Blue Moon update!

Sorry for another really long delay in updating this site but our situation changed rapidly a couple of months ago so it's gotten a bit neglected. Instead of being in the Canary Islands right now, with us preparing for an Atlantic crossing, Blue Moon is out of the water in dry storage at Yacht Marine in Marmaris, Turkey.

We decided to leave the boat for the winter season in the Mediterranean and return back to her in May of 2011 to continue on. We're both currently in Orlando, Florida staying with Jimmy's family and Enjoying the luxuries of living on land.

Ormos Vathi ~ Sifnos Island, Greece

Current Position at anchor: North 36*55'846 East 024*41'400 ~ Great enclosed anchorage, good holding in 20ft sand & Weed.

We're currently anchored in yet another beautiful bay off the village of Vathi on the South West coast of Sifnos Island. The water is crystal clear with visibility of over 100 feet making it a perfect place for swimming and watching the fish! Ashore there's a lovely little village with two mini markets for getting basic provisions and a long beach fringed with Tavernas selling everything from Octopus to Greek meat balls.

Yesterday we caught the local bus to the town of Apollonia high up in the hills for a look around the winding alleys and beautiful views of the coast line. We stopped in a Taverna for a drink sitting outside under a blanket of winding vine leaves and enjoying a break from the baking sun! This morning we've been catching up on boat chores, doing laundry and filling up with water from small dock (cost 1.50 euro for two runs with our Jerry cans). Later today we plan to sail to the island of Kimolos just 12 miles to the South West of here and then on to Milos tomorrow.

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Paroikia town, paros Island ~ Greece

Current Position at anchor: North 37*05'412 East 025*09'227 ~ Very good anchorage, large bay off town with sand/weed bottom good holding.

Paroikia Town is on the north west coast of Paros island and is extremely pretty and steeped in history. It's home to the Katapoliani 'the church of the hundred doors', a beautiful Greek Orthodox building containing three churches in one and well worth a visit. The town dates back to the 13th century and the old quarter or 'Kastro' is a maze of intricate little alleyways and home to some great boutique shops and Restaurants. We even found a small catholic church and were able to attend Sunday mass the first time since Singapore over a year ago!

We've been here two days now and have enjoyed idling away the days wandering the streets window shopping and people watching. There are two small supermarkets both owned by the same company where we've been able to reprovision with all the basics...more expensive than Turkey but reasonable enough! Today we are going to make the most of what little wind we have and try to sail the 22 miles to Ormos Vathi on Sifnos Island.

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Naxos Island.

Current Position at anchor: North 36*56'119 East 025*28'263 ~ Great anchorage in 15 feet with all sand bottom, crystal clear water and small quay where water and power is available.

Today we sailed another 20 miles to the South East with a lot more wind than the forecast predicted, 25-30 knots on the beam made for a pretty bumpy ride but at least it's given us our sea legs back after months of taking it easy. We dropped anchor in yet another beautiful anchorage on the south side of Naxos Island, surrounded by golden coloured hills full of sheep and picture perfect little white and blue houses and chapel. We're enjoying having another anchorage completely to our selves and can hardly believe this is high season in Greece...no complaints here!

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Dhenoussa Island.

Current Position at anchor: North 37*05'772 East 025*48'238 ~ Anchored in 20 feet sandy bottom, great holding.

Yesterday we decided to make the most of the Meltemi winds (strong winds that blow from the North West here in Greece) and sail the 38 miles South West of Patmos island to the small island of Dhenoussa. We're currently anchored off a beautiful sandy beach on the south coast covered in tents belonging to Greek holiday makers who catch the ferry over and spend a few days camped out on the beach.

Today the wind has been gusting up to 30 knots so we've stayed on the boat to keep anchor watch with the occasional swim to cool off. Tomorrow we plan to head further south to Naxos island and some of the smaller less visited islands below it and then on to Paros and Sifnos, we have no real time deadlines to be anywhere so we'll just take it slow and do some exploring!

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Patmos Island ~ Greece!

Current Position at Ormos Stavros, Patmos Island: North 37*17'583 East 026*32'569
Last night's anchorage at Skala, Patmos Island: North 37*19'648 East 026*32'701
First anchorage in Greece on Lipso Island: North 37*16'787 East 026*46'199

Our entrance into Greece two days ago was extremely smooth and enjoyable, after leaving Bitez in Turkey we sailed 30 miles North West to the island of Lipso. The anchorage is beautiful with great holding in sand and picturesque white buildings lining the hills overlooking the bay. The next morning we had a great sail 12 miles to the town of Skala on the island of Patmos where after anchoring we headed ashore to check in. Straight away we could tell we were in another country with Tavernas and pretty little shops lining the winding alleyways with beautiful white washed walls that are so common here in Greece.

The check in process was quick and easy; first we visited the Police to check in with immigration, they gave us a form to take downstairs to Customs who charged us 30 Euros for a cruising log to be filled in at every port we visit. Then on to the Port authority who checked our boat papers and charged us 15 Euros for entering the country, they filled in our first entry of our cruising log and also charged an 11 Euro fee for spending three days in the port. Within half an hour we were all checked in to the EU and we're surprised at how simple it was after hearing not such good reports from other cruisers.

