Inside The Barrier Reef - June 2007

03 June 2008

Liberated from Enforced Stop
Well, after contributing an unexpected and generous sum of money to the Townsville economy due to our unhappy engine we are underway again. We left Townsville on Sunday at 0730 and motored (no wind) about 48 miles to Little Pioneer Bay on Orpheus Island, part of the Palm Group where we arrived at 1350 and picked up a public mooring. We stayed the night, very calm and pretty. Saw a small sharks swimming by and later a very large stingray feeding on the out going tide.

Next morning (Monday) we left at 0625 and motored (no wind) to Mourilyan Harbour, on the Moresby River, near Innisfail (which is the nearest town inland). What a lovely little harbour. It has huge sugar sheds and loading wharf, plus fishing boats but no town or houses. Very quiet and peaceful, really pretty. Another good nights sleep.

This morning we left at 0740. We optimistically raised the sails thinking we had 8-10 kots of breeze from the WSW but of course it went away the moment we popped the sails up so we are motoring again.

Good thing is the engine seems to be happy.  The scenery since we left Townsville has been excellent, passing pretty islands, and the mainland is surprisingly rugged/hilly/craggy and green with dense rainforest type vegetaion. No major ribbon housing as one sees along the coast further south.
Hope to arrive in Cairns late afternoon, early evening.

08 June 2008
Cairns and Haulout Blues
We are anchored in the river at Cairns after our haulout at Norship. Not a great experience. The yard specialises in doing Customs, Navy and Fishing vessels and really isn't set up for yachts, especially deep draft yachts. The yard was dirty, junk all over the place, toilet and shower facilities dirty (although the shower head at at least provided a lot of hot water).

Then when we went back in the water, we found that the carpet covered block of wood between the side of the cradle and the hull of Musketelle had scratched the gelcoat.  Due to the Im sorry to say no care, no responsibilty 'yardies' wrapping a "protective" course carpet square with dry encrused paint around a block of old pallet wood with gangnails in it and using it as a chock in the cradle so that when the weight came off the slings when Musketelle settled the hull was damaged. We only noticed this damage when she was lifted out of the cradle to splash.

Needless to say the captain gave the travel lift guys a broadside in solid kiwi terms only to be matched by the Aussie yardies who raved on about "f.... yachts". They clearly only want that big government business. Apart from the mechanics at Townsville, we have found the Queensland Aussies to be lazy, lacking initiative, and surprisingly unfriendly.

To add insult to injury (or in this case to add injury to insult) we have been savaged by midges and mozzzies, and our arms and legs are covered in bites which are so itchy that it is impossible not to itch even though that makes it worse. We look like the sort of people one would not want to stand next to in a queue in case one caught something.

Anyway, we will spend another day or two in Cairns to do some final shopping and then head north. We are not behind schedule which is good and we kept seeing other yachts who are also heading to Darwin for the rally.

Biggest problem B has at the moment is finding places to stow things aboard. Problem solved then it all gets pulled out again when we need something at the bottom of the stack. We need a shed !!


18 June 2008
Feels Like the Real Thing
Our current position is 15 degress 56.853S 145 deg 29.210E.

Well we are finally on the move again. We really feel that this is the first day of the resumption of our cruising lifestyle.

After the summer parked up at Scarborough to avoid the cyclone season, we had a nice interlude in the Whitsundays with Deb and Gary sailing short hops between anchorages relaxing and looking at the scenery rather than rush up the coast.

Next we moved onto Magnetic Island only to spend have the enforced week at Townsville getting the engine fixed before motoring to Cairns (with a couple of nice one night stops en route) where we spent 10 days with the haulout and hanging out in the river. Finally 4 nights at Yorkeys Knob, we met up with Christchurch friends Eddie and Jenny on Te Wai Pounamu, who have joined the Indonesian rally at the last minute and are still completing their pre-departure bits and pieces.

We left Yorkeys Knob at 0630 this morning which means we were too early for a stop at the Low Isles and too late for Hope Island so we will sail through the night to Lizard Island which is the subject of glowing reports from fellow cruisers. However we may decide at the last minute to detour into Cooktown in the dark and go onto Lizard the next day. Not sure yet. (it is currently 1630 on Wed 18 June).


19 June 2008
Cooktown Tide Rules
Well we did decide to call into Cooktown, getting there about 9pm in the dark, a narrow but not bad entrance, well beaconed. However the anchorage area was very shallow except by the commercial wharf and the best spots were already occupied. We sat on the bottom at low tide and as the low tide at lunchtime the next day was to be even lower we decided discretion was the better part of valour and left at 0815 in the morning on the high tide. Since then we heard the port official on the VHF telling a fisherman that no ships were expected for the next few days so if we had called him up he probably would have told us we could anchor nearer the wharf. We would have liked to have gone ashore and looked around. Oh well, another day, another anchorage.


20 June 2008
The Lizard Blows
We then sailed onto Lizard Island Had an excellent sail, wind South East 15-20 knots, On arrival Lizard it then piped up to 25 knots plus as we prepared to furl the sail and anchor. Typical!!.

There were 10 other boats in the anchorage, most of them yachts on the rally. By the time we left there we 21. All waiting out the weather which had not dropped below 25 knots and persistently howled at 30 knots, highest we noted at 41.7 knots. Being Wellingtonians we are used to gutsy wind, but even Wellington has variety - this was constant wind for 24 hours a day.

Anchorage Lizard Island

We went ashore in the dinghy a few times but no swimming and the famed snorkeling water wasn't tempting. The wind stirs up the sand and it is not as clear as in calm weather. We did however walk to the top of 400m high Lizard Island which is what Captain Cook did to find his way out of the Great Barrier Reef. When we got to the top it was like standing at the top of Mt KauKau on a windy day. Even though it was not the clearest of weather we could still see the line of the outer reef and the pass through which Cook eventually took the Endeavour.


A Week of Brilliant Sailing Riding the Brisk SE.....
24 June 2008
We finally leave Lizard on Thursday at 0730, still in the SE gale. P notes that South East is the direction of Wellington......One good thing about the wind is that the sailing is FAST!. We really have been moving at a good pace....we sailed to Flinders Island, anchoring at 1730 - a distance of 80 miles. Top speed surfing off a wave was 11.7 knots.

The SE'er swept us past some magnificent rocky scenery

25 June 2008
Up anchor at 0700 for another fast sail to Morris Island - not exactly an island but a small flat blob with one coconut tree and a huge reef. The reef broke the swell but gave no wind protection although the holding was good. Another nights sleep in the gale.

26 June 2008
Next stop Portland Roads, which is described in the cruising guide as the last outpost of civilization going north. No shop, a part-time post office and one solar powered public telephone. Still windy. 10 people, one a kiwi woman from the Hutt Valley.....K1w1's are everywhere.

27 June 2008
Today we departed Portland Roads at the civilsed hour of 0840 and sailed a brisk 50miles to reach Shelburne Bay just north of Cape Grenville putting the pick down at 1345. A large very shallow bay, we motored in for over a mile in less than 5 metres of water to get some lessening in the swell. Still windy 25 knots plus. The hills ashore seem to be snow capped but in reality it is silica sand.

Big fish news... Today we landed a huge but huge yellow fin tuna. He was 700mm long and weighed 18kg. Quite a job hauling him in while sailing at 8 knots but even harder to slow the yacht down in a running sea boosted by thesE endless SE'ers.

The Evidence

After P filleted it and we eat our fill we froze 24 good sized steaks. Note B put out the line P took the credit. On the subject of freezing we have at last got our refrigeration in balance helped in no small way by purchasing 3 months supply of meat in Cairns and having the butcher blast freeze it for us. We are running our generator 45mins morning and again evening and everthing is holding down just like the fridge & freezer at home!!

28 June 2008
Departed Shelburne Bay early at 0600 heading for the aptly named Escape River and the prospect of viewing crocodiles as we have our sundowners on the aft deck....and to prepare for the biggy - Cape York. Will keep you posted.

30 June 2008
Cape York Ticked Off

Hello from Seisa on the west side of the York Peninsula.
On leaving Shelburne Bay early we had a great run up the coast, so great we got to Escape River well before planned so decided to continue straight on to the Albany Passage which separates Albany Island from Cape York the northern most point of the big country. Seas on the approaches to the passage were getting very big and we were surfing at 10 knots. Now this may seem small beer to the uninitiated but let us tell you this is as good as it gets sailing with winds at 30+ knots, tide in our favour and endless swells to ride. We went thru on the flood tide in the afternoon (about mid flood) and got a real boost from that. Think it was about 4.00 pm when we entered the eastern end.

The channel is about a bit narrower than Tory Channel but more spectacular with steep rocky faces on each side and about 2 miles long. It was very very windy approaching the Passage and seas in the last mile or so approaching were standing up.

Entering the boiling waters in the Albany Passage,
Cape York to port Albany Island to starboard in distance 

We talked about opting to not go through but instead going around Albany Island but a yacht in front seemed ok so we made the decision to go for it. We checked the preventer rope to ensure the boom was firm as we had our mainsail out but no headsail. Captain P promised B it would be a breeze....yeah right, moments later we gybed when the wind backed the mainsail as we surfed down a wave and broached. At the same time the snap shackle on our preventer exploded and the mainsail gybed violently across from port to starboard with a hell of a bang and crash.....(B notes: P was taking photos at the time and not concentrating on steering!!).

