Rhum Punch's Travel Notes
By: Captain Alan Hand
Passages
Specials
Galapagos
French Polynesia
Marquesas
Society Islands
Cook Islands
Tonga
- Pangia - Little Pig, Little Pig, Let Us ...
- Tofua - A Volcanic Journey
Fiji
- Suva - Exotic Curries at good prices
For recent stories visit Pete and Karen Denholms Travel Page some crew that have documented their travels!!
Galapagos
Hello all,
I didn't have a chance to send out another email before leaving Galapagos as we were doing lots in our 5 days there and ran out of time. After swimming with the sea lions, marine iguanas and spotting blue footed boobies and the red throated frigate birds on San Cristobal we sailed on to Santa Cruz where the main town is. We set the trolling rod and halfway over in calm seas we got a strike which peeled off line in a lightning streak and busted off. We re-rigged and 10 minutes later the reel screams again and I was right beside it so grabbed the rod. I got the biggest thrill in a long time when a 6'-7' marlin leaps out of the water and dances on its tail just a hundred yards off the stern. This it did 3 more times before it figured out it would be easier to just swim off and take the spool full of line with it.
There must have been a temperature gradient there where 2 current meet as baitfish were jumping all over, birds were diving and occasionally a big fish would jump right out of the water. We reset the rods once more and 5 minutes later the other rod is peeling out. I was hogging the rods that day so went to work once more. It took 1/2 hour and sore arms but we finally dragged a 36 lbs Yellowfin Tuna on board. It was way more than we could eat in the next few days so at the anchorage we gave half of it away. In the day and half at Santa Cruz we did some sight seeing to the Charles Darwin Research Station (giant land tortoises) and the others went to explore the volcano vent tunnels nearby. On Sat. April 22 we sailed past Isla Isabella which was the last we saw of the beautiful Galapagos.
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Passage to Nowhere
We had bought a full stalk of bananas (about 150 in the bunch) in Santa Cruz and as the seas got rougher it was a constant challenge to keep them from banging around in their hanging spot on the stern. It is now 20 days later and we have little over a day left to make land fall in Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas. Only about 650 live on this island and there is no airstrip so very few tourists. We are all looking forward to climbing up to the waterfalls for fresh water showers of unlimited supply. I'm also looking forward to trying Breadfruit, Taro and Poisson Cru (Polynesians version of Sushi) - some of the local foods. I have been trying to learn some Tahitian as although these are French islands they all speak Tahitian among themselves and French is a bit like a foreign language to many of them.
I just interrupted my letter to help Pete pull in a little blue fin tuna. Steve gutted this one as we will bake him whole. We are presently running down wind in about 25 knots of wind and making about 7 knots of boat speed. This is not the most comfortable point of sail as we do a lot of rolling from side to side. Some times I have hold onto the computer to stop it flying off the chart table. We have the sails set wing on wing (the jib on one side and the main on the other) so when we catch a fish we have to roll in the jib very quickly then round up almost 180 degrees so the wind stops the boat to make it easier to get the fish in. Our food has worked out very well as although the fruit were gone 2 weeks ago we still have lots of onion, potato, cabbage, carrot left. The only thing we are low on is flour (we have done lots of baking), parmesan cheese (lots of pasta meals) and syrup (too many pancake breakfasts).
After Fatu Hiva we will visit Tahuata, and Hiva Oa in the Marquesas before sailing on to the Tuamotu group of atolls (also part of French Polynesia). We plan to stop at Ahe and Rangiroa atolls to snorkel and explore. The fish life is said to be incredible here. The thing to do is to be dropped in the water outside the reef pass just after low tide and get "washed" into the lagoon along with rays, sharks, turtles, all kinds of fish and other exotic sea life. The Rangiroa lagoon is 78km long and 24km wide and just like a huge aquarium. We are very excited about starting the island hopping phase of the voyage after the nearly 6,000 km passage from Panama.
I will never forget the many unique experiences in Galapagos but it is really the south pacific islands that are my prime interest and that stage is just beginning. We are now very close to half way across the Pacific to Australia so as far as traveling is concerned we just have to repeat what we have just done. Of course there will be many more stops and the pace will slow down a little. After Tuamotus we go to Tahiti, Moorea, Raiatea, Bora Bora, Cook Islands, Niue, Tonga Islands, Fiji group, Vanuatu, New Caledonia then on to Queensland with landfall expected in early August in Bundaberg or somewhere near there. There we will meet up with family and friends. Some will leave the boat and others join it for the cruise up inside the Great Barrier Reef. This will include the Whitsunday Islands and to Cairns near the end of August. That is about as specific as I can be at this point.
