It is December 13th and good luck prevailing we will be at anchor with Penang before dark. It seems as though Kári managed to cure our Mr. Perkins while we were at Johor Bahru and we happily motor sailed from Danga Bay Marina on December 8th. We did not stop with the bridge this time, but used favourable current and wind to take us all the way to Pulau Pisang (01.28.492 - 103.16.012), where we used great dexterity getting unscathed through nets, traps and fleets of small fishing boats. The wind was still favourable as we set anchor at 18:00 but we sincerely needed to clean at least the propeller of our small vessel. Hence, expecting the wind to go down when it got dark we settled in for a quiet night on anchor for the first time in a while. We slept well and were surprised to find that the wind still fairly strong and very favourable when we awoke. Not wanting to waste this unexpected windfall Kári decided that only the propeller would be cleaned this time (the bottom could wait), he hastily put on his snorkel and was cleaning underwater before I took my first sip of coffee that morning.
We were gaily on our way at 8:30 hoping for an auspicious journey of 153 NM to Port Klang where we intended to have a short rest.

Yachties often smile and state (if in doubt) point straight into the wind and you are sure to be heading the right way and ´sure enough´ we had not enjoyed the favourable breeze for long when it turned on us and then quietly disappeared. Always grateful for our Mr. Perkins, he was awakened and promptly started pushing us ahead. Alas, he had not been working for long when Kári noticed that the engine was overheating.
Well, if you saw the photo of LaBarque at DB marina after a good rainfall, you are probably not surprised to learn that a small object had found it's way into our cold water intake and after probing and swearing for a while Kári decided that nothing would happen unless he jumped overboard there in the middle of the sea and started probing from the outside too.
It was after an hours leighbour penetrating the hose with this and with that from outside and inside the boat that he managed to pluck out a small peace of wood that obviously was the culprit.
After that we happily motor sailed well into the night, until shortly before daybreak we were favoured with such good wind that we had to reef the mainsail and were going at the unusually high speed of 7 NM this good fortune stayed with us all the way to our chosen place with Port Klang. We happily set anchor well before dark and enjoyed quality time in our cockpit watching all the heavy loaded freighters going up and down the river, further in the canal were towboats moving loaded barges and at the very edge of the line the fishing boats and ferries were busily moving too. While we were admiring how well all was structured and disciplined Skotta was mesmerized by the noble eagles gliding over our anchorage looking for dinner. We were impressed with all the activity around, but the air in this part is so polluted that for hours after we left the place we spoke like teen boys when their voice is changing.

We had a very good night with Port Klang and leisurely waited for the current to be advantageous pushing us down river and out. We were through there shortly after noon and had generally a good trip until late that day when the wind found our nose and soon after that we were pushing into strong headwind and white-topped waves, when the current turned also against us we were merely moving at 2,5NM, but later we learned that this was not so bad. It got worse when during the night we were hit by a rainstorm which sure enough cleaned the city grime of our floating abode. Dressed in rain gear from top to toe we slouched in the cockpit trying to see any danger ahead and occasionally glimpsing at the instrument panels I saw our speed at one time was 0,8NM.

On these waters there are always/everywhere fishing boats of all sizes and shapes and I stated impishly to Kári the other day that surely one could with little effort travel (dry-foot) from any island to the mainland simply by jumping from one fishing boat to the next. What troubles us is that none of those boats seem to be fitted with the proper navigation lights and it seems impossible to guess what to expect when trying to navigate through their throngs.
When after covering 109 NM we reached our next destination (P. Talang 04.25.204 - 100.34.923) we had to show considerable agility and wit getting through amazing assembly of nets, traps and small fishing boats. When safely through and at anchor we had a light meal and a short snooze. After which we got out in the cockpit with a cup of coffee and saw then that all the little boats and their gear were completely gone. We now know that it is much better to approach P. Talang in the afternoon ha,ha!

We slept fairly well at P. Talang, but not wanting to maneuver through the little boats again upon departure we decided to leave no later than 5:00. The sky was cloudy this morning, thus not much help from the moon, but still some. The little boats were not there yet, but their big brothers were in abundance on the shallow bank we had to go by. We both kept a keen eye as we went by and all was well.

It is after noon now and we are past the crowded area for now, I used the opportunity and cleaned our fridge which this morning smelled of something foul??? Now as I write this Kári is happy on the outlook in the cockpit sipping on an unexpected find of a Malt can that I found.