Abang Besar Cruise – Birregurra and Skybird

We were keen to get a short cruise in before Barbara and Stuart departed Singapore for Spain, so some serious planning was undertaken by Skybird and Birregurra and crews at CSC.

And so at 7:30am on the 3^rd of October, we were lined up at Changi Point Ferry Terminal again. Mayling had done her usual magic to help with the clearance out and the Indo Cruising permit and the Green books and the 1980’s software!

We set off after 8pm and motor-sailed down the channel for a very uneventful trip across to Nongsa. As soon as we dropped the sails to enter the marina, the wind kicked up to 20kn making for a challenging berthing, but we managed to tie up securely and settle into marina life. It’s a somewhat expensive but very smooth check in process now.

A few jobs, a bit of a walk around, and we were in the bar for the 6pm happy hour with Prakash. I’m not sure what it is about this bar, but it’s a very friendly and inviting place, and over the course of the night, you get to talk to everyone in the bar, including the owner of Rona – a 130 year old classic sailing yacht, and a couple of solo round the world sailors with some really interesting stories.

“Rona”

Coffee and breakfast on board, and our Indo clearance came in and we were good to go. As soon as Edwin had organised emergency supplies of Bintan for both boats! We headed out and hugged the Batam coast east then south and after about 18NM anchored at the very south of Batam between Tanjong Piayu and Pulau Piayu.

It’s not a very wide channel but it very well protected. A GnT or two just to make sure the anchor was well bedded in, then into Skybird’s tender and ashore for a fabulous crab and seafood dinner at the restaurant on the water.

I’m not sure if James was worried he might not be fed on Skybird for the rest of the trip, as he loaded up on the chilli and black pepper crab (but at a fraction of the price of Jumbo’s). We made it safely back on board for a great night’s sleep as the boats gently swung around with the tide.

Next morning we headed off after breakfast to the first of the famous six bridges of Batam. It’s quite a story and the first bridge is a quite spectacular cable-stayed bridge 642M in length and with varying clearances listed above highest astronomical tide.

The lowest of these seemed to be 25M, so even with a 19.5M mast we had plenty of room to spare, but it’s always a bit nerve wracking. We must have gone through around slack water so no issue, but we found out in the Nongsa bar on the return that the tide can rip through here at 6-7kn, so if you’re planning to go that way, check the tides!

We tacked across the south west between a Mosque on one island and Christian church on another. Then it was south east for the 34NM sail to Abang Besar, where we anchored opposite Pulau Ranoh resort. Barbara tried to go for a snorkel but the current was a bit much and she wasn’t ready to go back to Singapore!

So we followed the boat’s ritual of a GnT whilst making sure we were securely anchored. Stuart flew his drone which always makes me very nervous (I have seen a drone become a submarine on an earlier trip). He got some great pics and somehow managed to land it on the swim platform safely.

Edwin and James came aboard for drinks and an excellent evening was had by all. And of course, James brought along his music box with all the hits from the 80’s – just fantastic.

The next morning, it was very showery and windy, but we held well in a great anchorage. Breakfast and then we were off with the wind directly astern as we headed east/north east.

We arrived at Pulau Tunjuk late afternoon. We anchored between the distinctive lighthouse and a fishing village on stilts in dead calm waters.

A few more nerve-wracking drone moments but again Stuart managed to safely get it back on board.

The skipper of Birregurra thought it would be a good idea to go for a swim. The current was fairly ripping through but he thought how strong can that be?

As it turned out, very, very strong, and despite my best freestyle efforts, Stuart had to throw me a line to get back onboard. If I’d have missed the line, I would have had to grab Edwin’s anchor chain as otherwise I would have been headed to Johor at 3+kn! We had a great Masaman curry thanks to Barbara and another excellent night at anchor. The light from the lighthouse wasn’t super bright and we had a very calm night at anchor.

After breakfast, we made good use of that north running current and covered the 19NM back to Nongsa in less than 2.5hrs. The skies opened as we came into the marina, but we quickly had the boom tent up and enjoyed the cool conditions.

