Monday 5 January – back to Batanta

Phoebs and Dani sadly leave on Friday and we gave them the option of what they wanted todo the last few days. Diving was a priority for Dani and to go somewhere different so we picked up the anchor before breakfast to go to Batanta, a good 5/6 hours away. We had no problem getting out the anchorage, but when we went into the channel it was amazing the volume of water roaring through, it may have been a full moon tide as well, but it was ferocious, luckily with about 4 knots against us. rowan had to get the engines really cranked up as we swirled about rather alarmingly a couple of times. Parts of the channel are quite shallow so you have to keep to the deep water. It was quite something and a relief to get safely out into the open sea.

Sadly Phoebs and I woke up with very upset stomachs, Rowan had put some cooked chicken from the market into his delicious stew last night and I think that is what did it for us girls. Just strange Dani and Rowan were fine. Good thing it was a slow day. Coughing and diarrhoea is not a great combination!

As usual there was a bit of wind but on the nose so it was a motor the whole way. There was a lot of debris in the water, we managed to hit a huge log, that made a horrible noise, besides taking some of the anti foul copper coat off we seemed ok, it passed between the two hulls. we finally got to Batanata and decided not to anchor in the main anchorage where we have been twice before. We went to the other side of the little islands to get some protection from the wind. It was relatively tricky as we had to cross over some shallower coral to get into a blue pool of water surrounded by reef. We took a stern line out and tied up to a Mangrove tree. We were settled by mid afternoon, when another yacht turned up and asked to join us in here, which was fine. An hour later another yacht turned us, the people with the Gin distiller! They joined us in the pool too, it began to feel quite tight. Just as it was getting dark a yellow catamaran called Banana Split (a bit corny) came in as well. Very confident Germans! Four of us overnight , I was crossing fingers we had no squalls.

The gap in the middle is the Manta Feeding station at Batanta, we have previously anchored behind these islands