Searching for Coconuts

Sailing West Sumatra

Derek — Thu, 21 Sep 2023 00:00:00 +0000

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We had completed all the required formalities to check into Indo, as described in our previous article, which can be viewed HERE

Now we were cleared in and permitted to explore this beautiful part of the world.

We had been advised that extensions on our visa should be applied for around 14 days before expiration, so we decided we would stay in the immediate vicinity and not wander too far away. Then once we had received the extension and our passports, we would have 6 weeks to travel out of Sabang, down Sumatra, and see how far we would make it before needing to turn around.

Maybe we should just quickly explain what we were doing in this part of the world, during the “wrong” season, and without a specific plan in mind. We knew we were going to be challenging ourselves, testing our skills, and seeing how far we could push Maia. This was going to be a proper test, a way to push ourselves and gain experience, a chance to be more than just coastal cruisers. This would be the first time we would attempt overnight sailing, without crew, through one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.

Awaiting us, the promise of clear waters, beautiful remote coastlines, friendly and welcoming locals and maybe even opportunities to surf.

The distance from Langkawi to Sabang depends on which route you take. In a straight line, it's around 270 miles. For us, this was not an option, as we wanted to sail as much as possible and the wind direction would not allow us to sail directly to Pulau Weh. By sailing further South, we followed the shortest route to Sumatra and out of the shipping lanes as soon as possible.

Armed with positive energy, motivated spirits and medium-sized hangovers, we departed from Rebak Marina, set sails for a closed-haul course and began the passage. As a personal preference, due to our reluctance to mess about on deck, we always set ourselves a double-reefed main and keep it that way. By doing this, we can avoid any sail changes in challenging conditions, and let's face it, the difference in performance is minor, and actually more comfortable. This applies only to long passages as we are only two on board and have to alternate shifts. We did encounter one early squall but the first real challenge involved our anchor. As our bow dipped below a wave, we scooped a floating log which snapped our anchor secure line and the anchor got washed out of the bow rail and off the roller. Fortunately, it did not drop far and we managed to get it back in place and secured.

After 32 hours, we reached Sumatra and were able to anchor in protected waters with good holding, allowing ourselves a good night's rest and ready to tackle leg 2.

The next leg took us North along the coast, staying away from the shoreline to miss all the fishing activity. This was another overnight sail, this time being chased by squall systems, one which spun us right around, and a wind change which stayed with us for the rest of the leg.

We made it to the tip of Sumatra the next morning and were looking forward to the last leg, sailing NW toward the island of Pulau Weh, and Sabang. It was not to be...

As luck would have it, the SW forecast turned out to be wrong by 90 degrees and we were facing straight into it.

Total distance to cover: 10 miles

Time taken to complete: 10 hours

Finally, just as the sun began to set, we entered Sabang and picked up a mooring. High fives and sunset beers...We had made it...

Follow the link at the start of this article for the check-in procedures. Once checked in, the adventure continues as follows...

Not far from the Sabang Harbour, we find our first anchorage, and when we say not far, we mean it, it's less than a mile away, and well protected. This is a good opportunity to enter an area using satellite images as electronic navigation can be a bit sketchy, and not too accurate. We anchored in good holding, in around 16m, with plenty of swinging room, and not many neighbours. There were some moorings available, but given our recent experience with moorings in this area, we put our faith in our anchor. This was a great place to unwind after crossing the strait, get ourselves and the boat back in order, and slowly plan our next move.

After consulting the Pilot, we decided to visit Rubiah Island, which is the next recommended stop on Pulau Weh. The Pilot promised great snorkelling in clear waters, and the many dive operators offer affordable rates to visit some of the great dive sites in the area. Please note: There used to be moorings in this area but these are no longer there. We anchored here for a week in 15-18m in sand, good holding, but make sure you do not anchor too close to the local tour operators. We actually asked where best for us to be and were directed a little north of the channel. The “wind bullets” can get a little crazy in here so make sure you are set firmly. Restaurants, stores and bike rental available at the nearby beaches. The water is clear, on some days we could see the bottom and you can spend days exploring the nearby snorkel sites. Spear-fishing is not permitted around Rubiah. The locals are amazing, friendly and welcoming. We had the best time.

