OWNER REPORT
We berthed alongside one of the On arrival in Suez we tied up to a
commercial docks where an armed buoy at the Suez Canal Yacht Club.
guard watched over us. Shipping transits the Canal then
convoys North or South bound,
We had a very pleasant few days as there is not enough room for large
in Eritrea, despite minimal provisioning vessels to pass. Small yachts tag on
or facilities. The people we met at the back of a convoy. We had to
“
were extremely friendly and cheerful wait a couple of days in Suez in order
The people we met were
and wanted to know about our to be measured by a Suez Canal
countries and to tell us about theirs.
extremely friendly and
Authority employee and then to
They seemed very proud to be an process the paperwork. In Egypt
cheerful. They seemed
independent country after years paperwork is paramount and one can
of struggle. only wait with apparent patience while
very proud to be an
it is processed.
“
One day we hired a van and driver
independent country after
and drove over the mountains to the The other aspect of Egyptian culture
capital, Asmara. The city was bustling that was harder to get used to was
years of struggle.
and much less war damaged than the the universal habit of baksheesh or
port Massawa. There is a tank tipping, even to professionals like the
graveyard outside town where Canal Pilots. The accepted currency is
generations of tanks from wars over cigarette cartons and/or pint bottles of
the years have been dumped. scotch. I was concerned at first that
we shouldn’t offend people by offering
From Massawa to Hurghada, Egypt is a gift inappropriately or in the wrong
about 1000nm, and it was some of quantity, but was soon reassured, as
the hardest sailing we have ever done. we would be asked directly for a gift
The passage northward in the Red Sea and usually the amount and brand was
is notorious for wind and seas on the specified. We had been advised about
nose and our trip was no exception. this in advance and were pleased to
We had 15-20 kts and a very steep, have stocked up in duty-free
very short high chop on the nose. Langkawi, Malaysia, prior to our transit
Some authorities advocate waiting for of Egypt and the ‘Marlboro Canal’.
brief weather windows in anchorages Other countries other customs!
along the coast, but we elected to just
get it over with. Nothing broke and no The actual passage of the Canal
one was hurt so for us it worked out. was interesting. It is a true canal
through the desert in the southern
Hurghada is a small port south of part until you enter the Bitter Lake
the bifurcation of the Red Sea. complex. Yachts often have to spend
Its main industry is high volume the night at the Ismailia Yacht Club in
tourism, primarily from Russia. The Lake Timsah before continuing the
marina there is very clean and safe northern part of the canal and we
and a good place to stop and organize were no exception. The pilot left
Suez Canal transit procedures. It is a when we arrived and a new pilot
good base for visiting the historic joined us at dawn the next day.
sites of Egypt. We took a one-day tour The Canal Authority pilots were very
from Hurghada to the Valley of the pleasant and low key. We dropped our
Kings and the temples at Luxor. It was second pilot off in Port Said to a
an outstanding experience that even launch, and continued into the
the thousands of other tourists Mediterranean. It was a tremendous
couldn’t diminish. feeling to be back in Europe and we
were very excited by the thought of
Transit of the Suez Canal, like the being relatively close to the Balearic
Panama Canal, is an exercise in Islands, which we had left four years
patience and preparation. We used the earlier, going westward at the start of
well-known Felix Agency to facilitate our circumnavigation.
the process and Najib Latif, our
contact there, was invaluable. After a very comfortable passage
LEFT CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: It is essential to arrange the of about 400nm we arrived in
Port Said
paperwork in advance before you Marmaris, Turkey and were looking
Market stall, Djibouti arrive at the southern entrance to the forward to a summer of cruising in
Luxor, Egypt Canal, the town of Suez. Najib was the Mediterranean.
Tank graveyard, Asmara
extremely helpful. A useful tip is to
clear out of Egypt prior to entering
ABOVE:
the Canal if one doesn’t want to stop
Luxor, Egypt
at Port Said at the northern end.
www.oystermarine.com 53
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