We’ve got this place worked out now, and it was an early dinner onboard and we were sitting at the bar for the start of the Bintan draft happy hour. More sailing stories with our new found mates in the bar and another cracking night at Nongsa.

After breakfast, whilst waiting for our clearance papers, Stuart helped me download software system updates for the chart plotter and auto pilot. He tried to help update the Triton instruments, but this requires inserting a thumb drive in the back of the device. I have no idea how he got his huge frame into that locker!

We set off about 11am local time, whilst Edwin stayed another day to do some work on a Skybird hatch. As we exited the marina, the clouds filled in behind us, and then down it came, and Barbara wisely decided it was time to make lunch downstairs!

Strong winds, seas starting to build and torrential rain all the way across the channel. Visibility was less than 100M and so we relied on AIS to ensure we had plenty of space between us and the 300M tankers doing 15kn. Back up the channel onto our trusty mooring at CSC around 2:10pm, with a total of 147NM on the log.

Mr. Chua collected us in the bum boat and we checked in at Changi Point, then back to the club and back onboard to clean up, and have a final GnT after we were all packed up. A couple of beers in the bar then we were off home. Skybird came back the next day on the same incoming tide.

It was a great little trip. 6 days, 5 nights, three of which were at anchor, and two in Nongsa marina. No overnight passages so very relaxing and very doable for most yachts at CSC. There is a lot more to explore around Batam and Bintan. We also had a good chat with Warren Blake (Four Friends) in Batam. He is currently surveying Pulau Mapur, which is east of Bintan, about 50NM from Nongsa. Although the charts say the western side is all reef, he has found a navigable channel through the reef. A quick look at Google Earth confirms the possibilities. We’ll have to discuss this one and do some more planning at CSC for a future cruise.

It was a pleasure to sail with Stuart and Barbara, and I learnt a lot from Barbara about provisioning and cooking. Things like Marks and Spencer croissants that just need heating up in the oven. Fairprice pancake mix that doesn’t even require refrigeration. Pre-prepared meals like masaman curry and cinnamon rolls.  We were more than well catered for. And of course its always great to sail with Skybird. All the very best to Stuart and Barbara for their big move – they will be missed by all at CSC.

Article by Skipper Basil Byrnes of Birregurra

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Article by Luke Doherty

Three CSC boats go to Anambas 2024

After a few short weeks of discussion and associated planning sessions around the bar at CSC, three CSC boats headed off to explore Anambas, Indonesia; part of the Riau Islands group, 180 nm north east of Singapore for a 10 day adventure.  Boats were prepped and provisions loaded onboard in the week leading up to departure.

2nd August 2024 – 0700

Singapore – Anambas
And so it was with energy and excitement that the skippers & crews from Skybird & Sapphire Star gathered at Changi Ferry Terminal to clear immigration at 0730. The sleek and fast Birregurra crew were blessed with a little pre-departure sleep-in, having set their departure for a couple of hours later in the morning.

The boats set off down the channel with the wind almost on the nose, so it was the usual multiple tacks down the channel to Kees mark and around anchored vessels south of Malaysia before the boats were able to reach open water and set a course NE to Pulau Jemaja.

Onboard Skybird, the music loving crew all settled into the groove with tunes, banter and great sailing while making 4-6 kts SOG.  As sunset approached, we put a single reef in the mainsail for safety and comfort for the night. At around 0230 in the morning we spotted a single red light approaching from the stern and were passed by Birregurra at around 0300.  The overnight passage required the crew on deck to remain very alert with the significant shipping traffic. It was continuous decision making for many hours through the night while we plotted a course between the vessels crossing from all directions.  While the marine traffic kept us busy, the aquatic bioluminescence was fantastic to watch in the waves and wake of the boat, sparkling in the sea like little blue-green jewels.

Sunrise welcomed the boats with an absolutely stellar morning, and also a welcome end to the shipping traffic, coffees were brewed, sunscreen reapplied as we sailed into day 2.  It was early afternoon when the skipper spotted the tip of Pulau Jemaja.  The next few hours were spent sailing along the coast in beautiful blue water, with all boats spotting numerous sea turtles along the way. (Birregurra turtle count: 8+, Skybird: 5+, Sapphire Star: lost count!)

