I arrived in Lombok and we spent the night on board before getting an early start the following morning. The first job was carrying out our boarding inspection, checking all the systems and safety equipment before departure. Everything checked out well and the boat passed our inspection, ready for sea.
The next challenge was organising the crew change. Indonesia doesn't make it easy. We had numerous messages from different agents, all saying they could arrange everything. Each time we agreed to proceed, the requirements seemed to change, so after a lot of back and forth it became clear the simplest option was to complete the crew change in Bali instead.
We left the marina around midday and moved out to a mooring for the night before departing at first light the next morning. The passage to Bali we motored pushing against a strong current for the whole trip.
In Bali we had to anchor in the middle of the channel while waiting for the paperwork to be completed. It wasn't an ideal place to spend the night, but there were no other options. Things became a little more interesting around 7pm when a very large superyacht called us on the radio to let us know they would be departing at 8pm and needed room to manoeuvre. Between repositioning and keeping a close watch on the surrounding traffic, it turned into a much later night than expected, with everything finally settling down well after midnight as they kept changing their mind on when they would leave.
The following day the crew headed ashore for a few hours to stock up on fresh groceries while I stayed on board to keep an eye on the boat. Once the crew change paperwork was finally completed we departed Bali at around 11am.
Leaving Bali meant heading back through the Lombok Strait and into the Java Sea. The current was exceptionally strong and against us until we got to the end of Bali. Even with both engines running and the headsail drawing whenever the conditions allowed, we were typically making 7 to 8 knots through the water but only around 2 knots over the ground. We spent the night keeping a good watch, and fortunately traffic remained fairly light. As is often the case in Indonesia though, everything looked very different once the sun came up. Daylight revealed FADs (Fish Aggregating Devices) and fishing boats scattered throughout the area that had been impossible to spot overnight. It was another reminder of the importance of maintaining a careful lookout in these waters. The Radar is a huge help at very close range.