Year 3 -3 January 2026 -AOPO Marina -Phuket -Thailand

I woke at a reasonable time and had some tea and it was lovely and quiet in the marina as nobody was about. I finished what I needed to do below including checking the ceiling as little black dots that appear from all the moisture which also affect the curtains. This is due to the humidity. The marks come off quite easily and I tackle them every now and then.   

I needed to get some more provisions and had enquired about car hire but the marina said they were full. I asked the taxi drivers and they would take me to the local supermarkets for 400 baht return. A trip to the big supermarkets would be 1200 baht return. I walked along the road to a car hire place and I could hire a car for 900 baht a day. I thought I would go back and get a taxi to the local ones and then we could work out what we would do going forward.

I collected some shopping bags and took the taxi. The supermarkets were not good so I got some basics for breakfast etc and of course some beer to great the crew. We will just eat out in the evenings until we can provision properly.

When I got back I finished the supper from the night before which was quite tasty. I then had to get on with some admin as I needed to print off and stamp various documents for various agents in Sri Lanka, India and The Maldives. This took some time and luckily the printer was working well.

I had various messages from Peter and Mark about their arrival. I therefore stopped and went to have a shave and a shower to make myself presentable and so I was ready when they arrived. Once I returned due to the wind Stormbird was about 5-6 feet off the pontoon. It took me some effort on my own to pull us in but I did manage it. I decided to draft the blog for the 2nd January 2026 whilst I waited. As I was about half-way through Peter Saint arrived. It was great to see him and he had spent about a week on Koh Lanta which he had enjoyed. We chatted and caught up and then I had various messages from Mark and I met him at the car park at 7.10pm.

The three of us had a beer and chatted. They did not fancy going out so I made a simple pasta pesto – which always goes down well. We are now 3 and by tomorrow night we will be 6.        

 The picture of the day is of course the three of us united again on Stormbird. Mark and Peter have been on board a number of times.

Need/Opportunity Year Three

In year three I will be going from Thailand to Sri Lanka, India, Maldives and then on to Mauritius, Reunion, Cape Town, St Helena, Azores and back to the UK. 

I am looking for crew from Mauritius/ Reunion Island to Cape Town and from Cape Town to the UK. If of any interest do email me.

The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com