We recovered from that with P starting the motor to get Muskie back on course while B got a replacement shackle and repositioned the preventer line on the otherside. All this in 2 minutes which seemed much longer and we were still charging through the pass. We congratulated ourselves on the recovery team effort even if the blood pressure had gone up a notch or six !!

Chart Plotter approach track to Cape York

We rounded Cape York (which looks like any other headland) and sailed west toward Possession Island, so named because this is where Captain James Cook took possession of Australia (or a large slice of it) in the name of the King of England. We ultimately anchored that night in Simpson Bay between the mainland and Possession Island 11.5 hours and 100 nautical miles since leaving Shelburne Bay that morning.

We were totally pooped and were thankful for our first quiet anchorage for weeks. Think we got 11 hours sleep before motoring Sunday morning the 7 miles to Seisia where we currently are. Seisia is the port (ie it has a wharf) for the aboriginal town of Bamaga and is a little red dusted village with a good supermarket and a library but not much else about 10 miles south of Cape York. Six yachts at anchor (one Norwegian, one Pom, one Aussie and 3 Kiwi), rusty coastal ship at the wharf and ashore dozens of grey nomads at the camping ground, driving Toyota LandCruisers or campervans on the ritualistic pilgrimage to the Cape. Lovely dry 30 degree heat and the beach is pristine white but no swimming because the crocodiles are definitely about.

Now focussed on getting across the Gulf of Carpentaria to Gove and around our next major cape, Arnhemlands Cape Wessel. Will depart tomorrow morning Tuesday at 10am local time on the 350 mile hop to Gove.

Queensland Heading North - May 2008

A new year resolution was to commence our cruising season in April...Marina Fever is a well known afflication that can keep cruisers tied to the dock but we finally liberated ourselves from Scarborough Marina after a mostly enjoyable layover on the last day of the month !!

30 April 2008
Underway Again at Last - Yacht Surfing and Tide Riding
Sailing north from Brisbane you have the option of passing Fraser Island to seaward or sailing inside the island north up the maze of tidal channels they call the 'Great Sandy Straits' and view some great esturian seascapes and wildlife. Needless to say we opted for the latter... To enter this marine wonderland the catch is you have to cross the notorious Wide Bay Bar which separates the south end of Fraser Island from the mainland coast.

Approaching from sea you are heading West with the morning sun behind to show the gap in the shallows which defines the bar. All one sees is this line of seemingly harmless blind surf breakers over the bow with a flatter section defining the actual bar crossing - so we got our eyes focused as we lined up on the leading markers and went for it - we gave Henry full throttle to get onto the top of our first roller then throttled off as we caught it square and squirted down its face at who knows what speed catching another few broken waves before we were safely over the shallow white sand bar without touching the bottom - phew !! lets just say surfing your floating 22 ton home is a bit of a nerve wracking experience!!.

Once inside we motored up the main tidal channel which separates Fraser Island from the mainland to Moonboom Island near the halfway point in the channel where we stopped for the night in a lovely anchorage to await the rising tide for the next days exit from the northern end of the channel. This part of the channel is very interesting in that there is a tide turning point 5 miles north of Moonboom at Turkey Island which also happens to be the shallowest part of the transit. There is a slack water spot at this point and it is important to get the tides right. With a 2.70m draught we are right on the limit for getting through so we had time to our passage with precision riding the rising tide to get across the shallows at peak high water to then ride the falling tide north to Hervey Bay.

We got our tides pretty right but were a smidgeon to early so we bounced along the bottom and then came to a soft landing halt in the shifting sands for about 10-15 mins near channel marker S22 before the tide rose and we shuffled off. The ride north got faster and faster as we rode the outgoing tide scooting by attractive scenery and lots of birdlife before we popped out into Hervey Bay near Urungan. At this point the winds were from the north - the direction we were headed so decided to anchor at Urangan for the night to await the forecast S/Easter.

02 May 2008
Motoring and Musing
Next day no northerly but also no SE so we started motoring and with no wind forthcoming we ended up motoring through the night all the way to Gt Keppel Island. A good call as still the winds did not come.
Musing at Capes....
Looking at our charts of the Queensland coast from here on sailing north we will be sailing inside the Great Barrier Reef all the way to Cape York passing an endless number of Capes. Most were named by Captain Cook and those explorers that followed. Looking at the charts most are no more than headlands undeserving of the title Cape as we know them. Sort of get the impression Cook must have been trying to endear himself to everyone he had met.
... have to go now as our Captain is wanting to raise the anchor as the long awaited SE wind has now arrived in the form of a solid 20 - 25 knots, whoopee !! Next stop Lindeman Island ?

04 May 2008
Turtles and Sea Eagles
We are at 20deg 53.913S 149deg 24.584E - anchored in a small bay on the north side of Keswick Island. We have just seen the biggest turtle within 20 metres of the boat, just magnificent !! P has now switched his favourites from bats to turtles (plus sea eagles which are also stunning).

12 May 2008
Cae Bowling Green
Anchor in the lee of the Cape which is no more than a low line of sandhills shaped by the wind. We have come in at 2045hrs in the dark because the 25knot SE is kicking up a nasty little chop in the shallow waters we were sailing in so decided why not take a break abd attack again in the daylight.  Trouble is the anchor dragged a couple times in the sand before bedding and we did then we did get horizontal in the bunk the bang slap and slosh kept us awake. All in all a damned appalling anchorage.

13 May 2008
Locals Call it Maggie
At anchor Horsehoe Bay, Magnetic Island. This place is very pleasant and we have just had a big steak meal at the pub as a treat to ourselves after an appalling night anchored at Cape Bowling Green.

Heading to the Palm Isles next. But toying with putting back our haulout date at Cairns so we can take more time to get there. May be go through the Hinchinbrook Channel but with caution because our excellent Queensland aerial/map fishing book says 'caution crocodiles' so we are hoping to see one or two close up (but not that up close).
16 May 2008
Magnetic Island becomes a Magnet
Departed Magnetic Island yesterday 15 May at 1015 for a supposed simple 36 mile sail to Orphesus Island, part of the Palm Group. Initally some wind but soon dropped off. As we motored out of the anchorage to put up the sails and had the engine on for 10 minutes we noticed a slight knocking sound in the engine (more of a clicking really which B had first noticed a few days earlier but P could not hear). Anyway for a diesel clunker it did not seem serious although Peter was reading up on potential problems using our trusty 880 page nautical tome 'The Boatowners Mechanical & Electrical Owners Manual' by Nigel Calder.

We sailed until around 1500 hours then the wind died completely so we went to start the engine - big bad expensive sounding noise so stopped it immediately before it got fired up. We were about 6 miles from Steamer Passage at the south end of Palm Isle so decided to turn back for Townsville thinking we might get there under sail about 0100 morning of the 16th, anchor and check out repair options.

Well it is now 1500 on the 16th and we are still 8 miles from the Magnetic Island anchorage. We gave up on getting to Townsville. Since 1500 yesterday when we tried to start the engine we have had no wind. Thats 24 hours of drifting !! The only thing moving us is the tide and thats in circles not the direction we want to go.

Now at last at 1530 the breeze has come in at 9-10knots and we have the main and genoa up and heading back to Horseshoe Bay Magnetic Island again because its a big bay so no problems deploying anchor without engine !! Will try to find a diesel engineer but realistically will probably be Monday as QLDers seem to knock off at 3.30 - 4.00 on Fridays and certainly don't work weekends. Have had to cancel Cairns haulout and will see what Townsville can provide.

17 May 2008
Murhpys Law
0600 this morning all hell let loose with 30-35 knots of wind gusting to 40 knots (unforecast) and we dragged anchor nearly onto reef. Got sail up and got away fine but then when we came back in (again) to anchor the anchor jammed in the hawsepipe with just 15 metres out which in 10 metres depth is not enough to hold a 16 metre yacht in 5 knots of breeze let alone these conditions and after drifting earlier we are wanting to put out 70/80 metres minimum. So as it was still blowing we sailed off again, towing 15 metres of anchor - we say sailed although we had by now dropped the sails there was so much wind the boat just sailed on its own windage fortunately exactly in the right direction, nicely out to sea. That gave P and I time to manually haul up the 15 metres of chain and our 40kg Delta anchor.

P then went below and got into the anchor locker and untangled the chain which had knotted itself. We then put up the sails and sailed around for a while, just off the island. The winds started to moderate so we prepared for another attempt to anchor. Luckily a young Norwegian we were berthed next to at Scarborough Marina, Jorn from the yacht Silene motored over in his dink to help and we anchored without further problems and kept our fingers crossed that we had a good hold this time.

The reason the anchor had dragged in the first place was because when anchoring without an engine you cannot let the anchor settle then bed it in by reversing with the engine. Spend a few hours discussing our engine problem with Jorn who is a former Norwegian Navy submariner and Peit Hein from the yacht Double Dutch an engineer in the pre-cruising life. Between us we reckon we worked out the problem assisted by a few ales.

19 May 2008
To Repair Haven
We had an excellent sail across to Townsville yesterday when the wind finally came in. Anchored to the starboard side of the marina channel in about 3.4 metres waiting for high tide tomorrow morning. Good night with no wind and no significant tide disturbances although B got up heaps of times to check "just in case" - which really was a waste of good sleeping time.