This morning however we were asked to move from where we were anchored as a large ship was coming into the port, instead of tying up to the town dock as offered we decided to move south to another beautiful anchorage called Ormos Stavros. We're currently anchored beneath a lone Monastery perched on the hill side and have the place all to ourselves...beautiful. There's even the wreck of an old airplane that crashed during the war just a short swim from us that we can explore snorkeling...so far we're loving Greece!!

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Goodbye Turkey!

Today we are upping anchor and leaving Turkey after three wonderful months of exploring the beautiful coastline from Fethiye to Asin Liman. We've spent the last month around the Bodrum area with an inland trip to the ancient ruins of Ephesus and another quick trip home to England for Caroline to replace an already full passport.
We'll be sad to leave Turkey and it's beautiful rugged anchorages and incredibly warm and welcoming people but it's time to move on and we're excited to see what Greece has to offer!
Our first stop will be the island of Leros in the Dodecanese and then on to Patmos the following day to check in and start our three months in European waters.

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Datca to Yalikavak - Turkish west coast.

Current position at anchor in Yalikavak Bay: North 37*07'061 East 027*16'218

Previous anchor Position at - Kefaluka Beach: North 36*57'862 East 027*17'140 - anchored in 17 feet with sandy bottom and tourist resorts ashore.
Bitez Village: North 37*01'468 East 027*22'843 - Great spot to visit Bodrum by Dolmus, anchored in 30 feet sand good holding.
Kalaboshi Bay: North 36*41'054 East 027*34'419 - Beautiful little bay with lovely restaurants ashore, anchored 10 feet in sand.
Datca Town: North 36*43'201 East 027*41'369 - Good town with all provisions, water on dock, anchored in 30 feet sand & weed.

The last ten days we've spent slowly cruising our way up the Western coast of Turkey. We're currently anchored in a beautiful little bay with clear water and a great swimming beach with hiking trails leading into the hills behind. Last night we had the bay to ourselves which has been a first in Turkey so we plan to make the most of it and spend a few days here! Today we'll take our dinghy across to the southern side of the bay to the marina off Yalikavak Village to take a look around and pick up some provisions.

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Bozuk Buku

Current Position at anchor: North 36*34'497 East 028*00'651

Three days ago we upped anchor and said goodbye to Marmaris harbour heading just 20 miles west along the coast to the beautiful anchorage of Bozuk Buku. A deep bay cut into the spectacular rugged mountains, we anchored in 30 feet in a sandy patch between the sea weed that coats the bottom and relaxed into a few days of Hiking, swimming and reading. We'd almost forgotten what it was like to be away from civilisation and to just take it easy for a few days.

At the entrance of the bay stands the huge remains of a citadel high on a hill so yesterday we packed a lunch and went ashore to hike along the rocky donkey and goat trails to do some exploring. The views from the top were beautiful and we found a great spot in the shade of an olive tree to take a break and eat our packed lunch. It's quite surprising how clear the water is here in Turkey, a beautiful deep sapphire blue colour that really stands out from the dusty brown of the hills. The temperature of the water still holds a lot to be desired though and back at the boat it took an inch by inch process to finally get into...very refreshing after a long walk though!

Tomorrow we plan to leave here and head up the coast to the town of Datca to pick up some fresh provisions and then carry on to the historic site at Knidos the following day.

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Marmaris Harbour, Southern Turkey

Current Position at anchor: North 36*51'023 East 028*16'062

Sorry for being pretty slack at keeping up with updates over the past couple of weeks but we're back on track after a quick visit home by me and then a family visit topped off with a bout of the flu that knocked us down for a couple of days! On my return from the UK we sailed Blue Moon 50 miles west along the coast from Fethiye and are now anchored in Marmaris harbour off the town Quay.

My mum flew in for a visit staying at a local hotel here in Marmaris so we enjoyed a week of exploring (mostly shops and markets...mums favourites!) and have gotten to know the main town and it's smaller neighbouring villages almost by heart. We spent one day on a jeep safari which resulted in us getting soaking wet, thanks to the Brits with water pistols, but found it a great way to see some of the country side we tend to miss with our usual short excursions on foot from the boat.

Marmaris is a lot more touristy than Fethiye with rows of hotels fringing the harbour beaches, but it still holds a lot of the Turkish charm. With small winding alleyways snaking their way around the old castle that sits over the harbour and creating a labyrinth of tiny shops selling anything and everything. From fake designer clothes and bags to Turkish trinkets and carpets It's all available and if something your looking for isn't at hand it can all be found for a price!

Pretty cafes with a blissful aroma of Turkish coffee wafting out onto the street are dotted everywhere and a great place to try out the hugely popular apple tea or just sit and watch the games of dominoes that seem to be continuously taking place. The harbour wall is packed with traditional Turkish wooden sail boats called 'Gullets' that shine with all their brightly varnished hulls and take tourists by the bus loads on tours of the bay.

It's also been great while we're here to catch up with some friends, Mark and Nicole, that we haven't seen since Oman on board their yacht 'Sea life' for a lovely Roast dinner (proving that Aussies can cook a roast as well as us English!) and to swap Red Sea Stories and plans for the trip across the med.