Once our visas were extended and passports received, we could make plans to sail down the west coast of Sumatra. The winds around the tip of Sumatra were consistently moderate to strong, and combined with fresh currents, called for our timing to be precise. To give ourselves the best chance of making it through comfortably, we decided to tackle this in two legs.

We must, at this stage, give a huge shout-out to the following persons:

Rachel @ SEASPRAY YACHT SALES for assisting us with valuable info and guidance before and during our Sumatra trip.

Fred from SV Lara Pinta for advice in getting through the Raya.

Robbie from ANDERSSON MARINE for his online assistance to get minor issues with our diesel engine sorted.

The next sheltered anchorage is a preferred stopover for yachts planning to round the tip and head down the coast. Lampageue allows you to check wind forecasts and tides, and pick the best times for sailing through the Aroih Cut or Aroih Raya. You want to be attempting this at slack tide with less wind. The Cut has the potential for serious conditions with The Raya slightly better, which is why we chose the easier option and headed for the Raya. Even though we timed it correctly, we were still slowed down to 0.5 Knots at one stage and unfurled the headsail to make it through. Next stop, Seudu...

Lhokseudu has good holding and is well protected from the wind and swell. Now we were well out of the tourist zone so English is spoken far less, but the local fishing community is extremely friendly and helpful. We rented a private scooter to drive to Banda Aceh for provisions, and limited only by our imagination and courage, managed to load that bike up.

Now, we have to stress... All the sailing we had been doing up to Khokseudu had been bashing into strong winds so we contemplated making this anchorage our last stop down the coast. Our Plan B could be visiting other areas around Breueh and Weh. While discussing this option, a catamaran entered the bay and we decided to go say hello. We met Todd and Lattie, who have extensive experience of sailing Sumatra and were on a delivery. Not only did they offer great advice for expected winds further down the coast, but also gave us tips on stopovers and potential anchorages. Absolute legends, they informed us that the winds would die down by the time we reached the next stop south. So, we stuck to the original plan, and decided to head down to Pualu Raya.

We managed to sail the first third of this leg, and as advised, the further south we got, the less wind we encountered. This was a welcome respite from the constant bashing we had endured up to this point. Pulau Raya was a good stopover, although a bit roly. There were warnings of congested fishing activities in this area, but we experienced none, just a few local fishermen sharing the anchorage for the night.

Next leg would take us down to Calang, which was planned to be the second-to-last stop before the long passage over to Simeulu. We went ashore for some provisions, including fresh tuna and visited the beach warungs for a bite and a chat. Lots of swell in the anchorage and not too comfortable.

We worked out distances and realised that sailing across from Calang is not that much further than from the next intended stop. So we changed the plan and prepared for an early morning departure. With no wind on the forecast, this promised to be a smooth motor all the way to Simeulu.

This was an overnight passage but we encountered no fishing activity and no other traffic. Our destination... Sibidong.

Sibidong is one stop that we would not do over. Not great holding, the charts are way off and not much room to move if a squall or Sumatra hits. Once you reach Simeulu, better to just keep moving on to Lekon.

Once we rounded the northern tip of Simeulu, we could feel the ocean change as we were no longer protected from the swell, running SW. We had to keep a safe distance from shore and the breaking waves. We dropped anchor on the north side of Lekon, but were advised by a local fisherman, that there was more protection and holding on the south side. After consulting with Todd, who confirmed this, we made it through the channel and found a great anchorage as advised. During this leg, we also realised how much diesel we were using so would have to make a plan to refuel, or make this our last stop.

The Search for Diesel – An adventurous tale of two sailors and their quest to find fuel on a borrowed motorbike, with no cash.

6pm – After numerous visits by local fishermen to welcome us into their area, and armed with Google Translate, we find someone who looks like they might consider renting us a scooter. Most offered to bring diesel (solar) to us, but we tried to explain that we needed to find an ATM first.

