Cool Bananas Cruising - Daryl & Laurel: Tioman – Kuching, Borneo

View looking up the Kuching River as the sun sets

Rae and Sharon settled in quickly and enjoyed being back with the cruisers and back into the cruising lifestyle. There were at least three yachts we met along the way that they had met before and could catch up with.

Rae and Sharon getting in to the spirit of things....Laurel spots the turtle

Wildlife on Tenggol Island

The first priority was to give them a taste of the underwater activities before we set off to Borneo. We snorkeled at the Kapas islands and then sailed down to Tenggol Island for more. That left an overnight sail to Tioman Island. Sharon agreed that Tioman had a great ‘small town’ feel to it and easy to overstay. Swimming between the pontoons on Cool Bananas became a popular afternoon pastime.With Rae thoroughly sunburnt and Sharon with a healthy glow it was time for some shady days.

Friendly monkeys in Monkey Bay

Where did you say the reverse lever is? And away we go.........

The two night sail to Borneo was given extra attention as there had been reports of piracy in the South China Sea, close to where we were crossing. To cross to Borneo required us to sail through Indonesian waters where there had been recent attacks on ships. We plotted a course that took us away from any shipping channels and more than 35 miles from the islands that they thought the attackers hailed from. We then hid all most of our valuables, leaving out some sacrificial electronics and wallets, lit ourselves like a local boat and set off. The outcome – a bit more lost sleep than usual but nothing untoward to report, except I am still trying to remember where I hid my watch!! Certainly, having the extra crew for the watches, sure does help.

Sunrise coming into Santabong..................................On passage, finding the shady spot

Early morning skies over Santabong

We arrive to the outer islands of Kuching in the early evening and drop anchor behind a small island for the night. Typically we are all up early keen to get a first glimpse of a new place. We opt to sail in to the Santabong River where most of the fleet are already anchored. To our surprise ‘Tigger, a yacht we first met in Rarotonga, is also anchored in there. Rae and Sharon know them too. So the day is filled with catching up with Peter and Toni, swapping stories and gleening information on possible future destinations with a pot luck bbq a fitting end to a busy day.
Santabong was an old fishing village that had been an important trading port in days gone by, although our wanderings found little evidence of this. However during our wanderings we did get an invitation to a celebration in the village in which the Minister of Tourism was in attendence. Such hospitality.
Swimming is out of the question, though, as Fi on Three Ships spotted a crocodile swimming inquisitively around the boats. The water is pretty unappealing anyway as it is a dingy brown colour. We do however begin varying our boarding on and off the boat as apparently crocodiles watch for routine and then plan their attack!!!!

Rae and Sharon joining in with the dancing......Dancing tourists...amusing

Children in Santabong village.......................Traditional and the modern

The World Rainforest Music festival is next on the agenda. It has a wonderful setting in a tourist cultural village surrounded by rainforest. Sharon and I go armed with bulging wallets as it is rumoured there are many crafts to see and buy. We look in on a few workshops and shop, shop, shop…. The men soon drop out with a…..‘we’ll be in the Heineken tent’. By the time we catch up with them there is only time for a quick bite to eat before darkness descends and the music begins. In summary I will say it was a great day, the atmosphere was good, relaxing on a balmy night surrounded in music was nice….but I wouldn’t travel half way around the world just to be there.

Lady from the Orang Ulu tribe in Centrel Borneo.......Demo of some fine embroidery

Daryl getting into the spirit of the festival....................Our turn

Rae trying his hand at a local sape guitar.............Daryl and Sharon watching the musicians via a screen

Rae and Sharon’s time with us is ticking by so we need a plan…… We decide to go up into the Kuching River, to a small new marina, where we can hire a car and have relatively easy access to town. Kuching is a pretty, colourful city, even if somewhat touristy. Our first day trip we decide on visiting the Wind Caves and the Fairy Caves. It was great to get out of the city and see the countryside.

Daryl and I after a ten storey walk up into Fairy Cave.....Daryl looking down, down, down

Sometimes I wonder why I embark.....

Monkey highjinks.......................................Richie, the king

More antics......

Rae and Sharon are keen to see the orangutan’s and we weren’t about to say no. The rally organised a great trip to Semenggoh Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre. Like Camp Leekie, that we visited last year, the orangutans are free to visit the centre but if they are well fed in the rainforest there may be not come in for some time. Luck was on our side and many came in the afternoon we were there, including Richie the 29 yr old king. I think they are beautiful creatures and I never tire of watching them. That day we also visited a local pottery factory with a Chinese flavour and Sazli (Sail Malaysia) shouted us a wonderful Chinese meal.

Sharon and Daryl trying their hand at potting

The next day at sunrise we were off on a two day expedition to visit a traditional longhouse on the Lemanak River five hours away. We had looked in to doing a tour but they had seemed quite expensive so decided we’d see how we did ‘going it alone. The end result was we stayed the night at the luxury Hilton Longhouses, including dinner and breakfast plus packed lunch, a longboat ride to a longhouse and a visit to a secluded waterfall for about the same price as the basic tour with shared accommodation. Well done team!!

Slumming it at the Hilton Longhouse

View entering the longhouse communal area....Daryl examining the 100year old warrior skulls

Relaxing during the longboat journey upriver Lemanak River

Child at the longhouse.......................Changing times

All too soon we were saying farewell Rae and Sharon and then farewell to the relative safety and comforts of the marina and begin the 300 miles of day sailing to reach Miri.

Our next visitors are Lyn and Dynes Mc Connell from Tauranga, NZ and they join us in Kota Kinabalu at the end of the month.