Day 25: Meet the Crew
I was joined by 9 other wonderful individuals at the marina as we waited on our guide, Willie, to take us to our new floating home for the week. Many were traveling solo like me except for a couple, Kelly and Sean, and their friend, Gregg, from Canada. As well as a couple of friends, Kat from New Zealand and Ashley from Australia who met a few years ago on a tour and planned a trip together after not seeing each other for 2 years! Katharina from Germany was supposed to have a friend join her who ended up sick with the flu the day before the sailing trip, so she came alone. There were two other guys from Germany, Philip and Sebastian. And my wonderful roomie-to-be, Sara, from Norway.
We were soon shown to our catamaran and we all gasped in excitement at the 25 meter long giant of a boat we’d get to call home for the next week. She was a beaut! Two nets to layout on, padded area to layout on, and a table all sat in the front alone. A top deck with views and a bottom deck with multiple booths and seating in the shade. It was an awesome patio option for sunburnt days! We were introduced to our Chef, our Skipper, and his son, Boat. Yes, his name was Boat. He was 6 years old and the most adorably shy human ever.
Willie gave us a quick briefing which consisted of basically zero safety restrictions and lots of information on our schedule (just the kind of briefing I like). Breakfast at 8, lunch at 12:30, dinner at 7. Snacks & drinks available all day. Got it. We set sail into the Andaman Sea where we were greeted by breathtaking islands that towered above us with seaside cliffs. Two hours later we arrived at our first anchoring spot for the night.
Dinner consisted of amazing traditional Thai dishes and I knew immediately this chef would be getting all my tips at the end of the week. A night out on the deck star-gazing and getting to know one another did us well before we headed off to bed in our cozy little cabins. (And my fear was soon relieved as Sara passed my no-snore test that automatically scored her best roomie ever.)
Day 26: James Bond Island
An early 7am alarm awoke us to meet everyone on deck to explore a cave before breakfast! Arriving by dark the night before, it was an extra beautiful view to wake to! We hopped in the dinghy and took a quick trip over to the nearby seaside cliff that had a tiny cave entrance at sea level only accessible at low tide. We waded through it with flashlights thinking that this was the extent of the tour only to be surprised by a magical opening within the island where the cave ended. Mangrove tree roots filled the bottom and the cliff walls were sky high around us. It was a peaceful and private place.
Back at the boat we indulged in a very American breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast, yogurt, and fresh fruit! We set sail toward the popular tourist destination Khao Phing Kan island just off of Krabi, Phuket’s shores. This island is now known as James Bond Island after being featured in the James Bond movie, “The Man with the Golden Gun.” We dropped anchor in the middle of the sea surrounded by many little islands and were greeted by a longtail boat that taxi-ed us to the famous island. It was a very unique place with beautiful cliffs and caves worked into it. Up and around a pathway we found the viewpoint for the iconic James Bond rock.
After exploring the caves and views for a bit we hopped back on the longtail which took us to the nearby Sea Gypsy Village. This little floating island of homes was also a unique experience. The population was mostly elderly citizens as most youth leave the floating town for school and a better life. A very poor sight and many unpleasant smells. It was quite neat to be brought to this place in the middle of the sea and witness where these people live their whole life. There was a floating football field, a mosque, many homes, and a street (or should I say a dock) full of souvenir shops. Fishing and tourism are definitely their livelihood these days.
We boarded the longtail and headed back to our catamaran to sail to the next stop. Chef rang the bell and we gathered for some pasta on the shade deck. We then set sail for a little island in the middle of nowhere that had a beach calling our name. On our way there Philip caught a huge barracuda! (This made us all very excited about swimming soon.) After some kayaking and a dip in the sea we set sail for about a 2 hour journey to Krabi’s Railay beach. Some rain and waves blew in and the seasickness crept over the boat one-by-one. Luckily it didn’t find it’s way to me, but it was a sore sight for my roomie, Sara, and a few others.
We finally reached East Railay beach for dinner. West Railay was inaccessible in this weather and East Railay had no official marina to dock… so a dinghy up to the shore was our only option! Basically my worst fear of falling out of a little boat during a storm into a pitch black ocean. Thankfully we made it and the rain even lightened up so we didn’t get drenched. Onshore Willie took us to his favorite restaurant, Mom’s. We tried to adjust to the land life but were all swaying and felt quite intoxicated just being on land! I had an awesome meal that finally had a good amount of spice to it! We walked around and explored what little nightlife was happening during a rainy night then headed back to the boat for our own party.
Day 27: The Great Storm
Breakfast Bell! More bacon. I love this Chef! The sun was out so I, of course, headed directly to the suntanning nets shortly after. We sailed awhile to a place called Chicken Island due to the chicken head shaped rock that sticks out of the island. This is a well-known spot for snorkeling. We loaded back up for lunch… barracuda that is!Then the clouds rolled in and it was time to set sail for our biggest stretch yet. We were told it would be about 4 hours, but little did we know what was in store for us.
