Red Sea Passage, Part 1: Bab-El-Mandeb to Massawa, Eritrea

Mayyun Islands of Mandeb Strait 

Sea Child entered the Red Sea through the Bab-El-Mandeb (Mandeb Strait) at dawn on April 1, 2016.  This 80-mile long and 25-mile wide waterway separates the Horn of Africa from the Arabian Peninsula and is the link between the Gulf of Aden (GOA) and the Red Sea.  As we sailed through Mandeb Strait, the seas became very steep and the winds accelerated out of the S, steady at 20-25 knots with gusts up to 40 knots.  We were thankful that Sea Child was sailing with the winds and seas as we watched the giant super tankers pass us both northbound and southbound.  The VHF CH 16 was busy, with the Djibouti Navy calling ships that entered the Mandeb Strait including Sea Child.  We were busy adjusting sails when the call came to Sea Child, with the Djibouti Navy mispronouncing the ship name "See Sheeld, See Sheeld this is Djibouti Navy" and by the time we realized that they were calling us, they had moved on to a giant supertanker that was one NM behind us, asking them their details (last port, next port, cargo, etc.)  We were intrigued to hear that the very large crude carrier was carrying 2,000,000 (yes, 2 MILLION) barrels of Iranian oil to Spain via the Suez Canal.  As we watched the giant ship sail past us, we couldn't help but notice how steady it appeared in the wild wind and steep waves we were sailing.

Iranian VLCC in Mandeb Strait

We had approximately 300 NM to sail to Massawa, Eritrea, our first stop in almost a week since sailing from Socotra, Yemen.  We were not quite sure if we would stop in Massawa, depending on the winds.  If the S winds held, we would continue on to Port Suakin, Sudan, 1/2 way up the Red Sea.  As we entered the North-bound shipping lanes, we jibed and dropped the main, sailing with a 70% jib to maintain control as we surfed down the steep waves.  Otto, our auto pilot, again was useless in these conditions, heading us up or down each steep wave that passed under our hulls.

40% furled jib

Steep waves of Bab-El-Mandeb

By 10am, I took a longer watch so Eric could grab some much needed sleep since he had been up since 2am dealing with our approach to Mandeb Strait.  I made a log entry "Why am I so sad?" and felt the intense fatigue as tears of exhaustion ran down my cheek, yet I could not stop steering Sea Child in the furious steep swells just N of Mandeb Strait.  Our four hours on, four hours off watch system had taken its toll on us both.  By noon, Eric had furled more of the jib to maintain control as the large, steep waves came one after the other in an endless parade.

A Coalition Warship came up behind us as we were surfing Sea Child at an impressive speed. We thought that maybe with all the activity in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, perhaps the Coalition Warship was heading to Suez as she steamed past our port side.   There was no AIS listing for the warship, but we didn't think too much of it since the warships in the GOA didn't always show up on AIS either.  As we surfed N, we hit boat speeds of 8-9 knots with only 40% jib unfurled.  The seas were impressive, the commercial ships coming and going all around us, and the winds continued to howl from the S.  At sunset, we heard the Coalition Warship calling other vessels on VHF CH 16 to inform them that they were overtaking on either port or starboard.  By 1800, the Coalition Warship began a series of security announcements that all vessels were to stay WEST of 42 DEG 05 MIN.  We looked at AIS and noticed several dozen AIS targets all anchored off Jabal Zubayr Island of Yemen.

Lineup of AIS targets offshore Yemen

Flag of South Yemen
Socotra Island, Yemen

At 2000, Eric made a log entry, "Looks like massive bombing going on in Yemen" on my off watch.  When I awoke at 2015, Eric called me up to the cockpit to look at the eastern horizon, about 60 NM away.  The night sky was lighting up in bright white flashes of light, in rapid sequences, again and again and again.  My first thought at seeing the lights was, sadly, "people are being killed over there!" and again, tears stung my weary eyes.  Eric noted that these flashes went on for over 45 minutes, and after reaching out to our son via our InReach Texting device, we learned of the civil war in Yemen, now involving Saudi Arabia and Coalition Warships.  The winds were now SSE 22 knots, and we were still making 8 knots boat speed.  I was unable to sleep after seeing the bombing lights, thinking about all the warships in the GOA and another Coalition Warship in the Red Sea off Yemen.  Our son forwarded to us an article about the sad situation in Yemen, from the terrible status of the killing & malnutrition of children in the poor, war torn country to the dangerous Civil War & Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.  I couldn't help but think of Socotra, Yemen, and wondered how they must feel about their mainland countrymen at war.  Socotra did seem to align with South Yemen, as South Yemen flags were painted all over the Hadibo area.  I wondered about Denis & Anna from Tamam Socotra, who were not expecting another vessel in Socotra this season.  Sleep would not come to me, another off-watch with little to no rest, building up on the fatigue of fast sailing over 800 NM with just the two of us.  By my official watch of 2200, Eric let me rest an extra hour.  When I came up at 2300, the winds had died, we fired up the engines and hoisted the main after which Eric headed down for his rest.  It was to be short lived.

By 0100, Saturday, April 2, 2016, the winds had kicked up again to 28 knots S, and the sails had to be adjusted.  I woke Eric and we adjusted everything, only to have the winds die again by 0300.  I tried to give Eric more sleep, but even with coffee and hand steering to maintain focus, I could not stay awake.  Eric was up again at 0330, and with full main and screecher, we had 13-14 knots apparent as we sailed toward Massawa, Eritrea, 90 NM away.  By early morning, the winds died completely, and we took the opportunity to clean Sea Child, inside and out, as she was covered in salt & dirt.  Eric scrubbed the decks, I scrubbed the overheads and walls, and by 1100, we stopped Sea Child for our first swim in the Red Sea.  The refreshing water was more salty and we noticed how Sea Child was floating with the water lines more than 2" above the water itself!

As we continued on, we decided to try some fishing, (we had already lost 4 lures in the Indian Ocean and sailed too fast to catch anything in the GOA).  I kissed the lure and set out the line, then returned to sailing Sea Child.  At 40NM to the Port of Massawa, we caught our first Red Sea fish, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner just off the Dahlak Islands of Eritrea.  Our friends on Taimada had warned us not to drop anchor in Eritrean waters before checking in to the country, so we pushed on towards the Port.  We started calling the Port Control around 2100, every 15 minutes or so for over an hour as we approached.  We never got a call back, and our exhaustion got the best of us as we found a close island to drop anchor at 2230.  We both collapsed into a deep sleep, 970.9 NM from Socotra.

Bombed out Administrative Building, Massawa, Eritrea
Remnant of 1990 civil war

On Sunday, April 3, 2016, we entered the Port of Massawa after waiting over one hour for Port Control to give us approval to enter.  As we sat just offshore, we noticed several Italian-style buildings with large, gaping holes.  We tied up at Massawa, Eritrea, Africa, at 1300, our first continent since we untied from Yacht Haven Marina, Phuket, Thailand, Asia, back on February 12, 2016.

Eric & Sea Child at Port Massawa

Tamara & Sea Child

We had sailed 1760 NM from Langkawi, Malaysia to Uligan, Maldives; 1248 NM from Uligan to Socotra Island, Yemen; 972 NM from Socotra to Port of Massawa, Eritrea.  In total, 3,980 NM from Asia to Africa.  We were 1/3 up the Red Sea.  

Sea Child Adventures to be continued......

Come back for our next blog post, Red Sea Passage, Part 2: Massawa, Eritrea