The overnighter from Miyako was
roly-poly, with bumpy seas caused by the strong Kuro Shio and a dead down wind
course. Somehow closer to Ishigaki
Island, the wind went
around and once we got to the SW corner of the island…we had a solid 25 knots
on the nose! So Yanmar took over for the last 10 miles and accompanied by a
spectacular red sunrise we motored into port. We remembered where to go and
went alongside a local yacht at the yacht pontoon. Of course the officials were
there to check us out (thanks for looking after us customs and JCG, but we do
hope your boss will supply you with a VHF in the future …) followed by a line
of yachties. The good times started already before we tied off Alishan
properly!!
A few hours later everybody went
there own way and as that overnighter was one of very little sleep we crashed
by lunch time… only to be woken up 30 minutes later by a front with 40+ knot
wind… remember that red sky… that broke the mooring lines of our neighbor and
send us almost on to the rocks wasn’t it for that 1 extra line I had set… It
took a good 30 minute struggle to get the 2 boats back to the pontoon. Pff what
a wind and a rain! You’re never too old to learn…and to make silly mistakes.
Alishan in Ishigaki port, at the
yacht pontoon, under calm conditions.
The idea was to spend 3 weeks in
this group, exploring the outer islands and then leave Japan for Hong Kong,
so we could be there before Christmas.
We started alright. That means
the exploring part. We hooked up with Mike of sy Hanalee, who takes customers
sailing, snorkeling, kayaking and on jungle trips.
The jungle trip was fun. Especially
that last part of the flying fox.
Look out, here she comes…
And there he goes…
Friends we had made during our
first time here took us for drives and trips to the small islands of Kohama and
Kayama, where only rabbits live and the snorkeling is great.
Marijke with Fukami san, who we
had met 15 years ago.
We took the ferry to Taketomi
jima, an island like an open air-museum, well worth seeing. No “naijin” (people
outside Yaeyama) can live there and all houses to be newly built have to be in
traditional style, with typical tile roofs and Shisa, protecting lions, on top.
Bright bougainvillea’s, walls of coral and unsealed roads make for a very
pretty picture. No cars can go to this island, though the local tour guides
drive minivans with tourists. The main way of transportation however is
bicycle, or water buffalo-cart.
Public transportation.
Looking down on Main Steet.
Indeed many flower
Just to warn you!
Another fun 1 day trip was to
Iriomote, where we rented canoes and hiked to one of the many waterfalls. We
didn’t get to see the local wildcat, but saw some awesome colored birds and
lots of different butterflies. Also the star shaped sand of the beach at the NW
point. We drove from east to west and back – Iriomote isn’t very big – and decided
to come back one day and see more.
13 Years ago we left New Zealand onboard Jan Haring bound for Fiji.
On that very same day sy Shizane with a Japanese family with 3 kids left for Tonga.
We had spent some time together in Whangarei, helping Kuri and Fusa to get
started on their trip back home to… Ishigaki. A few months later we met once
more in Vanuatu,
but not again since now. They are now back in their Japanese island style life,
running a small café that doubles as a yacht club. The kids have left home,
looking for excitement in the big cities, but Mum and Dad seem happy.
Here we are at a pit-stop at the
Ishigaki Club Med…showing our visitors pass.
Together with friends they rent a
piece of land to grow veggies and we were asked to leave our mark by planting a
tree. Marijke planted a lemon tree and Jaap a mixed orange–lime type called
Shikikan, pronounced she-key-can. The newspaper got involved too and we became
famous celebrities for one day. That brought some other people on board we’d
met 15 years ago. All in all we made and re-made friends all the time.
By now the temperature was going
down and winter was coming. Time to move on. Jaap studied the weather charts
day after day. Several typhoons, so late in this year, were moving over the Philippines,
causing too much wind in the Bashi Channel,. This body of water south of Taiwan
is tricky in normal circumstances. When winds and currents are in opposite
directions, as is usually the case during the winter months, they create huge
seas. The point was to make it to Hong Kong
before this winter pattern settled in, but all these late typhoons made it
impossible. Durion, Utor and Trami caused havoc in the Philippines and Vietnam and caused us to stay put.
Typhoon Utor is heading into the Philippines, a Big High pressure is coming off
mainland China, and 2
frontal systems to the East of Ishigaki…No good news for the start of a trip
around the bottom of Taiwan.
Then, one day, all looked okay. The
variety of weather forecast programs showed a window of less wind between
Friday night and Saturday afternoon. We planned to get to the entrance of the
40 mile channel in the early morning hours, to clear it within 6 hours, and
continue the last 250 miles to Hong Kong. So
we checked out with customs and immigration on Thursday morning. They would not
do it the day before, so an early start was out. By 10:00 am we were out of the
harbor, heading West. The winds were strong, picking up as we left the
protection of Ishigaki. After clearing Iriomote Island
we could change course to SW, but we never came that far. 2 hours later huge
seas were washing over Alishan’s deck and the wind speedometer read 30 knots.
This was not a good way to start a trip that was likely to get worse. We turned
around and anchored in the lee of the island, to wait and see. But the winds
didn’t lessen and by the end of the day we realized we would not make our
window anymore. So we headed back to port.
Officials were not happy, but
they understood and we promised them we’d choose a better day next time.
So, we are back. Studying the
weather again. By now the winter pattern has completely settled in and the
forecasts give gale warnings non-stop. It doesn’t look like we’ll be leaving
until spring. So today, the day of writing, it’s early January and we are at
Ishigaki. Still. Too bad? I don’t know. Good things and bad things always come
together. The morning we cleared back in Marijke lost a piece of tooth filling
and headed straight for the dentist. Now, 4 weeks later, she is still under
treatment and very glad she wasn’t at sea!
So we are waiting. We started
some HK-planned jobs as waxing the deck, varnishing the teak and sorting out
loads of shells ….. and of course we keep ourselves busy with socializing.
Christmas and New years’ Eve came.
And so did our friends Nobuko and Kenichi Kakoh from Fukuoka.
It was great to see them again and catch up on the latest news of our
hometown Fukuoka.
Some sights here in Ishigaki:
They like walls here, all to keep
seawater where it belongs.
Last September Typhoon Shanshan dropped by with 130
knots wind! With according waves! The
wall on the left as they have been for 100s or thousands of years, the one on
the right a more modern version.
There is no cemetery. After
leaving this world the whole family gets together again in a building like a small
mausoleum on a favorite piece of land. Found anywhere, all over the islands.
The hiking is good, there are
plenty trails leading you in the dense jungle on Mt.
Banna and Mt. Omoto.
Marijke and Jaap are
off again. So we stay behind looking after the boats on the pontoon. Where have those 2 leggers gone to ???
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