Funso not so fun

The Broken Compass's departure strategy is to leave in bad weather. Port Louis was no exception as we left with the heaviest wind in over a month. Two separate coast guard officials warned us of the rough conditions. The second official took one look at our boat bucking next to the wharf and started questioning our decision to leave. We joked he would rescue us in a couple hours. He did not share our humor. Being the only yacht foreign to Mauritius, we assumed credibility as they permitted our departure. It took 5 men (and 1 woman) to push Broken Compass boat off the dock as we left Le Caudon Marina. Motoring (yeah... motoring) out of the harbor, a disabled small craft was under tow back from an unfortunate day. The 8 foot swell at the channel entrance knocked us around for a while before we hoisted the sails to break into open water. The “It's good to be back out at sea” feeling was short lived as a series of lightning storms battered us for the rest of the day and throughout the night.

Lightning storms at sea are an interesting experience. They are beautiful to watch from far off in the distance. At some point as the dark clouds and flashes of light move over head you come to realize your situation: Two hands on a metal wheel steering two tall trees held down by steel cables across a relatively flat ocean. If lightening bolts were tails, the Broken Compass would be the donkey. Resigning to the very real possibility of getting struck is the only way stay sane for hours of blinding flashes amongst sheets of water and ripping winds.

Day 3 we spotted a orange life ring floating a few hundred meters away. Taking the opportunity as a practice man overboard, we made some fancy maneuvers under sail to retrieve the prize. The 25 knot breeze taxed our victory as we limped away from the event with two pieces of our head sail instead of one. The faded Chinese symbols on the life ring concealed a boat's story we would never plumb.

The ocean highlight is always the fish. We caught a nice Wahoo shown above in addition to a few large Dorado. One day we hooked into the fish of a lifetime: the blue marlin. Neither of us have ever seen its equal dead or alive. The creature performed a series of acrobatics and entertained us for about five minutes before effortlessly breaking through the 150 lb leader. Following the fight, he breached one last time to wave farewell as he swam off in search of the old man in the sea.

(NASA satellite image of Tropical Cyclone Funso)

Reaching the half way point, our crack weather guy from South Africa warned of a cyclone predicted to intercept us. A race for our lives ensued. Over three rough and wet days we logged 440 miles and positioned Broken Compass downwind of our destination. We suffered 36 hours against 30 knots of wind and 15 ft swells to earn our last 25 miles upwind. During this trial, we sent a diver in the water to pull off a line wrapped around the propeller. We thanked our guardian angels as the Tropical Cyclone Funso passed in our wake. Exhausted and in the middle of the night, we tossed two hooks in the Durban harbor mud. We crashed and slept like babies while Makai woke up from a 4 day slumber to take anchor watch.

Mauritius

Mauritius is a small country with the population of 1.3 million people of mixed ethnicity. Considered part of Africa, the people are mostly Indian, Muslim and African. They have an interesting history. Although colonized by Britain, everyone speaks French and Creole. Their claim to fame is the Dodo bird. Driven to extinction by the Dutch and their introduction of domestic animals, this plump and awkward bird maintained the survival skills of a cow in a crocodile pit.

Broken Compass arrived in Mauritius at sunset on November 29th. Upon arrival, customs confiscated our arsenal of spear guns. The Marina in Port Louis is entertaining... we are located adjacent to a parking lot from the best shopping mall in Mauritius. Makai spends her time on deck and is by all accounts the only husky to ever set eyes on Mauritius. Mauritius has all the exotic African animals in a zoo... but no husky. More than once we considered charging for pictures as locals and tourists snapped hundreds of shots of the blue eyed wolf dog. In the marina we enjoyed simple luxuries such as hot showers and cold drinks (remember it is summer here in the southern hemisphere).

We moved up to Grand baie for a week of sun, beaches and water sports. Our favorite place in Grand baie was the yacht club. Everyday kids race dinghys across the bay and back. One day we were teaching kids how to play American football and I saw the most amazing sight. The wind formed a small water spout (mini tornado over the water) moving toward the young sailors. The kids screamed. Three boats were tossed and capsized. The event only lasted about a minute. Fortunately none of the kids were injured.

After 2 weeks in Mauritius our pre-departure inspection resulted in a “no-go” verdict. A keystone piece of stainless steel supporting the mast had failed. We procured material and a welder to fabricate a new piece. Killing time in Mauritius is an easy task. We split our time between boat work and entertainment with friends. We visited Flick en Flac in the South, the mountains inland and drove the coastline. With the holidays approaching, we decided to stay and leave with the new year. We met the director an orphanage called Terre De Paix and gifted school supplies and toothbrushes. The toothbrushes were provided by Global Grins, a non-profit improving smiles around the world including to our friends back in Tonga.

