Another look at the forecast this morning indicated sunny skies and light, variable winds, so by 0700 we’d weighed anchor and headed out of Chalong Bay.
The initial downpour as we exited Chalong Bay could have been an indication of what was to follow, but, given that there were no winds with it and having perused the weather radar, we concluded that this was an isolated shower. Continuing on, as we rounded the southern tip of Phuket Island, we were delighted to find the winds were a little stronger than forecast at 10 to 15 Kts, out of the east. With that, the headsail was unfurled and we were happy to dander up the coast.
Looking forward to a nice day of sailing, it was the seastate that raised our initial concerns, though, as it was anything but settled and the further north we progressed towards Patong Bay, our chosen anchorage for a night or two, the winds continued to increase, reaching 15-20 Kts out of the east. It wasn’t long before we registered 20-25 Kts out of the northeast on our approach to Patong Bay and, by the time we took the decision to turn around, concluding that any anchorage along this coast would definitely be untenable in these conditions, we had 25-30 Kts, which had certainly whipped up a steep fetch against a southwesterly swell. So much for that forecast!
By 1300, after a very brisk sail back down the coast, we were anchored back in the calm of the Panwa Bali anchorage under sunny skies. Lunch was followed by a nap and a bit of pottering around before we enjoyed a barbecue onboard for dinner. Fortunately the sail wasn’t a complete waste of time as it gave us an indication of how well our new headsail performed in stronger winds and we got to enjoy another day of sailing versus just sitting at anchor.
