Sailing Adventures of Mai Tai

Borneo is divided three regions, one belonging to Malaysia, one Indonesia and one, the tiny nation of Brunei. These past 3 months cruising around Western and Northern Borneo, we crossed between the different regions several times, each time requiring us to go through the lengthy process of checking into and out of each country. Screeds of paper work, official stamps

We have been on the move again, this time up and over the top of Borneo and now heading down the east coast of Sabah as far as Tawau, where we say goodbye to many of our rally friends, all heading in different directions. Some will be returning to Australia, others are heading north to cruise the Philippines, while we

Borneo is the 3rd largest island in the world.  In the north part of the island, the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak make up about 26% of the total land area. The tiny State of Brunei is wedged between Sarawak and Sabah on the South China Sea. This northern territory of Borneo borders on the Philippine Islands and

The weather in this part of the world is very unpredictable, varying from dead flat calm with no wind at all, a gentle breeze may come up during the day, then the squalls blow through, so in planning an overnight passage, it is not always easy to get the perfect conditions. The day we chose to sail over to Natuna

It has been exactly a year now since we sailed out of New Zealand on Mai Tai, heading off on our adventure to sail around the world. So far, after 6099nms (14000 kms approx.) we have only got as far as Malaysia, which means we have made it about a quarter of the way around.  We also realised that this

While in Australia in February, we were visiting with my brother and sister in law, Paul and Susi, and talked about doing a trip together. All of us agreed that China sounded good. Since we were about to head off sailing again in April, we would have to go within the next month. We discussed an itinerary, checked out visa

Since sailing into Sebana Cove in Malaysia back in November, we have been busy doing all those things that cruisers do between seasons. Monsoons, adverse winds, cyclones and rainy seasons tend to dictate our cruising agenda.  We like to use this time for boat maintenance projects, travelling to visit family and of course, some local land-based tourism. The marinas and

October 28th We thought we had seen every navigational hazard imaginable on this trip, but when just outside Penuba Island, another surprise awaited us when we read on the chart “Danger. Minefield. Restricted area”. The area covered a five mile wide area and there was a recommended very narrow channel right down the middle for boats. This is when you

October 10th, 2018 The south east trades that have brought us faithfully this far, have now disappeared and we have entered the north west monsoon (rainy) season. This brings thunder storms and torrential rain and no steady wind to sail by.  We are now in the South China Sea, and from here on it will be less sailing and a

October 4th The large island of Borneo is divided into 3 countries, Malaysia, Brunei and the Indonesian area of Kalimantan which comprises 73% of the island. We were headed for Kumai, a large city situated 15 miles up the Kumai River in south Kalimantan. We had a good overnight sail to the delta entrance to the Kumai River, but we