Well, after a few days at Nai Harn Bay of relaxing and getting in touch with friends that were already in the Phuket area, we decided to head off up north and enjoy the incredible scenery Thailand is known for: towering limestone cliffs, cool hongs (sea caves), and maybe read a book! We had made a reservation at Boat Lagoon marina in a week to have our friend Brent from SV Kiwi Summers, also a diesel mechanic, to help us with our engine overheating issues. Additionally, to provision, do some land tours and see some elephants, and in general get the boat ready to cross the Indian Ocean. Perfect time to see what Thailand had to offer and just relax and get our heads ready for ocean passages…once again.
On our way to Koh Naka Noi, we were caught by a opposing current so motoring it was to reach our 25 miles destination and possibly get to shore to check things out. On our way there we witnessed a strange event: Jellyfishing!!!!
We dodged large boats with lots of tourists. Anchor finally down at 2 pm, we enjoyed a quiet night, AFTER the tour boats left the beach.
So nice to be sailing…motor sailing….again….. 
Ummm….pretty sure this boat is over it’s legal capacity…but who’s counting?! 
We are anchored down…along with jet skis, tour boats, and scuba divers…..
The next morning, Brent called and just couldn’t make our time frame (no biggie) so we started to do some research but basically decided to still head up north and adventure. As we started the engine and lifted anchor…I was seeing white smoke from the exhaust and it seemed like we were experiencing a lack of power for the RPMs the engine was at. Trevor went down to check on the engine and there was antifreeze dripping out of the hose that is attached to an overflow tank. %*@%^$&!!!!! We did a 180 and started to turn back south toward the Boat Lagoon marina and hoped they had room for us. We were a week early and when we called, they couldn’t fit us in. SO…. we did another 180 and headed back north to another marina, Yacht Haven, who could fit us in. Round and round we go…..We made it just outside the marina in the designated anchorage just before dusk.
What we missed! This is the southern end of the Phang-Nga area which has incredible anchorages and great exploring to do…. The island where the James Bond movie, “The Man With the Golden Gun”, was filmed is in this area.
We only planned to stay here for about 5 days…but…it was Chinese New Year in the middle of the work week so things got delayed. Needless to say we stayed here for about 12 days and at $55 usd a day (that is US prices), we were anxious to leave as soon as we could.
Yacht Haven is isolated and pretty far away from the main Phuket town (proper) but there are stores 15 minutes drive away with everything you needed. You just can’t walk there. We ended up renting a car for a few days from Laemprouw Travel just up the road from the marina. They do propane fills, rentals, taxi, laundry…they knew us well. At $30 usd a day..it was great and gave us the freedom we needed compared to a taxi that would charge $30 round trip from 1 store.
There are 3-4 good places to eat a few minutes walk..we unfortunately really didn’t have time or we were too tired to walk and eat but we hear they restaurants are nice and cheap(er).
The next morning we came into slip A43…made our phone calls to the mechanic to meet us and the work began! Graeme from Stem to Stern agreed he could work on Perkin engines. NOTE: we called all the mechanics listed on Noonsite in the Phuket area and either the phone numbers were disconnected or the larger listed mechanics did not work on Perkins (only Yanmar, Volvo, etc.). We knew we could probably find someone not listed on Noonsite but time was of the essence and when Graeme answered, we committed.
So the head went into the shop to get resurfaced which means cleaned and polished. Additionally, the valve gaskets were replaced and spring tension checked. In the meantime….we got some other projects done..because why the hell NOT!
Remember the crazy Sumatra in Melaka, Malaysia? 
Had Graeme hook us up with this guy…. 
He was not cheap…$200 usd…… 
But she looks better : )
And more little projects …
We didn’t feel comfortable spray painting our anchor chain on the dock next to the Super Yachts! So we are using zip ties for now…or until they all fall off. 
Installing our Stainless Lobster economizer which basically helps monitor/balance power and temperature for the freezer. A really cool product…check it out! 
Replaced the blocks and line for us to deploy our whisker pole. It took some creativity since you can never find the exact same parts!
This guy came to our boat one morning asking for work….sure why not… 
I hate polishing the stainless steel…he did an amazing job!
My personal project was to re-varnish our cockpit storage compartment top. Using a heat gun in the sun is not my paradise (LOL) 
Sanded and scrapped (literally with a razor blade). SV Steal Sapphire…wish we had the cool tool you have : ) 
Then coats of varnish….x 5!
Meet David, he did a quick visual only inspection on our rig. It was part of the Sail Thailand benefits…we were honorary fleet members even though we never really joined. Story on that later. 
Opps…no pins on our Triatic stay (a cable that holds the 2 masts together at the top). Will be getting that done.
Trevor really wanted to re-do our toe-rail with new varnish and the right type of caulk/sealant. 
But because the heat of the day was so hot, we had to time each coat: 1 in the early morning and one just at dusk. 
Repeat…x 7…then tape and recaulk.
Trevor loves pickles…but not this kind…. We contact South East Asia Sails (they were close by) to see if they could repair some “small” items on our main sail. I sent photos, etc. and we sent the sail off to the sail loft. We get a call an hour later, “your mainsail is rotten”….so basically to fix all of our “small issues” would of cost us half of what a new mainsail would cost. Off we go to the sail loft to discuss options.
