My predictions about a shitty trip to Langkawi were spot on! We checked out of Batam (Nongsa Point Marina) for the 430nm trip to Lankawi with plans to anchor each night, but the wind was blowing from the wrong direction, and none of the recommended anchorages provided any protection from the decent swell. So it was four days of head winds, then no wind, then nosy Malay fishermen, the usual shipping traffic, the heat and humidity, and the ever-present floating garbage. As we approached the Rebak Marina entrance, there was an intense squall with 30kts of wind and torrential rain so that I couldn’t see the entrance. We did circles for an hour until there was a little break, then made a dash for the gap. And here we are in Langkawi, Malaysia. We’re actually on a tiny resort island called Rebak, which has a marina and a resort. Enough said about the sailing. I’ll let the pictures tell the story.

I love Malaysia. It’s less chaotic than Indonesia and I could certainly get used to this resort life😁. Check-in to the country was so easy…and free! It’s so nice to have other yachties to socialise with, and I’m enjoying having some female company and conversation.

We’re preparing the boat to be left at the marina for 3-4 months while we return to NZ. We’ve taken the headsails off, put large full-length covers over the boat, cleaned the bilge, washed down the topsides, and engaged a woman to come and run the engine once a week, flush the watermaker and clean the inside and outside of the boat.

The wildlife here is incredible, even on this little island of Rebak. There are Macaque monkeys up in the jungle. They come down into the boat yard and can be quite aggressive, we’ve seen a huge green tree snake on our dock (not dangerous), a Malaysian Spitting Cobra, which hangs around to eat the frogs after the rain. There are Hornbill birds, honey-eaters, bats, butterflies, and enormous Monitor lizards. We’ve been warned not to walk around at night without a torch.