Justine’s Blog

Since we started heading slightly south, the NE Headwinds became NW tailwinds for a few days. Wahey! 2 days ago we had a feisty 20km paddle to an offshore Island with a good blow pushing us along and creating some chunky waves. Sandy got her sail fixed in Manokwari so she was flying along. I had a good workout to keep up and couldn’t dawdle or I’d be left behind. I love a good surf though and really enjoyed the ride. When we reached the sheltered side of the island it didn’t seem that sheltered with steep waves breaking over shallow reefs. Fortunately a mile further down the coast was a different world and we slid gently onto a sandy shore to make camp in an ants lair. At least that’s what it seemed like as ants were everywhere. We each had about 10 on each foot as soon as we stepped in the forest.

Yesterday and today we explored small sandy Islands with coconut trees providing the classic paradise view. I had a couple of snorkels and marveled at the magical underwater world. It feels like swimming into a movie set of a strange make believe garden. I’m suddenly surrounded by delicate orange fans growing on the edge of a carpet of short blue tipped plants, a white cauliflower plant sprouts upwards next to yellow spaghetti waving in the wind, bulbous Flintstone size boulders are scattered around in yellow and grey, featureless apart from scratches from hungry fish and the occasional brightly coloured sea squirt with feathers like a fishing lure . Smaller balls are imprinted with amazing maze patterns and luscious purple lips pout temptingly. Every nook and cranny is brimming with fish of all shapes and sizes. Schools of blue tailed fish come close to me, small Black fish which look like they’ve been given white tails as an afterthought frolic around near the surface. Tiny bright
blue fish sparkle in the dappled sunlight. A thin stripy fish eats parasites from the sides of bigger fish. The host usually stays still while the service is undertaken unless the cleaner strays too close to their mouth and then they dart off irritated. 5 big parrotfish slowly loom from the depths before seeing me and accelerating back down where they came from. A monster blue starfish with mean black spikes clings to a dying piece of coral sucking the last life out of it. Somehow an hour passes and I’m still there, enchanted by this magical world that is surely the work of someone’s imagination.

The last 2 days, the northerly wins we had banked on have failed to show with light Headwinds replacing them. I’m going this is a blip and we’ll be blown almost all the way to Nabire, where I’ll leave Sandy in about 10-14 days time. Or perhaps she’ll leave me to continue heading eastwards towards Papua New Guinea. I’ll fly back to Jakarta and then home in mid April.

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It’s a rest day but not like I know it. We’re spending the day on the outskirts of a small village of 200 people and since we arrived we haven’t been alone. About 20kids have followed us closely, sitting shyly to start with then helping us to put up our tents, making a clothes line for us from a plant that grows on the beach, appearing with bananas then a papaya,
trying on my hat and sunglasses, trying out their English words, fascinated by my sparky stick that lights our stove without a lighter. A few break away to draw in the sand or play with a ball and If I follow with my camera then more copy, eager to be on film.

That was a few days ago now, since the we’ve had a mixture of camping in villages and camping on our own private beaches. The variety is great, too much being surrounded by people can be more exhausting than paddling. In another place we were immediately surrounded and the crowd swarmed around us like bees. Sandy and I the Queens. Once I’d put my tent up, 2 chairs were set up in the shade for us and about 30 people sat around in a circle as I moved to the chair. I was brought a coconut to drink then a local fruit called lansak and all the while people took their turn in the chair next to me to have their photo taken with me on their phone, or on someone else’s phone if they didn’t have one. It was quite bizarre, especially as most people made a funny sign with their hand, something I’m too old or too uncool to be familiar with! Or maybe both!

We’ve just had 2 long days on the water, 11 hours each, to make it to surf free landings. Last night we made it 45 mins before dark and just got our dinner cooked before torrential rain poured from the sky. Sandy things she had a guardian Angel and maybe she does although she did get scared when something but the back of her kayak twice in murky water. After having a big crocodile do that in Australia she was understandably worried!

Tomorrow we should reach Manokwari, a town where we’ll spend a few days. We should have internet and phone signal. I’ve been sending a few messages overt the last 2 weeks or so by iridium sat phone.

Bed time!

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13th March

This 200km section of Indonesia is committing. The surf is around 1.5metres from the NE every day with not that many nooks and crannies offering a sheltered landing. We’re not always brave or stupid enough to land for lunch through the waves and we anxiously scan the horizon when arriving at a place that we’ve identified as hopefully a “dry hair” landing.

