The treasure map. I was at home on Guernsey this summer, clearing out a drawer full of memories when I came across a dusty cardboard tube containing an old scroll of paper with yellowed edges. It is a map dated 1867, marked on the back: “Steel engraving hand coloured.” It was gift from my friend […]
Tag / cruising
Getting Stuck In Rote
The long story of a failed engine part that delayed us long enough to fall under the spell of a special island. So just to re-cap: Bryan and I were at the end of a long sail south, two weeks of sailing mainly by day but sometimes at night. We were aiming for Rote. It […]
DUE SOUTH
Volcanoes Mount Ducono is an active volcano reaching high above the town of Tobelo, belching an impressive plume of smoke and ash which blows downwind, away from our chosen anchorage. Until the wind changes in the night. On the first morning we woke in Tobelo, the boat was covered in a hefty layer of grey […]
The Halmahera Sea
We thought that last bay would be hard to beat. Paddling to empty waves straight from our anchored boat. Nobody wanted to leave, so we didn’t. For days. There’s an old saying in surfing: Never leave waves to find waves. Makes sense, ‘a bird in the hand’. Enjoy what you have and don’t waste […]
Taking the rough with the smooth.
The Rough: We’re in Sorong. It’s hot. After those deserted anchorages, Sorong comes on strong. The dirty, bustling city. Capital of this part of West Papua. There’s a regional airport here with daily flights to Denpasar and Jakarta, so I’m here for crew changes. Dawn is flying home for some Guernsey time, Bryan and Matt […]
Raja Ampat
Back in October 2024, we sailed Escapade from Australia to Indonesia. We cleared customs at Tual and spent a few weeks exploring up to Waigeo before my crew flew home. We left the boat tied to a dock at a diving resort in Waisai. Since then the local birds have enjoyed perching in her rigging […]
Uncharted Waters
I’ve been sailing west for so long that I’ve woken up in the Far East. I’m awake early on my first morning in Indonesia, looking forward to exploring the town of Tual and trying some local food. But first I have to clear boat and crew through Quarantine, Immigration, Customs and Port Control. In that […]
The Arafura Sea
Thursday Island has long been an important Australian port, pearling station and customs post, the main border with Papua New Guinea across the straits to the north. Many round-the-world yachts have cleared through here, including the very first. This is The Federal Hotel. An early entry in their visitor’s book reads: “Joshua Slocum. Boston to […]
Cairns to the Cape
Escapade has been resting on a swinging mooring on the Trinity Inlet, just upstream from Cairns. After our annual slice of Guernsey summer I was back on the boat preparing for the next voyage. There’s about 500 miles of sailing between Cairns and Cape York, Australia’s northern tip. I’m planning to day-sail all the way […]
Shore Leave
We’ve been sailing past those green hills for hundreds of miles, now we’re keen to see a bit of the hinterland. Escapade is on a quiet river mooring upstream from Cairns and we have hit the open road in a whacking great land yacht. Our circuit of the sunlit uplands took us out to waterfall […]
escapade sailing 