghy.  He put me off the idea – there is nothing here he said, no shops, no market, just a few houses.  I stowed the dinghy back on board, it was just too much effort to go ashore.  Another quiet night and a good sleep were far more important.

Tomorrow is ten days since leaving Saumlaki, its been a long ten days.  Next destination is Pulau Alor and the town of Kokar on the NW side, just over ninety miles distant.