In a couple of days we plan to up anchor and start slowly cruising up the west coast of Turkey before jumping over to the Greek Islands next month. Not sure yet where we'll stop but we'll keep one eye on the weather and the other on our cruising guide and take it from there!

Taking some down time!

Just a quick update as Blue Moon is still at anchor in Fethiye but Jimmy is currently alone onboard. I've flown home to England for a week to attend my Grandmothers funeral and will return to Turkey on Wednesday. My mum has flown out to Marmaris in Turkey just 50nm from Fethiye so on my return we'll sail around and meet up with them for a week. Jimmy is hard at work repairing winches and generally getting the boat back in shape for this season!

Fethiye ~ Turkey.

Current Position at anchor: North 36*37'434 East 029*05'764

Well we made it to Turkey arriving yesterday afternoon in Fethiye harbour on the south western coast and are really loving it! We can't believe what the landscape looks like - high mountains all around (even some with snow on the caps)and pine trees covering the hills - the smell is wonderful - we both thought we lost our noses in the desert so it's a treat for the senses and so beautiful. Blue Moon is happily sat at anchor in 40 feet of water, Fethiye is a natural enclosed harbour so it feels like we're on a lake high up in the mountains!

We spent today walking around the town getting our bearings, it's a pretty big place with lots of great Cafes and Restaurants and little back alleys of shops to get lost in. The people are really nice and very laid back and it's great not to get hassled to buy things at every turn! The temperature here is a lot colder than we've had for a long time so we're getting used to wearing long trousers and fleeces again. The good thing is summer is coming so it's just going to get warmer each month but to be honest it's quite lovely to wrap up for a change! We plan to stay here for a week or so and then hop along the coast to the bigger town of Marmaris to the west, our visa lasts for three months and if our first stop is anything to go by we'll probably stay and cruise the coast for the duration.

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Suez transit complete ~ We're in the Med!

Current Position @ 13:00 GMT: North 31*23'486 East 032*19'428

We have just completed our transit of the second half of the Suez canal and are now very happy to say that we are officially in the Mediterranean Sea! We left Ismailia Marina at 5am this morning and we were lucky to get another really nice pilot so easy going the whole way. It's now 3pm and we are making our way through the shipping anchorage just outside the canal entrance with 352 miles to go to Fethiye on the south western side of Turkey. We're in company with one other yacht called 'Equinox' from Scotland who are heading West of our destination to Rhodes in Greece. The weather looks pretty good although it's hard to get a good prediction in the Med but fingers crossed we will finally be able to switch of the engine and just sail (hopefully we haven't forgotten how to do this as it's been so long!).

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Suez Canal, Ismailia - Egypt

We're currently tied up to the Ismailia Marina half way through the Suez canal and waiting for good weather in the Med to keep going. Our trip up to Port Suez was pretty eventful with oil rigs and heavy shipping to contend with along with 25 knots of wind right on our nose. On arrival at the Port Suez yacht club we were met by our agent from Felix Maratime and the measurer was scheduled for the same afternoon. All went very smoothly until the question of fees arose and then as always in Egypt everything became very difficult.

Baksheesh is a way of life here and everyone is constantly asking us for money, whether it's buying groceries at the supermarket or catching a bus 'everyone' wants a tip. However they also try to sneak in extra costs when they think you don't realise and this is what happened with out canal transit fees. Jimmy had already worked out with the measurer how much the cost would be but when Felix came back with the bill an exta $50 had been added on out of nowhere. After a lot of arguing and many comments about how they didn't like Americans the agents finally agreed to the correct price and we made our transit the following day.

Our pilot was a really nice guy and we actually enjoyed the first half of the canal with a relaxing atmosphere. Arriving at the Ismalia marina however, he did ask for extra money of which we expected and so we gave him $10 and he left with a lot more ease than other pilots!

Jimmy's birthday was on the 20th so we took a trip into Cairo to see the Pyramids and the Egyptian Museum. We spent two nights in a great hotel called 'City View' overlooking the museum and enjoyed wandering the busy streets of Cairo and generally taking a break from the boat. We had a really nice taxi driver from Ismalia 'Mohammed Imbaby' come and pick us up on our last day and take us to the Pyramids and then back to the marina. Now we're waiting for the weather to calm down so we can make our transit through the second part of the canal and then on to Fetiye in Turkey some 375 miles away.

Hurghada Marina to Port Suez.

Current Position @ 15:20 GMT: North 27*58'809 East 033*36'973

We've spent the last five days moored up in Hurghada Marina, Hurghada is a large tourist town full of shops selling every kind of Egyptian souvenirs that you could possibly imagine! Despite the constant hassle we got from people trying to sell us miniature sphinxes and Mummy figurines we really enjoyed being back in civilization and being able to restock on fresh food at the local markets and cheap food in the restaurants. Hurghada is a Mecca for Russian package holidays which makes for an interesting mix of people but not necessarily in a good way. Egypt has one of the more reserved Muslim populations we've seen so far and drunken scantily clad Russians just don't seem to blend in so well!

