OK, OK, so it’s been a long time since the last blog
entry. I’m sorry, but people need to appreciate that this cruising life is
hectic!
We picked up Clive and Doug at our anchorage outside
the Novotel in Lami Bay and, after a quick trip to Suva to top up the beer
supplies, we departed early the next morning and headed south for the famous
Astrolabe Reef and the island of Ono. Unfortunately, it was a fairly windless
day and so Clive and Doug’s first experience of a 50nm passage on X-Pat was
with the engine on the whole way.
We anchored in a beautiful bay with plenty of shelter
on the north side of the island and by the time we had everything tidied away
it was beer o’clock and so started a routine that was to last the full two
weeks that Clive and Doug were with us.
The next morning we launched the dinghy and headed
into Naqara Village to offer sevusevu (some kava and gifts) and see the
village. The chief’s right hand man met us at the beach and took us to the
chief who was very welcoming. He then gave us a tour of the village. We had a
good look at the primary school, which had about 35 pupils in three classes. It
was very nice to get a feel for how the community worked with a communal lovo
(fire pit) for cooking.
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| Preparing Cassava in the community Lovu |
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| The school at Naqara Village |
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| This was an English Class |
The chief’s right hand man seemed keen on fishing and
so we took him back to X-Pat in the dinghy to fetch some line and hooks for
him. Unfortunately, the outboard started playing up on the way back to the
island and so Pat had to row him back to the beach and then row back with Clive
and Doug. This was the start of a long saga with the outboard, which seems to
have become a bit temperamental.
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| Clive ready for some snorkelling |
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| At anchor in another beautiful bay |
Having gained permission from the chief, we all went
snorkelling on the north side of the bay. This proved to be very good, with a
white tipped reef shark and some very nice coral and lots of little fish to see.
As we headed back to X-Pat a catamaran called Duplicat came into the bay and
anchored near us. We went over to say hello and were invited on board for
coffee. This proved to be the only other cruising boat that we saw for ten
days!
We then headed around the corner to Nabouwala village
anchorage for the night. We snorkelled there too which was great and we spotted
another white tipped reef shark, a moray eel and a large barracuda.
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| Moray Eel |
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| White Tipped Reef Shark |
The next day we left Ono island and headed west along
the coast of Kadavu island to Namalata reefs. This was a great downwind sail,
averaging 7 knots, with just the genoa out. We anchored in front of the Matana
Resort and had a quick snorkel where we saw a sea snake, octopus and lionfish.
Unfortunately, the resort appeared to be closed which was disappointing, as we had
all been hoping for some resort pampering and to give Debi a break from cooking.
We chatted with a few villagers, who seemed to be having a party on the beach as they were all rather the worse for wear, (well
it was Friday afternoon) and they promised to contact the resort manager.
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| Alone at anchor, Namalata Reefs |
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| Beach time at Matana Resort |
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| Is this place for real? |
The next day the South African manager known as
Storm, came by in his boat and invited us in to the resort even though it was
not really open. We told him that we were disappointed not to be able to eat
there and he must have felt sorry for us as he kindly gave us the pre-cooked
chicken dinner that he had just bought for himself in the town. He also
promised to arrange for a woman to come in from the village and cook for us the
following day. His dive boat was out of action but he also organised a local
boatman to take us out for a snorkel. A very obliging and helpful individual.
In anticipation of a meal ashore the next day we
decided we had to do something about the outboard motor, so we got brave and
dismantled the carburettor. We gave it a good clean and although there was
nothing obviously wrong, when we put it all back together, it magically worked.
The next day the local boatman turned up at X-Pat and took Clive, Debi and Pat to the outer reef for a snorkel. Doug was suffering from an ear infection and decided to give it a miss. The reef was fantastic, covering a huge expanse with a big 20 metre drop to the bottom on the inside, and there was an abundance of small fish and a lot of different and very beautiful corals to be seen. The current was quite strong and after drifting along the edge of the reef wall for about an hour we surfaced to discover our local boatman was nowhere to be seen. Given that we were two miles offshore this was a bit disconcerting. After a few minutes of bobbing about and wondering what we were going to do, Clive spotted him on the outside of the reef, fishing! Thankfully he saw us waving and headed over. That night we went ashore for wonderful open-air freshwater showers, drinks on the deck and an absolutely delicious 3 course meal. What a great day!