Nice calm water for tow in this morning, so now the hard work starts locating diesel mechanic and specialist workshop to do a complete overhaul of the "head" (which P assures me is on this occasion not the toilet). Also need to take the genoa sail off cos we ripped the sun protection strip on it in the anchoring scramble off Magnetic when we were in the 40 knot stuff.

20 May 2008
Good News
Other than engine issue, all well. The engineer we found in Townsville removed the head and discovered a sticky exhaust valve that has bent a valve pushrod which was the cause of the clacking noise. Luckily for us by stopping the engine in time no major damage. The head will be machined, two new valves, the resy rebedde, a new pushrod installed along with a new head gasket and we should be back in business in by the end of the week.

We were going to haulout at Townsville but changed mind this morning and will stay in water at marina - this is because the haulout facility although large does not have cradles and just uses props (mainly does fishing and navy boats) so we have decided with our height it is not worth the risk of falling off the props.

We will not quite be out of Townsville by the end of May but it will be pretty close....May will go down as a testing month!!!

Cyclone Season - Dec 2007 to April 2008

Cyclone Season Scarborough Marina Queensland


Dec 2007 / April 2008

We spend a very enjoyable 5 months at Scarborough Marina on Moreton Bay North of Brisbane to avoid the cyclone season.

Use this time improving Musketelles systems but also taking in the sights of southern Queensland around greater Brisbane and the Gold Coast.  For Christmas and New Year we flew down to Sydney where we house sat for old friends the Majors in Allandale while they were in Fiji.  Alf came over from Wellington and joined us for Xmas and watching the start of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race before going down to Melbourne to see in the New Year with Phil and Irene.

Time simply flys when your having fun and we enjoyed our stay even if we were tied up at a berth for the entire time.  A number of liveaboard cruisers were in the same situation so there was good company and socialising.

The plan is to leave Scarborough in April to cruise north and on to Darwin for the start of the Sail Indonesia Rally from Darwin in July.

New Caledonia to Australia - 20 Nov 2007

New Caledonia to Australia - crossing the Coral Sea

A sequence of daily at sea reports follows....

15 Nov 2007
Departed Noumea at 1630, thru Dumbea Pass 1755, now in open seas heading to Brisbane. Current pos 22 deg 24 s 166 08 e. Wind 18-23 kts from SE. Speed over ground 8 kts under 2 reefed main and staysail. Good sailing. We are keeping an eye on the cyclone to north. We are headed for Brisbane but our contingency plan is to run south and enter at Coffs or Sydney if the cyclone starts moving south down the Coral Sea.

16 Nov 2007
Hi, we are rocking along at between 6.5 and 8 kts depending on gusts. Wind is ESE/SE. Some biggish swells and the odd wave hitting us at a funny angle, but overall good sailing.

B has had a discussion with a fellow Kiwi cruiser who stated that 0000UTC is noon, and she gave him the benefit of the doubt. Now she says he is wrong as there is no such time in the 24 hour clock. 0001 is the first minute after midnight, 1200 is midday and 2400 is midnight. If he had been an Aussie she says she would have discounted straight away but since he seemed a sensible Kiwi she thought she better check before responding.

17 Nov 2007
Galloping along at average of 8 knots with winds from SE, less rolly since we turned at Capel Bank (shallow patch) having passed between Kelso and Capel Banks, nearer to Capel. Expecting ESE tomorrow which may slow us and probably bring back the rolly stuff. Very good run today. Saw first ship, P&O cruise liner, 7 miles off and closing to about 3.5 miles. Called it up on VHF radio, channel 16, but no reply which was a bit disappointing. Believe that many large ships no longer monitor channel 16 or maybe they just don't want to talk to yachts who ask silly questions like "can you see us clearly on your radar", which is what we were going to ask.

18 Nov 2007
Breeze 10-12 knots, have met the East Australian current which has carried us south off course by about 8 miles. Have taken out reefs in main to try and get more speed and claw back some of the southing. However wind is little to ESE to be helpful. Still, making good progress. Sunny and warm. Making for the North East Channel entry at top of Moreton Bay.

19 Nov 2007
Still in/on the Coral Sea en route from Noumea to Brisbane and it doesnt look any different to any other sea !!  The same characteristics of wind on water and waves. Have not seen any coral or Nemo's.

As all quiet aboard thought readers might enjoy an insight into what its really like aboard Musketelle on an open ocean passage........ Its a bit 'tongue in cheek' in parts but step aboard for the ride and feel the motion.....

* It takes us both at least 48hrs to get into the rhythm of a passage
* Sleep deprivation is the first thing that hits you and gets you out of kilter
* The next thing is you dont feel all that hungry so with irregular sleep one gets tired very quickly
* The days and nights just mesh into one milieu all on a floating platform that is moving continuously
* Thats the big kicker the never ending motion from which you cannot escape
* Those skills learned as a kid on the jungle gym and at physed classes come into play
* Your hands become as important as your feet as you move crab like around the ship
* If we could run a video of our movements it would be very 'Monty Pythonesque'
* Balancing food can take on chimpanzee tea party similarity
* The cook taking two classic falls without sustaining bodily damage thankfully
* One hand for yourself and the other for the boat is the rule (not one for the plate & other for utensils)
* Time for shut eye we run a 3 hours on watch and 3 hours off watch rotation
* 4 sleeps per 24 compared with one big one at home sounds magic, but don't be fooled
* No nocturnal bliss because the boats always moving & awash with noise banging, crashing & wind howling
* You tend to half sleep listening for noises that alert you to what is happening all around
* You can sense when the vessel has changed direction, slowed or sped up or the sails need trimming
* Below decks its often fuggy, hot and sticky because all the hatches closed to stop saltwater ingress
* No time for conjugal rights as partners pass in the night from off watch to on watch keeping the bunk hot
* Going off watch best get out of your clothes have a bird bath, brush the teeth like normal, which it is not
* Put on a pair of those airline goggles to pretend its nightime and you are a 'Biggles on the Water'
* Now in the bunk which has a leacloth tied along the side to stop you being tossed out by a rogue wave
* Horizontal at last but your clammy body sticks to the sheets as the motion slops your innards around
* From your cranium to the tip of your toes you feel like you are a jellyman on a fairground ride
* In a bad dream your bunk could be likened to a sort of nautical coffin (reboot for another dream)
* When you are awoken its more of the same but hopefully another 20 plus miles closer to your destination
* As they say its the getting there that counts, right !!!
* The 'kerosene canary' is faster & easier but this is cleaner and greener and much heavier on the pocket


Anyone for cruising ?

20 Nov 2007
Landfall Australia
We round the northern end of Moreton Island at 0730 to enter the shipping channel and spend the morning sailing south across Moreton Bay and proceed to the customs dock inside Manly Marina arriving on lunchtime. Phew ! what a pleasure to be in Aust and the prospect of a nice cold beer and a big steak for lunch !! But wait, Australian Customs have to formally enter and clear us, and that takes time and is another story in itself !!

New Caledonia - 15 Nov 2007

5 Nov 2007

Baie de Prony, New Caledonia
Sailed from We' at 5pm yesterday on a setting sun and decreasing breeze through the night and next morning started the steel sail to motor the final six hours in glass flat conditions through the Havannah Pass and the outer reef to reach Baie DeProny (22.22s 166.55e) at lunchtime. We are in a sheltered landlocked anchorage on the south coast of New Cal 35 miles from Noumea where we will stay for a few days to go ashore and explore. The surrounding high hills are red and eroded as result of surface strip nikel mining operations and the water in the anchorage is discoloured. Other than that its starkly beautiful in a way.

14 Nov 2007
Noumea, capital of New Caledonia
We are in Noumea, at the Port Moselle Marina. On our dock there are all visiting cruisers, mainly Aussies and quite a few French boats (not surprisingly).

When we came into Noumea it looked very sophisticated. The actual town centre has lots of mid to low rise shops interpersed with big buildings. Lots of one way streets and of course they drive on the wrong side of the road so crossing the road is more risky than sailing on passage.

The marina has good shower facilities and a well run office with English spoken, naturally as it is an international business. In town however it is different and our french or lack there of is showing. We were lucky that the boucherie had a Frenchman from Paris visiting who spoke Anglais was able to assist us to purchase lamb chops and New Zealand rump steak. As usual Peter broke the ice by referring to the rugby result.

The biggest shock here has been the environment. You will see from our anchorage in Bonne Anse, Baie du Prony, the horrific erosion in the hills. This area was pretty much deforested and then mined and clearly the land cannot recover. Every time it rains large volumes of bright red mud wash straight down into the Baie du Prony and the coral and seabed is being smothered in most bays. There are huge nickel mining operations still in progress and in the next bay from our anchorage there is a huge development that makes Solid Energy's NZ West Coast operations look like childs play. Even though parts of the area are now designated parks there is no sign of any remedial action going on.

Just as bad is Noumea itself. This "sophisticated" town simply pongs, especially at night. We talked to a New Cal French lady from the catamaran next door, who had just finished a 3 year circumnavigation. Before leaving New Cal she worked for the town council and said the town has outgrown the sewerage system and there is not the ability to fix it. We can't believe that it cannot be done so presumably she meant there was not the will to do so. Also disappointing is the rubbish dropped around the market place and funny little fair ground adjacent the port. Plastic bottles, plastic bags and general rubbish are dumped in or blow into the harbour. At night we are firing up the aircon, having the benefit of dock power, and this allows us to avoid the smell.

