FORCE 12 SQUALL! Ep 19

In the last episode we made good the repairs from our accident but at the eleventh hour Jamie discovered a fuel leak after filling the tanks with diesel. Eventually Esper launches with four eager crew. They leave the river and head out towards the protected island of Taratao… (con’t below)…

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Despite the light winds Jamie is keen to show Jia, Julia, Dan and Mai what it means to get the sails out and turn the engine off.

There’s a lot to learn. Although she has in-mast furling there are four sails to contend with, which means a lot of lines and quite a bit of winching. Fortunately Jamie’s new crew are keen to learn.

Dan seems most willing to anything physical, whilst Jia is interested in the electronics and navigation. The girls, meanwhile, are keen to test the comfort of Esper’s new cushions.

Esper and her crew approach Taratao from the east side and head towards a spot in the south east corner since the prevailing winds are still coming from the south west. The boys are tasked with laying the anchor whilst Jamie stays at the helm.

With Jamie on his second beer the boys get busy with their rods. Julie, meanwhile, has a birthday to celebrate.

Dan seems unstoppable. We get to the point where we lose count of how many fish he caught. This doesn’t stop birthday girl from catching a fish or two herself. Some healthy competition among the crew sees Jia in on the action as well.

It’s time to get busy in the galley and start cooking all that fish. Jamie and the crew round the evening off with a special birthday cake for Julie.

Next morning. The boys have been up since five, fishing. The skies look dark.

As predicted that northerly squall hits Esper’s anchorage, where we see gusts of F12. Afterwards the instruments start playing up, but fortunately it was a temporary glitch and we’re happy to report that they are sorted.

After checking the weather SY Esper and her crew decide to make the dash for Koh Lipe, 20 or so miles west of Tarutao. Despite approaching the anchorage at night the boys are still up early next morning fishing. Before Jamie’s crew leave Esper and return to Satun, he has a chance to grab Dan for some fishing tips.

With Jia, Julie, Dan and Mae safely ashore Lipe Jamie and Millie are left on their own.

In the next episode Jamie undertakes the 90 mile passage to Phuket, a solo sail that takes him into the night and through the hundreds of fishing boats.

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The music in this episode is provided for free under the Creative Commons license. We’d like to thank the artists for their contributions.

00:05 – Esper’s Theme Tune – ‘Suddenly’ by Otis McDonald
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my8ASQEXyFw

00:42 – ‘Fallwind (ft. daniloprates & PattsiPeng)’ by 7OOP3D
http://ccmixter.org/people/7oop3d

18:57 – ‘Dig the Sound (Allan Watts mix)’ by Nimmo
http://ccmixter.org/files/nimmo/2409