Blog

27 October 2016 (+12 UTC)

We again rose early to go the last 60 miles from the NE of Viti Levu inside the reef system to Denerau Marina near Nadi (pronounced Nandi) on the SE side of the island. Nadi is the second largest city with only Suva the Capital being larger. Viti Levu is one of the largest islands in the South Pacific, so it would be another 11-12 hour run to go from one corner of the island to the opposite corner.

The north coast of Viti Levu is sparsely populated and classically \”Bali Hai\” in appearance. The reefs for the most part offer protection from the ocean swell, but we have to pay lots of attention as in some cases they\’re invisible until you\’re right up to the edge. The good news is, the electronic charts here are very good.

We motored by lots of villages and a few modern ex-pat communities and finally passed the old city and port at Lautoka. Lautoka is the sugar capital of Fiji. There is a special dock to load the raw sugar into freighters for export. Next, we passed \”Enchanter\” anchored outside of Vuda Point and observed the marina\’s very first \”catamaran\” haul out. Rijnhard (of Enchanter) was ashore watching and didn\’t see us pass by, but said the operation went well enough. This is the same marina that told me 5 years ago to just be patient one more month and they\’d be able to haul me out to investigate a then small leak. We\’ll five years later, I\’d have been first instead of the other guy!…:-))) Needless to say, we didn\’t wait. I was told by the then marina manager at Vuda Point that the owner had been telling the same, \”be patient just one more month\” story for 5 years – 5 years ago!

We got to Denerau just around 5 p.m., tucked in our slip, dock power attached and have now had a good nights sleep.
We\’ll enjoy the main island for a few days, stock up, fuel up and a few repairs. Our solar panels are now not putting power into the batteries! Ah \”yachting\”….

There is another small weather front which we\’ll wait out here as well before proceeding to the outer island en route to Vanuatu and New Caledonia.
the season is getting long and next month is officially Cyclone season here so it will indeed be time for us to be moving south and west toward Sydney.
Sydney is well south of the cyclone belt.

Internet here is good and I will really try and get some of the 7 photo blogs up that I\’m behind!
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/27 07:35
LATITUDE: 17-46.35S
LONGITUDE: 177-22.96E
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 5
WIND_DIR: E
CLOUDS: 90%
VISIBILITY: 15
BARO: 1012.5
AIR_TEMP: 26.7C
COMMENT: Beach House – DOCKED -Denerau Marina – Viti Levu, Fiji

26 October 2016 (+12 on UTC)

Dear Friends and Family,
We departed Savusavu at 0520 this morning in the rain and SSE winds at 20-25 knots. The first few hours wasn\’t much fun, but after that we re-entered the large reef system at Nasonisoni Pass on the south side of Vanua Levu, we had lovely flat water with nice winds. We exited the system and crossed the channel to the reef entrance at Viti Levu (the largest and main island) and where 5 years ago, my port dagger board hit an uncharted part of the reef. The chart said it was 120 feet deep. I think they meant 120 centimeters!..:-)

Speaking of hitting reefs. We met a young Canadian couple yesterday who hit the corner of the reef at Laucala Island in their Leopard 44 foot catamaran(which we had passed two days before) and separated both \”keels\” from the hull. This cracked the fiberglass and created leaks in both hulls. They have two small children aboard and were lucky that they hit it at low tide and were able to float off at high tide. The insurance company for some reason had decided to declare the boat a total loss. Someone is going to get a VERY good deal as it will be repaired pretty inexpensively in my view. There is no panic about hauling the boat out either.

Today\’s voyage was indeed through a great deal of reef systems and we crossed the infamous \”Bligh Water\” where Captain Bligh kept going, not allowing his men ashore after the famous Bounty Mutiny. He was terrified of the then (yes really they were!) big time Cannibals. The last known Fijian Cannibal died just after WW2!

We\’ll go through what is essentially an \”inland water way\” tomorrow, well protected (but still quite \”reefy\”) en route to Denerau Marina on the islands South West side. Today, we did 73 miles, tomorrow, 53 miles.

That\’s all for now, the internet is indeed good, so we should be able to start posting photo blogs shortly!
KIT,
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/26 04:59
LATITUDE: 17-18.73S
LONGITUDE: 178-13.95E
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 12
WIND_DIR: SE
CLOUDS: 90%
VISIBILITY: 20
BARO: 1012.3
AIR_TEMP: 28.9C
COMMENT: Beach House – ANCHORED -Nananu-I-Thake Motu, Viti Levu, Fiji. Viti Levu is the main island and we are at the Northeast corner having just entered the reef system.

October 23rd, 2016 (+12 on UTC)

Dear Friends and Family,
Today, we crossed the International Date Line and are now officially in the Eastern Hemisphere!