On a brighter note we love the bread and are indulging in major "nibbles" with baguettes, cheeses and pates.

We have been watching the weather, as are all the cruisers planning to head to NZ or Aust. It is all on for us for a departure to Aust tomorrow (Thursday)and we have decided that we will go to Brisbane (Manly is the clearance port). We had been planning on going to Coffs Harbour and then down to Sydney but having given it further thought we do not need to be in Sydney so soon and we have not sailed into Brisbane whereas we have sailed into Sydney (one of us multiple times!).

Will confirm that we have headed off once we are underway. Hope all are well.

Loyalty Islands - 04 Nov 2007

31 Oct 2007

Baie de Doking, Lifou Island, Loyalty Islands

We sight Lifou Island in the Loyalty's early yesterday morning 31 Oct in worsening weather so with 16 miles to go to We (pronounced whey), in 34 knots and rough seas on a lee shore, we turn and ru off to the west around the top of Lifou. Anchoring in Baie de Doking in a nice sheltered situation under impressive high cliffs which is protecting us from the E/SE swells. Had a hearty breakfast/lunch, and collapsed into the bunk and awoke on dusk so decided to stay put for the night.

01 Nov 2007
We, Lifou Island, Loyalty Islands
Arrived We' (pronounced Way) lunchtime today, motoring all the way round the coast from Baie de Doking - about 5 hours as we were pretty much heading into the wind. There were very big swells, we estimate some at least 6 metres, and depending on the proximity of the various headlands we passed we got varying wind driven waves on top. Took some very big waves but Muskie was not fazed and neither was her crew. B is wearing her chinese acupuncture wrist bands compliments and they seem to be doing a good job.

When we arrived in We no one from the marina answered our VHF calls so we tied up to a wharf at the entrance which was a low concrete thing and poor Muskie got a couple of nasty scratches when the fenders lifted in the swell. Nothing that can't be touched up.

Peter scaled a 6 ft fence to get into the marina proper but no one official was around. So asking other yachts he found out it was a New Cal public holiday so we have helped ourselves to a berth, a tight fit, we are the biggest yacht in the marina, which is very small. We are flying the Q flag which means we are not to go ashore or communicate with anyone unofficial until we have cleared customs and quarantine. Yeah right!.

So went to the gas station which sells groceries and tried to buy some nice french bread but we only had Euros and surprise, they only take Pacific Francs!!! So no bread, but did get a nice hot shower in the marina shower block. Tonight eating our Vanuatu scotch fillet tonight before Quarantine get here as otherwise they reportedly would take it away!.

Will probably head to Noumea tomorrow which is an overnighter and need to go through Havannah Pass in day light. Probably anchor in Baie du Prony once through the pass and then go on to Noumea the following day. However we may stay one more day here in We, not sure until we see customs tomorrow and check out the weather.

04 Nov 2007
We, Lifou Island
Well what a magic place We on the island of Lifou turned out to be. Having now departed after 4 days it is time to reflect....We arrived from Vanuatu in some boisterous weather and snuck into the the tiny marina which was only opened in 2003 to attract yachties that have previously bypassed this island group.

Once we got ship shape and got cleared in we were off to the nearest ATM for local Sth Pacific Francs and then to the supermarket for fresh french bread and fresh food...glorious French food and all at Kiwi prices surprisingly. Also purchased a nice light beer "Kronenburg 1664" and a bottle of Blanc de Blanc.

The major treat for us is dairy produce...yoghurt, designer cheeses etc etc but no fresh milk since leaving NZ its been all UHT. When we get to Aust we are going to get a yoghurt maker and grow our own culture as weetbix are inedible without the stuff !!

All the other yachties here are French or New Caledonian so Barbara is testing her schoolgirl French on them and Peter is bluffing his way with a combination of acting and international sign language that he has always relyed and swears never lets him down....'Look em in the eye and keep the smile at the ready !! No understanding of French is required when it comes to the RWC as the French guys are equally excited that they dealt to the AB's as they are the Poms got beaten in the final.

As there were never any taxi's each time we went to town we put the finger out and we were picked up instantly. It was not until we hitched a ride into the town for dinner on Saturday evening that we met a real local.... a Kanak chief, the Kanaks being the ethic Melanesian people of New Cal and the Loyalty Islands.

French speaking and English challenged Chief Michel Luepak stopped as we hitched a ride outside the marina and delivered us to a restaurant in town. Michel circa 55yrs and father of 6 off-spring ranging from 6 to 26yrs is a very busy man with a dual role in life. In Noumea where he lives he is the headmaster at a local primary school but once a month he flys back to We for the weekend to fulfill his chiefly duties to his village of 600 souls.

He went to great trouble to tell us that he is a small chief only, but next morning when he collected us from the boat to visit his village we were more than impressed by his spread out village all just 5kms from town beside the lagoon.

Here we are 10am on a Sunday morning and after walking us around the beautiful lawned village he took us into his childhood home, the chiefs house overlooking the lagoon. He opens the shutters and sits us down to can you believe, a bottle of Johnny Walker to celebrate our meeting, and its just gone bloody 10am on a Sunday morning....We soon joined the dots as he like us is a non-practising Protestant. Seems the London Missionary Society rocked up to the Loyalty Islands in the 1830's before the other faiths and the whole population is Protestant which is an oddity in largely Catholic New Cal.

Must tell you after the dinner on Sat night the cashier at the restaurant gave us a ride back to the marina which was much appreciated as it was about 4km and pitch black as no street lights. Native Kanak Sondra by name, proudly informed us a few years back she had spent time a most enjoyable time Christchurch Polytech on an English language course with a visit to Queenstown the highlight of her trip.

Must say the quality of life here seems a notch up on the other Pacific islands with the French obviously doshing the Francs around....big modern hospital, local body offices and general air of efficiency with good roading and power reticulation to villages. The people dress well with the ladies in colourful dress and floral headwear. The quality of the vehicular rolling stock is somewhat younger than NZ with small Peugeot and Renualts de-riguer.

Back to the sailing business we spent the rest of Sunday prepping Musketelle for the overnight crossing to New Caledonia. This included emptying our water tanks of the limey and scaley Port Vila water and refilling with the absolutely magic We water...we now have 700 litres of We water to consume.

Vanuatu - Oct 2007

01 Oct 2007
Vanuatu Bound
We depart Musket Cove 30 Sept and slip out through the reef into big swells and strong winds around 30 kts gusting 34-36. Winds that ultimately will blast us all the way to Port Resolution, Tanna Island, Vanuatu in just 4 days. Sailing is great under 2 reefs in main, no genoa, lots of flying fish and frigate birds seem attracted to us. Beam swells become a little annoying but hey who cares when we are sailing fast direct to our destination.

02 Oct 2007
Ships Stuff
Copy of message to Alf in Wellington who thrives on helping P out with mechanical issues. This an example of a message that typifies some of the challenges that confront the cruising yachtsman who invariably is not an engineer but is having to learn fast.......

At sea Musket Cove, Fiji to Port Resolution, Vanuatu
Was surveying the engine compartment last night....bilge clean, everything was just sweet ie no oil leaks and the oil sender on song. On checking the water pump/alternator fan belt noticed it was a little slacker than should be so commenced tensioning process when noticed the whole mount was disconnecting from the engine and being held by one single threaded machine bolt which was just about completely out. In effect the alternator was firmly affixed to the mount but the mount which is also the fwd port engine mount was completely detached from the engine. So the engine was riding on only three engine mounts which maybe accounts for the stern gland leaking seawater. On closer analysis the mount should have 4 bolts connecting it to the engine but it appears there has only ever been one with 3 completely sheared off. I was able to find a new bolt in my box of tricks and fitted this and it is holding so far. To fix the overall problem will need an 'Easyout' to remove the sheared studs and line the engine up with the mount but this will have to wait until Australia. I will just keep a close eye on that single machine bolt. The thing that annoys me is the boys at Half Moon Bay Engineering made us up a new beefy alternator adjustment arm but did not notice anything wrong with the mount itself. The challenges and joys of cruising !!.

03 Oct 2007
Arrive Tanna Island, Vanuatu 0800hrs
At anchor at Port Resolution, Tanna Island, Vanuatu. Calling it a port is a bit of a misnomer as its just an open bay.  Initial impression there is not much here - so far have spotted some thatched huts and some natives on the beach. Apparently there is a village with a "yacht club" (read thatched hut) and a restaurant somewhere but not obvious. There is steam wafting from vents on the shore (very volcanic area). Anchorage is rolly and shallow - we are in 4.5 metres. If wind turns to between east and north apparently one has to leave as the swell is very bad due to the shallowness.  Forecast is thankfully for SE'sterlys.

Port Resolution  Tanna Island 

04 Oct 2007
Today we go to by 4x4 truck to the main town Lenakal on the other side of Tanna island to formally clear in. Leave boat at 7.00 am and get back at 5.00pm. The 4x4 taxi is a Mitsi ute with plank seating on the back tray for the passengers and a frame for a plastic sheet to be unfurled should it rain. We rode up front with "Sandy" the driver - bit of a squash as really only room for one. The tray was full of locals going to Lenakel for the day.