Early this morning we dropped our lines and left the marina and are now underway to Port Suez where we'll begin the procedures to transit the Suez canal. We're sailing in company with one other yacht 'Wild Card' with Carolyn and Fatty Goodlander on board and hope to arrive in two days time. We have very little wind and are currently weaving our way through the fields of oil platforms that litter this area.

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Port Ghalib ~ Checked into Egypt

Current Position @ 17:00 GMT: North 25*31'719 East 034*38'146

After a pretty rough trip over night last night we are now moored up in a four star resort complex in the middle of the desert and are checked into Egypt... 'wow' from one extreme to another. We arrived at 3pm and pulled up to the customs dock where the check in process took roughly an hour and cost $100 US, very smooth and easy. Now we are med moored inside a really nice complex which seems a million miles away from the isolation we just came from. We have to check weather in the morning to figure out when the next window is to leave but it looks like we'll be enjoying the facilities for the next couple of days at least!

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Swimming with Dolphins at Dolphin Reef!

Current Position @ 16:00 GMT on 4/4/2010: North 24*24'790 East 035*32'745

Today we had a very special easter as it was spent swimming with a pod of dolphins at Dolphin Reef off the coast of Egypt. We arrived at 9am and wound our way through the mine field of coral heads to anchor in 30 feet of crystal clear water. Just over an hour later we were in the water with a large pod of bottle nose dolphins who appear to just hang out inside the reef. They seemed quite happy to be accompanied by human swimmers and even came up close to have a better look...magical!

Unfortunately we'd made the tough decision to head back out to sea and sail further up the coast for another over night to Port Ghalib just spending 7 hours at the reef. We're currently motoring into northerly winds and choppy seas wondering why we didn't stop for a couple of days and make the most of the opportunity. The hard part of sailing up the Red Sea is to know when to stop and when to keep going on a good weather window but this time we think we've probably made the wrong decision as we sit and relive the days events!

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Crossing Foul Bay ~ Great Sail!

Current Position: North 23*04'061 East 036*21'191

Yesterday we made a short hop 10 miles up to Marsa Umbeila a beautiful anchorage but didn't enjoy it for long as at 3am this morning we were up and back underway. The winds have turned to the east at 15 knots and we're now having one of our best sails ~ averaging around 7 knots with calm seas and a beam reach. We didn't expect to get these kind of conditions this far north in the Red Sea but we're certainly not complaining. At this rate we'll have to reef down overnight to go a little slower allowing us to arrive at Dolphin Reef with enough light in the early morning. Fingers crossed Dolphin reef holds up to it's name and we get to swim Dolphins for the first time!

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Marsa El Marob ~ Sudanese Coast

Current Position: North 21*50'192 East 36*51'527

The winds have filled in stronger from the north so we've been forced to pull into a 'Marsa' which is basically an inlet in the desert that opens into a protected bay through a long winding channel. It's pretty strange to be anchored in the Nubian desert with camels walking by and high mountains in the distance shrouded by a dusty haze from all the sand that's blown around. Today we took the dinghy ashore to climb the dunes and enjoyed the beautiful views of the nothingness that seems to go on forever. The coral reef in the pass is some of the best we've seen in a very long time but the water is starting to get much colder the further north we head so it's finally time to pull out the wet suites.

We had some excitement later today when a military boat (with machine gun mounted on the front deck and men in plain clothes) arrived out of nowhere and instead of informing us of it's presence attempted to pull alongside in 30 knots of winds and almost ripped out the side of Blue Moon with it's bow. Luckily Jimmy noticed them just in time to fend off which resulted in one of our metal stanchions being completely bent back. However, they didn't learn the first time and thus came around the other side and tried the same thing, it took five of us to fend off and eventually with a lot of shouting (from our side) we managed to convince them this wasn't a good idea! All the time we were wondering who these guys were and why are they trying to board us. Luckily a small fishing boat was nearby and it was called upon to pick up and deliver the 'officials'. They turned out to be really nice guys who are part of the Sudanese border security force and just wanted to see our paperwork but who obviously don't get much practice in boat maneuvering or international relations!!

Tomorrow the weather forecast is a lot more promising so we plan to head back out and make a jump 30 miles further north to another Marsa and then an overnight passage the following day across Foul Bay to Dolphin Reef...weather permitting!

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Heading North along Sudanese Coast ~ Wreck Recovery Anchorage

Current Position: North 21*01'071 East 037*18'410

We left Port Suakin three days ago after enjoying a great stop in a really interesting Sudanese town, literally like stepping back in time with donkey carts and goats everywhere!! A group of us took the hour long bus trip into Port Sudan for a look around a bigger city and to restock on fresh meat and vegetables. The Sudanese people are extremely friendly and we got nothing but warm smiles and words of welcome everywhere we went. The only down side is that it's an expensive country to check into for a short period of time at US$130 but well worth the cultural experience.

Now we're back underway and slowly making some distance north, we have to wait for low winds and move in the mornings or over night as the afternoon seems to be the most windy. We're currently anchored behind a reef in 'Wreck Recovery anchorage' and plan to head out tomorrow morning and see how far we can get. The coast line here consists of pretty much desert with high mountains in the distance, occasionally we've seen a tent or small village but otherwise there seems to be very little sign of life but very spectacular!