I could go on forever about the sunsets, night skies, life on board and fishing successes but will have to leave that for another time. Suffice it to say that I don't feel any disappointment as my long time dream becomes reality.
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Fatu Hiva
We are now on our way to the Tuamotus after spending 5 days in the Marquesas. Not long enough but we packed in a lot seeing three of the ten main islands. We arrived at Fatu Hiva late in the day. We spotted it soon after midday and as usual it takes another 4 or 5 hours after sighting land to make landfall. All of the Marquesan Islands are volcanic cores that rise spectacularly from the sea. Fatu Hiva is very lush green and we were spellbound watching it rise up before us after 21 days of empty horizon. It was almost dark when we anchored in the Bay of Virgins.
There were about 14 other boats already in the bay and there wasn’t much room left as the depth drops off quickly. We could just make out the outlines of the stone spires that mark each side of this very scenic bay. We were all up at first light next morning to witness the incredible mountains, stone spires 800’ high, lush vegetation and palm trees on all three sides of our anchorage. To the west the Pacific Ocean lay placid and hardly a ripple in the lee of the trade wind passing over the island. The crew was anxious to go to the village of Hanavave in the same valley and see what they could so Duane ferried them in with the dingy.
We were planning to hike the 10 km over the mountains to the other village of Amu further south so we quickly packed some cheese, salami and crackers with our water bottles and were on our way too. We had heard the deep throbbing of drums and were amused to find out it was coming from the Catholic church where many were gathered and were singing in their beautiful rich voices with drums for accompaniment. We had also noticed a Polynesian canoe with the outrigger on one side and about 8 young men paddling it as if racing. Later we found out they do race the other village each day taking turns to paddle the 10 km to each others village.
The hike turned out to be a real challenge as we climbed 2600 feet with probably another 1000’ of ups and downs in between. At one point we were directly above the village and anchorage for a birds eye view. We could see waterfalls way across the valleys but weren’t close enough to them to take a shower. The scenery was spell binding and kept us mesmerized as we climbed with tickers pounding. We saw many coconut, banana and mango trees but the bananas were not ripe, the coconuts too high to reach and the mango season had already passed so at first we were out of luck. After stopping near the top for a snack we started down the other side into the next main valley and found it even more fertile and lush. Eventually we even found late season mangos ripened on the tree, as well as bananas and coconuts. We thought we had found paradise.
Finally we descended to the other village where we could hear many children laughing and playing. Turned out they we in the ocean where a nice swell was rolling in. Quite a few had boogie boards, a couple had surfboards and the rest were body surfing. It took about 2 seconds before we were in with them. They were all very friendly and kept trying to speak in French to us. Duane’s French quickly was reviving so he could chat with them. I just smiled and said "C’est bon, c’est bon!" and they would grin back. All of these people are super friendly and wear flower leis as part of their every day dress. It was the weekend with everything closed but after asking some kids if we could buy drinks they took us to someone’s house where they opened their freezer and brought out ice creams and freezy drinks. Our feet were blistered and we were running out of time so arranged for a boat ride back to our boat. The coastline along there was equally spectacular as the inland views. The fisherman who took us dropped in a hand line with a lure on it as we motored back in his 14’ aluminum dingy and 10 minutes later he was hauling in a nice Mahi Mahi.
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Hiva Oa
We could have easily spent a week here but the next morning moved on northwest to the island of Hiva Oa. It was about 50 miles and later in the afternoon we anchored near Atuona which is the second largest town in Marquesas. We splurged on a restaurant meal that night and all called home to report in that we had made a safe passage from Galapagos. We had run out of propane on the way up from Fatu Hiva and needed to do some reprovisioning so it was time to go shopping. They only sell Butane in different bottles here so I had to buy 2 of their bottles and transfer it by pressurized hose to my 2 tanks which took most of the day as there is a flow restricting orifice on the tanks.