Leave the village on a dirt track (note not road) and then drove along beach then rejoin dirt track for some kms, passing through many small villages, all thoroughly traditional, no corrugated iron or wood in sight, all made out of woven coconut tree fronds wrapped around wooden branch frames. Everything very tidy, gardens all beautifully kept, sticks with barbed wire or all stick fences to keep the cows away from where they shouldn't be (surprising number of cows in very good condition, plus goats and pigs.

Power supply is by a few solar panels which are used to power the community phone and charge small batteries rather than provide any electricity for lighting etc. This is hilly country and we had to cross ridges to get from one side of the island to the other. This was to be a unique drive through lovely bush with attractive ferns and fantastic huge banyan trees. Suddenly we enter barren dry moonscape and then we were suddenly driving through an entire valley of volcanic ash - no road as such, just driving on this ash plain at the foot of Mt Yasur, the active volcano we hope to visit tonight.

The sides of Mt Yasur (which is only 361 metres high) are covered with ash, no rocks or vegetation visible on the mountainside at all. At the foot of the mountain are reddish and grey volcanic lava flows. After leaving the ash road we climb another ridge and join what can now be called a dirt road, the "government road" all the way into Lenakal, passing numerous villages, with men and women walking along the road carrying machetes to tend and gather crops for the day.

Got to Lenakel. Its 'Pay Day' for government employees apparently so a long queue at the bank to change NZD$ to Vatu. We spend some hours walking around the dusty town visiting Customs, Agriculture and Immigration which was nonsense but hey this is island bureacracy we will have to come to grips with. While P was at Customs B noticed the lady Immigation officer who had served us was now sitting round the back of the Government offices with some other women weaving roofing panels for a new house. Now that is multi-tasking.

We have lunch at a local coconut thatch hut cafe over looking the little harbour. The Lenakel supply ship was unloading at the 'wharf' - concrete structure stuck into the swelly bay, no protection at all. All supplies including timber planks being unloaded by hand, plank by plank, all day job. Lots of people in Lenakel.  Presumably because pay day and supply ship in. Nothing to buy!  Lots of little shops with absolutely nothing in them - a few canned goods, ubiquitous coca cola, batteries, some clothing, bare minimum. No "facilities" for tourists at all in the sense of cafes, place to buy a beer or anything!.

No public toilets (had to find some shrubbery - difficult as people everywhere). People are clearly poor although healthy. No western trappings although cellphone coverage is imminent. Most speak good English and many apparently speak good French which is a carryover from when Vanuatu was known as the New Hebrides in a condominium co-governed by the British and the French.  You can only imagine the nonsense that prevailed all at the expense of progress and future of the local populace.

On way back B sat up front, with Sandy's wife (even more of a squash than when Peter was there). Peter sat on the back with the locals plus their shopping. He was not overly comfortable. Stopped for carrots and cabbage en route. We were going to go up the mountain last night but got back too late so will do it tomorrow. We get back aboard Muskie absolutely pooped. Thank goodness the volcano excursion is now delayed until tomorrow.

Looking into the cauldron

Navigator taking pics

Silhouette of Skipper and Navigator

Nearly forgot to relate the story of the professional skipper of a big luxury motor yacht that caused a real show and pony act requiring our driver Sandy to immediately return to Port Resolution to pickup this guy because he was not ready when we had left at 0730.  Then when he could not get a seat in the front on the return was forced to ride on the back with P and the others which he was certainly not dressed for.  Our return was delayed over an hour because of him. We were not at all impressed at his cavalier and arrogant treatment of the locals but also the fact he had extended our day too.

07 Oct 2007
At sea en route Tanna / Port Vila
Its around 0800 local time Monday morning as we are motor sailing in a 10knot Easterly with sloppy seas. B is in the bunk and thankfully so far all is well on the sea sickness front which is surprising given the lumpy seas since we left Port Resolution at 1200 yesterday. P had a particularly bad day yesterday picking up on the AB's dumping and Australia's demise too at the Rugby World Cup. We were hoping for a trans-tasman final if that was possible. Reckon rugby has become a media game where even the players can only play to the next commercial break.

Back to life out on the edge....our four days at Port Resolution was really special. Saturday we walked all day first through the village to donate surplus clothing (Phantom and Ericcson t.shirts) and pens and paper to Chief Ronnie. This allowed us to then walk through the village at will. The village green is not mowed but very tidy and they all meet here to play sports, listen to music, dance, do handicrafts and in the evening on special occasions hang a big white sheet and watch videos like Shrek ? or old Westerns.

This Saturday morning the men were sitting around the green whilst the women and children were out hunting and gathering food..... fishing in the lake with bamboo rods, cutting greens with machetes, climbing trees to shake out pawpaw and mangoes, shang-eyes to kill bats and birds, spades to dig root crops. We walked for 2 hours on jungle tracks to Shark Bay to watch the sharks inside the reef. We then returned via the beach and by chance came across a little resort "Turtle Bay Resort" just 5 thatched hut bures and a restaurant run by an eccentric French couple and their 3 dogs. We could not help but stop to sample the fare. Inside guests from Grenoble (living in New Cal) and some Japanese. We enjoyed a cold drink Tuna salad (which I told B was meat) Fruit salad and local Tanna coffee. We walked the final hour back to the dinghy through the jungle so ending a magic day. Must add a highlight of the day was stopping on the track every 5 mins to dialogue with mothers and their children....all of whom spoke excellent English without grunting iduno and shrugging shoulders like young kiwi kids. The children either went to English or French language schools.

The finale to the day was the evening visit to the 361m Yasur Volcano. 1600 boarded a ute and trundled up the mountain to watch the sunset. Arrived on cue as the sun was setting and walked up to the crater rim...literally. And down deep down we looked into this abyss that was gurgling away with the hot ember rocks glowing around the inner perimeter. The rumbling increased then we experienced the first explosion as rocks flew skyward supported by an almighty boom before receding back down into the gurgling inferno. It rumbled on spewing low projectile glowing rocks that are glowing more by the minute as darkness arrives. Every few minutes there was a bigger than normal explosion as hot rocks would rocket like skywards. Luckily it was all blowing away from us with the regular SE wind. With complete darkness the crater was a huge glowing mass and we were just 150m from its edge on a high crater rim looking down into the fiery maelstrom. The sound emanating from the crater was surround sound boom box loud. After 60 minutes and numerous pics we headed back down convinced no New Years Eve pyrotechnic display will ever be the same. Interesting thing is there was absolutely no signage to keep back from the rim and no officials to police viewers. In the so called modern west you can just imagine the control freak mentality taking over the scene....its something we don't miss.

We headed back to the Yacht Club for a quite beer with the other yachties we shared the experience with and so ended a sublime day. Then it was up 0500 Sunday to try to listen to the aforementioned rugby match....and we are back where we started this e.

10 Oct 2007
Hello from Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu
Port Vila has been a really pleasant surprise. P last here circa 79 with Sarah and Jacinda and does not recognise the place. Australian influence is much greater here than NZ due to its proximity to the big country although there are seemingly just as many Kiwis here as Aussies. The previous French and British influence has resulted in a vibrant and colorful town with a people who we find pleasnt to deal with. In our mind it has Fiji beat hands down with systems and attitude to work and service refreshingly proactive rather than the general Pacific malaise. The church influence is much reduced compared with Tonga and Fiji. The shops and restaurants are first class although largely stocked by French goods which are super expensive. Was craving for a good read yesterday so purchased last Sats Sydney Morning Herald....nzd$11.00 !! Also got a can of L&P for $3 to get a taste of home.

We are anchored off the town in 20m of crystal clear water rather than taking a mooring bouy. The mooring bouy area has upwards of 100 vessels of all shapes and sizes so it is a busy place. We have a number of larger vessels in our immediate vicinity including a 100ft 3 masted barqentine that seems to be carrying passengers. A number of major resorts are within view of our mooring with associated water activities including jetskis, paragliding, floatplane and even a chopper on a barge all buzzing around frantically during daylight hours. The sunsets have been fantastic heralded by a conch shell booming from the nearby Iriki Is Resort each evening to be followed by local singing and dance music drifting over the bay. We have been going on mega walks around the town each day up hill and down dale then catching a local minibus for 100vatu (nzd1.30) when we have had enough. The 100vatu is a set standard fare anywhere in town and there are 100's of these vehicles roaming.

The contrast between Tanna and Port Vila is astonishing with Tanna being literally back in the 18th century. Before we forget the trees of Vanuatu are a real treasure...huge banyan trees and a variety of numerous other big trees give it a big garden feel and provide great shade. Before the end of this week we will commence cruising north to the islands of Epi, Ambrym, Malakula, Pentecost and Espirito Santo before returning to Port Vila to clear for New Caledonia by the end of October.

19 Oct 2007
Emae Island, Vanuatu
Happy Birthday sister Deb B in Grenoble France. Now of an age band we no longer mention !!
Meanwhile aboard Musketelle we are now anchored in a shallow bay called Sulua Bay on Emae Island. We left Port Havannah at 0950 intending a short trip to Nguna Island at the top of Efate. Once out of the shelter the forecast 15-25 kts came at us at 25-35 with some very big seas. There is a not so low low (about 1008) sitting over Vanuatu at the moment - it is stationary/very slow moving and has been around for the last four days or so. Think it is being blocked by a very big high in the Tasman. So we are getting enhanced SE trades as they say - ie lots of wind, very overcast but very little rain This is a pain because we would dearly love to fill our water tanks.

