SNAKE ON THE BOAT

17 April 2024

The time has come to depart Gili Asahan.  I have been in South Lombok for two months now and really enjoyed my time here.  But, all good things must come to an end and I feel the season is changing.  Its hard to depart.  I have said my farewells and let go the mooring that has been my temporary home.  My plan is to make my way up to Medana Bay to refill my cooking gas cylinders, stopping off at two or three anchorages on the way.  However, fate chose to throw a spanner in the plans. 

After departing Gili Asahan I headed down to Gili Gede where I planned to anchor for the night.  An attractive proposition as I could breakfast at the Palmayra Indra beach bungalows and maybe go for a bike ride to town in the morning. After anchoring I came down the companionway and from the corner of my eye noticed a flicker of movement by the quarter berth.  Was it my imagination?  Maybe the wind? Maybe nothing? I pulled the rubbish bag aside that was on the quarter berth, I didn’t see anything.  I then removed the cushion from the quarter berth and coiled up behind it was a snake!

Both the snake and I did double take for a fraction of a second then things got a little wild.  The snake shot out from the quarter berth towards me, I simultaneously sprang up the companionway.  The snake was moving fast and headed up to the forward cabin, it reared up and headed back towards me at speed as I retreated to the cockpit.  I last saw it slithering down by the engine cooling water seacock and into the bilge.  Brilliant, I was in the cockpit and the snake was hiding somewhere in the bilge.  I confess, I am very scared of snakes and realised I needed help.

I abandoned ship, jumped in the dinghy and headed ashore to find someone who could hopefully do something about the snake.  Thirty minutes later I returned with Ardie (the local Mr. Fixit) equipped with a forked bamboo stick and a rag.  On the dinghy ride back to Truce Ardie happily told me nonstop snake horror stories, telling me gleefully that the sea snake was 10 x more poisonous than the deadly king cobra. 

Back on board we tried to find the snake.  Bilge opened up, lockers, cupboards and drawers opened, lazerette tipped out.  The snake could be anywhere, once it got into the bilge it could make its way behind lockers and furniture and remain hidden.  After a couple of hours we found nothing despite liberal use of fly spray which Ardie reckons is good for flushing out snakes.  I returned ashore with Ardie and had a local coffee to steady my nerves.

That night I went to bed late, sleeping fitfully on the settee in the salon.  Awaking early the next morning to see fresh snake poo on the carpet in the forward cabin freaked me out.  The snake must have been slithering around right past me as I slept. 

I weighed anchor and headed direct to Medana Bay,  booking a mooring and hotel room on the way.  Arriving at Medana Bay just after lunch I put Truce on a mooring and went ashore to drink beer.  That night I slept in the luxury of an air conditioned hotel room complete with shower. 

The snake is most likely a Sea Krait, very common around these parts. I had a good look at it and it matches with the pictures.  They are air breathing snakes, they come ashore to digest their food, drink fresh water and lay eggs.  Local advice said the snake would not stay more than a couple of days on board as it needs to return to the sea to feed.  They are not aggressive and only bite when threatened.  The next day I gingerly returned to Truce and made sure the boat was open so the snake could find its way out, I even left a thick rope by the companionway ladder so it was easy for it to climb out.  Then I returned ashore again and left the boat for 24 hours.

On returning to Truce I started a spring clean.  Starting in the forward cabin, I tipped everything out, cleaned up and then restowed everything.  Next it was the salon, then the galley, then the quarter berth, then the lazarettes.  How can I get so much stuff on a boat.  No sign of the snake so I have to assume it’s gone, but still have a lingering doubt in my mind.

An awful experience.  Got to man up and get a grip of myself.

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