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| The ride in the local boat to the outer reef - it was worth it just for the ride |
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| Our chief underwater photographer |
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| The Namalata reef |
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| Sundowners at Matana Resort |
After three days at anchor we decided it was time to
move on. We hauled anchor at 0700hrs and headed out through the reef. Then the
sails went up, the engine went off and we had near perfect broad reach sailing for
50nm all the way to Beqa lagoon. We entered the lagoon through Frigate passage,
which is apparently one of the best surf breaks in the world.
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| Yes we do sometimes do some sailing ... |
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| ..... and even trim the sails |
Given the timing and the forecasted weather we
decided not to visit the main island in Beqa and, instead, headed to the west
side of Yanuca island in the western part of the lagoon. This proved to be a
fortunate decision as the coral there was absolutely wonderful and probably the
best we have seen so far. A number of boats from the exclusive resorts in the
vicinity were bringing clients to snorkel there so we know it was special. The bonus was that it was all close to X-Pat
and no need to use the dinghy.
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| Stunning Coral at Yanuca Island |
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| Lots of time spent underwater |
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| At anchor amongst the coral reefs |
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| Clowning around underwater |
After two short days at Yanuca Island, the weather
deteriorated and so we headed off to Likuri Harbour and the Robinson Crusoe
resort on the SW corner of the main island of Viti Levu. On arrival we were
greeted by a jet ski buzzing around and prepared ourselves to enter the land of
tourists. The resort seems to have limited accommodation but does very well
with day trips coming in from the hotels around Nadi.
Once ashore we discovered that this was actually a
lovely place. We walked around it in less than an hour, with beach all the way
around. We were able to use the pool, showers and bar, eat and drink and watch
the cultural show and the fire walking exhibition which we enjoyed very much.
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| Not sure why this guy wanted to stand on hot rocks but he didn't seem bothered. |
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| Fijians find a use for all parts of the coconut. |
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| A very impressive fire dance |
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| No steel wool or whisk in sight (in joke) |
At some point during our stay, however, we picked up
a puncture in the floor of the dinghy, which we are still trying to fix.
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| Robinson Crusoe Island beach walk |
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| Making the most of the facilities |
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| One of the locals |
With Clive and Doug’s flights looming on Monday
morning we decided it was time to get ourselves inside the reef that protects
Nadi and get nearer to the airport. We headed into a small anchorage called
Momi Bay where watched locals successfully fishing, putting our own efforts to
shame. Clive tried very hard to catch something, using every lure Pat could
find, but, sadly, it was not to be.
On Saturday we went ashore and were surprised to find a small railway line along the coast. This is apparently used to transport sugar cane. We went for a walk along a small road to an old WWII gun battery in the hills. There was a very informative visitor centre and some great displays, with the main guns still in place.
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| Fiji rail points system |
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| Clive and Doug ready to have a blast |
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| The view from the drivers seat |
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| This group were on their way home after church. They all look so immaculate and happy |
From Momi Bay, it was around to Denerau Marina. We
had hoped to get a berth here but it was full. We anchored off the main
entrance but the journey proved to be too long for our little dinghy with four
people on board. We went in for lunch but ran out of fuel on the way back. So
it was out with the oars again!
Getting Clive and Doug plus luggage off the boat at
6am the next day seemed too hard at Denerau and so we moved around to Smugglers
Cove, where we could anchor closer in and land on the beach. We had a farewell
dinner at the hotel there on Sunday night and then successfully got them ashore
at 0545hrs on Monday morning. Having listened to the young people of Smugglers
Cove, party through until 2am, we decided to move again and managed to get a
berth in Vuda Marina. We were a bit nervous about coming here as it is a sort of
‘med-mooring’ operation where boats are tied up to the dock on the bow and
moored behind. One is really close to
neighbouring boats with only fenders to protect you from one another. However, the marina manager, Adam, was very
helpful and encouraging, and the very helpful staff are on hand to catch lines
and guide you in so it was not too stressful after all.
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| Frozen Mojitos for lunch at Denerau |
So here we are at Vuda. It’s a very friendly marina
with lots of cruisers, fantastic staff and an award winning restaurant. We have
filled up with fuel and LPG gas, dumped our rubbish, replenished our
provisions, cleaned the boat and fixed a few things. We have also had multiple
showers!
Leanne arrives tonight and Gwyn tomorrow morning. We
will then be off for our final week in Fiji before, weather permitting, we depart
for Vanuatu.
