Being a very chilly morning, we stayed in bed a little longer than usual, but we’d no sooner enjoyed a hearty breakfast, when our first visitor arrived for the day. That was the little old man returning to collect the money we owed him for the produce he’d delivered to us yesterday, bringing with him the first of two gifts he gave us; Egyptian rusks, which he explained needed to be enjoyed with tea. Over a cup of coffee he told us all about his wife and gave us a few tips on transiting the Suez Canal, specifically interactions with the pilots. His second gift was a packet of Egyptian dates, indicating that this was a thank you for our hospitality.
Our second visit was Captain Heebi and a Health official, the latter to ask us a few questions regarding our general health and to provide our Health Pratique, while our agent confirmed all the arrangements for our transit of the Suez Canal tomorrow and answered the questions we had. The one aspect he did stress, though, was that the second half of our transit would be cancelled if a warship gets scheduled to transit.
He also wanted a video of himself with the Captain to confirm what she thought of his service, a standard event he does with all the Captains, which he posts on Facebook, but it was a bit of a novelty to be dealing with a lady Captain on this occasion.
After lunch we spent some time preparing for our transit, including cleaning the cockpit and helmstation again, as well as washed all the ropes that were used to secure the jerry cans, two of the jacklines, one of which won’t be needed on our next passage and all the blocks used with our downwind sails, since these won’t be needed for a while either. The amount of desert sand removed from these few items was ridiculous.
Elaine’s last cleaning task was to wash all the handrails around Paw Paw, as a temporary measure, so we’re no longer covered in desert sand every time we walk along the decks.
The last visitor was the marina “manager” who arrived for his baksheesh. The laugh, though, even after Roy had given him a number of new and used t-shirts yesterday, as well as all the jerry cans we no longer needed, and all he’d done for us was tie the four mooring lines to Paw Paw when we arrived, he had the audacity to ask for more than the USD$40 we gave him, not the smartest reaction when dealing with someone like Roy, who didn’t mince his words in telling him that we’d given him far more than his service deserved and that he wasn’t getting a penny more. Unbelievable! This guy was relentless!
Being so close to the canal, it’s hard not to notice the ships passing by; a bit like a television screen being left on with the sound down, that has one constantly looking at it, but today we happened to see the first cruise ship transit; we haven’t seen one of those since Rebak Island Resort and Marina, where a number of cruise ships sat at anchor for months on end when the pandemic first erupted in SE Asia in March 2020.
Our day ended with another helping of the Turkish soup Kandiba had given us, before climbing into bed for an early night.
Today was a day of rest from all the officialdom and the constant flow of people coming out to the yacht, all wanting baksheesh, although we had absolutely no idea whether or not the Navy officials actually came to Paw Paw last night as planned. We were fast asleep by 2100 and slept so soundly, that neither of us woke during the night. If we did, we don’t remember doing so! We, however, found out this morning that the Navy officials had come out to the yachts at 0130; have you ever heard of anything so ridiculous! Needless to say, they had totally wasted their time!
Elaine’s view from her head (aka bathroom) this morning was the sight of a huge northbound cargo ship; somewhat startling given how close it was to us, especially when her brain was still foggy after such a deep sleep.
It wasn’t long after we’d opened our eyes, though, when we heard someone calling to us. Given that it wasn’t even 0800, we simply ignored them.
After our breakfast, accompanied by Egyptian bread and the most delicious and sweetest oranges we’d ever tasted, the little old man, who delivered our fresh produce yesterday, arrived with our eggs as planned, but he had also brought the sweetest strawberries we’d ever tasted, as well as some small melons, baby cucumbers, carrots and a crisp lettuce. Since it was freezing outside, we offered him a coffee and enjoyed a chat.
We learnt that he was 74 years old, a father of 3 daughters and 3 sons, with a total of 23 grandchildren, all of whom spend time in his home with him and his wife, “constantly under his feet, wanting biscuits, chocolates or money”; it seems we have all had similar experiences no matter where in the world we come from! He also informed us that he’d had back surgery to remove 3 vertebrae that were replaced with plastic ones and a vein from his leg was replaced in his back as part of the procedure. Egypt must definitely have a decent medical system for that level of sophisticated surgery and, although he wears a back brace now, he has been rowing out to the yachts and climbing on and off them like a spring chicken. He was also a real charmer, telling Elaine she was his sweetheart and that he loved her. Quite the character!
During the course of the morning we also managed to clear the cockpit of all the jerry cans we no longer needed, received gleefully by the marina “manager”.