7:20am – The next morning, we were woken up by someone calling out to us. Our “rental agent”, Adidol, had arrived. We tried our best to convince him that we needed to still have our morning coffee and that we would meet him at the beach, but he was having none of it. He was not going to let us go so easily. Reluctantly, and without breakfast, we tied his canoe to our boat and took the dinghy ashore. After a very wet landing, we made it to Adidol's house, three on a scooter with two jerry cans.

9:00am – We leave Adidol at his house and promise to return by the afternoon. He is taking the day off, no need to go fishing when you make a great payday renting out your bike to two complete strangers. He doesn't yet know that we have no cash, and if we don't find an ATM that works, we might have problems.

10:30am – We find our first ATM and the initial signs are not good. This particular bank has denied us multiple times in Sabang and Banda Aceh but we need to try. Denied.

12:30pm – We have now travelled far south, past the airport. The ride itself has been enjoyable and we are following Google Maps to what might be our last ATM option. We could have sailed here. We are renting a scooter to find diesel so that we can use that diesel to make it down here on our boat. Make sense? Didn't think so...

1:00pm – Success! Now at least we have cash and the next search can begin, looking for diesel, clean diesel.

Indonesia is well-known for it's poor quality diesel. To find clean diesel, you need to find a filling station. All other diesel is sold by backyard merchants and store keepers, and the storage and transportation leads to contamination and “diesel bug”. Every filling station we tried would have a sign: “Solar Habis” which basically means, diesel finished.

2:00pm – We decide to head back to Lekon so that Adidol can try arrange diesel somewhere. It's our only option.

2:30pm – Success! As we make our way back north, we see a sign: “Solar”

It's a road stall but we stop and check it out. The diesel is clean and the price is good.

We top up our two jerry cans and cautiously set off, we are now heavier and dark clouds are forming.

3:00pm – The rain forces us to take cover under a roadside stall. On the opposite side of the road is a coffee shop and we were called over by the locals to join them till the rain stops. We order coffee and have an enjoyable time “chatting” to the locals who are genuinely interested in meetings us and finding out what we are doing there, and more importantly, how we got there. We learn to count to ten in Bahasa and test the kids on their English. Truly a highlight of the trip.

3:30pm – On the road again... Adidol must be worried. His bike is gone and his canoe is tied to a boat somewhere in the bay.

5:00pm – We now realise we have to try remember what his house looks like. Fortunately, we miss it only once, backtrack and there it is... Only, there's no Adidol. Grandma is watching the kids and Google Translate is not working. We head down to the beach and there he is, a look of relief and genuine happiness to see us.

6:00pm – We sit on the deck and enjoy a well-deserved cold beer. It's been a long day, and we agree, we can't do that again.

The decision has been made – we will stay here for a while, just enjoy the bay, and return to Sumatra when ready. The water is clear and cool, the sunsets beautiful and besides the occasional visit from local fishermen, we are alone. We do go ashore and find another 10 gallons of diesel (just to be sure), as well as some basic provisions. It was time to watch the forecasts and plan our trip back.

To break the first part of the passage up, we head to Panjang for a one night stopover. From there we will make our way back to Pulau Raya in one long, straight line.

The anchorage at Panjang is very well protected. From the wind and swell that is. Not so much from mosquitoes. This is mangrove area and in the morning we were woken up by the sounds of a hundred mosquitoes trying to find a way into our boat. Yes, we could hear them. Luckily, our captain, me, had put up insect netting on all hatches and the companion way. So we huddled together till the blazing sun sent them into hiding and it was safe to emerge.

We pack out the spinnaker, the forecast showed 5-8 knots of wind straight from behind. We want to sail as much as possible as our fuel tanks are not even close to full. By all accounts, this should be an easy, yet slow sail all the way back. Dolphins came out to greet us and send us on our way. The early morning ocean was still as we motored our first 5 hours with no indication that the forecast conditions were on the way.

In the distance, we watched a dark cloud starting to form ahead of us. Then a second appeared. At some stage, they joined, and it got darker. We expected a squall so we put up sails, with our usual second-reefed main and furled genoa.

