Australia To Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Madagascar Route

[Alan Mighty]

Originally Posted by Alan Mighty

Or read how Arab/Indian/Chinese seafarers in pre-modern times sailed to and from E China via SE Asia to Sri Lanka and on to Yemen etc. Or read about the migratory raptors that fly to and from Pacific Russia to Indonesia etc.

Tim Severin had a book, probably "the Sindbad voyage" if I have my orthography aright, in which he described sailing Yemen to China.

Old editions of 'Ocean Passages of the World" had good sections on working the monsoons through SE Asia and from SE Asia to the Indian O.

[conachair]

Five years (August 1999 - July 2004) satellite wind data averages here might be of interest -

Climatology of Global Ocean Winds (QuikSCAT)

[Dougtiff]

Having lived and sailed in S.E. Asia for 20 year's, i learned to carry lots of fuel and have a good auto pilot, as far as crossing the Indian ocean, you should be departing Malaysia or Thailand around the end of the year, as the N.E. monsoon has kick in.

[Fore and Aft]

That was an interesting link Conachair.
Hypothetically speaking what sort of trip do you think you would have if you left Cairns 1st of November and sailed to Malaysia? Conachair's link shows fair winds until at least East Timor?
Cheers

[theway]

Originally Posted by conachair

Five years (August 1999 - July 2004) satellite wind data averages here might be of interest -

Climatology of Global Ocean Winds (QuikSCAT)

Definitely of interest. And echos what many have been saying about carrying lots of fuel.

[theway]

Originally Posted by Dougtiff

Having lived and sailed in S.E. Asia for 20 year's, i learned to carry lots of fuel and have a good auto pilot, as far as crossing the Indian ocean, you should be departing Malaysia or Thailand around the end of the year, as the N.E. monsoon has kick in.

Any issues with dirty fuel?
Did you use any Baja filters before pouring into your tank(s)?
And what kind of range would you recommend carrying? I can carry about 600NM currently.

[Alan Mighty]

Originally Posted by Fore and Aft

Hypothetically speaking what sort of trip do you think you would have if you left Cairns 1st of November and sailed to Malaysia?

A wild crazy one.

That schedule is too late in the monsoon/season cycle.

Think of it:

Q: what happens around 21 or 22 Sept every year?

A: Da equinox.

Q: Where is the ITCZ going to be at the time of the equinox?

A: Right over the Equator, more or less, depending on the solar heating that has been going on during the months before then (which might still be causing cyclogenesis in the NW Pac, and if so, that would keep the ITCZ a little N of the Eq.

Q: So if the ITCZ is roughly over the Eq on 22 Sept, where will the ITCZ be on your hypothetical departure date of 1 Nov?

A: Depending on cyclogenesis in the NW Pac, somewhere between the Eq and you.

Q: Do you want to sail through the ITCZ.

A: Only if you're a masochist and want a wild crazy ride that includes burning lots of fuel.

[Alan Mighty]

Originally Posted by theway

Any issues with dirty fuel?
Did you use any Baja filters before pouring into your tank(s)?

I've used a Baja filter everywhere in the planet. US. Aus. Indon. Malaysia. Philippines. Singapore. Thailand. You're a mug not to do so.

Dirty fuel can be anywhere.

One issue in Indonesia is substitution of light diesel fuel with kerosene. Kerosene does not have the lubricating properties of diesel fuel, so you get damage inside your fuel distribution pump.But fear not, it's a minor issue (and only happens because of subsidy for kero making it cheaper than diesel fuel). If you buy your diesel fuel from the same place that serves fishers, you're usually safe. But always use your Baja filter.　

And that's one of the several reasons that cruisers join one of the organised Darwin to XX rallies (where XX can be Kupang, Ambon or "spice islands", etc.).　Those rallies are coordinated with Indonesian officialdom, including the TNI (defence forces) and local govt. And that helps guarantee that you get top quality fuel. When you're doing it by yourself, you have to guarantee the quality of the fuel you put in your own tanks.

