6th October 2013
Sunday 6th October 2013
It was yet another early start to catch the tides and slack water for our arrival at Bali International Marina. I was up at 05:00 with the plan to leave by 05:30. I noticed Perusha was already on the move and clear of the reefs which I took care to notice their route before rousing Susan for her anchor duties. I also called Wolfhound, as requested, to ensure they were up and moving too.
As Susan was weighing anchor, we received a call from Wolfhound to say their crew was incomplete, with Tim having not returned from his overnight shore leave! Tony decided to have a cuppa and give him an hour's grace, after which time he would leave without him. We continued our departure motoring south then southwest, picking our way through the shallows and reefs before setting sail once we were in clear water, with Yantina following soon after us.
Once clear of the hazards of the island, we were confronted with sailing close hauled, on a port tack, with full main and genoa through a regatta of at least a hundred small local one man sailing canoes that were all over the place! It was warm work spotting and shaping a course to avoid so many boats with brightly coloured sails, whose crew were so concentrated as to be unable to wave, to a man.
The wind veered slightly requiring us to tack down toward Benoa Bali such that our first leg only took us as far south as eastern tip of Bali Island. We then went onto a starboard tack heading due south for ten miles, then tacked again to clear the north of Lembongan Island and make the channel down to Benoa Bali. As we made the channel, there were vicious overflows and tidal rips close to Lembongan and we motor-sailed through them at 4.5 knots boat speed through the water, but were showing 9.8 knots Speed Over the Ground!
Yantina had taken us at the last and we followed about a mile behind as she picked up the leading light marks and entered the buoyed channel into the harbour at close to low water. The sides of the main channel were thronged with local fishermen standing in water up to their armpits, fishing with rods and bobbing up and down in the passing wake of pleasure boats that now overtook us on both sides.
We made our berth, just inside the marina, at 16:30 with slack water, low tide. We managed to get the boat washed down with fresh water before attending 'Happy Hour' on Babe and finally being able to relax.