Then it hit, gusting up to 35 knots with pelting rain. Not an issue, we had been prepared and waiting for it. We were not prepared for how long it would last. It was sometime during the next five hours that we realised – this is coming from NW. This could be a Sumatra squall.

It gave us a slight reprieve early evening, but then hit again that night. We were getting our wish, to sail as much as possible. Due to the shifting winds, the wind vane was not an option and with no engine running, combined with lashing rain, the auto pilot had been packed away. It was hand-steering all the way and sleep was not possible, the boat rolling non-stop. The captain, me, was not permitted (by the crew) to use the head. I had to go in a bucket. Anyone who has tried to pee in a bucket in 30 knots of wind and following swells will know what I'm talking about, this should be an X-Games event.

28 hours – 5 hours of smooth motoring, followed by 23 hours of misery. We packed the spinnaker away. The wind had blown every strength and direction except what the forecast said.

We entered Pulau Raya drenched and tired, but with a feeling of accomplishment and pride. We had made it. We hadn't killed each other. We did it together and stuck it out. This was a test and we had passed. So did Maia, she was the star of the passage and showed her pedigree.

The next day we made our way back up to Seudu and it's welcoming protection. We needed to find a place to look at my laptop which was not powering up, visit the Tsunami Museum, provision, again find diesel, and generally, just rest.

Once this was done and we were ready, we made the pass through the Raya, around the northern tip of Pulau Weh, and back to Rubiah Island. Then on to Sabang to check out and plan our passage back over the Malacca Strait and on to Langkawi.

This would be a straight line and an expected two-night sail. We were able to sail half way in strong to moderate winds, at times reaching 9 knots of boat speed, and then motored the rest of the way, arriving in Langkawi late morning of Day 3...

While motoring, our prop was fouled by a length of discarded rope and the captain, me, had to jump in, at night, and cut it free. Fun times...

This time we encountered less traffic in the shipping lanes and only a handful of fishing vessels as we neared Malaysian waters. We wondered what the weather had been like in the Langkawi area as the seas were very confused and not very comfortable.

Total duration, including passages: 65 days

Distance covered: 1,300 nautical miles

Checking in at Sabang, Banda Aceh, Indonesia

Derek — Sun, 02 Jul 2023 00:00:00 +0000

There was a time, just a few years ago, when the entrance requirements to sail into Asian countries were established and known. Then Covid came and the world shut down. When these countries started to welcome sailors again, they opened their borders with new regulations, costs and conditions, and these would change on a regular basis. Due to this, you can find many interpretations and experiences online regarding the process, and even more opinions about the best way to go about entering. Indonesia is no exception. This is our experience end June 2023.

This post has been updated and uploaded by ourselves on Skipperblogs, a simple and effective way to document sailing adventures, complete with auto-tracking. Check it out at: https://www.skipperblogs.com/

Following the information in our pilot book, we entered Sabang in the evening of day 4, and following the advice of some recent visitors, picked up a mooring ball. There are actually two mooring balls available and we chose the one “furthest” from the “town”. The next day would be an important day in the Muslim calendar so we were not sure if check-in would be possible, fireworks late into the night was a welcome sound as we rested in calm conditions.

The next morning, we went ashore to see of we could find the Harbour Master and check what our options were, and ended up too far west in the bay. Now we had, unknowingly, entered a military area. The soldier on duty tried his best to explain where the Harbour Master is situated, and allowed us to pass. At this stage, he had no idea we had arrived by dinghy, but this would change very soon.

Off we went on our quest to find the right offices. We failed to find the Harbour Master (HM) but knew (from our pilot book) that if we found Customs, then we should find HM a little further down the street. It was during this walk that someone at the military base realised that they were under attack and that a strange and unidentified dinghy had made landfall, occupants now missing and classified as “rogue”. The walk up the hill is spectacular, the road lined and tunnelled by huge trees, the scene made all the more special by sounds of the friendly locals hooting and waving as they passed.