[KASHMIR]

These guys are friends of our, currently in Madagascar and have sailed from Oz, check our their blog. https://paseafique.wordpress.com/201...rt-experience/

[Simi 60]

Originally Posted by Dougtiff

Having lived and sailed in S.E. Asia for 20 year's, i learned to carry lots of fuel and have a good auto pilot, .

We got our current boat specifically to base ourselves in south east Asia.

Commercial quality autopilot
7000 litres of diesel
5000 litres of water
And 2300 watts of solar panels.

[theway]

Originally Posted by Simi 60

We got our current boat specifically to base ourselves in south east Asia.

Commercial quality autopilot
7000 litres of diesel
5000 litres of water
And 2300 watts of solar panels.

What range do you get with that 7000 liters of diesel?

[theway]

Originally Posted by Alan Mighty

1. on line squalls: Windy has made some recent improvements to its models and claims to be better at predicting thunderstorms (my understanding of a line squall is a linear set of t-storm cells, of the sort that Singapore weather calls intense t-storms).



GRIBs with CAPE and CIN values allow you to work out the conditions in which line squalls might form. But I've not a handle on how accurate that was. And some years see almost no line squalls. In other years, during the Hungry Ghost month the open Gates of Hell are marked by some of the most vicious lightning and t-storms you'll see anywhere.



I take the view that tropical weather can be (but is not always) so chaotic that it is close to unpredictable.



Line squalls do show up on radar and usually can announced themselves as a dark bar on the horizon. We spent 5+ years in SE Asia and have met up to 3 line squalls in quick succession on one occasion - each had peak winds of 40-50 knots. By the third squall (each was spaced perhaps an hour apart from the one before) the sea state was quite well developed for 40 knots (if you get my message). Around Singapore in the Malacca Strait, line squalls are often pre-dawn events. In parts of Indonesia particularly around Kalimantan and Sulawesi, a warm day can generate line squalls at any time of the night.



When sailing, I think you need to have a line squall procedure. That's up to you, but it might include: keeping a strict watch on the horizon for those black bars; lightning precautions; and then various measures ranging from reefing hard to knowing in what direction you can run before hitting coral etc. Line squalls can behave in unpredictable ways. We've seen a few: what you would expect an assault from one direction; the afore-mentioned three-wave assault; and (but only once) a line squall that split in two and left us untouched but ran N and S.



When choosing an anchorage, consider what you would do if you're hit with 40+ knot winds for 1-2 hours. That can mean plotting an escape route, but it also means considering your swing radius; and having excellent snubbing and chafe equipment.　



2. Singapore has the government capacity to deliver services. Indonesia does not. Malaysia is intermediate (meaning you can download a govt app for Android smart devices that gives country-wide weather radar, but otherwise local weather forecasts seem so general as to be useless).



3. Be prepared in anchorages in Indonesia and Malaysia to be asked by small-scale fishers to move because they want to net that area. It's their livelihood.



4. Of course be aware of the major fishing techniques and how they affect you. They range from a net some distance below the surface but suspended from visible white buoys (such that, depending on your draft, you might be able to cross mid-way between two buoys) through to various fish attraction devices (FAD) from palm fronds up to buildings.



5. Malaysia has some anchorages and marinas (Port Dickson, Pangkor, Langkawi) in which you can sit out foul weather. Some ports in Malaysia have technical backup for most anything you need, from galvanizing chain through to repairing your electron microscope (e.g. Penang). Singapore can do anything, but at a cost roughly equivalent to or just a little less expensive than Aus.



6. Small remote villages in Indonesia are just wonderful. We've received embarrassing amounts of young coconuts and fresh fish. Cities on the other hand can be foul and unfriendly. YMMV



7. Do not expect locals, including maritime officials, to understand your concerns with draft and coral. We had Indonesian maritime officials ask us to re-anchor near their office so they could watch us. And they expect us, like local pinisi, to have legs or to be happy to lay on our sides at low tide. Similarly assurances that an anchorage 'tiada kurang' was free of coral was without value.