At approx 1730, Skybird entered the beautiful anchorage at Pulau Ayam (on the east side, between P. Ayam & P. Jemaja) and joined up with Sapphire Star & Birregurra who had both arrived earlier.  After a quick swim and refresh, dinner was prepped and a nice cold beer while gazing up at the jam-packed star filled sky all the way down to the horizon.  The milky way was clearly visible and all the boat crews enjoyed a stunning lightshow put on by the continuous shooting stars and passing satellites overhead all night.

The night sky view was so amazingly beautiful that it was a difficult decision to look away, close eyes and retire to bed, but the rest was welcomed by all after the long sail. 

The anchorage at Ayam, while stunningly beautiful, was a little rolly at night for some of the crew due to tidal flow.  It appears that there was a very sheltered anchorage on the western side of P. Ayam, although with only enough space for 1 or 2 small boats, while the eastern side of the island provided more than enough space for a dozen or more yachts. 

4th August 2024 – 0800

Ayam – Murbur

The following morning, all 3 boats departed Pulau Ayam for Pulau Telaga.  Although the planned anchorage at Telaga proved to be almost all coral and unsuitable to anchor, we swiftly decided to continue on to Pulau Murbur, where Birregurra had spent a night in 2022.  It was an absolutely stellar day, with flat water and a perfect breeze, and so was unofficially declared to be a race. Skybird, regularly maintaining 7kts managed to lead the fleet and still avoid the rainshowers the other boats were blessed with as we passed north of Pulau Siantan.

All boats were anchored in the quaint sheltered bay at 1730 and the welcome sound of “Pfshhhh” was heard as the crew cracked open a few cold refreshments while inflating tenders. 

Skybird was the first boat to be approached by a local fisherman, offering a fantastic fresh fish. Dinner plans were swiftly rejigged and fish curry was put on the menu.  Having a shortage of small notes, the market price was set with a 50,000 rupiah note, after which the fisherman approached Sapphire Star & Birregurra with a smile and sold two more fish for a rewarding day selling fish to hungry CSC sailors.

After a delicious fish curry dinner, the crew of Sapphire Star joined together with the crew of Skybird for a bit of storytelling and recounting of visions of kangaroos bouncing on water, floodlit fishing boats, police cars and other night hallucinations spotted during the overnight passage from Singapore to Anambas.

5th August 2024 – 0800

Clearing into Indonesia – Moon Rock
The next morning the boats pulled up anchor at 0830 for a short motor across to Terempa for completion of immigration formalities.  Anchored off the jetty, the boats were boarded by a small team of quarantine, customs, health & immigration officials, escorted by an agent. Documents were reviewed, boats inspected, passports reviewed and all the usual questions asked. “How much do you love Indonesia?”  “ALOT!”

A strong recommendation to visit the new cafe in town was given to the crews, who obliged with making a visit for coffees.

With immigration completed, yellow Q flags were put away and the boats were now free to explore the delights of the Anambas Islands.

All of the crews were itching to get out to one of the highlights of the Anambas, Pulau Sagu Dampar, colloquially known as Moon Rock.  The anchorage between Pulau Samak & P. Sagu Dampar being blessed with deep blue water, stunning white sand, 270 degree protection and a number of reefs and corals with abundant sea life.

So with passports returned to the crews, anchors were up at 1600 for the tricky zigzag through reefs and shallows to the east of Terempa, before raising sails for the 15 nm sail east to Moon Rock.  The delay in departing Terempa, meant arriving at the anchorage right on sunset, which was less than ideal, but manageable as a number of the crew had visited the anchorage two years earlier.   The entry to the bay being filled with coral bombies, required slow careful navigation and a good set of eyes on the bow looking out for reefs.  And at 1900 sharp Birregurra was anchored on a sandy bottom and Skybird comfortably rafted up beside the Hanse mothership. Sundowners and a few sailing stories were exchanged before a good meal shared across the lifelines.  After dinner, the revelry really kicked off with everyone happy to be anchored in this stunning paradise.

