May 12, 2006-Beat to Labuan

Tacking Action

It is 66 miles down the Borneo coastline from Kota Kinabalu to Labuan Island. We plan to make the trip in two days, with a stop at Tiga Island, 30 miles down the line.

The Previous Day

The morning of the second day, after an easy genoa reach down from KK the day before, we are surprised to wake up in our Tiga island anchorage to a fresh southeasterly breeze instead of the normal morning calm we've seen each day preceding the sea breeze which usually fills in at 11:00 AM. Don't know what it means, but it could be interesting.

We weigh anchor at 08:45 and sailing out of the anchorage on the main we consider whether to use the genoa or the number 4. Reaching the point of the island the conditions dictate it for us. This is definitely a number 4 wind, and it is out of the SW, not the SE. Our 36 mile leg this day will be a beat dead to weather. Not our choosing, but there it is. There is nothing for us to do but get going.

We set the number 4, sheet home both sails, and start to beat south. We've got 15 knots of wind and we're making 6.2 knots, pretty close to our numbers, 38 degrees off the wind. It looks like a good sail. We calculate our ETA to Labuan. At 4.5 knots VMG we'll get there in eight hours; 17:00. We put on the windvane and relax, enjoying the day.

Sailing past the south side of Tiga we see two yachts anchored in the cove there, on a lee shore, and pitching badly in the chop which is rolling into that side of the island. We wonder why they stayed there; it must be mighty uncomfortable, and with a nasty coral reef just behind them; if it was us we'd leave ASAP. We wonder if they are northbound or southbound. We watch them through the binoculars for an hour but they don't make a move.

The wind is building and at 18 knots we flatten the sails and load everything up for a stiff breeze. We have Wings in point mode but we're still going fast; this is our wind. Sunny day; put on sun screen. Sit on the high side with my feet over. Move the genoa to the high side, hike the boat. The boat works through the waves like it knows how. We take a little spray, but not too much, and once I get a real splash, but it is OK; I love it. This is sailing.

I sit on the rail and watch the water sweep by past my feet. I start to daydream. I wonder how far below me is the surface of the water, I'm high up on the high side. How high? I guess eight feet. The time passes. Judy checks the chart a couple of times. There are some reefs around which we need to get past as we work our way south, but right now we're doing fine.

Fred enjoys the day.

At 11:30 we are shocked out of our reveries by a loud bang from the rig. We look aloft for loose things hanging, half expecting to see a mast coming down on our heads. It looks fine. We look around the boat. Judy sees a pool of blood red hydraulic fluid spreading on the cockpit floor. We've lost hydraulic pressure on the backstay! We crack the release valve and drop the pressure and I tighten a fitting which was dripping. It stops. We put some pressure back on, but not as much. The leak stops. We clean up. Now it's time to look where we we've got to while we had our heads down. Uh, no problem, we're still OK. Back to sailing, only this time I'm thinking about what I've got to do to fix the backstay line once we get to Labuan.

At 1:30 the wind drops, a lot. It also shifts to the left, and we are way out to the right side, where we went to get around a patch of reefs. Tactically this is bad. I feel like a dummy for not staying closer to the rhumb line. We change to the genoa and tack. Problem number two occurs: The tack which looked like 95 degrees on the compass turns out to be more like 129 degrees on the chart. Whoa, what is going on?

We quickly assess our situation. The actual VMG is more like 3.3, and that, combined with what we see on the tacking angles, tells us that we have a big current against us. It must be about 1.2 knots.

Now we realize we have our work cut out for us to reach Labuan that day. Actually, getting there in daylight is out. Best we can expect is 21:00 or so.

We check out the harbor chart closely. Can we go in after dark? I judge that we can.

Now we've got to get the boat cranked up to make even that.

I take off the wind vane and start to steer. I've got to get a feel for how she's doing in the 8-9 knots of wind we're getting. We adjust the sheet leads and fiddle with just about everything. We can get it up to about 5 knots and pointing pretty high, but the current, which we decide is a strong ebb tide, is holding us back. It is knocking 15 degrees off our course on each tack. Motoring wouldn't help that much, and we don't want to motor for six hours anyhow. Once we have the boat sailing its best we put the wind vane back on.

We sail on.

We get a few good shifts and we arrive on Labuan Harbor at 21:30.

It is good to get the hook down. We have a beer.

It has been a long hard day of sailing, but it has been a good day too. We like sailing.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings. Borneo

Note on the mechanical problem: After arriving in Labuan we checked out the hydraulic system, and we found that, under pressure over 2500 psi, the backstay fitting leaks, even after I tightened it. Something in there broke and that was the "bang" we heard. Now I know that, I can work on it, maybe replace a "T" fitting or a connector. Anyhow, we'll solve this one easily

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May 13, 2006-Calling in the Faithful

Labuan Shipyard

From our anchorage in Labuan's Victoria Harbor, in Sabah, Borneo, we can hear the mullahs calling the faithful to prayers at mosques on both sides of the harbor, even behind the shipyard. At 18:30 we can hear four of them competing with each other for the faithful.

