CHAGOS TO ADDU, MALDIVES
Motoring out of Chagos
11th – 13th July 2006
We left Chagos with 10 – 15 knots of wind out of the south east. The sea was lumpy and all over the place, but we had a good breeze and we made great speed. Shayile pitched and rolled but smiled once again as she wet her bows and pointed north!
As we looked back on Chagos, slowly seeing it get smaller and smaller, those great memories of a fantastic stay came flooding back. The diving, the fishing, the socials and the company. It all came and went too quickly and I felt as if we had just got there last week and already we were leaving. Chagos was now a memory, albeit one that would remain with us for the rest of our lives.
It takes some time getting back into the sailing mood and motion of the ocean. The sea was not too pleasant, just the kind to initiate a bout of sea sickness. Fortunately none of us suffered and we got used to the rocking again. Even Daniel was fine, although both he and Jenna were asleep within the hour!
With the south easterly wind off our starboard quarter, we kept a constant 6 – 7 knots boat speed. However in true Shayile spirit, we had ½ a knot of current against us!
Over the next 2 days, we sailed when the wind was sufficient and motor sailed when the wind dropped. We had a small time constraint to consider. We needed to get into Addu by Thursday afternoon. Being a Muslim country, Friday was a non start with customs and immigration not working. If we missed Thursday afternoon we would have to remain on Shayile until Saturday in order to clear in. It was not an option. We wanted a restaurant – Thursday it would be!!
Sunset over Addu
Come Thursday morning and I worked out we needed to maintain a steady 5.5 knots minimum over ground. The current was now almost a knot against us and we were cutting it fine. On went the engines and we motor sailed all day.
Eventually Addu came into sight, growing slowly bigger as we approached. On entering the channel, we called Peter on Belagaer who had been in Addu for a few days already. He answered and we chatted briefly before we motor sailed into the small harbour at Gan.
The Maldives
The Maldives
Tourism is the main foreign exchange earner with close to 400 000 tourists visiting the Maldives Seychelles
The atoll of Addu is the southern most of the Maldives island of Gan
Many of the islands in the atoll are connected by causeways, built by the British. With the majority of the islands interconnected, Addu boasts the second largest town in the Maldives
We entered the small harbour at Gan just after 6pm Thursday evening. It seemed as though we had missed the custom officials. Anchored in the harbour was Erias. With a retractable keel, they were able to enter the rather shallow anchorage within the small harbour. Belagaer and a large catamaran, Maylakarn, were anchored just outside the harbour, restricted by their draught.
Jean-Yves, Nadine and the kids came across as did Peter and Rose on Belagaer. Rose had flown in from Dar es Salaam, having completed her teaching contract there and joining her husband Peter. They planned to head on back to Chagos!
We all got together and caught up on the trip across and the happenings in Gan. At about 7.30pm a motor boat pulled up alongside Shayile. It was the customs and immigration officials and they had arrived to clear us in! They were fantastic and all the paper work was done there and then. We were now cleared in and able to go ashore first thing in the morning.
With that we all settled down and had a good nights sleep.
Shayile & Erias anchored off Gan
Over the next few days, we caught up on “civilization” and spent time seeing the islands. I found Ali, a local shop owner who was well known amongst the yachting fraternity. I bought quite a few minor parts and items off him, and B did a bit of food shopping. First up was chocolate for me and the kids!
We ate at a number of restaurants, trying each one out. They were incredibly cheap and a full meal of usually, chicken curry and rice, popodoms, roti and salad, followed by ice cream and washed down with a few fruit juices, cost us some R100 in total! That was for 4 of us!
This was great value and hardly worth cooking on board Shayile.
Dan taking us ashore
The kids had a great time! They found a few interesting ways to occupy themselves. First up was catching lizards. There were many of them running about and soon each kid had their own pet lizard. These usually came back to Shayile where they were entertained and played with endlessly. Catching frogs was also a hit, but none back on the yachts. They spent a lot of time swimming in the harbour. Where the 2 islands were joined by the causeway, there was a strong current flowing into the harbour. The kids ran along the causeway and jumped into the fast flowing current. Great fun as they were carried into the harbour and then able to swim back to Shayile or Erias. Next up was catching squid. I bought them squid lures and most afternoons they went off to catch squid. Those caught were prepared and eaten for dinner. By the end of the day, all 4 kids were usually exhausted. A full day with energy well spent and after a bath and dinner, it was off to be for a good 11 hours!
Catching squid off a pier
It was extremely hot in Addu and getting things done took time and effort! No rush. I slowly worked through the few things I needed to get done on Shayile. I bought all the spares required and ticked off a few “minor” tasks not done whilst in Chagos.
The rudders still concerned me so Jean Iyes and I tackled the task. After lengthy diving to check them, examining the insides and doing a few calculations, it was decided to leave them as they were. They were fine and although not 100% lined up with the hulls, would be sufficient to see us across to Thailand
Jens and Dan with a few local kids
Over the next week or so we took it easy! Nothing was a rush or an effort and we took time to enjoy Addu and relax. I made an effort to accomplish a few things on the “to do” list each day and slowly ticked them off one by one. These were all minor tasks and checks to be done before the big crossing.
