Snakes alive!

Christmas 2012 was again spent in Nai Harn Bay at the SW of Phuket. On Christmas Eve the company at the Ao Sane restaurant on the north of the bay was mostly British. The buffet dinner was excellent as usual. The swell breaking on the main beach, although not as bad as in 2011, made dry landings there unlikely. Landing at low water at Ao Sane was made more difficult by the large numbers of bulky Russians who stand around in the narrow passage in  blissful unawareness of dinghies trying to get through.

New Year was again spent at Panwa Bali where conditions are calmer, beach landings possible, and the Russians (who are everywhere on Phuket) better mannered. We saw the New Year in in the company of Australians.

Prefer not to have in the RIB

Between the two holidays Sea Bunny went the short distance north from Nai Harn  to Kata Beach. Coming back in the dinghy from the beach we noticed something that looked like a piece of multi-coloured braided rope wrapped around the outboard motor between the motor head and the leg going down to the water. It is a narrow gap, not easily visible. There did not seem to be any rope hanging out, which made it surprising when the “rope” moved independently of its surroundings. On our arrival at Sea Bunny.judicious prodding with the boat hook provoked further movement and the emergence of a head. Further prodding persuaded the snake to emerge from its adopted home, slide across the tube of the RIB and in to the water. Over the next 24 hours it visited other boats in the anchorage and returned to visit us, thankfully without being able to get on board. We think it was probably a golden tree snake (Chrysopelea ornata ornatissima), mildly venomous, although as we were some ¼ mile from the beach trees were in short supply.