Judy says we should catch a photo of the water village nearest us with the mosque's minaret and dome poking up above the stilt houses. I think we should go visit the village and see what it looks like up close. Anyhow, they have a good PA system; their mullah is loud and clear.

Labuan: a place of contrasts. We see water villages and mosques. We also see shipyards and oil rig tender vessels. We see ferry docks for fast ferries which arrive every half hour from places unknown, and we see water taxi's speeding past in every direction, it is a busy place.

Ashore it is not so busy.

There we find a quiet central business district with cobble stone streets and veiled women. There are the normal shops, and there are the "duty free" stores for which people come to Labuan. Liquor here is minus the heavy taxes found elsewhere in Malaysia and that's where a lot of the business is in Labuan. People come here by ferries to stock up. We came by boat. This place definitely does not adhere to a strict Moslem rule, despite the many mosques and loud mullahs.

The harbor and Lubuan town are interesting, but we won't stay long. We're here to buy some liquor, check out of Malaysia with the authorities and head to Brunei.

Duty Free Stock Up

Click here for more Labuan Images

and here for more shipyard images.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Labuan

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May 9, 2006-Pretty Good Day in KK

Girls at the Mosque

These girls have nothing to do with the story below, but I liked the shot, and a lot of the other ones I've taken in Kota Kinabalu, so I'm putting it in. Also the one of the mosque where I photographed them (at the bottom of this story)

I'm having a happy day.

Judy says the reason I like everything tonight is the scotch I'm drinking, “It's just the alcohol.” She said. It’s true, the scotch Andy brought me has got my head spinning a little, but never mind that, today has been a really good day.

First of all we got the bloody leaking water tank out of the boat without any drama. That in itself is cause for celebration, although having a leaking tank, a new one at that, is not. Anyhow, this water tank has broken for a second time and that sucks. But we found a guy here in KK who will fix it, no problem (have you heard that one before?) and today we took it out of the boat so the welder could pick it up and take it to his shop…in two hours flat. BANG! Beat that! And neither of us hurt ourselves. Terrific!

Then we went to town for our regular shopping trip and scored some really cheap wine. Not just cheap, but good. Australian good. Now, that might not be cause for celebration to most of you, but to us here in Muslim Malaysia, it is a true score. Islamic countries don’t feature too many sales on wine, but on Wings, not a dry ship, we need it, so finding some is a major deal. Now…we’re fixed.

Then, the fish we bought at the market turned out perfectly when we grilled it. Together with that wine we spoke of just previously, it made for a great dinner.

Finally, I have been reviewing the photos we got here, and we have some really good ones. So, I am happy, really happy.

I invite you to link to our photo site, here,
here,
here,
and here,

or just go to the month of May on the Images site, and browse Wingssail Images.blogspot.com-May 2006, and take a look at Kota Kinabalu.

Sabah State Mosque



Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Kota Kinabalu

May 7, 2006-Sabah Fest

We Stumbled onto a Treasure in Kota Kinabalu

Malay Girl

It’s just one of those things: “We fell up out of a hole”, as Jim Watson would say.

It happened like this:

Judy was over at the hotel next door on Friday to check out some craft exhibits and she saw a sign about a presentation that night that included some dance groups. So she mentioned it to me.

“OK, I’m up for it, whatever it is, let’s go.” We had a bite aboard Wings and I grabbed my camera and off we went to the Magellan Hotel.

Good move.

When we arrived there was some sort of a queue forming up and people herded us into it. Turns out it was for the local dignitaries and we were mistaken of being part of that group. They rolled out the red carpet for us dignitaries. There were a few hundred kids in local get-up lined up for us on each side of the grand stairwell as we walked down to the grand ball room. (Is this us, or what?)

Once seated in the ballroom we were able to watch the annual Festival of Sabah; and we didn’t even know it was going to happen that night. Yeah, there were some speeches, but soon a dozen or so dance groups got on stage and stunned us with their well rehearsed performances: we enjoyed every minute of it.

Grand Finale

Click here for more images from Sabah Fest

and here, to see more crafts

So how do we get so lucky? I don’t know, but is it good. Maybe all cruisers get their share of these things, I know we do.


Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Kota Kinabalu

May 1, 2006-Kota Kinabalu & The Mountain in the Clouds

Kota Kinabalu

We are still in Borneo, in KK (Kota Kinabalu), the booming capital of the Malaysian state of Sabah. We last wrote to you from Kudat, also in Sabah.