Having rejected Nguna Island as an anchorage we continued on for a few hours to Emae Island where we are now anchored. Bit of a rough trip - staysail and 2 reefs, some pooping waves from the starboard quarter (how rude) and B dozed thru most of it whilst Peter kept an eye on the sea whilst the autopilot valiantly steered. B had wrist bands on (compliments of Alf) placing them on some chinese wrist acqupuncture point, they seem to be working. Came between Emae Island and Cook Reef, which did not look like a good place to connect, without trouble. Presume it is called Cook Reef due to some visit by his illustrious self. Anchored in about 9 m of water, rock/coral more than sand bottom, so hope we can get anchor up ok,at least depth is fairly consistent and not downhill like the last anchorage so we won't drag on that account (wind being another matter).

Having anchored at 1630 and taken some transits, we sat down for sundowners - cheese (Mainland ex Fiji at vast expense), crackers, gerkins, buja (Fiji Indian nibbles - highly recommended). Plus vodka, galliano, lemon squash ( a variation on that stunning Gyles concoction that we were introduced to on an illfated sojourn on Muskie in the Hauraki Gulf last year(PMB having serious flu and refusing to admit it)). Back to the present P looks out and sights a swimmer. Now bear in mind the weather is pretty shitty, blowing a gale and overcast, its already 5.00pm and gets dark here about 5.30pm. Ni-Vanuatan swims up. Peter proceeds to throw him a line and haul him on board. We give him a coke and buja. He says he is looking for the spear from his spear gun - he speared a big parrot fish and line attaching spear to gun broke and fish and spear went west (makes sense because east is the shore). Peter asks various questions - eg we find that (i) cost of new spear is Vatu 2500 or so, (ii) there are 14 villages on the island, (iii) he can deliver fish in the morning and offers 5 or 10kg.

Given our fishing efforts have been miserable since Fiji we are at a loss to know whether its our technique or the fake lures from The Warehouse Alf left us ? or are these fish Vanuatuan fish smarter than Kiwi fish ? Peter next asks asks about bats and I hasten to add that we do not eat bats, merely curious!. We then get asked if we have any medication for his foot. Dr Peter takes a look. Apparently a cone (fish/shell?) entered it a year ago and a bit is still there. We say that antibiotic cream no use for embedded infections - he should go to Vila or Luganville and see doctor for surgical removal - seems unlikely. Apparently there is a small clinic on the island - god knows what it does , dispense disprin? and a "hospital" on the other side but the doctor went to Vila and has not come back. We finally suggest he swims back to shore before dark, rejecting his advice that we anchor further north (Peter points out later it would have more than halved his swim distance). He says that tomorrow when we come ashore (which, until P ordered the fish, had not been the plan) he can show us places so we can take photos etc. Peter then concludes that we are about to fund the replacement of the elusive spear!!

P now relaxing in master stateroom (ie back cabin) reading Claudia Orange's " Treaty of Waitangi" which he is finding fascinating and is having a major impact on his views - eeks he is about to turn into a woolly woofter liberal !!.

22 Oct 2007
Epi Island, Vanuatu
Copy of email to 4year old grandson Noah in Wellington NZ
Hello Noah
We are still on the yacht and we have been thinking how you would have enjoyed being with us today. Because today we had an exciting day watching dolphins and turtles swimming around the yacht as we are anchored in beautiful Lamen Bay, Epi Island. First we spotted about ten dolphins swimming in circles herding the smaller fish for a breakfast feast. Every so often we would see a lot of splashing going on as the dolphins eat the smaller fish. At the same time we would see the odd small fish fly out of the water and scuttle away at top speed from the dolphins to live another day in the deep blue sea. After this we spotted our first big sea turtle poke his rugby ball shaped head above the water for air, look around with his big eyes and then dive below the surface. Over the next hour we were entertained by six turtles surfacing around us. They were diving down to the bottom to feed on the sea grass. Sea Turtles have a big round shell and four flippers for swimming. The good thing for turtles is in most parts of the world they are a protected species and they are left alone which means they can live a very long life. At Epi Island in Vanuatu they are protected and that made us very happy. Tomorrow we are hoping to catch sight of another special sea creature the Dugong which is a huge big sea mammal that also eats sea grass. Maybe Mummy can google sea turtles and dugongs to show you what we are talking about because we are sure you will be excited too. Love G&G

ps Noah we hear from your Dad that you have a new pair of gumboots so you can help out in the garden over winter. While boys normally have gumboots in colours starting with the letter B...black,brown or blue; we think its great you select what ever colour gumboots you want. We know your gumboot shopping story will be told many times in the future.

23 Oct 2007
En route Epi Is/ Port Vila,Vanuatu
We had 3 nights at Lamen Bay Epi Island where it rained torrentially including 25-30+ knot winds but it was not cold. Clearly the weather in these latitudes is on the turn as is much more changeable than we have been getting. So much so that our plans to get up to Espiritu Santo were curtailed by adverse wind and wave conditions curtailing our northing at Epi Island. The other thing is our SSB Radio which we rely on for long range weather and comms broke down so we are returning to Port Vila to get it repaired and to prep for the passage to New Caledonia.

25 Oct 2007
Port Vila
Now back in Port Vila getting our SSB radio repaired and prepping for the New Cal leg. That is just a short 3 and a bit day trip but can be boisterous apparently. Boats that left Vila a couple of days ago Australia bound apparently got hammered with huge swells and some turned back. We had big head on seas coming from Port Havannah back to Vila but Muskie handled them beautifully.

30/31 Oct 2007

Port Vila, Vanuatu to Loyalty Islands
180 mile overnight passage due south from Port Vila, Vanuatu to the Loyalty Island group administerd by the French out of New Caledonia. Arrive Baie de Doking, Lifou Island at 0700hrs after gutsy passage into building E/SE winds and seas.

Fiji - Aug / Sep 2007

08 Aug 2007

Paradise Found - Savu Savu, Fiji
We could say that the reason why we have not communicated of late is because we have taken until today (Tuesday evening) to recover, but that would be a porky - as the Southland sheep and dairy farmer from SY Desire said today, "he has never felt so comfortable just sitting around doing nothing and wondered whether it was something in the Savusavu air." In other words this place is very relaxing . The Fijians are great - full of smiles, always saying "Bula" (hello) and not doing much else. The Indians are taking care of business running the shops and everything else and the place is a veritable hive of activity especially the market place on Saturday morning which has both Fijians and Indians manning stalls, with buses (ie trucks) arriving from the hills all morning with the most wonderful produce. Dairy produce is available - local and from NZ.  Really leaves Tonga for dead.

Our great find in Savu Savu was the 'Butchery in the Bookstore' thats right a butchery and bookshop combined, only in Fij. The butchery sold the most divine steak produced from stock roaming around under the palm trees on Vanua Levu.  B establishes the beef farmers have been doing this for a few generations and their meat is the most sought after throughout Fiji.

We are looking at our route through and around Fiji. Have decided to give Suva a miss and decide on an island hopping route that takes us south to the old colonial capital of Levuka then navigating inside the reefs around the north coast of Viti Levu to Lautoka and Nandi Bay. From here we will then spent time up in the western Yasawa island chain before returning to Lautoka to then depart Fiji  for Vanuatu in 2 months. The route outlined includes countless superb anchorages so we are really looking forward to losing ourselves among these 300 islands in the sun. If the rest of Fiji is as nice as Savu Savu we understand why people come back regularly. Of course we would not comment on the political quagmire Fiji insists on taking ownership of.

30 Aug 2007
Reef Dodging, northern Viti Levu, Fiji
Since last posting we have sailed around the top of the main island of Viti Levu from east to west dodging coral reefs to the Nandi Bay area where the major international airport for Fiji is located. On arrival we checked into Denerau Marina to give Musketelle and ourselves a treat. Being in a marina we have access to shore power at $5 per day so we used the opportunity to fire up the air conditioning for the first time to beat the heat.  A little anti-social as we have to close the main hatch and all port holes to maintain interior temp at 15c for P and 19c for B.....a contentious issue as to what temp the ship should be at.

Our immediate neighbour was an eccentric yank aboard a catamaran called 'Good News'. Mike by name was one of those handy (have a nice day) types that was busy befriending everyone but particularly the Fijians who were visiting his ship in endless processions each day. They were all being relieved of an unknown sum before walking away with a special gift in the form of electronic Good News bibles. An example of real new age evangelical sailor spreading the good word (at a price to fund his voyaging we think).

We also did the tourist thing checking out the huge development on Denerau Island. 10yrs back there were only 2 hotels on Denerau (a mangroval low island 2 miles from downtown Nandi) The Regent and Sheraton. Today there are 8 major hotels and associated infrastructure...very impressive.

A funny thing happened the other day as B was waiting for a taxi into Nandi town....a couple of Fijians were also waiting for a cab with some large sacks when one of the sacks got up and walked away....the Fijian grabbed it back then hopped into a cab. Turns out there was a baby piglet inside !!! In Fiji pigs can travel by cab too!!!