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Shab Teeta ~ Shubuk Channel

Current Position: North 18*45'906 East 037*36'877

Yesterday we made the hop 55 miles north and are now anchored behind Shab Teeta island at the eastern end of the Shubuk Channel. The Shubuk Channel is a pass through a reef system along the coast that will allow us to motor through with flat calm seas. Today we plan to head 30 miles north to Port Suakin but at the moment we have to wait for better visibility as it's poring down with rain...very unexpected!!

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Khor Nawarat ~ Sudan

Current Position: North 18*15'067 East 038*19'722

After an over night sail from Massawa in Eritrea we stopped to anchor behind a small group of island called Khor Nawarat and have been here ever since! The northerly winds filled in at 25-30 knots making it impossible for us to make the next jump 50 miles north of here to Long island. We are now in Sudan and roughly a third of the way up the Red Sea, the islands here are very dry and flat but we've been able to catch fish from the dinghy and pick clams from the sand at the waters edge. We are here with six other yachts and have been meeting ashore every evening to light a bonfire and cook whatever we've caught during the day.

It looks like tomorrow the wind will lessen enough for us to make a push north and we're hoping to be in Port Suakin in a couple of days. From Suakin we'll catch a bus to Port Sudan to restock our food supplies and take a look around the old city.

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Massawa, Eritrea.

Current Position: North 15*36'676 East 39*28'292

We've been anchored here in the Port of Massawa for five days and have just gotten back from an inland trip to Eritrea's capital 'Asmara'. It cost us one US dollar to ride the four hour bus trip up through Eritrea's mountain range rising up from the African desert. For around forty five years Eritrea was colonised by the Italians ending in 1941 but the culture and architecture is still very prominent making Asmara a beautiful old city. On sunday we rode the refurbished Eritrean Steam railway from Asmara to the village of Nefasit winding through spectacular scenery and a real treat that we least expected!

Our plan now is to sail north tonight to try and make the 180 miles to Khor Nawarat before the next set of Northerly winds set in.

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Mersa Dudo

Current Position: North 13*51'925 East 041*54'525

We sailed another 24 miles up the coast of Eritrea today and are now anchored off Mersa Dudo on the mainland. The headland looks like a Mars Scape with red sandy hills and a dormant volcano. A group of fishermen live in a few huts made of rocks at one end of the beach and they've already visited us on their skiff asking for cigarettes, food and water. We gave them a small pack of biscuits and a couple of Oranges of which they seemed to be more excited about the latter, I guess fresh fruit is hard to come by out here!

The wind is howling down through the anchorage and blowing over 30 knots at times which is considerably more than off shore. It was a bit unexpected so we've opted against climbing the volcano as planned and have been stuck on the boat most of the afternoon. Tomorrow we plan to make an overnight trip towards the town of Massawa and decide along the way where to stop the following night. We're in company with five other yachts at the moment but it looks like we may be parting company with a couple of them tomorrow.

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Dannabah island ~ Heading North

Current Position: North 13*40'012 East 042*10'476

Today we sailed 55 miles north from our last anchorage with South Easterly winds reaching over 30 knots. Our first choice of an anchorage at a headland called Ras Terma had to be abandoned as the hills acted as a wind funnel and we were hit by a sand storm with winds reaching 45 knots. Our current location is off a low lying island and is a lot more comfortable although we still have plenty wind but much calmer seas. We caught our first Red Sea fish today a medium sized Yellow fin Tuna but have also already lost three of our lures to much larger fish...very frustrating!

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Through the Bab El Mandeb and In the Red Sea!

Current Position at anchor: North 12*58'205 East 42*50'381

We're currently anchored off a small Eritrean island in the Lahaleb Desert just forty miles inside the Red Sea. Passing through the straights yesterday we had to motor sail across the shipping channel and are now on the African coast. The winds have picked up from the south so we plan to leave here tomorrow and then decide how far we will go depending on the conditions.

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Ras Al Arah, Yemen ~ Aden to the Bab el Mandeb straights.

Current Position: North 12*37'818 East 43*54'699

Yesterday afternoon we left the Port of Aden after a really enjoyable stay and are now anchored off the village of Ras Al Arah seventy miles to the south. This will be our last stop before passing through the Bab el Mandeb straights and into the southern part of the Red Sea. The Yemeni coast line is pretty spectacular with sandy mountains fringing the water and small fishing villages scattered in what seems the middle of nowhere! We've been approached by a lot of fishermen in skiffs and they all seem extremely friendly and are willing to trade fish for food, cans of coke or cigarettes.

We plan to wait here until Saturday when we should have more favourable southerly winds to help us through the straights and then on to the town of Massawa in Eritrea about 300 miles north on the African coast. We're traveling in company with three other yachts which is a much more comfortable group compared to the twenty seven we arrived in Aden with!

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In Aden, Yemen!