Then a different tone of hooting and some shouting broke the peaceful mood. On a scooter, at the back, is the soldier who let us pass, looking quite agitated, saying: “You need to go back boat now!”. Things had just escalated to Code Red and we started our way back to the base with visions of fines, imprisonment and 8-hour interrogations. Around the fountain and down we went, as fast as possible. As we made it to street level, two scooters now approached, each with only one driver, one in uniform. “We are Indonesian soldier, you come with us”. So we each hopped on a scooter and made our way back to the scene of the landing. On the way I enquired what the problem was, and was told we have to leave the area immediately. When we actually beached our dinghy there was one fisherman repairing his boat, on the beach. Now as we turned the corner, there were at least 8 soldiers waiting for us, but the mood had changed, they found the situation entertaining, that two clueless tourists had launched a successful raid into their secure premises, undetected, was a good laugh and they bid us farewell, sending us back to where we came from.

We get escorted back to our dinghy

But we were not done and so easily discouraged. We still needed to find HM. On the way up to Customs, I had noticed a tower with a spiral staircase which could possibly be close to the offices of HM, so once back on the water, we made our way to this tower. As we neared the area, we saw that there was in fact a floating pontoon where we could tie dinghy up and go ashore. And would you believe it, in front of us, a big blue building, with white letters printed on the roof – HARBOUR MASTER.

Approaching Harbour Master offices after being chased out of military area

We had made it, and learned some important lessons:

When you check into Sabang, do not leave your boat. This seems to be a serious infringement and we were warned that in future, we should refrain from accessing the island before being officially checked in.
Once you arrive, with yellow Q flag flying, call HM on the radio and arrange a time to begin the process.
Anchoring in the bay is in about 24 metres with wind blowing into the bay. We had been advised that there were two yellow moorings available but only saw one. It was this one that we picked up. The moorings are pretty close to land and this land is decorated with other boats that have dragged or broken loose as a result of storms or other unfortunate circumstances.

We enquired at the HM office as to what we should do, and we were asked to return to the boat and await instructions on the radio. By the time we got back to Maia, HM crew had arrived and scheduled us a 9am check-in for the next morning, after taking some photos of some of our documents.

Next morning we headed to the mooring closest to the HM office and tied up. Within two minutes, the first officials were ready to come on board. These were the representatives of the Quarantine Department. They boarded and went down below, and we started the process. Not long into the process, we heard frantic shouting from above somewhere, and we ran up to investigate. Our worst fears... The mooring had broken loose and we were headed for the harbour wall. Got the engine started, the mooring untied from our bow, and prepared to come alongside the rusty Coast Guard vessel, with every fender we could find, and more.

Broken mooring - check out how close to the harbour wall we got

Rafted up to an old Coast Guard vessel

It seems every department will need to check the same batch of documents. If we did not have copies, they took pics with mobile phones, no problems whatsoever. They wanted to see our first-aid kit and check all medication on board. Again, no issues, but they bought to our attention that several items of medication had expired. Then they took a couple of pics of our heads (toilet that is), a couple of selfies (to show they doing their job), and checked our galley area.

A short time later, the official from Immigration arrived and joined us on board. He basically checked the same documents, we filled in some forms and answered some questions. He explained the costs for a 30-day Visa-On-Arrival, and how to extend that visa. We needed to pay the fees into the Immigration account at the nearest bank, so Nix took a short scooter ride to deposit the funds. All the requirements and costs will be listed below. He was also a source of great information and gave Nix some good advice and recommendations.

Once Quarantine had left, Customs arrived, lots of forms were filled in and some more pics and selfies. Most of the departments require you to use a boat stamp on the various documents. We do not have a stamp, and in these cases, allowed us to fingerprint where needed. Customs checked stores, we declared the alcohol we had on board (okay most of it)...

Harbour Master paid a visit while Nix was gone and I dealt with them alone, which was not a problem at all.

The problem I had was this...