We had a long motor boat ride yesterday from Vanuabalavu to the north tip of Taveuni Island and this morning we left early and headed to the anchorage where
we could literally stand in \”yesterday, today and tomorrow\” at the International Date Line. The \”line\” only passes through three countries in the world!
Antarctica, Russia and Fiji! We now have photos of both Nikki and me standing on the Greenwich Mean Line (The Prime Meridian in England) and now the International Date Line (The Anti Meridian). Photos to be forthcoming soon as Fiji should have excellent internet.

We\’re safely on a mooring in Savusavu and we\’ll check in to Fiji sometime tomorrow morning.
KIT!!!
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/23 05:53
LATITUDE: 16-46.63S
LONGITUDE: 179-19.94E
COURSE: 069T
SPEED: 1.6
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 8
WIND_DIR: SE
CLOUDS: 80%
VISIBILITY: 30
BARO: 1011.5
AIR_TEMP: 26.7C
COMMENT: Beach House – MOORED -Savusavu – Vanua Levu, Fiji

21 October 2016 (+11 UTC)

Dear Friends and Family,
This is one of the most stunning anchorages in the South Pacific. Yesterday, we did the hike from the Batavu Bay to look down at this gorgeous setting.
There are about 10 large \”mushroom\” like rocks that range in size from a small to a very large truck!

If Cyclone Winston didn\’t ruin the habitat, this is the anchorage where 1000\’s of fruit bats will fly all around the anchorage around sunset. If so, photos will be taken.

Photos will be forthcoming, but in the meanwhile if you\’ve an interest, google \”Bay of Islands – Fiji\” and you\’ll likely find some stunning images.
I wish my drone skills were there, but alas, not yet.
We\’ll be here one night and then move toward Taveuni, possibly stopping at Kimbombo Reef \”Secret Spot\” tomorrow?

In the meanwhile, we\’ll relax, explore and take lots of photos. Fiji has some of the best internet in the Pacific, so when we get to the \”big city\”…:-), perhaps we can start posting photos.
KIT,
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/20 22:16
LATITUDE: 17-10.87S
LONGITUDE: 179-01.03W
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 12
WIND_DIR: SE
CLOUDS: 85%
VISIBILITY: 25
BARO: 1013
AIR_TEMP: 31.1C
COMMENT: Beach House – ANCHORED – Bay of Islands, Vanua Balevu

21 October 2016 (+11 on UTC)

Dear Friends and Family,

We arrived yesterday mid day and found another boat, \”Kinabalu\” with Bob and Judy aboard. They had just arrived from Taveuni, Fiji
The sail from the Ha\’apai was quite breezy until we were about 70 miles out and went through a dissipating low pressure system. Fortunately, it was mostly just a bit of rain.

We\’ve anchored here in this lovely bay that reminds Nikki and I of traveling up the gorge in the Rio Dulce of Guatemala.
We decided to do \”the hike\” up to the top of the 200 meter ridge and found utter devastation up there from Cyclone Winston.
Winston\’s eye hit this island in February of this year and just ripped trees right out of the ground at Category 5!

After going thru my memories of being here 5 years ago, we finally found the track to the other side of the island and enjoyed the spectacular view of the local,
\”Bay of Islands\”. We\’ll move the boat around the island 6 miles today to anchor there. Lots of photos will be forth coming.
While in the Ha\’apai, I finally learned how to use my DRONE. Hopefully, we\’ll have some spectacular shots when I become competent at flying it!

We\’ll be here one more day before heading toward Taveuni en route to Savusavu.

KIT,
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/19 23:24
LATITUDE: 17-11.25S
LONGITUDE: 179-00.03W
COURSE: 214T
SPEED: 0.6
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 5
WIND_DIR: NE
CLOUDS: 15%
VISIBILITY: 35
BARO: 1012.4
AIR_TEMP: 33.3C
COMMENT: Beach House – ANCHORED – Bavatu Harbor, Vanua Balevu

13 October 2016 (+12 on UTC)

Dear Friends and Family,
We did the trip from \”New Potatoes\” as the cruisers call Niautopotapu in about 25 hours and covered 175 miles – all of it motoring into light southerlies.
We beat the re-establishment of the trade winds which was our goal as it would have made this trip very uncomfortable. The trade winds will start to re-establish late this afternoon. No whales so far!

We\’ve already caught up with several old friends on the radio and many of the boats we came across from Panama are here as well as many of the boats we met in French Polynesia. This is sort of a collection spot for boats prepping to go south to New Zealand. About 85% of the boats will be headed that way within the next 6 weeks, the rest of us will call seasons end between Fiji and Australia. A few are heading north for the Marshall Islands.
For us, it will be Oz. Still another fun filled 2200 nautical miles to go!

We\’re on a mooring, settling in and we\’ll go ashore in the next few hours to check in and see the lay of the land.
KIT,
All well onboard.
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/12 22:06
LATITUDE: 18-39.74S
LONGITUDE: 173-58.97W
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 9
WIND_DIR: SSE
CLOUDS: 0%
VISIBILITY: 25
BARO: 1013.8
AIR_TEMP: 30.6C
COMMENT: Beach House – MOORED – Neiafu Harbor – Vava\’u, Tonga

13 October 2016 (+12 on UTC)

Dear Friends and Family,
We did the trip from \”New Potatoes\” as the cruisers call Niautopotapu in about 25 hours and covered 175 miles – all of it motoring into light southerlies.
We beat the re-establishment of the trade winds which was our goal as it would have made this trip very uncomfortable. The trade winds will start to re-establish late this afternoon. No whales so far!