This anchorage had a shower near the dingy dock so we didn’t waste time using it either. The laundry trough next to it was in constant use from daybreak to midnight so we lined up with the other yachties for that as well. The following day we took a 4 wheel drive tour around the island with Pepe and his wife. They speak good English and turns out that he was from the royal family of Hiva Oa but the French abolished their kings (killed most of them at the turn of the century). He was an excellent storyteller and told much of their history, customs and culture. They were cannibals and fierce warriors numbering about 150,000 when the Spanish and later the French came but with mass killing of men, women and children by the Europeans and later diseases introduced to them they are currently down to about 20,000 scattered through the islands, 600 here, 650 there, etc. They are exceptionally friendly, fun loving, always smiling, waving and greeting as they pass each other and strangers such as us alike. A noble and very likeable people.
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Tahuata
Now our 2 days here were up and we moved on to Tahuata only 5 miles south across a channel. Our anchorage here was a palm tree lined, white sand beach with crystal clear water. We had fire on the beach that night and then went night snorkeling with under water lights. Pepe had told us we could pick up lobster that way but we didn’t have any luck with them. I spotted an orange crab with big red polka dots on its back and tried to scoop it into my bag. Pete was with me and trying to get it in as well. He had a thick glove on and the crabs monster claw was trying to nip him so I thought it was preoccupied and tried to grab it quickly and shove it into the bag. In a flash its other pincher had my finger like a vise and no matter how hard I pulled it wasn’t letting go. Felt like my finger was going to come off until Pete helped distract it and finally we had it in the bag. Later we boiled him and the meat was real sweet. My finger is still sore 3 days later but it will heel. Next day we scrubbed the barnacles and marine growth from the hull and prop. It was still a big job among 4 of us. Duane and Steve windsurfed and then at nightfall we upped anchor to move on to the Tuamotus.
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Passage to Tuamotus
We were planning on a 3 ½ day sail but it has been very light or no wind so have had to motor a lot and are traveling much slower than planned. Yesterday we stopped for a mid ocean swim as the wind had died altogether. It is amazing to wear mask and snorkel and see how clear the water can get. Duane and Steve were swimming down 30’+ and at 100’ away they were plainly visible. We spent about ½ hour playing around and I was just getting ready to get out when I spot an 8’ to 10’ shark come under the keel about 4’ away from Duane and I. We both scrambled out in a flash, our flippers didn’t slow us down a bit. Steve wasn’t far behind us but Pete was about 30’ out from the boat and soon he spotted it as well. It was good he didn’t panic but swam quietly to the boat while Karen yelled for us to clear the way so Pete could climb out. Soon we were all laughing bravely and watching it circle around.
We were very aware we are no longer the top of the food chain once we enter the water here. It stuck around for another hour and a second shark came as well. This one was a little smaller and had a piece of rope netting right around its girth just in front of its side fins. The rope was cutting into it and restricting its growth but there was nothing we could do. The big one did try to take a chomp on our rudder but neither would go for anything we tried to bait them with. Unfortunately we didn’t have any fish or other good bait. We got some good pictures and that was it.
Today a big sea bird circled us most of the day but didn’t land. Back before the Galapagos we had a sea gull that landed and perched on top of our outboard mounted on the stern. He stayed for a day and half and let us get within inches of him although didn’t accept any snacks we offered. We put the rods out today as we were out of fish. Just as I am finishing cooking lunch on the BBQ the rod beside me jerks and I see the splash out behind the boat. At first glance it looked like a barracuda but one more leap and the dorsal of a sail fish was plainly in view. This one we fought in and Duane planted the gaff and hoisted him over the rail then had to wrestle with him to keep him from flipping back over the side. Soon we were all covered with blood but he didn’t get away. After pictures we measured him at 67 inches. Duane did the filleting and now we have plenty of fish again.
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Day in the Life Of<?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p> </o:p>
I have been meaning to tell about a typical day of life aboard Rhum Punch so this is as good a time as any to do it. We are still keeping a 24 hour watch as we travel even though we don’t see anything the majority of days. Coming from Galapagos we only saw boats or ships on 2 of the 21 days at sea. We are now 2 days out from Marquesas and haven’t seen anyone except Mr Shark! The watch rotation is three hours on 12 off starting with myself, Duane, Karen, Pete then Steve (alphabetical) so it gives plenty of time for rest and leisure. Today I had the 6am to 9am watch and later will do the 9pm to midnight watch.
