Monthly Archives: December 2007

Australia to Indonesia Day 4 & 5

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The really good conditions lasted until yesterday afternoon, then the wind died again and the seas went back to fantastic. We know we keep saying it couldn’t possibly get any better, but it did. The swells dropped from 1 -2 feet to only one foot and came at slightly longer intervals, meaning smaller rocking less often. So great. For us, at least. Our friends on the sailing boat Fafner are at sea, too, and they are hating life with no wind.

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Last night, Christi got off watch at 20:00 (8:00 pm). At that point, the ¾ full moon was high in the sky and not giving off much light. When she came back on watch at midnight, the moon looked Continue reading →

Australia to Indonesia – Day 2 & 3

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Yesterday the conditions were identical to what we last reported. We were loving life, thinking it couldn’t get any better. But then it did! Early this morning the wind died completely, leaving the ocean smooth and glassy. The clouds in the sky were reflected on the water. The swell was still there, but with the wind chop gone, the ride was smoother. It stayed calm until sunset. Then the light wind returned and conditions went from fabulous back down to only really good. And, Eric saw a Leopard shark, which was icing on the cake.

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Our only complaint is Continue reading →

Thursday Island, Australia to Kupang, Indonesia — Day 1

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Yesterday, our first stop was fuel for Kosmos. We had an appointment at 09:00 and we filled up with duty free fuel at only AUS$1.11 per liter (~ $4/gal USD). Ouch. At least it was cheaper than filling up in Cairns by about 35 cents per liter. The fuel dock is made for taller boats and getting off of it was tricky. After we were done pumping, they told us to go and re-anchor and come back later to pay. We suppose that with 8 zillion customs boats and planes patrolling the area, they figured we couldn’t get too far away if we decided not to pay.

We re-anchored, paid, and then hopped the ferry to TI. Debbie and Jim were kind enough to let us use their internet again. The other day we had run off so fast after looking at the forecast that we hadn’t checked email, posted blogs, or done any of the other stuff we need to do on-line. While doing a little research on Indonesia, we realized that our intended first stop, Saumlaki, isn’t normally Continue reading →

Watching Cyclone Guba and Visiting the Torres Straight Museum

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When we were in dry dock we met a gentleman named Jim who was also having his boat worked on in. He lives in Thursday Island and gave us his number and told him to call when we got into town. Yesterday we went to lunch with Jim and his wife, Debbie.

Christi had awoken with her face more swollen than ever. She had one nostril double the size of the other, one chubby cheek, and a lopsided mouth from the partially swollen lip. She felt like a walking Picasso painting, but in reality you had to look to notice the swelling.

We caught the ferry and met at the cultural center restaurant. Unfortunately, the gallery was closed for making a video, but we still got to see a few nice exhibits in the lobby. Jim and Debbie are interesting people and very nice. The first thing they mentioned was some ominous news about a brand new (15 minutes old) cyclone watch that included the Thursday Island area. Hmmm. Cyclone season isn’t supposed to Continue reading →