By then we both needed a nap, only to be woken around lunchtime, by our agent, Captain Heebi, who was delivering a lovely surprise; two slices of delicious cake from a local bakery. That was swiftly followed by another lovely surprise; a hot Turkish soup, called “tavuk çorba”, delivered to us from Hasan and Zehra, off Kantiba. Just when we thought that was it for the day, the little old man arrived with the Egyptian coffee and Shish Kabobs we’d ordered and another delivery arrived from Kandiba; a huge piece of a delicious nut cake that Zehra had baked this afternoon. What we thought was going to be a celebratory dinner was, in fact, a scrumptious feast; some of the “tavuk çorba” for starters, the shish kabobs for our main course and a slice of nut cake with strawberries for dessert. We certainly weren’t going to starve in Egypt!
Our afternoon, after enjoying a fruit salad and a slice of the cake from our agent for lunch, was spent catching up with family and friends on social media, reading, given the chilly temperatures outside and watching the southbound ships pass by. We learnt from our agent yesterday, that it costs ~ $1 million USD for one of these large vessels to transit the Suez Canal. Absolutely amazing!
Soon after midnight, while on Roy’s watch, we were able to turn off the engines. It was wonderful to be sailing again, listening to all the usual creaks and groans that Paw Paw makes under sail, instead of the constant drone of the engines in the background. In fact, it took Elaine some time to actually fall asleep, since her ears had to tune to those old familiar sounds again before she could drift off.
When Elaine came on watch, the westerly winds had picked up again and we were flying along at 8 kts. However, within seconds we were, once again, crawling along at 4.5 Kts ; the dreaded current had raised it’s ugly head again, compounded by the winds veering to the northwest.
Our passage ended the way it had started, but with a twist; bouncing over short, step waves generated by the winds from the northwest and rocking side to side from the residual swell from the west. It was a simultaneous movement of porpoising and rolling; definitely a new movement for Paw Paw and everyone on her.
However, by 0730, we were approaching Port Suez and had received our clearance to enter the port with instructions to proceed to anchorage W2, when Roy popped out with the following comment, much to Elaine’s astonishment: “Well, if we had any balls about us, we’d just turn around now and head to Cape Town!”. Although she burst out laughing, he certainly came very close to being tossed overboard! She couldn’t begin to imagine repeating this passage in either direction!
By 0900 we’d received authorisation to proceed to the Port Suez Yacht Club and by 1200, we were on our mooring, tied bow and stern, all the officialdom paperwork had been completed, we’d placed our order for some fresh produce and paid the fees, to be adjusted once Paw Paw had been measured.
By now we were both exhausted and needed our naps, but we’d no sooner climbed into bed, when someone arrived to “check fire extinguishers” and wanted $20USD baksheesh, literally for being onboard for two minutes. Next was the Port official to take Paw Paw’s measurements and another $20USD was handed out as baksheesh. While he was onboard, the Immigration official did a dinghy “drive by” to check our faces against our passport photographs, which was followed by our fresh produce being delivered, requiring a further baksheesh of $10USD on top of the $40USD charged for some apples, oranges, bananas, potatoes, onions, Egyptian bread and two tins of hummus. Then, tonight, at 2030, we were having to sit up and wait for a visit from the Egyptian navy, to do who knows what in the middle of the night, when we both needed our sleep after an exhausting few weeks. Needless to say, Elaine was already in her pyjamas and in bed and that’s how they were going to find her. She wasn’t waiting up for anyone who had the audacity to arrive at such a ridiculous hour of the night to conduct business! She didn’t care who they were! By 0845 we switched off the lights. Given that Elaine had already told the marina “manager” late this afternoon that there would be no more baksheesh from us for anyone, we weren’t surprised they didn’t show up!
On a lighter note, although we’d decided to postpone the celebration of our safe arrival to tomorrow night, given the planned intrusion and how tired we both were, we, nonetheless, enjoyed a favourite meal tonight as a precursor; bangers and mash! Also, we were surprised to see just how narrow the Suez Canal actually is and it was fascinating to be moored so close to these large ships passing through that completely dwarfed everything, as well as to see the completely different architecture of the beautiful mosque we passed en route to the yacht club.
Yesterday started with the usual analysis of the various weather forecasts after the morning updates. The good news was that a weather window appeared to be opening up, but then, with each update throughout the day, stronger winds were being forecast to occur mid-morning today. It was a moving target, since these stronger winds had originally been forecast to occur during the night and were to abate in the early hours of this morning, following which we were all going to weigh anchor just before daybreak.