I still advise early exit from AU to Indon so you have dependable wind. Leave it too late and you'll be motoring. And dealing with squalls in anchorages and island/sea combinations that are nasty.

Lots of useful information thanks a bunch.
I appreciate you taking the time to share it.

[Simi 60]

Originally Posted by theway

What range do you get with that 7000 liters of diesel?

Around 3500nm @ 8 knots
Drop back to 7 and squeeze a bit more.

[theway]

Originally Posted by Simi 60

Around 3500nm

Ahhh, now I see. You’re a trawler.
Nice range...

[Alan Mighty]

I assume you looked at the moon this morning/last night.

A full moon, of course. Meaning yesterday was the 15th day of the 6th moon of the year by the Chinese lunar calendar. And so the 14th day of month of Zuul Kaedah (and other orthographic variations) of the Muslim lunar calendar.

Q. What does that mean?

A. You've 14 days or so to the New Moon, bringing spring tides, and the 7th moon of the year. And the 7th moon brings ... the Hungry Ghosts festival, when the Gates of Hell will open. And just a few days before the 15th day of the 7th moon, we'll have Eid al'Adha/Hari Raya Korban/The feast of the Sacrifice, when Abram took his son for a walk up the hill, holding his sacrifical knife (or axe in some versions) behind his back.

In those Muslim parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, the feast of the sacrifice is the second most important festival of the year.

So ... I return to my earlier advice: you've a delicious Pearson sailing machine. In order to sail, you need dependable and reliable winds from one direction. The SW monsoon generates that for you: while the monsoon is strong, winds at a night time anchorage will be from that direction. During the day, winds (other than those near a high island) will be from that direction.

It's simple math. You're intending to sail one of the most interesting and fascinating parts of the planet. The Maritime Continent. The home of the Bugis, who had the biggest fleet under sail ever of any economy. The spice islands, including the island that the Englanders swapped for Manhattan (jeez, just think, would any NY property developer you know today - not mentioning any names wot start with T of course - swap Manhattan for anything?). The centre of world coral reef diversity, the coral triangle. The Wallace line dividing the biogeography of Asia from the Australo-Pacific. A mixing zone of languages and cultures: close to the maximum E extent of the reach of Hindu belief system (old Philippine hands will correctly point out that the Ramayana myths and so on extended all the way to the Phils) as shown by that island named after the Sun God, Bali; close to the maximum E extent of Muslim and Indian traders; close to the maximum E extent of Buddhist rulers (see Borobudur); the mixing point of many Malayo-Polynesian languages and peoples (with their own massive diversity) with Indo-Europeans, Arabs, and a few Africans and Australians (the aborigines who went with Makassan traders to live in Sulawesi).

Getting back to the math: work out how many days you need to see that biogeography, human diversity, learn the languages, eat the cuisines, dive the reefs, visit the dragons and the temples and the pink beach and so on.

Then you look at when the SW monsoon - sans late monsoon surge (which might be on the cards this year when you consider that Stockholm was 33C the other day and Japanese have been dying of heat stroke in record 41C days, not to mention fire and drought most everywhere in the N hemisphere - will weaken and trickle into atmospheric instability. Then you work out when you need to have exited Aus to make entry in Indonesia.

As I said, the perfect day was two or three days ago. Those who left then will have a good chance of carrying reliable dependable SE winds then SW winds all the way to Singapore and even, given a late monsoon surge - most of the way up the Malacca Strait. Then you look for a good anchorage or marina to sit out foul weather and for repairs, medical care, etc. Then you use opportunities to move into Thai waters and plan your voyage to Sri Lanka and points SW with the NE monsoon pushing you along.