Shopping was high on the list of priorities and most days we were adding to the provisions required for the crossing. An extremely helpful businessman was Mulla from the supermarket “2+1”. He was the owner of the store and his service went above and beyond the call of duty. Each time we went there, he would assist us from beginning to end and then take us back to Shayile in his car. Nothing was too much trouble and he really portrayed great customer service. Whatever we needed, he made a plan and was able to source it for us. Belinda needed to go to the dentist as my temporary filling had come out. Moola made the appointment for us; he then picked us up from Shayile; took us to the dentist some 10km’s away and picked us up afterwards! All for free.
All this and an extremely pleasant, modest guy he was.
We kept on telling the kids that they had to get used to hot or spicy food as in Thailand, this was virtually every dish. Jenna battled with hot foods and we could not get her to eat anything spicy or hot. Daniel on the other hand, with an influence from Tito, tucked into the chicken curry and loved it. One down, one to go!
At the end of each meal, a plate was brought to the table. On the plate was Beatle nut, a few leaves and 2 tins of …….
Exploring the local village
We spend most evenings together with Erias. The kids got on with their playing and swimming whilst we settled into sundowners of rum and squeezed limes. It was great to get to know Jean Yves and Nadine a little better each day. We would talk together and laugh our way through the evening and way into the night! Jean Yves is a real character. Certainly bit of a rebel in his day, he left France to get work in Fiji New Caledonia
For them, it was not about the money or about the material things in life. They live, giving their kids the best possible education life can offer. I admired their philosophy and outlook on life, almost innocence in not having been totally exposed to “normal” society as we know it.
We could all learn a little something form folk like Jean Yves and Nadine.
B & Jean Yves enjoying a rum and orange!
A few days before our planned depsarture, Mulla invited us all out for a picnic.
Saturday morning 10am, he arrived at the yachts in a big pick up truck, complete with seats on the back. We all jumped on and, after a few stops to pick up supplies, we headed out to the picnic site. A few km’s out of town, he pulled up alongside the beach and we all jumped out. Everyone got to work and did a quick clean up of the chosen site. Once clean, up went a tarpaulin and out came all the food, drinks and snacks. A braai was fired up in the corner and soon 5 fish were being cooked. Besides Mulla’s son, there were 5 or 6 cousins there to play along with our kids, and they all went off swimming together.
We all had a fun day relaxing and chatting about the Maldives, business and the way things are done in the Maldives. The kids hardly left the water and, when it was time to go, we had to drag them out! Mulla and his family really laid on a great day for us and we are truly thankful for his generosity.
Braai-ing with Mulla and the Erias crew
As mentioned, maybe the hit of Addu for the kids was the lizards. Every time we went out they would be lizard hunting. One day as Dan, Jenna and I were out, Daniel was looking for lizards. Dan tracked one down in a tree and got to work trying to catch it. Little did he know, but wasps also enjoyed the same tree and out they came. Poor Dan was stung right between the eyes! He howled and ran like hell. Back on Shayile B got to work tending to his now swollen sting. Not a happy boy and no lizards!
With the weather settling down, we realized it was time to depart for Thailand.
B and I hired a motor bike and headed on down to Hitadoo, the main island at Addu. We were out to look around, but also buy a few things not available at 2 + 1. We had a great outing, riding the bike, laughing and chatting as we scootered around Addu! We picked up a few things and then headed back to Shayile.
We now had all the food required especially lots of chocolate and chewy sweets for those long night watches at sea.
On the morning of our intended departure from Addu, I picked up the last of the required diesel from the station. Jean Yves and I then climbed aboard the rather flat Shayile rubber duck and headed off to do the clearing out. We did think that it would not be a lengthy process as clearing in was quite painless. Unfortunately it was not to be, and again we were in for a long day. The customs and immigration building was some 5km’s away. We motored all the way down, pumping the ducky as we went, and then we started the formalities.
3 hours later we were finished. Poor old baby Shayile was in serious trouble with her seams coming apart. The sun had taken a toll on the pontoons and again we had to keep her pumped up on our return to Erias and Shayile.
Back at the yachts, it was now 3pm and the girls decided it was too late to leave. We agreed as we were tired, hungry and thirsty. A good nights sleep and we would head off the next day.
For the remainder of the afternoon, I secured fuel and generally checked out everything on board, whilst B cleaned and packed away inside. I must say it was great to have time and I was really feeling good about Shayile and that everything was ready. We were about to embark on our longest crossing yet and everything needed to be right.
Lunch at a local Maldivian’s house in Adu
The plan was to get an early start but, as with early plans, they rarely happen. Mulla’s was delivering some water; I needed to pick up my spear gun from the police. (No spear guns are allowed in the Maldives) and the rubber duck needed to be hauled on board and secured.
This all took time and our planned early start did not happen. When Mulla arrived, we thanked him for the water and his kind hospitality over the past 2 weeks. He was a great guy with customer service levels to impress the best businesses around!
With everything now on board, we got the poor rubber duck into position and secured it.
We were now ready to go! Erias had left about 30 minutes before us.
At 11.15am, Shayile upped anchor and motored out of the Gan harbour. Within minutes we were sailing across the atoll towards the past. A fresh 15knot SE wind was blowing and it took us no time to reach open sea. We were now on our way to Thailand
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