By yesterday evening, however, none of the forecasts were reflecting the actual lighter winds we were experiencing, after the wind had started to abate during the course of yesterday afternoon, putting our departure plans up in the air again, as we’d all lost faith in the forecasts.
So, regardless of the lighter winds, but not wanting to head out into the unknown as night approached, we took the decision to reconvene our discussion at 2130; our third “weather discussion” on the VHF radio with Kandiba and Sans Peur for the day. Sadly the 2100 updates didn’t instil any confidence either. Remaining hopeful of a possible early morning departure, we decided to revisit the forecasts again as a group at 0430 this morning, just prior to our intended departure, by which time the forecasts would have been updated yet again.
This last perusal of the forecasts, indicated that the strong winds predicted for mid-morning were now showing on both the GFS and European models. Concerned that we couldn’t see the sea state in the dark, the decision was then taken to reconvene the discussion at 0630, at which point, white caps and very lumpy seas were visible outside the anchorage. With that, the departure was postponed until we could actually experience an improvement in the conditions.
It was encouraging, however, to see that many of the local pleasure crafts and fishing boats left the anchorage this morning and all the latest forecasts were showing the weather moderating significantly to the north of us. The trick was to get about 20NM north of El Tur; no easy feat in this part of the world!
Putting weather aside, after a midday nap and lunch yesterday, Elaine continued her efforts on our videos, before assisting Roy with the final activities for our departure; Still hopeful that this would actually materialise.
By 0830 this morning, the winds had significantly moderated, so the decision was taken to weigh anchor. We were eventually continuing north again!
However, two hours into the passage, Kandiba experienced steering issues, so, while Sans Peur decided to continue on, we turned back and planned to return to El Tur with Kandiba. Fortunately, before that happened, Hasan managed to find a shallower patch to anchor and was able to troubleshoot the issue and resolve it, while we circled around. Having lost only an hour and word from Sans Peur, who were now about 5NM ahead of us, indicating that conditions had moderated significantly, both yachts decided to continue north again.
Of course, although, the winds had subsided to between 15 and 18 Kts as we progressed northwards at our snails pace, the lighter winds and calmer seas that Sans Peur had reported remained a holy grail, as we continued to pound to weather.
Thankfully, however, our luck was about to change. At around 1600 we passed the towering Jabal ‘Arabah, following which the mountain range running parallel to the coastline veered inland and the Gulf widened, removing the effect of the wind funnelling between the mountain ranges bordering the Gulf of Suez. Had we realised this topography sooner, it certainly would have explained the strength of the winds we experienced in both Soma Bay and El Tur.
Regardless, this meant the winds dropped, the sea flattened and, with a slight change of course, we were able to motor-sail, increasing our speed and, more importantly, our VMG (Velocity Made Good).
Then on Elaine’s watch, after instructions by VTS (Vessel Traffic Services) to after course in order to give the October Oil Fields are wider berth, not only did the current become favourable, but the winds had backed to westerly which increased our VMG further.
While the day had started off badly, it had certainly improved! While remaining close to Kandiba, altering our speed to ensure they stayed slightly ahead of us, both yards soldiered on.
Today was a very special day; it was Elaine’s Dad’s 87th birthday. What a grand ol’ age! As a result, our day started with a Happy Birthday video message which we sent to him first thing, so that he would see it when he woke up. That was then followed by a phone call a little later this morning to Elaine’s folks, who are enjoying a Birthday Getaway together with Elaine’s sister in Dundalk and Carlingford. Unfortunately, with our limited data, we are not able to video call or have our usual Zoom Get-Together, so it was lovely to also see the rest of the family, especially the grandchildren with the great-grandchildren in South Africa and the US all posting videos on our WhatsApp Family Chat Line too, singing Happy Birthday to him. It definitely added some extra special sparkle to his birthday celebrations.
After breakfast, we decided to return to bed to stay warm and enjoy a lazy morning, while we awaited the latest weather forecast updates. Once we’d had time to analyse the information, our regular “weather briefing” took place on the VHF radio with Kandiba and Sans Peur. The good news is that the latest forecast, including those updated this evening are looking more favourable for a departure in the next day or so. Let’s hope the weather window materialises so that we can continue north once more.
It was also lovely to receive a message from Golden Spirit (Caroline and Michael), indicating that they had made it safely to Cyprus, where they’ve stopped to get some engine repairs completed and that Talulah Ruby III had made it safely to Turkey, but were departing for Greece today. Safe sailing onwards to both yachts.