After a breathtaking New Year firework demonstration, we are ready to depart. There seem to be a steady string of tropical disturbances and cyclones in the area as we look towards South Africa. This is likely the most dangerous passage of our journey. Pray for moderate wind and calm seas.

Cocos Keeling Islands

Cocos Islands consist of two atolls in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Coconut trees, white sand beaches, clear blue water, and prospects of fish made the decision to stop an easy one. As a territory of Austrailia, the atoll is protected, resulting in an environment rich in wildlife. Spinner dolphins escorted us into the lagoon and several manta rays joined the welcome party.

We quickly made friends with the crew of Lady Amber, the other yacht who stopped for a diesel top-off during cyclone season. They collect deep ocean current data for the UN. We spent a couple days off the uninhabited Direction Island with crew and the captain, Peter Flannigan. Peter is one of the most wild men I ever encountered. His life story, including death row and lion attacks would humble the most imaginative adventure novels.

When our friends departed, we scoured the other islands for cold drinks and good company. The population of 600 is split 5:1 between the Malay and Aussies. The Malay inhabitants on “Home Island” are strict Muslims and generally kept to themselves. We found what we were looking for on “West Island.” We stumbled upon the Austrailian minority at tailgate next to a shack on the beach known as North Park. Bon fire on the beach and a rapidly declining cooler of beer, every story I heard in North Park involved at least one shark, a trophy fish, or a near death experience (occassionally all three). We were generously welcomed and even made an cameo appearance on the local radio station during our short stay. The area and locals has a rich history, orated at the bar by a descendant of the original Clunies Ross dynasty. The Clunies owned the islands from 1834 until Australia purchased the land in 1978.

Our stop in Cocos quenched our craving for an island fix. Activities included harvesting coconut trees, and exploring underwater via spearfishing. We like to consider ourselves top of the food chain, but find ourselves corrected after a large shark looks up from the depths. They maintain an unnatural ability to hover outside the border of visibility. For our week of spearfishing, we enjoyed the treasures of the reef and shot our share of fish. As a sign of gratitude (mostly curiosity) we tossed the carcasses overboard and emulating the shark divers in Fiji, dove after the fish entrails. Waiting under the boat with scuba gear, up to a dozen reef sharks approached. Reef sharks feature timid personalities, and several simply circled for a couple minutes before the first took a investigative bite. Each shark subsequentially consumed the carcass tearing off a small portion.

After a week of living off the land and a boatload of coconuts, it was time to move on. The trade winds summoned our sails with the promise of fair weather to Mauritius. We decided to sign the “island guest book” before our departure. On several uninhabited islands scattered around the globe, recreational yachtsmen keep various forms of records. On Direction Island, wooden signatures are nailed to coconut trees. Broken Compass left her mark a touch above the rest.

Bali

Bali
It’s not difficult settling into a place like Bali. We rented motorbikes and explored the land. Makai loves the motorbike, riding up front with her paws on the handlebars. The locals can be creative in how they pack the little motorbikes. We witnessed 5 person families to the casual mobile kitchen. On one occasion we looked like locals sporting two people, surfboards, and backpacks with a dog on the handlebars. It worked fine until Makai apparently had enough. She hit the key to “Stop” with her paw, leaving us immobile on a busy highway.
About 90 minutes north of the anchorage is an area known as Ubud. It is an artist’s dream destination: laid back lifestyle with a variety of talented painters and sculptors. The main attraction is a sacred monkey sanctuary, where the Bandar-log leapt from trees to temples and climb onto visitors who trade the local currency: bananas.
Bali has more than just great surfing. The nightlife is crazy. Sky Garden, the main club, has fire dancing performances and multiple floors of bars and dancing. The down under equivalent to Cancun or Cabo San Lucas, drunken Australians inundate the streets and beaches of Kuta attempting to forget the better part of a short lived vacation.
Bribes in Indonesia are commonplace, especially with the police. During the two months I was stopped 4 times for virtually no reason and paid a ‘ticket’ anywhere from $1.50 to $10.00. Sometimes you have to know when to just pay the “fee” and stop negotiations. I was a couple days late in applying for a visa extension (an illegal immigrant). Accustom to flexible Island life, they were half-way through processing my deportation before I submitted by paying the $100 late fee.
A few days before our departure, a 6.0 earthquake rattled the city of Denpasar damaging several buildings. I talked to a couple locals about the earthquake. Even the elderly said that they have never felt anything like it. According to all our neighbor sailors we have missed the window to cross the Indian Ocean. No wind and Cyclone season is approaching. Just in time for our passage to Coco’s Keeling. Pray for wind.