Nathan’s Blog

We’d left the Pinter Cruiser mid-morning on a smaller boat that was our landing craft for Cat Ba Island, the largest island in Cat Ba National Park. The trip only took about an hour or so through the formations of Halong Bay.

We reached the secluded bay where our 2 hour trek started from. There wasn’t much room to manouvre as the bay was small and the tide low. A plank was hastily arranged and we were all told to be quick. We either weren’t quick enough or the captain hadn’t apprecieted just how low the tide was; either way, we were beached!

We pressed on with our guide, Duke, and “Team Malaysia” as Duke referred to the Malaysian contingent, leaving the crew trying to lever the boat free from the shore.

The trek was very cool and one of the reasons we picked the tour. It was on a trail created by the company owner who grew up on the island. It weaved up and down, through thick undergrowth and heavy forest. We came across a tranquil lake and then a small holding where an old couple had retired to. It felt like we were in the middle of a lost world.

We eventually punched out onto a single track concrete road and headed down to our rendevous point at the nearest harbour (a rather grand word for what was a concete jetty). The boat wasn’t there though. Duke made a quick call and the boat was still beached and would need to stay there until midnight for the high tide!

Another boat was scrambled and after about a 45 min wait we were being taken for lunch on a secluded beach on one of the formations on Halong Bay, or so we thought.

Our new captain was a little more cautious than our former and so an executive decision was taken to have lunch on our emergancy craft – a honeymoon boat.

After lunch, another enslaught of food, we headed to to the maim harbour at Cat Ba Town. We were staying in the lovely Sun Rise Resort , along with a grand total of 2 other guests! There must have been 10 staff to one guest.

After a relaxing afternoon on the beach we had a stroll around to the next bay before heading to dinner back at the hotel.

During dinner I was feeling quite content with life (check out the picture here and you may be able to understand why) when my phone buzzed with a SMS from Slinn (fellow Director at Rockshore). It was a txt to tell me one of our major projects, and one that I had led for almost 2 years, had closed out. I was a very happy man at that moment, in that place. I celebrated with another Tiger and made sure I gave myself a few minutes on our balcony to saviour the moment. Well done boys.

The next morning we were picked up by our rescued transfer boat to be ferried back to the Pinter Cruiser for the final leg back to the mainland, or so we thought!

We very quicky found ourselves in a serene mist and were Lost At Sea!

We didn’t make it back to the Pinter Cruiser as when the mist cleared we headed straight back to the mainland.

For some unknown reason we moored at a seemingly random point on the mainland and then walked for 3km to our minibus in the heat of the early afternoon Sun; not a great end to a fantastic few days, but after a complaint back on the mainland we suprisingly got a 20% refund. Laura was most pleased with my negotiation skills!