Yesterday, I really was pisses off with Chinese obstacles, stretching in line over 20 NM; adding a safety margin to the eastern end, where we need to go around, it has a length of 30 NM .

There were with AIS equipped 4 obstacles in linear arrangement. The AIS send a only 8 digit MMSI number. Normal MMSI numbers habe always 9 digits and the first 3 are the MID number, which indicates the flag state of the vessel.

These obstacles’ send an MMSI starting with 98 which indicates there is an accompanying parent ship somewhere. Later at night, we saw the AIS signature of a parent ship. As this has a Chinese MID, and all devices had the same Chinese sounding name – except for the last 2 digits – I can conclude that the obstacles were Chinese.

What these obstacles were, we don’t know really. I kept a distance to the line arranged obstacles of 2 – 3 NM and an 6 NM at the east while looking carefully for any obstacles being in the water for while.

With what we observed we asked Claude AI, and ChatGPT.
Most likely it was a kind of fishing device(s); drift nets which are size depending ilegale, drifting squid jigging gear, etc.

These obstacle moved during the night very slowly NNW. The way they drifted indicates a huge 20 NM long illegal drift net.

So far about the obstacles.

They forced us to change our course from NE to E while MaRe at around 7 KN. Next we were forced to sail parallel to the obstacles for about 25 NM.

Already in the night, the obstacles disappeared from the AIS screen. Nets pulled in that nobody sees?

With all the fishing by Chinese boats in the entire
Pacific islands sailed, I am declined to assume the worst, the use of illegal huge drift nets, just the AIS is switched off.

The point for us is that we can’t rely on disappearing AIS signal.

Without being disturbed by these Chinese – properly illegal – obstacles we would be about 20 – 30 NM further north, for us a big chunk.

Today, with the wind is blowing in favor of an easterly course. I hope to be able to sail without such or similar Chinese obstacles an westerly course again tomorrow or the day after.

During the day we saw two other Chinese fishing boats. According to the AIS data in the 70 m class.

I am seeing the Chinese emptying the World’s oceans and the World just doesn’t see it. Beside French Polynesia, the Pacific is already the backyard of China. I know why, since 10 – 20 years I avoid Chinese products to the extrem possible.