The olympic spirit was flowing and it didn’t take much for an impromptu diving competition to be organised.  The stern of the Hanse became the diving platform and international teams gathered for the competition.  The fairest and most impartial judge was selected from the crews, as the highly distinguished teams stretched and limbered up for what would be possibly the first international diving competition to be held under the reflected moonlight off Moon Rock.

Both the German and Australian teams chose to approach their dives with “artistic interpretation” in their appeal to the judge for award of points, although it became clear that the judges were looking for technical execution in the dives.  Which meant that the rum inspired/sponsored training sessions chosen by the Aussies & Germans completely (and literally) fell flat, with the ultimate prize going to Team Singapore for a flawless technical diving display and barely a ripple of a splash.

Needless to say, following the exuberant competition it was a slow start the following morning.

6th August 2024 – Sometime after sunrise

After a leisurely breakfast and coffees, explorations of the islands began. Some of the crew heading over to Pulau Samak to take a small tour of the basic island resort and have a chat with the owner/manager of EcoSymbiosys https://ecosymbiosis.com/
Others went snorkelling, swimming, fishing, hiking, reading, sleeping and settling into doing sweet nothing. Many of the crew demonstrated excellence in doing nothing at anchor.

In the late afternoon, a few of the crew climbed to the top of Moon Rock to enjoy the twilight and magnificent views down to the anchorage.  Two years ago when we visited here, there was almost no mobile reception, which was a blessing.  Now it is possible to get a pretty reliable signal from the boat at anchor, and from the top of Moon Rock it was possible to make a video call. 

Just before sunset, we were rejoined by Sapphire Star who had spent an additional night in Terempa, now the fleet were all back together and the crew of Skybird were welcomed onboard Sapphire Star for dinner and a few light refreshments.

With the spectacular location, and the fantastic fun being had by all, a proposal was put forward to stay another night at Moon Rock which was quickly agreed by everyone.

7th August 2024

Lazy Explorations 

Most of the day was spent snorkelling, checking out the reefs, beachcombing ashore, minor boat works in the clear water (changing anodes) and generally enjoying being in paradise. Black tipped reef sharks, turtles, sea urchins, numerous reef fish were all spotted.

While most of the crew were resting in the shade of trees, the skippers of Birregurra & Sapphire Star attempted to summit Moon Rock on a never before climbed route, somehow overshooting Moon Rock!  The explorers returned looking absolutely shagged but soon regained their composure after being rehydrated/medicated from a couple of icy cold cans.

During the earlier exploration of the island, EcoSymbiosys had offered the possibility of hosting  all of the crew for a dinner ashore on the island. So as the sun was setting, we all headed to shore in the dinghies, where a huge trevally had been sourced and was being barbecued over the fire.  Gladly, we sat down to a feast together with the hosts onshore. A few of us struggled with getting our legs under the table, and we also learnt alot about “raw food”. 
While we were served a fully cooked meal, some of the crew took the opportunity to sample the raw food, accidentally picking up a potato skin to taste from the scraps tray, to much confusion and laughter of our hosts. 
Special instructions were also provided for gentlemen on how to use the bathroom, to ensure that the papaya trees were fertilised & watered. One of the crew took these 3 step instructions literally although was very bemused as to why 2 of the steps could not be omitted and delivery provided directly to the base of the tree… but the papaya trees were watered…. to much laughter.

8th August 2024 – 0800

Departure to Terampa

It was time to start planning our return to Singapore, so at 0900 we pulled up anchors and set sail west back to Terempa for clearing out and immigration formalities. This provided the crew with time to explore the small township of Terempa and the markets.  With documents completed, blocks of ice were sourced, along with 2 stroke fuel, fresh vegetables and a few other minor provisions before all the boats headed out to Temburun Waterfall.  Where we anchored for the night next to a quiet little village. A delicious kampong chicken curry was prepared on Skybird and the crew all gathered together on Birregurra for a quiet evening drink before retiring for the night.

