Sisters' Island Kayaking Expedition 14/15
November 17, 2014
Sister's Island (Pulau Subar Laut)
Somewhere in the South of Singapore
Hey guys!
How was your weekend? :)
I was kinda recently on a hiatus quite frequently but sorry to inform that I am still pretty much alive and kicking. Just kinda needed some time off doing real things/adventures, getting out to spend time with the sun.
That being said, I was kinda cut off from any source of virtual communication (except the walkie-talkie and VHF we had to use for the trip) during the weekend because of the expedition organized by my juniors.
1) Not wanting to use the phone while on board (Piloting the boat + the sea water... It's better to be safe than sorry)
2) Can't really see stuffs on my phone under the sun (The reflection of my screen + the super scratchy screen protector)
3) The hut we took as our accommodation for the night was further away from the jetty (The reception was pretty bad for Starhub users - We were constantly getting Indonesia Telco Services instead)
4) A getaway, means a get-away from the hustle bustle city. For a quiet and relaxing (but sleep deprived) weekend.
5) I'd probably got no friends (The horror BUT my few close friends were with me on the island itself)
//
The en route to Sisters' Island was alright, no major hiccups...
Weather had treated us fairly well, like no big storms or scorching hot sun. It was kinda gloomy at some points of time or rather, the sun was kinda playing hide-and-seek with us.
Then again, in any ways, as long as you're out in the sun, the best solution is to apply sunblock so you won't regret and which, I finally, certainly, DID 'cos I didn't wanna get nagged for days again.
Paddlers had all managed to complete their paddling from West Coast to Sisters' Island in the choppy sea condition. The formation was quite compact as the number of participants was not as large as the other SIKEs.
Distance to Sisters' was much longer, it's literally a long stretch from Pasir Panjang Fairway to the end of Sentosa Island, heading towards Sisters' but still, a job well done for them to be able to complete the trip.
The route planned was straightforward and despite the long stretch of paddling, and just paddling, the paddlers and those in the powered pleasure craft aka the rubber dingy, get to see Sentosa Island in another view (IN THE SEA)!
Tanjong Beach, Siloso Beach, Palawan Beach... and the kinda mouldy Merlion. Oh, not to forget, we also get to see the MBS, Singapore Flyer, Marina Barrage from Sisters' Island. Not a bad deal after a few hours of arduous paddling under the sun, right?
The only worrisome thing was the freaking monkeys which stay in Big Sisters' Island (There's a small Sisters' Island opposite but it was already being occupied by another group of organization/campers who took bum boat there).
The log team was being attacked by the monkeys and they were saying the monkeys were ferocious, stealing our food (log boat got there first to unload their stuffs), showing fangs and backside at them, chasing after the log team.
//
Let's beach up!
After about 4 - 5 hours of the paddling, the group of adventurers finally got to the island to beach up their kayaks and had a face-off with the monkeys (Just kidding, most of them were afraid of the monkeys instead). At least, it means there would be more people to take care of the stuffs.
The expedition this time round was slightly different from the usual sea expedition 'cos... The number of alumnus who participated was of a minimal, less than 10 and the usual ones didn't come at all.
The alumnus used to cook A LOT and there would always be leftover, the input would be more than the output despite it's a paddling event but not this time round.
None of us bought any food, we were literally just a service provider (for being the boat handler) and so, we were kind of waiting for food most of the time HAHA but we didn't have the time to really get stuffs since everyone had to work prior to the trip.
So basically, the alumnus (not me hahaha) just napped after their shower, napping while waiting for dinner and I must say, Sisters' Island is a pretty awesome place for photography (excluding the monkeys). There are few stretches of breakwater which we can easily walk to and sit down to enjoy the sea view while catching the sunrise/sunset.
Simple dinner was served by the juniors (Macaroni + Fusili Pasta with pan-fried chicken fillets) as the dusk was setting in. The night was peacefully spent... Until I was woken up by the sound of the waves (I am a super duper light sleeper) and the presence of Edwin who happened to be standing beside me (Kinda scary but I think he came to the table to take the torchlight or whatever for his toilet trip).
The good thing is, the mosquito repellent from BKK, in milky lotion form is the best thing invented on Earth. It smells damn good, it's not sticky and does its job well to fend off the mosquitoes. OH, it's only 50baht, scream with me people, scream with me. It's probably the only sea expedition that I had minimal itchy bites, thank goodness for this wonderful invention.
//
Rise & Shine.
We were shining before the sun even shines at us.
The group of us was supposed to walk to the breakwater, sit back and relax while enjoying the sunrise but this brudder of mine (in the photo below), said he had been witnessing lightning during the last hour and recommended that we should all stay in the hut, rocking our hammocks while trying to catch the sunrise... That's what we did in the end, and I am seriously not a fan of lightning too.
Then, after breakfast prepared by the juniors (pancakes, scrambled eggs and sausages), we kinda started taking photo on this super-bent coconut tree. A TOTALLY GOOD SPOT for photography... Explains the first picture above before this lengthy post.
