Photos from the Similans, Phang Nga cruise

The cute little hut at the north end of Koh Racha.  South is a Five-Star resort.
Note a striding PF, heading off to find someone to help with our broken outboard...

Photos of the week's trip (8-16 Jan) below (click on "Read more").  Joining us were my old school chum Barry Faux and his partner Thereiza, of Canberra, who had come up for the cruise.  The final itinerary was:

• 8 Jan: arrive Yacht Haven and provision
• 9 Jan: to Ao Chalong, overnight, with dinner at the Kan Eang restaurant (the one we had crew dinner at, during King's Cup)
• 10 Jan: to Kata beach, and depart for Similans 22:00 -- overnight motor, 60 NM to Similan No. 9 Island (zip wind; but big rain storm an hour out)
• 11 Jan: lazy day at Similans, lunch at the hut on the beach, then 21:00 depart Similans for Kata Beach.  Day at Kata -- shopping, massages, dinner at Mom Tri's, next to the Rasta coffee house.  PM depart for Koh Racha
• 12 Jan: Koh Racha to Phi-Phi Don
• 13-14 Jan: Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Le (Maya Beach, as in "The Beach" movie)
• 15 Jan: return to Yacht Haven: 35 miles, nice morning sail, then motoring as wind died and water shallowed (to 1 foot under keel near YH).

Therezia, Barry and Jing by the "flower wall", Kata

Similan #9 Beach, from Sail Rock.  There's some lovely snorkelling at the right hand side of the beach.  This is around mid-morning, we having arrived around 09:00 from Kata.

Tent for rent, at Similans

Sail rock in the distance; not one for the 'elf & safety crowd.  It's higher than it looks and a bit scary for those of us with vertigo....

Ko Racha beach and the 5-star resort: very tasty!  We moored on public moorings on south side of bay -- but found when we snokelled round the boat in the morning that we'd dragged the mooring about 15 feet... pause for thought....

Barry holds the whole wine list in hand, Koh Racha

Chilling out at Koh Racha.  It's two standards of accommodation: super luxury, new and rather lovely resort at the south end, and these laid-back shacks at the north end.  A rather charming mix.

Ali's hut.  Ali's sitting at the top left of this piccie.  Others: Jing, Therezia and Barry.  Ali towed our dinghy back to Xena, as we'd broken a pin in the propeller shaft; fixed by Noel the next morning.

Peter and Barry at the Rasta bar on Koh Racha

Approaching Phi Phi Le in the longtail, courtesy skipper Rich

Phi Phi Le.  Maya beach, the one in "The Beach" is 

tucked in just behind the greenery in the middle of this picture.

A louring storm, round the back of Phi Phi.  You can anchor here, but need to be a fair way out, as it's very shallow

Phi Phi Le

Round the back of Maya beach: Lo Sam Ma bay.  Later our longtail took us round here, moored and we went for some lovely snorkelling

Phi Phi beach

Phi Phi beach, Xena in background

Barry and Therezia, as we depart Yacht Haven, they to stay a few more days for shopping and market visit.  Barry is off to see if he can source flat-packs of "flower walls" we saw in Kata (see above).  They could be a good seller in Oz, and we'd like one here in DB.

 Below some photos received from Barry on 26th Feb 2011

Xena looking regal and warrior like, in Yacht Haven, Phuket

Yacht Haven

UK Carbon Tape drive sails in the sun.

Approaching Phi Phi Don (on left) and Phi Phi Le (on right), mirror water....

Phi Phi Le -- the one with Maya Beach of "The Beach" fame

And here it is: Maya Beach, where Leo Di Caprio and his mates cavorted in "The Beach"
This was "our" Longtail.