SINGAPORE TO PORT DICKSON

December 5, 2014 Friday

We departed One Degree 15 Marina at Sentosa Island for Admiral Marina near Port Dickson (02-28.5’ N x 101.50.7’ E), Malaysia.  The distance from Singapore to Phuket, Thailand is around 550 nm.  The check in point we chose for Malaysia is Port Dickson which is around 153 nm from Singapore.  We plan to do this distance with a few overnight anchorages.  The biggest problem with sailing at night is the numerous fishing boats and their net and fish traps.  To get one of these caught up in the propeller means a dive overboard, in open ocean, to cut it out.  As a result, we only sail at night if necessary.  The currents in the Malacca Straits run NW for 15 hours and SE for 9 hours: lots of variations and tidal differences.  The currents run strongly at 2-3 kts inshore and 1.5 kts offshore.  Most of the distance is covered by motoring since there is very little wind in this part of the world.  The ideal is to motor with the NW’ly going Tidal Stream close inshore and anchor against the SE stream.  The waters are shallow enough to drop anchor close to shore in less than 30 ft.  We try to plan it out so that we are near some island where there is a little protection against winds from thunderstorms and a Sumatra.  The Sumatra is a very strong Thunderstorm moving off the Sumatra coast and crossing over the Malacca Straits.  They can pack winds to 50 kts and kick up a very nasty sea.  Usually, they don’t last more than four hours.

With all this in mind, we chose to make Pulau Pisang (01-27.537’ N x 103-15.797’ E) , 43 nm from Singapore, our first night’s anchorage.  Almost invariably, there are afternoon thunderstorms in this area:  Not a whole lot of wind but torrential downpours.  This gives us the opportunity to top up our water tanks with rain water.  We have been able to collect 30 gals in an hour!

At 0618 hrs, on December 6, 2014, we heaved up anchor at Pulau Pisang with plans to sail to Pulau Besar (02-06.267’ N x 102-20.020’ E).  There would be another overnight anchorage since the distance is 69 nm but we hadn’t decided just where.  As we left the anchorage, there was an ominous black cloud bank to the SE.  At 0730 hours, we experienced our first and only Sumatra for this trip.  The winds came on in excess of 30-40 kts and kicked up a nasty 6-7’ sea.  We weren’t able to motor against it so we set sail and returned back to Pulau Pisang where we dropped anchor at 1024 hrs to weather it out.  By 1206, the Sumatra had run its course and the seas started to come down so we heaved up anchor and set sail for Pulau Besar.  Using the Tidal Streams in the Straits of Malacca and motor sailing, it’s possible to make 60-70 nm during daylight.  At most places along the Malay coast, it’s possible to drop anchor and wait for a favorable current or stay for the night.  In this case, we found a small bay at Tanjung Tahore, which was about 38 nm from Pulau Pisar, and dropped anchor there (01-50.635’ N x 102-45.368’ E).  We were sailing with another couple that had a Van de Stadt 40 called “Honey Bee”.  It was a quiet night in the anchorage with no thunderstorms around.

On December 7, 2014 at 1015 hrs, we heaved up anchor and got underway towards Pulau Besar which was only around 32 nm from Tanjung Tahore.  The wind was out of the N-NNW at 10 kts so we were able to set out mainsail and jib.  Later on we had to motor sail on and off but by 1340 hrs the conditions were near perfect for a beautiful even though we could see thunderstorms making up to the North of us and coming off the Malay peninsula.  Our friends on “Honey Bee” were just behind us.  With the same boat length and sail configuration, when two sailing vessels are close together, it becomes a race.  We did everything possible to get the maximum speed out of “Solstice” but “Honey Bee” was a little faster and passed us on by.  By 1436 we had to drop all sail as the approaching thunderstorm was upon us:  nothing severe but worthy of respect. At 1630 hrs, we dropped anchor off Pulau Besar (02-06.267’ N x 102-20.020’ E) in 24 ft water depth with 140 ft chain out.

December 8, 2014 at 1030 hrs, we heaved up anchor and started to motor sail towards Port Dickson which was 41 nm North.  The late start was necessitated by an early morning thunderstorm which kicked up a nasty sea so I decided to weather it out at the anchorage.  Enroute to Port Dickson, we passed by Malacca (Melaka) which was one of the early settlements involved in the Spice Trade.  Starting with the Chinese at the beginning of the 15^th century, there followed the Portugese, Dutch and English; all contesting the strategic importance of the city.  Influence and control was granted by the Sultans of the area who seem to have been feuding amongst each other and, for guns and support, they granted large tracts of land and trading concessions.  Interestingly enough, the decedents of these Sultuns are in control of the Malaysian legislature today and, at least one of them, is one of the wealthiest men in the world.  Melaka is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Sailing by it, one doesn’t see anything of the older city as it is surrounded by modern skyscrapers and oil terminals.

We managed to make fantastic speed with a favorable current running around 3 kts and, by the time we rounded Cape Rachado – five miles from Admiral Marina – we were making 8.5 kts.  At 1654 hrs we made fast to Berth C-32 at Admiral Marina.  The marina is about 5 nm South of Port Dickson so, in order to clear into Malaysia, one has to take a taxi or bus into Port Dickson proper and check in with  Immigration, Customs and Harbor Master.  A simple process with no complications or fees.

Port Dickson is rather unremarkable as a city but has many beautiful beaches and upscale resorts catering to Singaporeans that arrive by bus or air.  It has just about anything the cruiser needs and provides a stepping stone to Melaka or Kuala Lumpur (KL).  For yachties, the jewel is Admiral Marina – a five star resort – with marina berthing facilities.  This is a fabulous place to relax and prepare the boat for the next leg North.  Prices in Malaysia are a fraction of what we found in Singapore.  That’s why so many come from Singapore to submerse themselves in the luxury of the five star resorts at very affordable prices.  We spent eight day at the marina working on the boat: polishing Stainless Steel stanchions and cleaning.  We didn’t get a chance to visit Melaka but will have the opportunity to do it on our way back next year.  Admiral Marina is a very secure place and virtually weather proof.  For this reason, many yachties leave their boats here for extended periods of time.  The security personnel and general help are from Nepal.  They wear red berets and are very polite but vigilant.  A friendly “Namaste” invokes a smile and response as they place their right hand on their heart.  Malaysians have far more wealth that comes from oil and the associated refineries.  There is a large industrial base and employment is readily available.  In fact, there is a demand for labor so it’s easy to get a work permit.  The Chinese and Indians control many of the businesses.  There is preferential treatment given to Malays so that they can compete with other economic interests in the country.  The medical and dental facilities are good and very affordable.  The small amount of Indonesian Bahasa that we learned is spoken here so the transition is quite easy.  The Malaysians are polite and friendly but more reserved than the Indonesians.

Our plans are to sail from here to Penang with several stops along the way: it’s 230 nm and, with very little wind, it a motoring trip.  The Volvo Penta engine is running OK but has a small exhaust leak coming out of the middle injector (there are three injectors).  Our friend, Gary, can fix this when we get to Phuket.

I was just thumbing through the “Southeast Asia Cruising Guide Vol. II).  In addition to navigation info, they give a small sampling of the local languages.  In Papua New Guinea, over 800 languages are spoken so “Pidgin English” became an effective way of communicating with each other.  In Pidgin the words for “Government offices” are “Haus Bullshit”?