(Daniel) Having enjoyed a wonderful Birthday, and slept well in the trailer tent, I awoke to the beautiful island sounds of Bottle Beach.  Outside the sun had already begun to warm up, making it impossible to lie in despite the slight hangover!

I went to eat breakfast, noticing Gabby and Rowan stirring unusually early.  They went down to sunbath, while I got the boat and engine from the Wolf.

The engine started with little trouble, having been serviced and tested in Malaysia and more recently in Krabi.  I motored out to inspect the edge of the bay for spearfishing spots.  Out in the calm sea the clear water allowed me to see the fish swimming around in the clear blue water.  There were a couple of places that looked good for larger fish.  So I returned to the beach to get Rowan and Martin.

The boys were ready to leave with masks and fins in hand.  We squeezed into the 9ft boat then began to motor out to the deep water.  The extra weight caused the boat to sit much deeper in the water slowing it down to a walking pace!  I could feel that the motor was tressing under the added resistance, but didn’t drop the revs as we weren’t going far.

At the edge of the bay, we dived in, searching around for fish to spear.  The long spear guns are almost impossible to load at first, and they leave scratches and marks on the stomach.  Hopefully we could get enough fish to have a BBQ!  After 30 minutes however, it became apparent that we had not picked a good spot, as the fish that were around were either too small or too beautiful to spear!

The two boys and I climbed back on the boat, starting the motor and heading to another spot.  After only a few seconds the engine made a horrid knocking noise, then seized.  It would not turn again.  With the oars, we rowed back to shore, much to the amusement of Gabby! Who was watching the whole thing from her spot on the empty beach.

I spent the rest of the day stripping the engine, the rollers from a bearing on the driveshaft had come out, one of them getting stuck in the side of the cylinder.  It would need replacing to work again.  Looks like the end of our outboard!

Later in the evening,  after a short walk, we watched a movie over dinner then went to bed.  The beach life was starting to set in.  I decided to move soon. 

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