Sailing to Thailand

December 3 - 11, 2007

So far we have sailed only as far as Phuket, Thailand. We will add other sailing experiences as they happen. See our visual course and read below.

December 3 - 4, 2007

Our first day sailing in Thailand was a very short one. We went only a few miles north across the border to Koh Tanga. This island is distant from Phuket, so it gets few visitors other than fishermen. It is also reported to have good diving. It sounded like a good stop. It was, however, a lousy anchorage. It was moderately steep-to, so we had to anchor close to the rocky shore. The current was also holding us stern-to the shore, and we were uncomfortably close. We also rolled far too much to be comfortable. We spent only one night, and we left in the morning.

December 4 - 7, 2007

The following day, we sailed from Koh Tanga to Koh Rok Nok. Koh Rok Nok is the southern partner of Koh Rok Noi. There is a small channel between the two islands that is navigable, and there is anchorage and moorings in and around the channel. We picked up a mooring maintained by the park service that has a small camp on Koh Rok Noi.


	penis shrine

We had read about and seen pictures of the penis shrine on Koh Rok Nok, so that was our first outing on the island. We saw a small monitor lizard (around 2 feet in length) on the beach when we landed, and it appeared quite puny after our experience with the Komodo dragons. The shrine is obvious, colorful, and impossible to miss. It is essentially just a stack of carved wooden penises. Supposedly these are left as offerings from one of the sea gypsy groups. Some of them are large - the size of a grown tree. Others are relatively small - maybe two to three feet in length. Some are painted. All are circumcised.

Our first night at Rok Nok was miserably bumpy and rolly. We probably would have left the following morning, but Nita had slept very little through the night, and she slept late through much of the morning. We decided to snorkel the shallow surrounding reefs then leave the next day.

Numerous fast boats arrived throughout the day with sunburned snorkelers on board. We watched where they went, then we went there after they left. The coral was nice, and the fish were plentiful. The fish are obviously accustomed to being hand fed - they swarm around your hands.

We moved to a different mooring, and our second night at Rok Nok was pleasant. It was so pleasant that we decided to stay a bit longer.


	monitor lizards everywhere

On our third day, we went ashore Koh Rok Noi. The first thing one notices is the tsunami warning system - sirens, signs. Rok Noi was badly hit by the tsunami on December 26, 2004. Then you notice the lizards. There are monitor lizards everywhere! They range from one to three feet in size, and they appear accustomed to humans being nearby. One also notices that the ground appears to be alive. Countless thousands of shells containing hermit crabs are moving around.

Our third night was again bumpy, so we again decided to leave in the morning. This time we mean it!

December 7 - 9, 2007

We had a wonderful sail from Rok Nok to Koh Phi Phi Don. We sailed all day with good winds and occasional mild rain - just enough to rinse off the salt. We even caught a small fish, but it got away before we got it close enough to see what it was.

Phi Phi Don is beautiful. The terrain is spectacular. However, it is also very busy. Power boats travel in and out the channel almost constantly and at high rates of speed. Their wakes make the anchorage barely tolerable. Shortly after anchoring we also had a squall blow over us with 37 knots of wind and further upset the anchorage. We decided to stay on board.


	the view from our stern

The anchorage remained rolly throughout the night, and we considered leaving in the morning. However, we wanted to see the little touristy town on shore, so ashore we went. It was touristy with the usual shops and vendors, and we did not stay ashore long. We went exploring by dinghy and enjoyed the beautiful scenery. Then we went back to the boat for another rolly night.

The following morning we left and headed for Phuket. It was time to visit the federalies and get checked in to the country.

December 9 - 10, 2007

We had a great broad reach from Phi Phi Don to Ao Chalong on the southeast tip of Phuket - the home of one-stop check in for Phuket. We had heard a few horror stories about checking in here, but it was quick and easy. We went next door to the well-known Jimmy's Lighthouse for excellent food and cold beer, then we took a short stroll around town.

Within minutes after returning to the boat, a weather system blew over us and made us very glad that we were on board. It blew hard and poured rain for a few hours. We were very glad that we were not out in our dinghy in it. And within another few hours, all was again quiet. We had a quiet night at anchor and headed toward the marina the next morning.

December 10 - 11, 2007

Our trip from Ao Chalong was a motor boat ride. And when we arrived near the marina, we were just at high tide, and the tide would soon be falling. The channel leading in to Royal Phuket Marina is tide dependent - keel boats can enter or exit only on high tides. It is wise to enter on a rising tide so that if you get grounded, you will probably get floated off as the tide rises (if you get grounded on a falling tide, you could be in a bad situation). We decided to anchor for the night at a small island near the channel - Koh Rang Yai - to wait for the rising tide the next morning.

This turned out to be a particularly pleasant anchorage. A few other boats came and went, but it was mostly quiet and peaceful. There were a few power boats that raced by closer than good manners would dictate, but the anchorage absorbed their wakes well, and it remained comfortable..

In the morning, about two hours before high tide, we headed across the bay toward the channel that would take us in to Royal Phuket Marina - our planned stop for at least a month.

December 11, 2007

Two other keel boats entered the channel ahead of us. We noticed the first one stopped at times, and we assumed that it was bouncing along the silty bottom. The second boat - about twenty minutes behind the first - was progressing well. We were the third boat, and we were about twenty minutes further behind.

We motored very slowly, and we did occasionally drag a bit along the bottom. We got 'stuck' for a few seconds a few times, but a little power pushed us through. We were at least 3/4 of the way in when the boat just in front of us went hard aground and could not get off. They would have to wait for the tide to rise a bit more. We commiserated with them as we passed, and we were aground within less than 100 yards. The boat behind floated free, and so did we within ten minutes or so We were relieved to get inside the marina where there are adequate depths to stay afloat at all tides.

So here we are in Royal Phuket Marina. We will be here for at least a month, then we will head out to cruise the western islands off Phuket. Those stories will be for another update at a later time...