After spending a month around Darwin, waiting for our cruising permit for Indonesia while checking out the outback and arranging for crew to sail with Rolf, we were finally able to set sail again. I write we, but Boukje actually flew over to Bali and spend a week in a retreat being spoiled (being pregnant isn’t so bad). Rolf on the other hand motored Helena for 850 windless miles over the Indian Ocean. His great consolation: once on Bali he would finally be able to eat a kroket again!
Archive for the ‘Voyages’ Category
In Indonesia
In Voyages on 26/12/2011 at 08:54Scary [somewhat]
In Voyages on 29/11/2011 at 01:18
People often ask us what our most scary moment has been at sea. Usually we answer that we haven’t really been in any scary situations, as we try to avoid storms and rough seas and that kind of stuff. Oh sure, we’ve sailed out of an atoll, along the wrecks of two big cargo ships, with 48 knots winds (10 beaufort) on the bow, heavy waves, an engine held together by superglue and cable ties and sails that were damaged and barely holding on; but that was a calculated risk. 
But now for the first time in 2,5 years of sailing Rolf ran into something he really considered somewhat scary.
Read the rest of this entry »
A much needed update
In Voyages on 13/09/2011 at 08:57
We have arrived in our final port of call in Australia: Darwin. As we have been very, very lazy in updating this website, I will try and bring you up to speed on the developments on board of Helena since July quickly: The repairs in Cairns have gone well, the boat looks and feels great again. We had Eric en Maxine crew with us for 2 months. Boukje returned on board in the beginning of August. We sailed from Cairns, via Cooktown, Barrier Reef and Torres Strait to Darwin. In a couple of weeks we’ll leave Darwin to sail to Bali and Singapore.
And now some pictures Read the rest of this entry »
On dry land
In Helena, Voyages on 23/06/2011 at 02:39
We’re back in Australia. This time we brought Helena along! Our original plans were to go from the Solomons along the coast of PNG through the Torres Strait to end up in Darwin. However, due to an unreliable engine, two furling systems in need of repair and a broken genoa, we decided to take the easiest and quickest route to a place for repairs and sailed to Cairns. Read the rest of this entry »
Cruising Solomon style
In Voyages on 28/04/2011 at 08:05
It took us three weeks of blood, sweat and tears to get the boat fixed and running again. But, we are on the move again. A short stop in Gizo ensured of us supplies for the next months or so and in Noro we took in enough fuel to motor through the Solomon and Coral Sea if we so please. For now however, we are happily cruising around the Solomon Islands for a bit. Read the rest of this entry »
Down under
In Voyages on 02/04/2011 at 07:21
We liked it there, in Australia. So, as our shipment of spare parts for the boat was delayed getting to the Solomons, we decided to stay a bit longer. That gave us time to see some more of this country, meet some real Aussies and go looking for ‘wild’ koalas.
Slowing down
In Voyages on 29/01/2011 at 01:46
For the first time in months we’re not trying to outrun the cyclone season. Since leaving Honiara for the Western Province of the Solomons, we’ve reached safe sailing grounds. So we are slowing down here. Taking our time to enjoy the beautiful nature on these islands, to meet the very friendly people, to explore the underwater worlds and to do just not that much. Read the rest of this entry »
Happy new year from the Solomons!
In Crew, Voyages on 11/01/2011 at 03:07
After spending several weeks in Tuvalu (more on our stay there on another day…), we decided to look for some more adventurous travelling. Instead of going to Kiribati, we thought of spending the rest of the cyclone season in the Solomon Islands. However, this would be a 1200 miles long passage with a not-so-reliable engine due to bad fuel from Tahiti and in the middle of the cyclone season. This meant looking at lots of rain, unsteady winds and potentially rough seas. Suffice to say, we were not really looking forward to doing this by ourselves…
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Atafu to Funafuti
In Voyages on 09/12/2010 at 02:33
December 7, position: Funafuti
We’re here. We arrived in Funafuti around 4 this afternoon. As we passed the dateline somewhere along the way, it is now wednesday evening for us. We are very, very sorry for this very very short update, but we are very, very tired and going to our very, very nicely airconditioned bed now. Read the rest of this entry »
