February 20, 2024
We’ve been in Ambon harbor for over a month now. Here’s what we’ve learned about anchoring here…
Here’s an interactive Google map showing the places we’ve anchored…
Our favorite place was by the government boats. It isn’t perfect but it has a lot to offer.
Pros:
- The holding is very good. We’re anchored in about 55 feet of what I’m sure is mud. We have had a little wind here and Legacy’s held firm.
- It’s well protected from winds and completely protected from waves and swells.
- There’s a great place to land our dinghy to go ashore. The crew of the government boats invited us to tie up to their swim steps.
- It’s close to transportation. The main road is only a short walk up the driveway and there you can catch a Bemo or a rideshare with Grab or Maxim.
- It’s kind of pretty.
Cons:
- It’s a little noisy with at least three mosques within hearing range.
- It’s close enough to the pier (Lipi Wharf or Dermaga Lipi) that the kids that swim and play there almost every afternoon can (and will) swim out to your boat. The first few times they did this, they climbed into our dinghy and brought quite a bit of salt water with them.
- It’s not pristine. There is some trash in the water but usually less than most other places we’ve anchored in Indonesia.
Zulu Waterways can be found here: https://www.zuluwaterways.com/
And here’s the Wikipedia page for the bridge, including the clearance: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merah_Putih_Bridge
Our favorite spot to anchor outside the government boats (Coast Guard? SAR?) is: 03° 38.445′ S, 128° 12.008′ E
