Thinadhoo

Thinadhoo

6 May

📍 Thinadhoo · 000°32.057′N, 073°00.290′E · Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll (South Huvadhu)

The squalls arrived after midnight, bringing buckets of rain and taking away any hope of sailing all the way to Thinadhoo. It wasn’t the power of the wind that was the problem; it was the lack of it. Each time a squall passed over us, it literally took the wind out of our sails. Again, we had to summon the iron donkey into service to propel us south and ended up motor-sailing the rest of the way.

The pass into Thinadhoo is nothing like the one at Veymandhoo. The entrance is clearly marked for one thing, even though it uses yellow flags instead of the IALA red and green. It is a lot wider and has almost a regular depth. Perhaps they have better explosives here. Whatever the reason, it doesn’t give the high-adrenaline rush of the one at Veymandhoo, for which I was very grateful after coming in here, having slept around 3 hours.

A boat full of fishermen came over within a couple of minutes of anchoring, holding up a large octopus they had for sale. Octopus is off the menu for me after my Octopus Teacher-like experience in French Polynesia. We politely declined, had a bit of a chat and off they went.

Both knackered, we tidied the boat up, ran the generator for a while and went to bed.

A bit of history

Thinadhoo’s name comes from the Thina Vina weed, used in herbal medicine to treat conditions ranging from asthma and bronchitis to diarrhoea, skin conditions, and inflammation. The weed once colonised the place so thoroughly that it stuck – both the name and the weed.

The island was once the wealthiest in the entire Maldives, the economic hub of a short-lived breakaway state called the United Suvadive Republic. That ended in February 1962 when Prime Minister Ibrahim Nasir sent a gunboat. The islanders were driven into the shallows while their houses were demolished, their wells filled with rubble, and their trees felled. The population fell from 6,000 to under 2,000 almost overnight. It was rebuilt, and in 2023, was formally declared a city –  though that status is currently being disputed in the courts.

Excursion Ashore

The next day, we picked the Tadds up in the early afternoon for an excursion ashore and had lunch at the Cafe Soleil.

I wanted to get some spares for the boat and some oil, so I asked Ahmed, the cafe manager, if he could point me in the right direction. Instead, he pointed me in the direction of his scooter and took me on the back of his bike to get all the things I needed. Then, when I quickly ran out of cash, he took me to the ATM. You don’t tend to get that sort of service at Nandos.

And then, it was off to do a bit of shopping.

The fruit seller on the quay insisted that this is the safest island in the Maldives and that none of the stall holders lock up. I don’t think it would make much difference if they did; the shutters are made of fabric mesh.

Later in the week we went to Hanno and Rita’s boat for sundowners.

The plan was for us six anchorage dwellers to go out for a curry at the cafe at night. But with the weather looking increasingly sketchy, we decided to stay onboard Jamala for a curry night à deux. We even broke out a beer or two from our heavily rationed supplies.

The wind persisted the next day, and with it blasting up to 32 knots, we weren’t going anywhere. We didn’t get much sleep either. So today was a quiet day of cleaning, reading and snoozing.

Emergency at the town

There was mayhem in the town on the 16th May. Ambulances were racing towards the quay; the customs boat was racing towards the harbour. Police directed traffic; sirens blared.

The good folks at Thinadhoo were practising an emergency drill between the airport and quay. It was realistic though. I only found out by asking a policeman what was going on. He explained this was a regular event to simulate an emergency at the airport.

On the 18th May we finally made it out for a curry at Cafe Soleil with the Tadds and the Allorians to celebrate Phil’s birthday — year undisclosed.

By way of celebration, and I think this is a US tradition, Dianna poured her glass of lime juice over Phil’s lap. I didn’t catch that exact moment but with the help of AI, we managed to faithfully recreate the experience.

Shopping and fuel

Fortunately, the guys on the quay knew how to control the nozzle controlling the flow of diesel into the cans, so we avoided the unwelcome diesel shower that we received the last time we filled up our cans.

On the 21st May, with maintenance work done and engine checks completed, were ready to depart. But before setting off for Gan, we had to get emergency supplies such as Diet Coke and Chicken.

The Nepalese girl in one of the shops told Maria that she looked very cool. She gave Maria a hair clip and told her she loves her. Sweet.

We left just before HW in the afternoon for an overnight sail to Addu Atoll, specifically Gan, where we needed to clear out. Getting out of the pass to Thinadhoo was easy; getting out of the atoll was a pain in the arse. The currents run fast here, and with that, and the wind blowing directly in our eyeballs, getting out of the atoll was very slow going. It took an hour to crawl out at 1.5 knots.

And on the subject of wind, we got battered by sustained 32-knot winds, angrily hurled towards us by a small weather system with big attitude. It worked wonders for our speed though.