Position at anchor in the Port of Aden: North 12*47'555 East 044*58'839

We arrived in Aden two days ago safe and sound after a pretty eventful Motor sail from Salalah in Oman. In total we heard five different attempted pirate attacks over the VHF radio and on our last night out we ran into a huge area of fishing nets resulting in a lot of boats getting caught up. It was a big relief to drop anchor in Aden's protected harbour and we've been enjoying the fascinating sights and sounds of this old city since the moment we first stepped foot ashore.

The checking in process was extremely quick and costs nothing for the first seven days which is a big difference from the expense of Oman. We now have to replace all our batteries onboard as we've been struggling with them since Thailand and want to make sure they are good for the long trip up the Red Sea. Luckily we're managing to mix work with being tourists as Aden is such an interesting place and hasn't changed at all in the last eight years.

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News from Pirate Alley!

We have just heard over the radio a pirate attack taking place 60 miles ahead of us along the Yemen Coast!! A small Korean tanker called 'Brocolli 1' (strange name) had a skiff with 10 somali's on board with AK 47's try and board them with a ladder. One of the pirates fell into the water and the skiff moved off to retrieve him loosing the ladder in the process, all the time the crew of the tanker were screaming out for help on the radio to a US coalition war ship which was heading for them under full speed (very scary to hear so close to us). We've been listening as the tanker directed the war ship towards the skiff that was chasing them a mile behind. The last we just heard is that another American war ship also showed up and the original one asked them to stay out of they're line of fire. Obviously we are just hearing what is being said on the radio and not sure what the outcome is yet.

Our Convoy leader has called the War ship and alerted them to the fact that 27 yachts are heading in their direction and need to know the eventual outcome of attack...If the skiff is not apprehended then it could be a threat to us! Hopefully we will hear soon but it seems that the war ships often let the pirates go unless they catch them actually on board the ship. We're all pretty surprised that this is taking place so close to the Yemen coast as we thought it would be much safer over here. We've been advised to keep a good look out and stay in a tight formation so that's exactly what we're doing!

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Underway to Aden, Yemen.

We're currently underway to the town of Aden in Yemen and are sailing with a group of 26 yachts for safety purposes as we are passing through the Gulf of Aden and the high risk pirate area. We have current against us and are motoring along at 4 knots, it's quite an impressive sight to see so many yachts sailing together in a tight group but obviously it has it's disadvantages as well. We're at the front of the group so enjoying some space but with 26 captains all having their own ideas on speeds and distances there's never a dull moment on the radio!

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Salalah Port, Oman.

We arrived yesterday afternoon in the port of Salalah in Southern Oman, It's a pretty small anchorage tucked away in the back of the huge port and with around 30 yachts here it's pretty tight! Most of us have had to put out stern anchors and then take two lines to shore to tie around boulders on the sea wall. We're surrounded by dry dusty mountains and a spectacular cliffed coast which is such a contrast from where we've spent our last year in Asia...welcome to the Middle East!!
Yesterday evening we walked out of the port to the aptly named Oasis Bar where they sell great steaks and pints of beer on tap...in a dry Muslim country that's pretty impressive! Over the next couple of days we plan to hire a car and explore the city of Salalah and the surrounding area, it will be quite interesting to see how much it's changed in the eight years since I was last here. The checking in process is extremely smooth and easy although pretty expensive at $161 US dollars in and out.

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Storm Sailing!

We've had a pretty interesting 48 hours as two nights ago due to a storm that came off Oman we were hit with the 35 knots and 3 meter seas (with many that we're much higher!) that the boats ahead of us were reporting. It was one of the roughest 24 hours we've had as the waves were hitting us from the side and pretty much breaking over the boat...very exciting.

Blue Moon performed fantastically though and we pushed on through without any problems except for a few leaks, us having complete lack of sleep and the odd bruise here and there. Last night the seas dropped enough for us to get some rest and by this morning the worse had passed over and believe it or not it's now flat calm and we're motoring ~ from one extreme to another!

We now have just 58 miles to go to port so should arrive first thing tomorrow morning.

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Rough Conditions!

The weather has done a complete switch and gone from flat glassy calm with us having to motor, to rough and squally conditions in which we're making 6 knots with a tiny amount of sail up and no sign of it letting up any time soon. We've heard boats ahead reporting of constant 35 knot winds and 3 meter seas so it looks like we're in for a wet night! We still have 255 miles to go and should be arriving in a couple of days at this speed, the good news is that the pirates supposedly don't come out in bad weather so one less thing to worry about!

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Motoring along.

We've been lucky enough to have had a great sail so far but this morning the wind has dropped off and we're having to motor along. Luckily the seas are nice and calm so it's very comfortable, with any luck the wind will fill back in tonight but the weather forecast doesn't look to promising. With 489 miles to go we should be arriving in about five days time if we keep this pace. All is well on board and we're enjoying catching up on some reading and are still feasting on the fish we caught two days ago!

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Crossing the Arabian Sea!

We're having a great sail with winds out of the North East at 12-15 knots and we're making about 120 miles a day. The seas have stayed calm so it's been a really comfortable trip so far but we still have around 840 miles to go. It's been calm enough to watch movies on our watches and we've only had to move out of the way of one ship so far...big difference from our last trip!

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Underway again!