Elaine then spent the rest of her morning giving Paw Paw’s interior a quick clean, while Roy returned the fuel polishing system on the starboard engine to its original state and started the watermaker again to ensure we keep the tanks topped up, since we’re not sure what the water quality will be like in Port Suez and through the Suez Canal.
This afternoon, although the wind continued to howl, Elaine completed another video, our Red Sea Passage from Djibouti to Suakin, Sudan, while Roy tried in vain to keep his eyes open and read his book. We were both amazed, though, to see the number of windsurfers and kite-surfers who were out on the water today; new guests had obviously arrived, since it was very quiet over the past few days.
Tonight, another movie wrapped up our day.
Well, we’re starting to feel like a stuck gramophone in reporting the howling winds, but, yesterday and today, was no different to any other day; it has continued to blow and much stronger than any forecast indicated, getting up to 32 Kts overnight and 29 Kts today.
Chatting to the cruisers on Sans Peur yesterday morning, after their late night arrival here in El Tor from Port Ghalib on Friday, revealed that they had a terrible passage, the worst in their eight years of bluewater sailing. We’ve also received news from the other yachts we sailed with from the Maldives, Morgane and Sea You, who indicated they’d had a terrible passage from Djibouti to Suakin, Sudan, with strong southerly winds, which created huge following seas, swamping both yachts and, unfortunately, they are still in various anchorages along the Sudanese coast, unable to get any further north with the current weather conditions.
The worrying aspect is that our detailed analysis of the various forecasts over the past few days, reveals that the forecast are consistently inaccurate even at 48 hours out, which is making the task of finding a reliable weather window dubious at best.
Regardless, the most important thing right now is that we’re safe and comfortable in this very protected anchorage and trying to use our time as productively as possible, although we’re both in desperate need of a walk to stretch our legs and get some exercise; something that will just have to wait, since we’re not allowed off the yacht.
Yesterday Roy decided he couldn’t stand looking at the dirt all over Paw Paw’s decks any longer, so he gave her a quick saltwater rinse; not ideal, but better than nothing, and then gave the cockpit cushions a freshwater rinse after starting the watermaker. Today he cleaned the depth sensor, following which he had the task of removing the resultant water from the bilge. This was the alternative to getting into the freezing water and cleaning it from the outside. His final task of the day was to bake another tasty loaf of bread.
Elaine has spent her time working on our latest videos. Yesterday she finished the video covering our Indian Ocean crossing from Thailand to the Maldives and today she completed the one of our passage from the Maldives to Djibouti, as well as started the video covering our Red Sea passage.
Lunches and dinners are also getting down to the creative stages, given that we’ve basically run out of fresh fruit and vegetables, except for a red cabbage and some carrots. As a result, yesterday’s lunch was a tuna wrap, using chopped Kalamata olives, capers, sundried tomatoes, a spoon of mustard and, of course, a tin of tuna and some mayonnaise. Dinner was mac & cheese. Lunch today was rhubarb pie and custard, the latter made from scratch, while dinner was a Roy a la jambalaya, all very tasty for “armageddon meals”; everything out of a tin, jar or packet. Our poor bodies will be going into revolt mode soon!
Besides our daily chats to Kandiba and Sans Peur, our evening entertainment has continued to be movies. While we thought we had scrapped the bottom of the barrel with all the movies we watched in Thailand, we’ve actually reached a whole new low! A weather window better open up soon!
After a completely calm night, we both had a fabulous night’s sleep, our first since leaving Suakin, Sudan, in early March. It was, however, a mixed blessing, given that we may have been able to continue north and probably would have reached Port Suez, if not Ras Sudr, since the forecast of strong winds only arrived early this morning. However, we will never know if the stronger winds would have come down to meet us. Seeing the fishing boats coming into the anchorage yesterday definitely went a long way to putting our minds at rest that we’d made the right decision after all. Regardless, once again, we’re weather bound for at least the next three to four days, since an analysis of the various forecasts shows significant inconsistencies from Sunday onwards; something we’ll just have to keep assessing each day.
After a midday nap, Roy filled the diesel tanks again, then continued to enjoy the latest book he’s reading, while Elaine completed the first cut of our next video.
Dinner was a delicious hearty chickpea and lentil soup, with the last of our fresh vegetables thrown in for good measure, accompanied by another loaf of Roy’s freshly baked bread, followed by a movie.
While the sunset wasn’t as spectacular as last night, although still beautiful, it was the rising full moon that stole the show this evening, just as the winds died down briefly, although by midnight they were howling again at 25 to 30 Kts.
A Happy St Patrick’s Day for yesterday. We didn’t forget; we just forgot to mention it in yesterday’s blog.
