We left Suakin with Thetis on Thursday 3rd of March. The wind was about 15 knots from the north, so we motor sailed 38 miles to an anchorage just north of Port Sudan, called the wreck of the Umbria where we spent the night. The shelter provided by a reef though not very good, was adequate in the relatively calm conditions we experienced. The Umbria was an Italian freighter scuttled at the beginning of the Second World War to prevent her and her cargo of arms falling into British hands. For those who like diving it is a very good wreck dive.

We left next morning and motored 25 miles further north to Marsa Fijab. A Marsa is a natural bay with an inlet into the fringing reef and this one provided excellent shelter and a very comfortable anchorage in mud. Our electronic charts were well out so entering required eyeball navigation with Paul and I on the foredeck looking out for bommies (coral heads) and Octavio doing the same for Thetis. We arrived early in the afternoon when the light was still good for reef spotting, so we didn't get into any nasty scrapes. The place is noted for its bird life with ospreys, egrets, spoonbills and herons to look out for as well as bommies. On shore there were a few shacks used as a trading post by locals at the weekend, (Thursday and Friday), otherwise the place was uninhabited. It was interesting to watch a caravan of at least 50 camels wending its way along the beach. We met Sharif, (a nomadic farmer famous for being mentioned in The Red Sea Pilot). He paddled out in his canoe for a chat and to sell us some eggs and told us that the camels were being moved inland to a place where there was more grain.I gave him one of my homemade Welsh cakes, which he ate and Friedermann gave him some free medical treatment. (For a shoulder problem, the cakes haven't harmed anyone yet!). Since it was so calm both crews took the opportunity of getting into the water and scraping weed and barnacles off the hull. I was surprised at how much of an ecosystem we had collected in the couple of months since we were anti-fouled in Muscat; the Indian Ocean/Red Sea is certainly very fertile.

On Sunday we motored a further 38 miles up the coast to Taila Islands, (surprise surprise, northerly wind on the nose again). The three small, low, islands (only a few meters high and a few meters wide), provide shelter from the waves, though not from the wind. It is a very beautiful spot offering a view across to the mountains on the mainland. These white sand islands surrounded by turquoise blue water and a coral reef are joined together by a sandy spit forming a partially submerged causeway that you can walk across. Snorkeling was very good with crystal clear water lots of pretty coloured coral and plenty of fish. The only inhabitants we saw were lots of pale yellow crabs scurrying about and numerous sea birds, including an osprey that we watched as it swooped down and caught a fish. We met some local fishermen with a very small boat, who told us they had been stuck on the islands for some time waiting for the strong winds to drop and had run out of sugar for their coffee. We were able to help and supplied them with a bag. Coffee is served very strong and very sweet round here. We had an uninvited guest on Monday evening, a huge moth. I am not fond of moths and this one was about the size of a small bird. The screams could be heard onboard Thetis and there was a great deal of speculation about what was going on. I left Paul to evict it, which he did but not before it had fluttered in his face and become entangled in his hair. Just thinking about it still makes me shudder.

On Tuesday we moved ten miles to Marsa Inkeifal. Again motoring as there was virtually no wind.

This was a very well protected anchorage being surrounded on three sides by land, which turned out to be just as well since the wind increased to 25 knots from the north and we decided to sit it out here for a few days. While we waited Friedermann said we should get some exercise. So under doctor's orders, we took the dinghies ashore and walked along the coast to Marsa Tankerfal. It was a very pleasant walk along the raised coral platform. There were lots of shells and broken coral underfoot which look relatively fresh but must have been there since the sea level dropped as they were far too high to have been washed up by the tide. Walking back into the strong wind was hard work. It was fun launching our dinghies through the fringing coral reef and against the wind. The crew had to wade out waist deep pulling their dinghy until it was clear of the reef and safe to lower the outboard.

Next day we left intending to get out beyond the reefs where we could tack and try to sail as close to the wind as we could to avoid motoring into the strong 25kt northerly wind. Unfortunately or backstay separated about three quarters the way up at the insulated connector for the SSB radio, which uses it as an aerial. William got the sails down in record time and used two spinnaker halyards to help support the mast. We changed course being forced to motor into what had become short steep waves and headed inside the reef where the sea was less rough. Thetis was still outside the reef and we lost sight of each other. We managed to get to Kor Shinab and anchor just before it went dark. Not the ideal time of day to attempt entering the Kor but it is very large and well charted. The wind remained strong the next day 25-30kts. So we stayed put. The day after that we managed to disentangle the top part of the backstay left dangling from the mast from the ropes it had become twisted round. It was still too windy for a trip up the mast so we went ashore and climbed one of the nearby hills. The view of the Kor and the surrounding desert (the outer edge of the Great Nubian desert) was spectacular. Paul snorkeled and said it was good with plenty of fish. After 3 days the wind dropped to 15-20kts and William went up the mast and screwed the two parts of the back stay together. So not only can we put our sails up again but the SSB is working as well.

We left the next day and did an overnight passage to Ras Baniyas in Egypt, getting most of the way across Foul Bay in relatively light winds (10kts). We arrived in Port Ghalib on Monday 21st at 9am and met up with Thetis who had been there for two days. They told us about the rough passage they had after we parted company and their technical problems with the boat. They were unlucky to get tangled with yet more fishing gear and it pulled the propeller shaft damaging the transmission.