We\’ve already caught up with several old friends on the radio and many of the boats we came across from Panama are here as well as many of the boats we met in French Polynesia. This is sort of a collection spot for boats prepping to go south to New Zealand. About 85% of the boats will be headed that way within the next 6 weeks, the rest of us will call seasons end between Fiji and Australia. A few are heading north for the Marshall Islands.
For us, it will be Oz. Still another fun filled 2200 nautical miles to go!

We\’re on a mooring, settling in and we\’ll go ashore in the next few hours to check in and see the lay of the land.
KIT,
All well onboard.
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/12 22:06
LATITUDE: 18-39.74S
LONGITUDE: 173-58.97W
MARINE: NO
WIND_SPEED: 9
WIND_DIR: SSE
CLOUDS: 0%
VISIBILITY: 25
BARO: 1013.8
AIR_TEMP: 30.6C
COMMENT: Beach House – MOORED – Neiafu Harbor – Vava\’u, Tonga

12 October 2016 (+12 on UTC) Not across the date line yet, but \”politically\”, we\’re in the Eastern Hemisphere.

Dear Friends and Family,
We had brief 4 days in Niautoputapu (Forbidden or Secret Island), but it was quite interesting. This island only gets about 20 visiting yachts a year and that\’s a lot more than they used to get. We\’re probably the last to visit this season as Cyclone time will be upon this area soon.

This is an island that was badly damaged in the 2009 Tsunami and we got to see the evidence and hear some of the stories first hand.
We\’ll blog on that with the photo blog when we can catch up on the internet.
We left this morning around 8:30 a.m. local time and are about 1/2 way to Vava\’u, 165 miles due south of Niautoputapu.

We met a lovely young couple while we were there, Mana and Bulu and their two young children born after the Tsunami. They survived by being on the neighboring \”Volcano\” island. Their home on the main island was destroyed in their absence. Only 800 people inhabit this island.

We also weathered a pretty severe low pressure system and had a bit of a hurry up to relocate the boat in a 30 knot squall. All went according to plan and after that and a bit more rain, the weather has turned down right delightful. We had to make the decision to leave this morning as if we didn\’t, we\’d be bucking against the trade winds trying to get to our next destination, Vava\’u. This is the where most of the cruising boats head too along the main \”milk run route\” and the now, lack of wind after the storm is allowing us to motor the 165 miles overnight to arrive there tomorrow before mid day.

Tonga stretches about 600 miles, north to south in 4 island groups. Niuatoputapa is the most northerly and most remote. The Vava\’u are the second most populated and most interesting for the \”yachties\” due to their extensive cruising grounds, whale watching opportunities and good anchorages. Next further south is the Ha\’aapi (my favorite) and finally, the jumping off group is Tongatapu; the Capital and most populous.

These islands are one of the primary humpback calving grounds in the entire southern hemisphere and I\’ll be surprised when we arrive if we don\’t see several whales as we are now arriving at the height of the season. The Ha\’aapi usually has the most whales and for some reason, cruisers don\’t often stop at this most remote group. I suspect it is because the anchorages are not as well protected and the reef systems are more complex. It\’s also one of active underwater volcanic areas on Earth. Pumice can frequently be seen on the surface. The second deepest part of the ocean in the world is adjacent to these islands, the Tongan Trench. This is where the earthquake and volcanic activity arise from. You could fit Mt. Everest in the Tongan Trench and it would still have water above it.

We hear there is a lot of boats now in Vava\’u, mostly waiting to get a weather window to head South toward New Zealand for the coming South Pacific Cyclone season. We and some of the other boats will continue on West into Fiji before heading to Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Lord Howe Island and finally into Sydney, Australia.

Vava\’u is noted as the best \”hurricane hole\” in the South Pacific as it\’s completely isolated from the ocean with 300 foot hills ringing in the 1/2 mile long by 1/4th of a mile wide bay.

There is supposedly decent internet available and if so, we\’ll try and catch up with some photo blogs. Hope springs eternal.
KIT,
Scott and Nikki

AIRMAIL YOTREPS
IDENT: N6ABC
TIME: 2016/10/12 07:50
LATITUDE: 17-15.88S
LONGITUDE: 173-57.07W
COURSE: 185T
SPEED: 6.6
MARINE: YES
WIND_SPEED: 8
WIND_DIR: SE
SWELL_DIR: E
SWELL_HT: 1.3M
SWELL_PER: 6
CLOUDS: 30%
VISIBILITY: 20
BARO: 1013.6
TREND: 1
AIR_TEMP: 28.3C
COMMENT: Beach House – EN Route – Vava\’u, Tonga