04 Sep 2007
King Alfred arrives to visit
B's father aka Alf King of Lowry Bay arrives at Port Denerau marina for 12 day visit aboard to take on role as chief steward and fish killing tutor. Quickly installs himself in forepeak cabin. We hire a beaut little Suzuki Swift to zap around the immediate environs and stock up on supplies. One of the ongoing surprises of Fiji continues to be the fantastic meat we are able to purchase. In Nandi South Pacific Meats supply all the aforementioned hotels and they impressed us with vacumn packing on the spot and blast freezing if required. 

An amazing exprience and we handed over as part of the ceremony our gift of kava.

Next day we sail weat to the Mamauca and Yasawa islands. First stop is Waya Island for the ritual of presenting kava to a local Chief Tui Waya, with the full formal welcome sitting cross legged on the mats on the floor of his chiefly house. We are then free to explore his territory so headed for the drop dead stunning Navadra Island (30 miles west of Nandi) the island used by a kiwi television production company to film a reality castaway tv series with sports celebs in 2006.  This island was another special place surrounded by stunning reefs and white sand beaches. The local Fijian boys we spoke to were tidying up following the filming and all happy having been paid a kings ransom of  $80 per day for the trouble.

Today was a three swim day in azure blue waters and a nice sunset before cocktails, pan fried pork chops with salad then coffee and Cadbury milk chocolate to finish. We continue to be impressed by the majesty of these Fijian islands with their high peaks and over the next 10 days we will move north through the Yasawa Island chain.

We anchor off Nanua Island in the Yasawas where the Blue Lagoon cruise boats turn around and where the movie Blue Lagoon was filmed years ago.

Out in the dink in a tropical downpour yesterday, spotted a large turtle. Later went snorkelling. Alf got the heeie geebies at one stage and had a hyper breathing episode due to ingestion of water via the snorkel. He will try again today in the shallows rather than over the reef. At 78 he had never snorkelled and got a little over enthused.

But not to be sidelined after frightening us snorkelling Alf has been showing Peter the worlds most reluctant fisher (who loves the eating but not the killing) how to fish and he promptly caught a large blue trivally in the dark last night. Probably actually caught two at once, one of which got away because the bottom hook and sinker were missing when he pulled him up.

Nanuya Levu is a very nice spot with a really lovely resort. We had dinner there the night before last, excellent meal. Will stay here again tonight then head back towards Port Denarau over the next 2 days so that we get back there on Friday about lunchtime for Alfs flight home. He is returning to winter in NZ thoroughly invigorated and impressed from his first visit to Fiji, saying it was worth waiting 78 years for.

We sail back to Lautoka to formally clear out of Fiji for Vanuatu anchoring off the port overnight and next morning Musketelle was coated in ash residue from the local sugar mill and will stay there until the next rain. We sail south from Lautoka to then spend a few days down at Musket Cove before setting sail west.

Tonga to Fiji - 04 Aug 2007

03 August 2007
Tonga to Fiji
We are headed for Savu Savu on Vanua Levu in north western Fiji a distance of 450 nautical miles NNW of Tonga. This will be a tropical sail between 18 and 16 degrees south of the equator so should be a pleasant cruise. The first 300 miles is open water then we enter the Fiji Group and the final 150 miles is among the reefs and islands. Once we are officially cleared from Tonga we will sail to the most westerly anchorage in the Vavau group and have a good nights sleep. Barbara will take her seasick pills and then on waking we will be off. Weather permitting of course.....

07 August 2007
Theres always lots of Weather
We arrive Savu Savu, Fiji after a 4 day passage that delivered some unexpectedly rough weather - 38 knots and later a boisterous following sea - nothing dangerous just highly annoying and uncomfortable. Had some excitement - in middle of night (of course) the wire strop (head pendant) holding the top of the genoa sail to the furler connection at the top by the mast snapped and the genoa fell into the sea and in a flash trolling beside the boat in the swell, held on only by the tack fitting at the base. So we had to haul it back on deck (slowed the boat down first) and it wasn't that hard, surprising really as quite a big sail. To get it off the deck we simply opened the foredeck hatch and shoved the sail down into the bow - as it was wet with sea water that made a bit of a mess but thats sailing. Only problem was a couple of stanchions got bent so we have them off to get them straightened.
Air Sea Search
The feature of this leg was the ever changing weather with tropical squalls coming in from all directions at times. One night we had the airy experience of talking on VHF with an RNZAF Orion aircraft looking for a missing Tongan fishing boat and we had dialogue with them but as we were 80 miles away from the search area and it was upwind our asssitance was not required as they said other boats were closer.

Tonga - July 2007

Nukualofa, Tonga
Safely moored stern to (Mediterranean style - anchor is off the bow and 2 stern lines to shore, need dinghy to get to shore) in Faua Boat Harbour, Nukualofa. Arrived 1545hrs Friday 22 June and a bit concerned being Friday afternoon we might not be cleared until Sat or even worse Mon. But thankfully Diane and Alan off SY Moonfleet who had got in that morning had the nous to pre-organised Quarantine and Immigration for us and we cleared with no problems at all by 1700. Then 30 minutes later were walking into town checking the lie of the land and heading for for a cool drink (Steinlager) and dinner with the Moonfleeters.

Musketelle at Faua Harbour, Nukualofa
our first anchorage and first foreign port

Now Monday 25 June we are still in Faua Harbour doing what cruisers do.... relax and repair for the next passage. The refrigeration has been a big problem with intermittent electrical outages. Talk about having to be a jack of all trades...in the toilet system one minute, up the mast the other and satellite connection problems with the satphone, you name it we have to handle it or suffer the consequences. Self resilience is the name of the game. But hey we are out here doing it and thats what its all about and 28/30c degrees with sea breezes wafting through the ship sure makes up for it. But paradise has its ways and B is down with a head cold due to us sleeping with a fan on over the bed the other night. Dr B is administering from the ships comprehensive medical kit so a quick recovery is anticipated. We have sussed out the markets for fresh vegetables and found the best baker in town so we are very comfortable. The local lettuce tomatoes and cucumbers are something special with a taste that our NZ hydroponic production misses completely. The tropical fruits were exceptional too.

Fresh Mango !!

With the refrigeration breaking down we hosted all the yachties on the dock to an impromptu BBQ on our fast defrosting meat which was meant to last us for the next few months. A great way to meet the neighbours with a mix of Kiwis, Auusies, Poms, Germans and Yanks all not surprisingly in on the act for free kai. Most are going in the same general direction cruising north through the Haaapai Group of islands and then further north to Vaavau. A number of expat locals also rocked up among them the local airline pilot, an Aussie and the Tongatel cellphone system guru, an American.

Talk here is all about the crystal clear waters and we are really looking forward to perfecting snorkelling skills again among the reefs. Interestingly even scuba divers say the snorkelling is near as exciting in these parts. We are fast falling into the grips of Tongan Time but can still tell its coming up lunchtime so will see what can be cooked up for the bunk-ridden crew. Good news finally sorted the refrigeration out today with input from aforementioned Aussie pilot and a local refrigeration engineer. Required a tweek rather than a hammer to fix.

ps The only real downer is we cannot view the Amcup races in Valencia and are relying on Alf for his txt messages and then the trusty BBC who devote 20 secs to the result. So whilst its a big thing in NZ its off the radar everywhere else.

Posing on beach Tongatapu

08 July 2007
Depart Nukualofa
Finally departed Nukualofa 2 weeks after arriving. 2 weeks largely devoted to ship housekeeping issues... refrigeration, headsail furler and taking on diesel fuel, freshwater and provisions. Still had time to visit the markets every other day for fresh produce pawpaw, bananas, toms and lettuce etc including fresh tuna from the fish market 100m from the dock. Our impressions of the main island Tongatapu are of an island obsessed with the trappings of the 21st century...cellphones, old Jap import cars but scant regard for the environment with litter a major problem. The other night it rained big and as a result our little boat harbour was literally full of plastic, bottles and all kinds of rubbish. We renamed it Foul Harbour. Our impressions of the Tongan people in Nukualofa is of a people stuck with a political system that benefits the privileged few but not the majority and the disproportionate power the church wields over the populace with the obvious backing of the political system. So back to our voyage of discovery...

06 July 2007
Fafa Island to Kelefesia
departed for Fafa Island 5 miles across the lagoon from Nukualofa for dinner in a classic island resort restaurant before leaving at midnight for the 50 mile overnight passage north to Kelefesia, our first of many islands en route to Vava'u. The Tongan group is a string of 170 odd islands spread roughly 180 miles south to north between 18 and 20 degress south of the equator. When we say islands some are little more than coral atolls producing breaking surf in the middle of the ocean. The big challenge is all the charts are pre-electronic and some even date from the 19th century and are out by up to 200 metres east to west meaning you could easily kiss an atoll if you are not 100% concentrating all the time. For this reason the best time to navigate is when the sun is highest between 1000 and 1400 each day and when the sun is behind you. So our days consist of up early, breakfast then ashore for an explore before sailing to the next island to anchor and settle in to watch the sunset (often stunning) then early dinner and to the bunk absolutely pooped.