We left Kudat one morning, headed for KK.

It is calm, no wind, and we are motoring north to the “Tip of Borneo” where we can turn south towards KK. Just before we arrive there the wind comes up, a nice NE breeze of 15 knots. The sky is blue and the water sparkles. This is going to be a nice day of sailing.

The “Tip of Borneo” is not one of the world’s great capes, but it is a scenic landmark never the less. We want to sail past. We hoist the main and cut the engine, and head for a gap between the cape and an off lying island, intending to round inside the island, close to the surge and swell breaking on the point. The wind is blowing and we’re sailing fast. It is exciting, and maybe a little dangerous. At first there appears to be breaking waves and shallows stretching across the whole gap, but the chart shows deep water. As we get closer the passage opens up, just like the chart said it would.

We fly through and jibe to the south.

With a good following breeze we are making great time down the coast but too soon the breeze starts to falter. There are still whitecaps behind us and more whitecaps farther out, but where we are there are none. We are almost becalmed.

We jibe back and try to head out. Soon we have more wind and are moving again, but the breeze proves to be elusive.

For the rest of the day we chase the wind and sailing becomes hard work. We head out, then back in trying to find some pressure, trying to keep our speed up. The wind stays steady for couple of hours once and we are hopeful, only to watch it die again. Always we can see stronger wind behind us and we think maybe it will reach us, but instead the trend is lighter and lighter. We consider setting the spinnaker, but we suspect it would just have to come down right away if the wind quits altogether.

At about 17:00 we are approaching to the bay we have selected as a likely anchoring spot, and just then the wind switches to the west and fills in, making our chosen anchorage, which is open to the ocean, into a lee shore.

With a little disappointment we decide that we must carry on towards Kota Kinabalu. There are few anchorages with protection from the west along this coast, and it will soon be dark. We can’t go into any place on this coast in the dark.

So we sail on through the night, the westerly breeze holding, past several anchorages we might have stopped in other conditions, but don’t because of the wind direction and darkness. This is OK; we are now looking forward to getting to KK in the morning with its promise of civilization, not the least of which is a berth in a nice new marina and a swimming pool.


We arrive in KK at noon the next day, and soon are tied to the dock and hooked up to electrical power. We head off to the pool for a dip and a cool drink.

Fellow cruisers in KK party on WINGS


The Mountain in the Clouds:

Mount Kinabalu

Andy and Nita have flown down from Hong Kong for a short holiday. It is great to have good friends visit. We rent a car and head off to tropical rain forest and Mount Kinabalu, the highest mountain here in Borneo, and a World Heritage Site.

We leave the humid coastal plain and head up the winding roads into jungle and rain. The air becomes cool. We catch occasional glimpses of the base of Mount Kinabalu, but the top remains shrouded in clouds. We arrive at Mesilau Nature Reserve base camp, where big boned, healthy looking men in slickers and hiking boots are staging their two day ascents to the top. Andy studies the trail map carefully but the peak is more than 7000 feet above the 6000’ level of our base camp and Judy and I know we don’t have the time or physique for this climb. We check into a lodge for the night, settling for the hope of a better view of Mount Kinabalu in the morning.

Mesilau Forest Santuary

We have some time before dinner so we drive down into the valley to Poring Hot Springs for a soak in the sulfur water. Starting back up the mountain it is dark and raining; we can’t see a thing. To add to our misery, fog sets in. Big trucks are coming down hill and their fog lights appear out of the gloom and temporarily blind us. The drive is slow and nerve wracking. We get lost; our navigation on land isn’t much better than it is at sea. The drive turns into something like a night passage on Wings, or a bad dream.

Finally we arrive back at Mesilau just in time for a drink before dinner. Outside our lodge the rain continues to pour down and a stream thunders somewhere nearby in the forest. It is cold up here in the mountains and we pile on the blankets before going to sleep.

Rain Forest


Dining at Mesilau

In the morning the sky clears briefly. I catch a glimpse of the granite peak glowing in the morning sun. I grab my camera, but the mountain is gone back into the clouds. No matter, it is a nice stay in the rain forest for us anyhow. We take some walks and enjoy the wilderness setting.

Driving down that day we discover that this area is a big farming region, and we find fruit and vegetable stands filled with local produce. Also some craft shops. By the time we get back to Kota Kinabalu we have a trunk filled with purchases from the Mountain in the Clouds.

Fruit Market

Andy and Nita return to Hong Kong and the other cruising boats in the marina have started to start leave as well, heading south, but Judy and I like the modern and bustling town of Kota Kinabalu, and we decide we will hang around here for a few more days… or maybe weeks.

Cruising lets you do that.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, Kota Kinabalu