The winds picked up and… Oh what a storm!! At first the rain was a downer on this beautiful afternoon we could have spent suntanning, but suddenly it turned into the most exciting day of the trip. We decided to embrace the storm by popping some brews open and sitting on the nets out front. The waves were incredible at about 9 meters. The winds were strong enough for us to cut the engine and solely use our sails at around 9-10 knots. The waves were pouring in over the top of the nets and we were getting pelted by freezing raindrops and warmed by salty sea waves all at the same time. It was an experience I’ll never forget. (Video or pictures coming soon when I hunt them down from others on the trip haha.) Sadly, not all enjoyed this storm. There were a few that got quite seasick before the storm hit and the storm made things that much worse.
After an insane sail we reached Koh Phi Phi’s shores and anchored down for the night. The dinner bell rang soon and we got to feast on the amazing Thai dishes we’d be smelling! After dinner we regrouped on the front deck to recount our wild day before heading off to bed.
Day 28: Koh Phi Phi
After breakfast we took the dinghy to Monkey Beach which turned out to be within sight of where we’d be anchored all night. We hopped aboard and motored over to the little beach at the bottom of a towering cliff. As we neared we could see little blurs running around on the beach. These blurs soon turned into monkeys and we could see just how many monkeys were out there! Wow! Such a cool experience! They were cute and super creepy at the same time.
We dinghy-ed over to a snorkeling spot nearby and found the most clear deep water! I saw some more beautiful neon rainbow fish like in Koh Tao and some Pipefish which are related to the seahorse family (looks like a seahorse but straight not curly).
Back at the boat we sailed up to the marina for a day on land at Koh Phi Phi and to drop off Sara and Katharina since they only booked the 4 day sail ending in Koh Phi Phi. Farewell roomie! They were both pretty sick this last morning so it was a bittersweet goodbye as I’m sure they were happy to be on land. The rest of us decided to do a small hike up to the main viewpoint in the area. Another little island town with streets full of tour guide offices, restaurants, and shops. We finally found our way through it all and to the first of many steps up to the viewpoint. About a 15 minute walk later we reached the top and saw beautiful views of the double bay below. On the left was the pier where our boat was anchored along with many longtails and ferrys. The right bay was more of a beach for people to enjoy with jetskies and other activities.
We soaked up the views but for a minute too long… it suddenly began pouring rain! Thankfully there was a little shop to sit at on top and they had ice cream and wifi. Best way to sit out a rainstorm. As soon as there was a break in the rain we made a run for it and ended up at a restaurant for lunch just before an even bigger wave of rain came through. After lunch we walked along the beach-friendly bayside on our way back toward our boat pickup spot. We met back at 3pm where we gained two new passengers, Danny and Jackie, a honeymooning couple from California!
Next stop Maya Bay which was a quick sail off the shores of Koh Phi Phi. WOW. This was one of my favorite places we visited. It was absolutely gorgeous. The entire island was stunning with it’s massive cliffs and caves that led to a small opening where you could take a boat into a small beach. This place is now most known from the movie, The Beach, which I now must watch. The boat entrance was very narrow and made the beach seem almost impossible to access by boat until you came through the little opening that resembled Hells Gate at Possum Kingdom (a little Texas reference). We sailed in this way but the waves were to choppy to dinghy to shore, so we had to access the beach from the back entrance which was even cooler.
We sailed around back where no beach was in sight. We dinghy-ed to this rope net that was in the water and were told to jump out and fight the current to the net. Once climbing up you entered this magical little opening in the island and took a pathway to the beach filled with palm trees. I can’t even describe it. It was just cool. Go and see it yourself! Now all of this was a great experience just approaching the beach, but it turns out the beach was the best part. So gorgeous! The water looked like blue kool-aid and the sand was white and soft. *Travel Tip: We arrived here about 4:30pm which made for less of a crowd and added to the beauty of the beach. Apparently during high season this beach can get packed with around 4,000 visitors. It is a really small area and I can’t imagine how different the experience would have been if it were that busy. Make sure to not go at a peak time of day for the best experience.*
Around sunset we left back for the boat. We were greeted by delicious smells of dinner! One of the dishes had huge sautéed mushrooms in them and they were probably my favorite thing I’ve eaten in a month. So good! Made me think of all the other foods I used to snack on back at home… that’s when I was reminded of Claussen pickle slices. It’s painful to even write about these right now because of how strongly I’m craving them. So, Mom – please stock fridge with pickles. Thank you in advance.
We ended the night on a routine note at the boat’s front nets listening to music and getting to know our new Cali friends.
