Leaving Ko Chang
It was interesting getting Ar Marg, our enormous chartered Lagoon 450 six-cabin catamaran, out of the tiny Royal Siam Marina on Ko Chang and down the narrow channel to the sea. We had been warned that the regularly shifting sands meant that the navigation markers could not be trusted, so we slowly followed the charter company’s inflatable dinghy as it guided us down the river channel on an intricate zig zagging course. We passed fishermen’s boats and their shacks, some with children waving from the wooden pontoons.
David struggled manfully to keep us in slightly deeper shoals, with the rudder fighting against the slightly mismatched engines. “If you think I’m cutting a corner, shout!” he said, as we coasted round yet another tight bend, trying not to think of the devastation that we would cause if we bumped into any of the rickety pontoon houses.
Eventually we got out of the river and into the estuary, but even here our guide waved for us to follow closely, still navigating an invisibly curving channel under a featureless expanse of water, until we passed the final lighthouse and he gestured us out to sea.
There was precious little wind, but Mirjana and Vananh had been studying their Skipper qualifications, so with a little mentoring they hoisted the sails. We had breakfasted earlier with our usual glass of rakija accompanied by a strong cup of coffee, and once the sails were up, it seemed appropriate to celebrate with another rakija. As we motor-sailed southward along the western shore of Ko Chang, Vananh cooked up a beautiful mushroom omelette. The day started to heat up. Time for a beer.
We dropped anchor for a light lunch and a cooling swim off the south-western tip of the island, and then restarted the engines and struck out for Ko Wai.
Ko Wai
Ko Wai comprises less than two square kilometres of largely undeveloped jungle. There are a handful of resorts, but no cars or motorbikes; the island is known for gentle walking between unspoilt beaches, and snorkelling. The recommended anchorage is near to the more touristy National Park pier in the western bay, but we found a mooring to the north, where we tied up and swam in the clear water and relaxed with a rum and some beers. After a short nap, darkness fell, and we dropped the dinghy from its davits and headed to shore.
There were quite a few rocks in the water, but a buoy marked the safe passage, and we reached the beach without incident. Burying the sand anchor, we walked inland to see if we could find somewhere to eat.
There were two restaurants on the beach, both of which offered seafood, and so we settled down to a fine meal, including a very enjoyable ‘sea fish’ on a platter. The fish dishes are one of our favourite reasons for travelling in this part of the world.
Back on the boat, some more beers and rum, and music and laughter, and eventually we decanted ourselves to bed, more than content with our first day on the water.
Unlike last year, when my berth was out on deck, the crew have this year treated me to my very own cabin in one of the hulls. Old habits die hard, though, so I made up a nest on the trampoline and fell asleep under the stars.
Ivana woke early and came up on deck, so we chatted and drank coffee and watched the dawn, before hosing the decks in preparation for the day. Then Mirjana arose, which heralded the first rakija of the day.
Moving my bedding down into my cabin, I heard a pump running erratically somewhere in the head (all four double cabins are en-suite). I lifted the floors and had a poke around and found a lot of water in the bilge well. There was a new-looking pump which was making a labouring sound, but wasn’t sucking at all. I dismounted the pump, and it was immediately obvious that the pipes were only loosely attached. I reassembled it properly, and the pump gamely pumped all the water out of the well, but then it wouldn’t turn itself off. I couldn’t find a float switch or detector anywhere in the complex nest of piping. The pump started to run really hot, so I pulled off the earth wire and tied it off. Something to monitor in the days ahead.
Back up in the saloon, the crew were making breakfast. We took our time. The temperature rose, and there wasn’t a breath of wind. We found a forecast which said that there wouldn’t be any breeze today, so we enjoying the idle time and went for a swim, before dropping the mooring, starting the engines, and puttering south-eastward to the island group centred on Ko Mak.