Yesterday we made great progress in light winds and reached Weios, the geography of which looked certain to offer nothing more than a splash on the deck. What the map didn’t reveal was the unbroken line of reef that guarded the entrance like a castle wall, revealing itself as an impenetrable black line every time a wave approched and sucked the water away. The waves then built up into their own white wall, rearing up and breaking down with a fierce boat-and-body busting crash.
Inside the calm bay, we could see a small house on stilts above the water and a couple of boats on the shore. The welcome oasis was so close but first we had to get past the angry guard. I approached a 1 metre wide gap in the fortifications as close as I dared as a set of big waves rolled through. Each wave swelled and puffed up is chest as it approached the shallower water but they didn’t break until they reared up on the reef with a heart stopping thump. It was intimidating to sit in this zone of flexing muscles, knowing the waves didn’t usually break here but also knowing there is always that extra big wave. I needed to be as close to the gap as possible so I could sprint through in the brief few seconds between sets. I sensed my moment and pulled hard on my paddle. I tried not to think about the confused white water surging and colliding and pushing after a wave breaks but concentrated on getting past the danger zone on a blue sea. As i powered forwards, I felt my kaya k get
pushed sideways slightly but I was through into deeper water. Just in time as another wave reared up onto the reef behind me and crashed down sending a breaking wave careering towards me. The wave didn’t die as I expected but caught me up and pushed me towards shore. A brief moment of panic but the wave petered out. I had run the gauntlet and survived.

It was Sandy’s turn. I couldn’t see her line very well as she kept disappearing behind the swell. I saw her powering towards the gap and the white foam of a wave in quick pursuit. A stern rudder set her straight, I think she made it through but then the breaking wall of water caught her up, her red kayak looking small on the face of it. A brace and a braking stroke and she handled it beautifully, skilfully surfing away from the danger. I asked if she heard me whooping. She asked if I heard her swearing!

The rain had been with us on and off all day and an hour before landing it started falling with a vengeance. This is the wet season and it rains at least every other day but usually for no more than a few hours at a time. Last night heavy drops fell incessantly and we were grateful that the two guys who lived in the bay let us organise our things under their shelter and cook on their fire. It’s great to see how self sufficient they are. They’ve dug a well for water and set up a system to filter it through gravel. Fish were being smoked above the fire while bananas lay on a bench and papayas grew on a few trees. They helped us clear an area for our tents and put mine up with me.

The rain stopped sometime in the night and today was overcast then sunny. Getting out through the reef was easier at a higher water level and we made pretty good progress towards a village where sandy identified a gap in the reef on Google earth. In the end we stopped a bit short of this as we found a really protected beach with an easy landing. As a bonus there are also rustic homemade wooden chairs and table. We’ve enjoyed a couple of hours of pottering about watching hundreds of hermit crabs of all shapes and sizes crawl over everything including each other, like a living carpet.

We’ve paddled the last 8 days, mostly getting up early in the dark so a rest day is due but we’re short on water so probably need to paddle to a village tomorrow. We’re both tired and I’m looking forward to sleeping as fireflies light up the night outside my tent.

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Our fresh water was running out so we moved from paradise Island to the village 2km away on the mainland. Before we could leave a man appeared paddling a wooden canoe. Come to my house in the village for a shower he said. We paddled back in convoy, our host impressed with the speed of our longer sleeker craft with twice the paddle blade. We were impressed with his skill in the cross wind and how he stopped every so often to bail out with his water jug. Kids ran around on the beach flying kites made of plastic bags strapped onto a bamboo frame, controlled by fishing line wrapped around a discarded water bottle. They all circled in on us as we landed through small surf. Strong hands grabbed my kayak and easily carried it to the top of the beach. Sandy's was next. Fifty people watched intently as we unpacked our valuables from the kayak and took off our spraydecks. Mostly children from age 2 to 15. Sandy gave a speech in basic Indonesian explaining her trip. They all followed us as we headed to our host's house and they snuck into the room after us. The rest of the day as we waked around the village, fetched something from the kayak, ate a coconut or drank tea, we had an entourage, a band of followers who watched our every move. I felt like the pied piper with a raggle taggle procession behind me. Sandy says this is a small crowd. She's had up to 200 people surrounding her, blocking the air flow, no escape from stares, questions, hands. I am enjoying it today and hope I'll continue to appreciate the curiosity.

I wonder how many people will watch us sleep for a few hours before we get up early to cross to mainland Papua tomorrow.

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