December 19, 2025
I arrived at the marina last Monday evening to find poor BEHEMOTH still wrapped in plastic and with her batteries dying. From the day she was taken out of the water to get new teak on her deck and her bottom painted to the moment I stepped aboard in her slip she hadn’t been connected to shore power (while in the slip she was connected but the inverter/charger was off). With plastic wrapping over the solar panels the batteries didn’t get a single amp over almost 6 months.
Tuesday I had all four batteries checked and my fear was confirmed; they need to be replaced at USD 1,000+ a piece.
My frustration is that last time I was here I hired somebody — his name is Faber — to take care of the boat and avoid things like this happening. He was supposed to make sure that the bilges were clean, that no water was getting inside the boat, that the dock lines were properly set and not chaffing, and that the batteries were charging. He was recommended to me by the marina. I should have known better, all the signs were there. It was always difficult to get in touch with him or get a straight answer to a question. With time, his replies to my messages or answers to my phone calls became more and more elusive. Eventually, he disappeared and I wasn’t able to find a replacement.
On Tuesday the marina put me in contact with the manager/owner of Wikus Marine. Ollie and his staff are from South Africa. The company provides all kinds of services, from engine maintenance and repairs, to boat management and cleaning. I‘m impressed by their professionalism. If I had hired them instead of Faber I would have saved USD 4,000.
I asked the person at the marina office why they had recommended Faber instead of Ollie. I understand the owner of the marina wants to give priority to local companies including the one owned by his son. Faber is an independent contractor but also part of that group/cartel, Ollie is not. In fact, there are rivalries that can become quite unpleasant Ollie tells me. For future sailors coming here I will post something in Noonsite.
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I’ve spent the week doing some work on the boat, coordinating with new and old contractors (the work on the teak is not finished), and wrapping up deliverables for a couple of clients. The last month has been busy and I have spent too much time on the road.
For all practical purposes, I left Hua Hin and my dear Woland a while back. On November 16th I traveled to Tunis for one week. From there I flew to Maputo via Paris (saw Sofia) and also stayed for a week. I went back to BKK on the 29th, in part to renew my drivers license, and on the 6th, late at night, I traveled to Beirut via Doha. I came back to BKK on the 13th just to get on the flight to Amsterdam a few hours after I landed on the 14th. The next day in Amsterdam I took the plane to Panama. In a world with efficient markets I could have flown from Beirut to Amsterdam and forgo the Bangkok-Amsterdam portion of the ticket I had purchased a while back, before knowing the details of the business trips. But in this world that would have required a very expensive change in tickets.
In any case, still jet lagged, I get up at around 03-04:00, prepare coffee, get on the computer or have meetings, and at first light go for a run or a walk at the beach.
At 17:00 I stop all activities, pour myself a G&T, drink it slowly, and when finished go have dinner at the marina’s restaurant. By 20:00 I’m in my bunk reading but not for long.
(Parenthesis on books. I’m reading, and enjoying, Flesh by David Szalay which recently got the Booker prize. Before, I spent quite some time reading the new edition of The Stand by Stephen King. He is not Nobel prize material but the book is a masterpiece in story telling. I never read the first edition or watched the movie. The new edition brings back parts of the original book which the editors had to cut because it was way too long given production costs. I am glad it was published. After Flesh I have What We Can Know, Ian McEwan’s latest book, in my reading list).
The routine here suits me well, but today there will be change. I plan to cook aboard and eat while watching a movie — One Battle After Another which I have downloaded on my Ipad.
It’s my last night here. Tomorrow Saturday Olmedo, the driver, will pick me up at 06:30 to take me to the airport. I’m flying to Quito to spend Christmas and New Years with the family. The girls, Natalia, and her mother are also coming. I come back here on January 6th.
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It is unclear whether I’ll sail to Galapagos in January. I m glad I came to sort things out, but BEHEMOTH is still note ready and might not be ready when I come back. Unfortunately, I don’t have much leeway. I had given myself 15 days for the passage, but if the departure gets delayed I won’t be able to get back to work on time.
Most likely, I’ll come back, finish preparing BEHEMOTH, sail to Islas las Perlas and back, and then come back in March for the passage.
Sailing to the Pacific 