Land Ho!

We spotted a palm tree just floating out in the sea. Then some birds showed up. Then came a shout from the lookout:
“Land Ho! Two points off the starboard bow, Captain!”

That land was Mount Kinabalu—13,000 feet tall. You really can’t miss it!

We are racing to reach Kota Kinabalu before sunset, both of our big 50-horsepower engines are running full blast. It was a close call, but we made it just in time. Whew! Arriving in darkness ment another night at sea.
Nobody wanted that.

We’re now at 6° north—safely out of the typhoon zone. (BTW. A the first typhoon of the season hit southern China today.)

Once we entered the harbor in KK (that’s what locals call Kota Kinabalu), a small outboard motorboat helped guide us to our slip. Then seven guys helped us do a Med tie—a tricky parking job for boats. It was even harder with a 3.5-meter tide, and this was our big boat’s first time ever in a slip!

There was still one mission left: drink all the beer and liquor on board—because you’re not allowed to bring alcohol into Malaysia.

Today, we cleaned up the boat, checked in with immigration, and had a well deserved relaxing afternoon.

I’m really proud to be part of this crew. We helped sail a brand-new, high-tech boat over 1,200 miles across the wild South China Sea. We fixed things, worked hard, and stuck together.

What an epic journey!Read more