Malua - an Adams cruising yacht
Malua - an Adams cruising yacht
Welcome to the sailing yacht Malua and her master Harry Watson Smith and crew.
Malua is the culmination of a life-long dream to build a boat and sail into the sunrise to visit distant shores and experience new cultures.
Where are we now?
Malua is at: 38°25.807' N, 22°25.258'E in Itea near Delphi on 6 June 2009.
Malua was built in Australia, undertook an extensive cruise through the Pacific - New Zealand, Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu and then back to Bundaberg in Oz. We shipped Malua in April 2007 to cruise the Mediterranean. Three seasons later we are slowly moving westwards back to Australia via the Caribbean.
After a very hot summer in Australia which saw most areas of
northern Australia covered in flood water. People spent days on top of
their homes waiting for the water to recede. Just as this was
coming to an end fire broke out in Victoria and swept across large
forest areas consuming all in its path. More than 200 people lost their
lives. The country is still under threat as I flew to London
on my way to Turkey. This year I am going to cruise Greece and
Italy with the major destination being Venice. Click a link below to follow
our cruise:
Malua set off from Australia travelled on the Erasmusgracht vessel across the Pacific passing through the Panama canal and then the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. She was off loaded at Palma de Mallorca in Spain in April 2007.
We sailed through the wonderful Balearic Islands undertook a two day passage to Sardinia then north to Corsica to French Bonifacio with its narrow inlet and overlooking castle.
On to Rome for two weeks then south to Amalfi and thru the volcano islands to Sicily where we sailed anti-clockwise round the island. Eastwards to Greece through the Cyclades - the Greek islands past Kos, Rhodes and then on to Turkey. Here we left Malua on the hard at Marmaris.
In April 2008 I arrived back in Marmaris to find Malua under the gum trees in Yacht Marina. The cover which enclosed the cockpit was a great success keeping the dust and rain out while letting a good amount of air to circulate. Down below all was spick and span with no mould or water damage. After a few days I had aligned the prop, polished the top sides and put some anti fouling on the leading edges. That was the start of the season.
At the end of the season Malua has sailed north up the Turkish coast through the Dardenelles and Sea of Marmara to Istanbul. We spent time here then returned past Gallipoli to cruise northern Greece in the Halkidiki. Friends joined us for two weeks then we sailed south to Kos and into Turkey. Malua was again put up on the hard in Marmaris at the end September after which we flew via London back to Australia to enjoy another summer!
To get an up-to-date account of Malua's travels here are my other sites:
I can be contacted at: 
Malua's hull and deck were built in Newcastle, Australia and the fit-out was completed by Camrod Marine Pty Ltd in Canberra Australia. Look at the construction, the selection of the equipment and the pictures of construction. It was a big project but very enjoyable. Launched in September 2002, Malua has been put through her paces in the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean. After sailing 10,000nm in 2004 I reviewed the equipment. There is not a single piece of equipment I would change although I added a third bank of batteries (400ah) to increase the time before charge during a long ocean passage. I have included a special pages on the construction and a number of photos.