07 July 2007
Kelefesia Island
We arrived at Kalefesia at 0900 Sat 07 Jul an hour early to enter the narrow pass in the surrounding coral reef marked by a gap in the breaking surf (called blind rollers because when you enter from the seaward side you cannot readily see they are breakers until you are on top ready to surf them). Decided with the blessing of the navigator to break the aforementioned 1000/1400 rule and motored straight into the lagoon in perfect conditions. One minute 600ft deep dark blue water then crystal clear bottom of white sand and coral out crops at 60ft deep. Just stunningly beautiful and instant calm without swell as we anchored, which was not before time for B as she had another terrible passage through the night as she did not take her seasick pills. All that day she was in a state and slept most of the day and did not surface until the next morning when we went ashore to explore.  Kelefesia is a small high island about the size of Soames Is in Wellington Harbour half surrounded by white sand beach and half rocky bluffs. The luxuriant growth consists of coconut palms, pawpaw, banana and even lemon trees. On going ashore we were greeted by one of 2 brothers that call the island home. No one else is in residence and they live there for three weeks at a time then spend a week at nearby Nomuka Island catching up with family, selling their seafood and stocking up.  Moses, the older brother, was only too keen for us to visit.  Milk and Batteries were the price he was keen on extracting in return for the privilege and he asked very courteously. We had milk powder but not batteries so added 2 new hats/caps instead which he was very pleased with. When congratulated on his brilliant white teeth he asked for cream and brush so we added a new toothbrush and a new tube of Colgate to the list plus some rope. He showed us his pigs and dog with no name, his house and smokehouse where he was drying his squid for the Nukualofa markets and the absolute delicacy smoked squid heads which command a real premium. If those Japanese seafoodies in Tokyo could get a direct supply line going with Kelefesia, Moses would be onto a real winner and if Richard Branson could see this island P reckons its better than his Necker Island in the Caribbean. But this island belongs to Moses and his brother handed down through 4 generations when it was gifted by the then King George the 3rd of Tonga (they call all their Kings a local name as well as George due to their 18th century fixation with the British Royal family). Truth be known Moses' great great great grandfather probably gave his daughter to the King and the island was the payment !!! Tutt Tutt B wants P to edit that out.



Morning Arrival off  Kelefesia Island

Kelefesia Anchorage



Paradise Found - Kelefesia



Ditto

Resident 'Moses' canoe on beach

'Moses Camp' drying octopus for market

09 July 2007
Nomuka-iki Island, Tonga
After lunch we sailed the 25 miles north to Nomuka-iki Island and anchored 200m off the island in another nice anchorage but nothing as spectacular as Kelefesia. Just 1 mile to our north is another larger island Nomuka where Tasman, Cook and other explorers visited to stock up on fresh deep spring water and fresh produce. Cook visited this anchorage on each of his 3 voyages sometimes staying as long as 5 weeks giving his crew well earned r & r in a perfect tropical setting.
One night was enough for us as we were invaded by squadrons of mosquitoes intent on biting throughout the night irrespective of burning coils and sraying campaigns waged by B.
Next morning rowed ashore to walk on the beach and take in the fauna and bird life and a beached Korean squid boat before departing at noon on 20 mile passage north to Ha'afevu Island.


         
Nomuka-iki Island off-course fishing boat

 

Skipper with his late dads walking stick

Divine blue water anchorage Nomuka-iti Is
maybe Cooks Endeavour anchored in this spot too ? 





                               

We are now anchored at Fa'afevu Island following a stunning motor sail in warm and sunny conditions passing reefs (some with high crashing waves and blowhole driven spray) and yet more islands including two volcanoes off to the west, one (extinct) rises 1000ft in a classic conical shape out of the sea. The other named Tofua is more pancake shaped and not as tall but is very active with steam blowing.  Flames are apparently sometimes evident from this volcano at night and we have it 25 miles away on the stern so will look out for action tonight. Interestingly Tofua is the island off which the 'Mutiny on the Bounty' took place where Fletcher Christian and the mutineers put Capn Bligh and his officers in a longboat and cast them adrift.


Sailing waters Kingdom of Tonga


Tonight anchored off Ha'afevu we had sundowners aboard the British yacht 'Moonfleet' and were joined by another couple from the Coromandel off their tiny 28 foot yacht 'Dayspring'.  There is another kiwi yacht a day away named 'Desire' from Bluff with a family of 5 stoic Southlanders aboard. So we are not the only cruisers out here on the edge. We all communicate on the VHF (close range) or Single Side Band (long range).

If you navigate with Google Earth you can see where we are and where we are headed. Forecast for tomorrow 10 knot ESE Winds 28/29c Temp and with some luck our first fish as we try to commence fish killing operations with Alfs kit.
ps. no activity from the volcano last night.

11 July 2007
Pangai Island, Tonga
A really low island surround by large lagoons. The town of Pangai is the capital of the Ha'apai Group of islands and the third most important town in Tonga with all the government department offices in the heart, a dusty main street and a handful of shops with the fire station at one end and the district high school at the other. The town sits beside this quant little enclosed dock area within which the local fishing fleet and the visiting yachts are moored. The local island roll/on roll/off ferry (fondly known as the green vomit) rocks up every few days which attracts the locals as the biggest show in town. To top the scene off pigs and piglets roam and root all over the parish day and night with barking and fighting dogs in the night signalling another pig has met the jaws of the pack. Going for a walk at night we will need a spotlight because there is no street lighting.


Pangai Town Harbour

Med Moored Pangai

Ferry with the technicolor name

 We watched an All Black / Springbok game Sat night in the Mariners Cafe, we had 11 kiwis in our group, (boosted by the arrival of the Southlanders), 2 Brits (who backed the Boks), the cafe owner was a Yarpie (with a Polish wife) and a handful of others of unknown origin who clearly did not recognise the oval ball.

Next day being Sunday in Tonga absolutely nothing is happening on land or sea. The kids are not even allowed to swim, no boats go out, lots of church services with the bonus of melodic singing drifting out to the anchorage. When some children passed by later in the afternoon B turned the sound up and played them some old Maori songs that they could relate to and we finally got some animation going on the sabbeth.....how naughty Musketelle.

There are a surprising number of boats here - the Ha'apai's being among the lesser visited areas of Tonga, most boats going direct to Vava'u. The primary reason being lack of shelter from all but the SE and NW winds in Pangai's small harbour. We had one squall at Pangai where we had a spot of bother and had to up anchor and pull out in a hurry to avoid hitting the rocks with the rudder. We were Med moored again and being the last boat in had to settle for the worst spot meaning we could not drop our anchor in the best position so that when the squall arrived we were left with no option but to pull out and swing off the anchor for the night, but with the harbour so small we were vulnerable and in the way of the ferry. Luckily 'SY Lotus' a Dutch yacht departed so we were able to take their spot..

We are now anchored off Ha'ono Island 12 miles north of Pangai and have just been for a dusk snorkle and bat watching expedition. The bats here are big in size and number. The activity as they head off on their night foraging is impressive. We will be here until 10 or 11 tonight and then do a night sail north to the next group, Vava'u.



Magic Sunset waiting to sail north to Vavau

Well must go, have to email for a weather forecast. Pis sleeping until 2200. We will then sail out and once clear of land B will have a sleep for a couple hours.

29 July 2007
Hello and Goodbye from Vaavau, Tonga
Vava'u is the main tourist and sailing area in Tonga, full of cruising yachts and lots of charter yachts. The main town of Neiafu sits on a landlocked lagoon which is an old volcanic crater surrounded by high hills This anchorage is known throughout the Pacific as one of the best hurricane holes allowing yachts to anchor here year round.  Sunsail has a large permanent charter fleet here to. The key attractions of Vava'u are the huge number of idyllic anchorages with superb snorkelling and diving and the whale watching due to its proximity to the deep Tonga Trench just to the east.



Neiafu - capital of the Vavau Group 

A typical Vavau limestone islet

Swallows Cave Vavau

We spent 2 weeks in Vavau losing ourselves in the island ways and enjoying the settled tropical weather. We have moved between anchorages and have found some classic snorkelling spots and are getting a couple of swims in each day. The coral reefs and fish life is stunning and we are in awe at the beauty. Our outdoor shower on the aft steps of Musketelle works a treat providing a freshwater rinse every time.

Its now 2 months since we left Auckland and we are in planning mode for departure for the next leg to Fiji. We have filled our water tanks with hard scaly Neiafu water (and as luck would have it immediately after that there was a long tropical downpour which could have contributed nice rain water - but that's the breaks). We are planning to go into Neiafu today to fill our diesel tanks with duty free fuel which is available to departing vessels. Finally a quick run around the local markets for fresh vege and bread and we will then clear customs and immigration and be on our way to Fiji. We are headed for Savu Savu on Vanua Levu in northern Fiji a distance of 450 nautical miles NNW of Tonga. This will be a tropical sail between 18 and 16 degrees south of the equator so should be a pleasant cruise. The first 300 miles is open water then we enter the Fiji Group and the final 150 miles is among the reefs and islands. Once we are officially cleared from Tonga we will sail to the most westerly anchorage in the Vavau group and have a good nights sleep. Barbara will take her seasick pills and then on waking we will be off. Weather permitting of course.....



Evidence that the skipper really is getting in to island ways...
in his lava-lava surfing on the laptop in saloon.
A zillion miles from the other life !!