When we first picked up a mooring, we were getting ourselves secured so we could do the check-in procedure. Someone had arrived on the Coast Guard vessel and proceeded to shout over that if we needed an agent, he would be our guy. As we were concentrating on getting ourselves sorted, he continued to try get our attention to make sure we understood he was going to be our agent. At some stage in the recent past, you needed an agent to get into Indonesia and these did not have to be official agents, just a local person who could act on your behalf and be your “sponsor”. We told him that if we needed him, we would let him know.

When we had our issues with the mooring ball and approached the vessel to raft up against, there was “Agent” again waiting to let us know he was going to be our guy. As I'm tying lines, I have these non-stop reminders that “I am agent, what you need, where you go tomorrow?”. My nerves at this stage are done and the stresses of nearly losing our boat to a broken mooring, are starting to add up.

As firmly as I could I informed Agent: “Listen, can you please wait, we are trying to tie up our boat?”. If I had a boat hook I would have used it, as would you believe it, it continued. “What time you come tomorrow, I look after you, I am agent”. Again I said: “Can you just wait, stop, if we need you, we will let you know”.

When all these official came on board, they all waited for permission or an invitation to come aboard. When Harbour Master came on board and had a seat, who joins and has a seat with us? Agent... He has come on board and made himself comfortable. The HM hands over a document to me and asks me to please fill in this form. Now, he is sitting across from me so to hand me a form is the easiest thing in the world. But Agent decides he needs to take it from HM and then hand it to me, offering the same instruction.

Now I've had it so I inform HM that I will be with them in a minute, but this guy needs to get off my boat. I explained that he is not an official, I only want to deal with officials, he was not invited to come aboard and needs to go. So I chased him off, no agent was ever needed, and our check-in was nearly done.

A representative from Quarantine arrived with their invoice and we could now take a walk to the bank ourselves to make the deposit. Then we walked up to Customs to complete the vessel declaration. The vessel declaration should be done online before arriving and this is what we did, but the system is not 100% yet so our application was there, but not yet processed. The young lady was friendly and efficient and got it done for us.

We took a mooring at 9am and we walked out of the bank at 12 Noon, so a total of three hours to complete all the formalities. Every single person we dealt with, was friendly, respectful and courteous. It was a great experience with no complaints from our side.

Total cost: 30 days Visa-On-Arrival, for two persons: IDR 1,000 000, which at the time was $66, or $33 each.

Quarantine: IDR 70,000 which works out to $4.62

Documents required:

Port Clearance.

Copies of passports.

Crew list.

Vessel registration.

Proof of vessel declaration (https://vds.beacukai.go.id/)

Actual passports.

Proof of vaccination (Covid).

Physical Items required or checked:

First-Aid kit and medications.

Access to all food stores.

Access to alcohol.

Please note: Our experience with regards to alcohol, is that as long as it is for personal consumption, you will be allowed to visit this “dry” area, where alcohol is not readily available.

We had received information regarding AIS stipulations in Indonesia and warned we would have to show that we had a working AIS system on board. It is possible that we were picked up on their system when entering Sabang, and our unit is clearly visible, but we were never asked anything with regards to AIS.

Apart from the mooring situation and Agent, the whole process was smooth, friendly and pleasant. We look forward to our time here...

This is how we got here:

Welcome - The Search is On

Mon, 12 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Searching for Coconuts pronoun (name or title) example: "they have lost their minds, they must be searching for coconuts" (can also be used to describe two amazingly cool people sailing on their 1976 classic sailboat)

Maia /ma-ee-ya / pronoun (name or title) of a boat unfortunate enough to have the two above individuals as owners (also a Maori term "to be brave". She is a Pacific38 sailboat designed and built by Claude Allen Smith in 1976, by Smith's Boatyard, Whanagrei, New Zealand.

Hey everyone, and welcome to our blog. We are Derek and Nicole, a South African couple starting their sailing adventures in South East Asia, on our new-to-us, forever-home, Maia. Following years of planning and dreaming, we finally found the boat for us, did some upgrades , repairs and services, and together look forward to many years of adventures and experiences.

After some amazing success with offering animated sailing tutorials on YouTube, we are currently documenting our lives and our travels. Your support would be greatly appreciated, and we look forward to sharing this awesome journey with you...