This morning I saw Venus rise behind the new moon and they were still visible for a few minutes as the sun rose partly hidden in a cloud bank. It then cleared off and was a hot sunny day. At night we take our awning over the cockpit down so we can admire the universe and see any weather changes coming. By mid-morning we put it back up to protect ourselves from the heat of the sun. The fickle wind switched several times today so we had to change sail plans several times. We use a wisker pole to hold the jib out to the side and twice we had to switch sides with it. At the last anchorage we changed our jib to the older and larger genoa as the yankee cut jib that has served us so well is showing a lot of signs of wear. It was damaged from flogging in too little wind sailing from Aruba to Panama and this we had repaired in Colon. Unfortunately there were other weaknesses and these have started to make them selves apparent. The main sail has taken a lot of abuse and has stood up well. We only have one small hole in it. The jib sheets (ropes) are starting to wear at the points they pass through the end of the pole that holds them out to the side. Most days I check things over and do adjustments and minor repairs. Duane has been a great help to me. Everyone also does a day of cleaning and a day of cooking on a five day rotation.
We each select the menu on our cooking day and today was Karen’s cooking day. We usually try to do something different so don’t have many repeat meals. As time has gone on we have all got a little bolder with our creations. For lunch Karen made a salad from Cucumber, canned peas, grated carrot, sliced onions, cubed cheese and mayo to go with our wieners on pieces of baguette which is going moldy already. This is what I was cooking and toasting on the BBQ when the sailfish hooked up. For supper she did a "fruity meatballs" recipe from our only cook book on board and substituted slices of kubassa sausage for the meat balls. A big pot of rice went with this and it was a hit. Since we are just over half way to the Tuamotus we splurged with a chocolate fondue to dip bananas into for desert. This was Karen’s idea as she is a real sweet tooth. We are all very well fed and I am getting tired so will leave off and get a little sleep before my shift comes round. Another day has ended and we are motoring once again.
We were able to sail most of the day but the wind has now swung to the SW right on our nose and since it is light I decided to motor until it swings off our bow. Hopefully this is sooner than later. During the day we are usually reading books, playing card games or just gazing at the sea and clouds as they roll by. The water is still amazingly calm for the middle of the open ocean. That should make it easier for entering the passes into the atolls which it is recommended we do at low slack tide. Most of the passes have 6 to 10 knot currents with standing waves at the flood and ebb tides and this is too dangerous to navigate in. The low slack tide is recommended because the channel and the reefs are more visible at this time. Inside the lagoons are plenty of coral heads so it is all eyeball navigation and we will likely have someone up the mast to spot for us. The lagoon at Ahe is 24 km long and at Rangiroa is 78km long so we have plenty of space to explore. We have just arrived in Rangiroa and I will try to find an internet café here to send this. If not it will be a couple of days time when we arrive in Papeete, Tahiti. More news to come.
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Society Islands - Tahiti<o:p> </o:p>
Hello everyone, We have been enjoying the Society Islands of French Polynesia. So far we have spent a few days in Tahiti in the city of Papeete, a couple of days in the very peaceful island of Moorea and now have been in Raiatea since yesterday morning. We took Steve into emergency at hospital here as he had a big infection in his toe that hadn’t cleared up after 8 days. Also his finger was starting to puff up the same as his toe and he started a fever of sweats and feeling dizzy. He is on antibiotics they prescribed now so hope that does the trick. He has no idea what started the whole thing.
During the night sailing over here the wind came up strong finally but then we found we had to do a lot of hand steering to help the wind vane steering. In daylight we found the wind vane steering rudder had snapped or been bitten off so I have just sent off an email to Germany to see about getting a replacement shipped to us. We only can stay here a few more days and plan to visit Bora Bora during that time. We will leave Pete and Karen in Bora Bora and they will catch the ferry back to Raiatea where the boat they will switch to is stored. Clemencia has joined the boat to supplement our crew.
We will be heading to the Cook Islands next and hope the part will be shipped to Rarotonga. These islands have a rugged beauty covered in lush growth of an incredible variety of trees, shrubs and flowers. Many of the locals wear flowers. Pete and Karen have been sending in material which is posted on a website at the address below. It has just been updated as far as Tuamotus and in another week or two pictures will be added. If you are interested check it out for more detailed accounts of the adventures aboard Rhum Punch.<o:p> </o:p><o:p></o:p>
I usually have Duane along with me as my French is very poor and his is getting better by the day. Yesterday he was translating to and for the doctor as Steve was diagnosed. Duane has been on the windsurfer again since a good wind has been here most of the time. After checking in with the Gendarmes (police) to report our arrival this morning we will move out to an anchorage where we can snorkel and swim. Not sure when or where the next posting will be but most places have some form of internet access now so hopefully sooner than later. Take care, Alan and crew.
