Kasuje - Southwest bound to Mauritius
Hi from Skipper Steve
Hope everyone is well and that the English summer
has not proved to disappointing. It would seam weather wise I have been lucky
and picked a good couple of years to be out of the country and in the
tropics.
We are currently awaiting customs clearance so that
we can leave Bali and commence the long passages southwest to Mauritius and then
on to Cape Town. A total distance of some 5500 nm and will take over a month!
However we hope to make a few landfalls along the way, firstly at Christmas
Island (that's the one in the Indian Ocean, not the more famous island in the
Pacific) then Cocos Keeling, Mauritius, Reunion Island, Durban and on to Cape
Town. Hopefully making Cape Town around the 20th November. It roughly
follows the classic tea clipper routes of the 19th century when rounding the
cape was second nature to our sailing forefathers.
Our last report ended with us leaving Darwin after
a wonderful 6 weeks or so in Northern Australia, all of which was greatly
enjoyed and we have vowed to return. The passage to Bali of some 1200nm was
fairly uneventful. We were sailing close to the equator again in the weather
convergence zone commonly known as the doldrums and we experienced typical
doldrums weather with slight winds, mixed seas, heavy currents and the odd short
brilliant sail. So a good deal of the cheap Australian fuel was used and a
relaxing hot passage was completed.
Bali has turned out to be quite remarkable, a whole
new experience for me with the Hindu faith, calm peaceful citizens
and the real buzz of a modern city. The marina has proved excellent and we
have all taken advantage of the cheap labour rates getting our yachts cleaned
and polished and Kasuje has never looked so bright and clean!!
We also managed to get away from boat life for a
while with a four day excursion on '' Norfys Tours'', exploring the sites sounds
and smells of Balinese culture.
Chris entertained us royally and made the whole
trip great fun and we have now probably visited enough temples to last a
life time!!!
Please keep in touch and we will let you know how
we are fairing on our long passages across the Indian Ocean.
Love to all
Skipper
Steve
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