We're back at sea and underway to Oman, the weather has been great so far with 10-12 knots of wind out of the north and we're skipping along at 5 knots. With 1100 miles to go we're settling in for at least another ten days underway and keeping our fingers crossed we don't meet any stray pirates along the way!! I won't be posting our position of this trip or the next until we arrive in Yemen as we've been asked not to while being involved with our daily radio net. The organisers are using a code for our positions which they feel may be put at risk if we submit our position to the internet...I guess this means we really are in pirate territory now although we're a little more worried about container ships not running lights at night than the pirates themselves!

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The Maldives ~ Enjoying Paradise!

We've been anchored here off the beautiful Uligan Island in the Maldives for four days now and are enjoying all the peace and tranquillity of island life once again. Blue Moon is sitting in 12 feet of the clearest turquoise water we've seen in a very long time and surrounded by fantastic coral reef bustling with tropical fish. On Monday we took a boat trip with 18 other cruisers to visit some of the other islands in the atoll (as we can't move our own boats) and spent a relaxing day getting to know everyone in the anchorage. Last night the locals arranged a Pot Luck Dinner on the beach where they cooked up a bunch of fresh fish on the BBQ and sang and danced to traditional music.

The Maldivians are extremely friendly people and our agent 'Imad' has done everything possible to make visiting here as smooth and easy as possible. We've been able to buy fuel at $1.20 a liter and water from the village Well is free. There are a few very small shops in the village where you can buy fresh fruit and vegetables and sliced white bread. Checking in and out is really easy and free for the first 72 hours after which you have to hire the agent which costs $20 US for a further 15 days and another $10 when you check out. We plan to stay until Sunday and then head on to Oman...that's if we can pull ourselves away from all the great snorkeling!!

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We made it! ~ At anchor off Uligan island in the Maldives.

Current Position at Anchor: North 07*05'041 East 072*55'161

We are now very happily anchored within the reefs of Ihavandiffulu Atoll behind Uligan island in the far northern Maldives. We spent the last 24 hours motoring as the wind dropped off completely but took the opportunity to run the water maker and made 75 Gallons of fresh water. The islands are really beautiful circled by white sandy beaches and covered in palm trees, not much has changed in the eight years since I was here last except of course two cell phone towers have cropped up! There are 15 other yachts anchored here and we're looking forward to catching up with everyone tomorrow.

Tonight we plan to cook a nice dinner, have a glass of wine and enjoy a great nights sleep...

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Day 11 ~ Thailand to the Maldives: Calm weather at last!

Our current position @ 02:39 GMT: North 06*55'513 East 075*01'805 Course: 274*T Wind: North East 5 knots Miles to go: 124 (hurray)

The weather has changed considerably over the past 24 hours and we've gone from having 30 knots of wind to almost nothing! We had a great sail during the night as the winds decreased to a steady 15 knots and we made great time as we also have a 2 knot current with us. This evening however, the wind has dropped off completely and we finally had to give in and start the engine. Although it's painful to have to burn fuel I have to admit it's a relief to finally get flat calm seas and be able to function normally again. Everything that had flown out of cupboards and off shelves has been put back in place and the boat no longer looks like a battle field! We're looking forward to being able to keep regular 3 hour watches tonight so we can catch up on sleep and make water while we motor to refill the tanks.

Tomorrow we have to break out the fishing rods and start catching some food as we used the last of our fresh meat today. It's been too rough to try before so we're really looking forward to feasting on fresh fish especially as we haven't caught anything since Australia due to the over fishing in Asia...lets just hope we get lucky!

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Passing the Southern Cape of India ~ Blowing a gale!

Current Position @ 02:18 GMT: North 06*28'243 East 077*41'203 Course: 278*T Speed: 7-8 knots

Another exciting day on board Blue Moon as the wind has picked up to a consistently strong 25-30 knots from the North. The waves have doubled their size and are breaking against our hull making a very wet and uncomfortable sail. We've reefed the sails down to almost nothing and are still maintaining speeds around 8 knots as we pass the southern tip of India. We're constantly battling the endless stream of shipping that runs in this area and calling the massive ships on a regular basis to make sure they can see us on their radar, most are friendly and are happy to alter course if neccessary but trying to understand the different accents of the radio operators is pretty confusing...should make for an interesting night!

..282 nautical miles to Uligan in the Maldives!

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Running the Gauntlet ~ Past Sri Lanka.

Current Position @ 01:20 GMT: North 05*57'099 East 080*06.042 Course: 279* With 425nm to the Maldives.

We've had a hair raising 36 hours with squalls bringing winds of 35 knots and a few more near misses with the odd container ship. This morning we started our pass below the south coast of Sri Lanka in the dark and spent frustrating hours avoiding fishing boats looking for hand outs and staying out of the major shipping channel. By the time the sun came up we were finally having a great sail and with a 3 knot current helping us along the way.

To bring tensions on board up to a whole new level this morning however, we had the least expected near collision of all. While looking for obstacles above the water we were suddenly faced with a major one from below. As we sailed ten miles off the coast we spotted a whale bigger than the boat off to our starboard side, while enjoying the sight we were suddenly struck into panic mode as it diverted course and headed straight for us. It then dove down under our hull and appeared to be rising up from below, Jimmy was able to grab the helm and turn us 90 degrees just in time for it surface and slap it's tail with a huge crash right where are stern had been moments before. The whale then continued on the way just as if nothing had happened, why it decided to target us we have no idea but we're thanking our lucky stars we still have our rudder attached and we'll be keeping a better watch in 'all' directions from now on!!