Day 29: Beach Drinks
After breakfast we sailed back toward Maya Bay about 30 minutes to a good snorkeling spot. The sun was out and I was feeling extra lazy so I planned to sit this one out and lay out on the nets instead. A few minutes later I was really happy with this decision when everyone was boarding the dinghy and realized how many huge jellyfish were swimming around the boat in the water below. No thanks! I enjoyed a quiet hour on the boat staring up at the stunning island cliffside.
Everyone returned (no one was stung somehow) and we set sail for about an hour to a little beach with a fun beach bar & resort on in it: Phi Phi Relax Beach Resort. This place was so cute and in the middle of no where. I would totally recommend it if it weren’t for the insanely rocky entrance to the water. Ouch. We had a nice time ordering fancy tropical drinks at the beach bar and listening to some reggae! None of us wanted to leave this bar. The lassi smoothies and music were just too good, but the skipper soon showed up to take us back to the boat for lunch.
My stomach had finally hit the “I need a break from Thai food” feeling and I was ecstatic to find that the chef had prepared us chicken nuggets for lunch! Seriously, God sent! We set sail afterwards for about a 4.5 hour sail to Koh Tao where we would be eating visiting a Muslim Village and eating dinner onshore. It was a beautiful sail as the sun was setting and the weather was perfect. We arrived at a restaurant appropriately called, By the Sea, as it appeared to only be accessible by a homemade dock. We walked up the dock and were greeted by the owner who loaded us up in an open air pick up truck taxi and took us into the Muslim Village for some pre-dinner shopping.
It was a pretty quiet village after dark, so we hit a few shops and then left back for the restaurant. It was all seafood, so despite our concerns about eating seafood in Thailand we had no choice but delight in some hopefully fresh and well-cooked food from down under. I ordered a Hong Thong (local whiskey) and Coke to accompany my fried prawn. The waitor seemed to love that I ordered a local drink that is pretty cheap for them to supply, so by the end of the night he ended up offering everyone at the table a free round of shots. It was a nice evening stuffing our faces under the dim restaurant lighting while looking out at the dark ocean.
Day 30: Island Hopping
Our last full day on the boat and there was abundance of sunshine and the smoothiest of seas! After the daily bacon and buttery toast overdose we set sail for 3 hours to a tiny little fun-sized island, Khai Nok, for some snorkeling. This beach had the clearest water I’d seen my entire time in Thailand. It was so pretty! The island only had a small beach with a market where you could buy drinks, ice cream, or a variety of barbecued seafood. They also had some chairs in the shade for sale and jet ski rentals for about 1500 baht. I loved this beach, but shortly before we left it speedboats of tourists starting pouring in. It’s definitely best to visit this island as early as possible and plan to leave by noon to avoid the crowds.
Willie insisted that we leave this little paradise because he had a better beach in mind… how could this be? On our 1 hour sail to the next island Philip caught another barracuda that was somehow even bigger than the first. More fish for dinner, haha! We finally arrived at the shores of Rang Yai. We could see from the boat that this place had tons of shade trees and Willie let us know that the chairs were free. Awesome! There were a couple of bars and the beach was a little bigger which allowed the crowd to spread out. It was really nice even though the drinks were a little pricier… but what would you expect when you’re on a tiny island in the middle of nowhere? The island was pretty busy when we arrived, but almost all the speedboats of tourists had left about an hour in around 4pm. So we sat in our free chairs enjoying a beautiful sunset before returning to the boat.
We set sail for a bit to our anchoring spot for dinner which was another amazing Thai meal. (And luckily the chicken nuggets settled my appetite enough that this meal looked great.) It consisted of barracuda, shrimp, veggies, and spicy coconut soup. Yum!
Day 31: The Last Sail
Such a beautiful morning! I woke up at 6am to catch the sunrise and enjoy as much of the last morning as possible. The sunrise was beautiful and pink. The front deck was quiet and peaceful. I enjoyed a cup of hot tea as the sun slowly rose. Everyone soon woke up for breakfast before we set sail for the marina back in Phuket. A couple hours later we were back to the marina to say our goodbyes and go our merry ways! Whatever way that would be… I think this was the most unprepared I had ever been having no clue where Abby was or where our destination meeting spot would be! (No wifi on the boat didn’t allow for much planning.)
I decided I’d head to Bangkok next, but needed some wifi to plan everything, so I booked a night at a hotel near the airport where I could wifi it up for an afternoon to plan my next day’s travels.
Afterthoughts:
I’m obsessed. Sign me up for sailing classes and find me some $$ to purchase one of these for myself. This week was absolutely blissful from the stormy seas to the sunniest days! I can’t wait to book something similar to this again in the future. I totally recommend you try it out yourself. Just make sure to bring anti-nausea medicine in case you are affected by seasickness! I also recommend booking with G Adventures since they did such an incredible job keeping us safe and entertained!
Wander On,
Sammi Kaye
PICKLES. ✔️