Chafe at the batten pockets that rub against our back stay 
Chafe at our first reef point where the reefing line rubs against the sail 
The tear that determined our sail was rotten. They literally put a finger in the rip and gently pulled up and the rip grew with little resistance. 
We have no idea how old this mainsail is…it came with the boat. We alone have put approximately 14,000 miles on her so I guess she is ready for an upgrade….don’t tell our jib sail or mizzen sail..they will be jealous!
Mike and Peter (father and son) opened up for business just over a year ago. they are a small operation (Rolly Tasker is their competition). However, they were responsive, understanding, and made sure we got what we wanted. 
The main guy who makes and manages the sail loft. He walked us through what he would do and talked us through what we wanted as well.
Our last goodbye to our old sail…sad for some reason…. 
New sail….crispy as crisco..so crispy that when we try to bring it down it will hardly fold!
As you may remember, we originally wanted to join the Sail Thailand rally back in Langkawi, Malaysia. However they left a week before us and we just couldn’t catch up to them…especially with these engine issues. When we found ourselves at Yacht Haven marina, we got a personal email from the organizers stating there is a rally event near Yacht Haven marina and would we like to join? I of course said that we had not paid for the rally and would not want to impose on anyone. They graciously said, the rally fee is waived and it was the last rally event so we were welcome to join…as honorary guest : ) The rally fleet tried to do a dinghy parade with our rally flags up…and then visited the boatyard just around the corner from the marina. There we enjoyed lunch, drinks, fruit carving, batik painting, lines/ropes demonstration….it was so nice to meet everyone…new and some we knew.
Thanks to social media…I reconnected with an old high school friend, Kimi McArdle, who just happened to be traveling in Phuket. Unfortunately we could not meet her in Phuket town, but she so graciously took the time to meet us at all the way north at Yacht Haven marina for a quick dinner and drinks before she headed to the airport.
Kim, what a wonderful visit after what…20+ years?! I never expected a reunion like this…in Thailand for that matter. So glad we could make time for each other and thank you for making the trip to see us and our home on the water. Looking forward to your adventures in China and beyond. Let’s not make it another 20 years before we meet again!
We made a few friends on the dock as well…
Meet Dr. Robert Hennessey, really…that’s his name and he is a doctor….. His boat name….SV Cognac (LOL) 
Dr. Robert showing his good side… 
Meet Nick and Zara who use to manage Yacht Haven marina. They still manage super yachts in the area and they know EVERYONE here.
We rented a car to do some running around and getting errands done…on the list was to provision for non perishables and freezer items…mostly meat! Since we were getting short on time…or at least that was how we were feeling….we could provision now with the ease of being at a dock, rather than back at Nai Harn Bay where we would have to carry everything over rocks and into the dinghy and so forth. And so it began…. first we had to rotate and sort what we already had started a box of foods that needed to be eaten sooner than later. Then a list of sort…then off to the stores. There is a store named “Villa Mart” with all kinds of western foods…seriously…brands we haven’t seen in years..not even in NZ or Australia. But it was very expensive! We found a more “Costco” like store…Makro….which is similar to a cash and carry….bring CASH…they don’t take credit cards (opps). Paper products, meats, veggies, fruits, frozen items, beverages, toiletries, cleaning, office supplies, candy, pasta, rice, eggs, CHEESE….they have it …in bulk! We then purchased our “speciality” items at Villa Mart.
This store was north of Phuket, closer to Yacht Haven and was much larger than the store in Phuket town proper. If you get the chance, go here, better selection. 
Many of you would not buy meat sitting in metal bins open aired….we do…you get use it! 
Back home we stayed up until 10pm vacuum sealed 4 kg of pork loins/ribs, 4 kg of ground chicken, and 15 chicken breasts. 
If you’re into it…you can get frog….skin on….we opted not. There were lots of “strange to us” items available but I won’t bore you with all the photos.
It was getting close to time that we needed to leave the marina and we did not have the engine head back from the shop yet due to the holiday (Chinese New Year). We had already overstayed a day and the owners of the slip were coming tomorrow! It was going to be tight but the last bolts were tightened at 5:30 pm the day before we HAD to leave the slip. Trevor and Beir worked all day getting all the parts back together…our new dock friends (Dr. Robert, Nick, and Zara) all cheered from thier boats when they heard us start her up. That night, there was a Sail Thailand rally dinner at the restaurant in the marina. We were cordially invited as guests of the marina and honorary guest of the rally. It was a nice end to our stay at Yacht Haven marina.
New head gasket and seals, new fuel injectors, oil filter, new fluids, etc..ready to go 
Trevor just HAD to priant the parts that were taken off to remove the engine head…Perkins Blue he calls it! We eventually did spray paint on the dock…
It’s like Christmas..again… 
Trevor helping to put everything back together…he is literally upside down…Boat Yoga!
Oh look…SHINY!!!!
ANd so on the 12th of February, we left Yacht Haven marina, Dr. Robert, Nick and Zara casting off our lines…. it wasn’t the serene, tranquil experience I was looking for in Thailand but our experience here at Yacht Haven was as good as it could have been under the circumstances.
Next up..headed to Phi Phi Islands to meet up with our old Pacific crossing friends on SV Terrapin…let the good times roll!