9th August 2024 – 0830

South to Airabu

With a goal of getting as far south as possible to gain the optimum wind angle for the journey back to Singapore, we set out for Pulau Airabu, 26 nm south of the waterfall.  This was an interesting sail, through narrow channels weaving between the islands before reaching open water.  On arrival at Pulau Airabu, we all anchored and setup for an early night, but not before taking the dinghy out for an exploration of the reefs which were very shallow and teaming with fish in crystal clear water.  Definitely a spot to further explore with more time on another trip.

10th August 2024 – 0300

Departure for Singapore

After an early night of rest, the crews of Sapphire Star & Skybird arose at 0230 to prepare for an early departure to Singapore.  The fast Birregurra electing to depart at sunrise and catch up later in the day. 
Anchors were up and boats underway at 0300, navigating with caution around the small islands and rocks to the east of P. Airabu.  By 0530 we were out in open water and headed south west for Singapore.  At 0930 we sailed past Pulau Bawah, Skybird skirting around the north side of the Bawah, Sapphire Star passing by the south side to gain a sight of the resort. We rejoined each other to the west of P. Bawah making good speed motorsailing.  By lunchtime we were passing to the north of Pulau Repong, where Skybird spotted a huge tree floating in the water upon which a number of birds were roosting. Not something we wanted to bump into.

At 1600 all three boats were sailing within 1-2 miles of each other, when the sky started to darken and the fleet were surrounded by numerous flashes of lightning as a storm built to our south.  Boats were closed up and wet weather gear prepared as it looked like we were going to be in for a wet evening.   Just prior to nightfall, a single reef was put into the mainsail and we were continuing to make 5-6kts motorsailing to the south west.
As darkness approached we were drenched with pelting rain, which continued throughout the entire night.  Thankfully there was a lot less shipping traffic on the return journey as we were approx 12 nm further south than on our outbound journey, which meant that the larger container & RORO vessels headed north into the South China Sea were not in our path (or we in theirs)

It was a very dark night, being a waxing crescent moon combined with the huge storm clouds meant visibility was barely a few metres, making for a cold, dark, wet sail steering by compass and the feeling of the boats motion in the waves throughout the storm.

As dawn approached the crew were all soaked through and cold, but as the sea state settled, warm noodles were prepared and the crew were in good spirits, refuelled and beginning to warm up with the sunrise. Cup noodles with an egg never tasted as good as after a cold stormy night!

We continued to motorsail through the day, and at around 1300 we were passing south of Pulau Lima and into familiar waters approaching Singapore. And as we headed up the channel towards CSC, all three boats were in sight of one another.  And as we passed Kees mark to starboard, the call was issued to the crew to make a check on the condition of the remaining ice in the esky and the associated status of refreshments.

“Pfshhhh”, “Pfshhhh”, “Pfshhhh” was heard across the deck as the crew were all happy for an icy cold can with Changi Sailing Club almost in sight.  Provisioning had been perfect as the final few cans were gladly emptied as we passed by CAAS2 mark.   But the important question remained…. Could we still make it to the club in time for CSC happy hour??

At 1635 all boats were tied up on their CSC moorings, and the boatman was ready to pick everyone up for the transfer to immigration at the ferry terminal. Singapore efficiency was on display and in a few short minutes we were cleared in and walking back up the road to CSC.  Hot showers were had, and the team regrouped in the bar for a couple of cold Tigers and a good feed.

Everyone happy and a little tired from the 36hr return journey, but full of fantastic stories of adventures, fun, laughter and experiences.

Thanks to all the skippers & crew who made this trip to Anambas such a wonderful experience, discussions on the next trip had already kicked off in the bar before everyone retired for a good night’s rest in their own beds.

Thanks also go to the Howarth’s Cruising Guide and to the prior sailors who dropped waypoints in Navionics that were both indispensable in planning and navigating these reefs & islands safely in the absence of detailed accurate marine charts.

Looking forward to the next cruise from CSC!

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