It's now evening and we've left Sri Lanka 10 miles on our stern and are on course for our final run to the Maldives...with just one more Gauntlet to run we have to cross over the shipping channel that runs north up the coast of India. Once again we're doing it at night but with the help of another cruising yacht who have an AIS receiver on board allowing them to track the course of the ships (much like an air traffic controllers screen) it's making it a lot easier for us to avoid a collision. Hopefully tomorrow will bring a more relaxing day and the chance to finally catch up on some sleep!

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Squally Weather!

Current Position at 01:43 GMT: North 06*21'242 East 084*49'833 Course: 266*T Speed: 5.8 Knots

Still having a great sail and keeping the pace up but the weather isn't so nice at night with a lot squalls bringing high winds and rain. We've been really lucky to avoid most of them but spend a lot of time changing course to get out of their way. The seas are confused with two sets of swells coming from different directions but we're now on a port tack making the ride a lot more comfortable and easier to cook meals! We have 192 miles to go to our Way Point off the southern tip of Sri Lanka and should pass by in roughly 32 hours.

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Making good progress!

Current Position @ 11:00 GMT: North 07*03'075 East 089*28'105 Course: 261*T

The winds have been steadily building to around 20 knots so we've been making great time even getting speeds up to 8.5 knots when surfing down waves! The seas have also built so we're rolling around a lot with the sails still winged out on either side but at least the waves our coming from behind so no problems there. Our wind vane is still doing a great job at steering for us so we just have to sit back and keep a look out for ships and fishing boats. We had a near miss today as a tanker was on a direct course for us...we haven't seen anything for four days and then this guy is coming straight for us...luckily Jimmy was able to hail them on the VHF radio and they altered their course to miss us, I guess we have a lot of that to look forward to as we get closer to Sri Lanka!

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Bumpy Bay of Bengal!

Current Position @ 11:30 GMT: North 07*28'297 East 091*48'591 Course: 261*T ~ Averaging 4 knots

We're now crossing the Bay of Bengal and it's pretty uncomfortable with confused seas and not quite enough wind to keep us on track. We have the head sail poled out with the main goose winged on the other side as the winds coming from our stern but finding it difficult to get speeds over 4 knots so we're sliding all over the place. Our wind vane is steering pretty well so at least we're not using up all our power on the auto helm! Weather is pretty grim with lots of squalls around us and just trying to keep out of their way and so far we've been pretty lucky. Otherwise we're doing fine and are finally getting into a good watch pattern, we've had a lot of encounters with dolphins and pilot whales swimming off our bow which has been really great to see again after the baron waters of East Asia...we're back in passage mode!

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Sombrero Channel ~ Nicobar Islands.

Current Position: North 07*41'819 South 093*24.861 Course: 262*T Speed: 4.3 Knots under Motor.

We've just passed through the Sombrero Channel in the Nicobar Islands, a chain of islands running from north to south and owned by India. It's not possible for us to stop for a break here as the islands are only open to Indian nationals although the sight of land is a comfort. We've had a slow day as there's been very little wind and we've been motoring since yesterday afternoon, the weathers been unpredictable and we were drenched in squall that passed by this morning!

Jimmy topped up the Diesel tank this afternoon with 17 gallons from the deck cans, we hold 90 gallons in total the main tank holding 50 and the rest in Jerry cans. It looks like another slow night with no moon so pretty dark with overcast skies...fingers crossed for a little more wind so we can have a break from the engine and no more rain.

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Thailand to the Maldives ~ Day 2

Current Position: North 08*14'00 East 095*15'752 Course: 257*T with 1325 nautical miles to the Maldives @ 10am GMT

We had a great sail last night with 15 knots of wind out of the North which meant just before sunset we we're able to shut down the engine and average 5 knots of speed. This morning the wind died down but we we're still able to maintain a good enough pace to sail until about an hour ago when the wind dropped off completely! So now it's 6pm for us and we're motoring with slightly rolly seas and keeping our eyes on a big rain storm behind us...could be a wet night. We listen in to a radio net every morning with many of the other yachts underway and it sounds like we have a lot of calm weather ahead, fingers crossed the wind will fill back in just enough to save our fuel as we still have a very long way to go!

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Heading West ~ Underway to the Maldives

Current Position: North 08*31'447 East 097*08'020 heading: 261*T @ 4.8knots under full sail.

We've spent the last few days in the Similan islands just 30 miles off the coast of Thailand waiting for enough wind to pick up to sail by. Finally today the breeze kicked in at around 10 knots from the North so dropped our mooring ball around midday and are currently underway to the Maldives. It's been over a year since we've done any long distance sailing and with 1400 miles to go we're feeling a bit rusty. As night closes in we've enjoyed a beautiful sunset with dolphins swimming at our bow and tucked in to a big pot of Chillie...so far so good!

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