After a few solo shots of mine, my brudder came up to me, wanting to snap pictures together with me... As I was seated down previously, he was asking me to stand up for the photo and this was this outcome:
The expedition this time round was slightly different from the usual sea expedition 'cos... The number of alumnus who participated was of a minimal, less than 10 and the usual ones didn't come at all.
The alumnus used to cook A LOT and there would always be leftover, the input would be more than the output despite it's a paddling event but not this time round.
None of us bought any food, we were literally just a service provider (for being the boat handler) and so, we were kind of waiting for food most of the time HAHA but we didn't have the time to really get stuffs since everyone had to work prior to the trip.
So basically, the alumnus (not me hahaha) just napped after their shower, napping while waiting for dinner and I must say, Sisters' Island is a pretty awesome place for photography (excluding the monkeys). There are few stretches of breakwater which we can easily walk to and sit down to enjoy the sea view while catching the sunrise/sunset.
Simple dinner was served by the juniors (Macaroni + Fusili Pasta with pan-fried chicken fillets) as the dusk was setting in. The night was peacefully spent... Until I was woken up by the sound of the waves (I am a super duper light sleeper) and the presence of Edwin who happened to be standing beside me (Kinda scary but I think he came to the table to take the torchlight or whatever for his toilet trip).
The good thing is, the mosquito repellent from BKK, in milky lotion form is the best thing invented on Earth. It smells damn good, it's not sticky and does its job well to fend off the mosquitoes. OH, it's only 50baht, scream with me people, scream with me. It's probably the only sea expedition that I had minimal itchy bites, thank goodness for this wonderful invention.
//
Rise & Shine.
We were shining before the sun even shines at us.
The group of us was supposed to walk to the breakwater, sit back and relax while enjoying the sunrise but this brudder of mine (in the photo below), said he had been witnessing lightning during the last hour and recommended that we should all stay in the hut, rocking our hammocks while trying to catch the sunrise... That's what we did in the end, and I am seriously not a fan of lightning too.
Then, after breakfast prepared by the juniors (pancakes, scrambled eggs and sausages), we kinda started taking photo on this super-bent coconut tree. A TOTALLY GOOD SPOT for photography... Explains the first picture above before this lengthy post.
After a few solo shots of mine, my brudder came up to me, wanting to snap pictures together with me... As I was seated down previously, he was asking me to stand up for the photo and this was this outcome:
Lending me a helping hand 'cos...
I can always count on him.
Maybe it doesn't look high enough here but it's quite a distance (vertically), and the trunk isn't that thick but the tree managed to hold us all when we were taking the group photo (6 of us, me being the furthest away from the ground, having feet cramps while trying to balance...).
Featuring the SPAA
NJ (Me), Jian Wei (My brudder), Sung Wen, Wei Chong, Shini (My partner-in-crime), Edwin (My PBYX)
(Left to Right)
Anyhow, we set off slightly earlier for the journey back to West Coast and the traffic along Pasir Panjang Fairway was kinda heavy, with all the big-ass tanker ships docking in and out. Paddlers were all so shagged out under the hot sun and still had to speed up their paddling to get out of the channel but YAY, they did it.
5 hours of the physical-draining paddling, they finally got back to the west side of Singapore, AKA West Coast Park/ Poly Marina (Under SP)/ RSYC. Oh, which I've just realized, after beaching up all the kayaks and boats, debrief with the alumnus and then the washing up...
We didn't take a group photo after the trip with the current comms and participants OMG why like that but it's okie, memories stay...
I hope Monday has been good to you and also, weekend was a blast for you!
Sisters' Island Kayaking Expedition 2014
Southern Island, Singapore
Xx
I can always count on him.
Maybe it doesn't look high enough here but it's quite a distance (vertically), and the trunk isn't that thick but the tree managed to hold us all when we were taking the group photo (6 of us, me being the furthest away from the ground, having feet cramps while trying to balance...).
NJ (Me), Jian Wei (My brudder), Sung Wen, Wei Chong, Shini (My partner-in-crime), Edwin (My PBYX)
(Left to Right)
Anyhow, we set off slightly earlier for the journey back to West Coast and the traffic along Pasir Panjang Fairway was kinda heavy, with all the big-ass tanker ships docking in and out. Paddlers were all so shagged out under the hot sun and still had to speed up their paddling to get out of the channel but YAY, they did it.
5 hours of the physical-draining paddling, they finally got back to the west side of Singapore, AKA West Coast Park/ Poly Marina (Under SP)/ RSYC. Oh, which I've just realized, after beaching up all the kayaks and boats, debrief with the alumnus and then the washing up...
We didn't take a group photo after the trip with the current comms and participants OMG why like that but it's okie, memories stay...
I hope Monday has been good to you and also, weekend was a blast for you!
Southern Island, Singapore
Xx
Oh hello, there!
0 comments