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Moorea
I have lost track of the last news I sent so if there is any overlap please excuse. After fueling and stocking up on supplies at exorbitant prices in Papeete (the city on Tahiti) we sailed the short distance to Moorea. We had been looking at its mountain peaks from our mooring in the Papeete harbor and were looking forward to getting away from the noise and business of Papeete. The film "South Pacific" was shot in Moorea in the bay we anchored in. Captain Cook had spent time here as well. We dropped anchor close enough to the bank that we tied the stern to a Coconut tree. After removing the husk we devoured several coconuts drinking the milk then eating the meat. In the afternoon we went for long walks, Duane and I one way and the rest another. The variety and lushness of the trees and shrubs were beautiful and I was struck by the sheer peacefulness of the place. We saw lots of pineapples and other fruit and vegetables growing as well. One person stopped and gave us some Grapefruit but we didn't do as well as the others. They arrived back after dark laden down with all kinds of fruit and had left more around the bay to be picked up in the dingy. Up a path a local had stopped them to talk and then told the to help themselves to whatever the wanted as this persons family owned all the land around there. So now we had another stalk of bananas and plenty of Papayas. They somehow missed the Avocados much to everyone's regret.
On the food scene we have also been experimenting with Breadfruit which we bought in Papeete. When I cut it open I found lots of large seeds in it and a sticky substance that clings to everything and is not readily soluble in water. I think it was from the seeds that got cut apart. I cooked some of it in a stew I did in the pressure cooker and found it had a distinctive fruity flavor and was a little stringy. Next Steve used it as topping on a pastry pie and that was a hit with every one. Finally Karen used some of it in a salad which I enjoyed but was not the overall favorite. So ended our experiment with this vegetable that grows on trees and was largely responsible for the mutiny on the Bounty all those years ago.
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Raiatea
From Moorea we sailed on overnight to Raiatea and had a fast and bouncy ride as the wind picked up. During the night the steering got very heavy and the next morning we found most of our auxiliary wind vane steering rudder missing! No one heard any noise so we are not sure what caused it. In Raiatea at the repair yard they said it may have been a big shark that bit it off as this has been known to happen!! It was a jagged break on the piece that was left. Since a replacement could not be flown in from Germany for 10 days I decided to have a spare one made at Raiatea as they do quite a lot of this kind of work. This would save us from having to hand steer the 550 miles to Rarotonga in the Cook Islands where the real replacement was being sent. We did lots of walking here as the marina where we picked up a mooring was about 5km from town where the hospital, gendarmes, internet and groceries were. Steve went to the emergency room to have a toe and finger infection checked out. It had been ugly and oozing for over a week so he ended up with a list of expensive prescription items including a course of Fucidin (antibiotic).
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Bora Bora
From Raiatea we could see Bora Bora and that was our next stop. This is a picture perfect volcanic peak with an outer fringing reef. The peak is jagged, nearly vertical and in the clouds most of the time. The water is crystal clear turquoise/aqua and we had good wind for windsurfing. The 2 boards didn't get much rest. Near our anchorage was a place called the "Aquarium" and here the coral is great and the fish incredible. They are tame and swim up to us in masses. The underwater camera got lots of use here. I snorkeled the same area for 3 days because it was so special. This was the longest we have spent in one spot in French Polynesia and is our favorite so far. The following Tuesday our temp rudder was to be ready so we sailed against the wind back to Raiatea. Of course it was not ready until the next day so we filled the time with fueling up, filling water tanks, stocking up and some got to check their emails.
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Missing Crew
Today we said our good byes to Pete and Karen in Raiatea as they are switching to Tillikum shortly bound for NZ. The last we saw was Pete hoisting the main sail to check it and the wind suddenly picking up. We hope Tillikum never got blown off the stand! (It is currently on the hard in a storage yard). We had spent 2 months on the boat together and it seemed strange leaving them behind. We have a new crew member though to help fill the gap. Clemencia grew up in Maine and has been studying in Colorado. She is fitting in well and has not been sick (yet!). Probably wont as she had a good test leaving Raiatea.
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Passage to Maupilhaa
In the lee of the island the winds were gusting and fluky and got stronger as we got further away from it. At 10 the next morning we were at the atoll of Maupilhaa which was destroyed by cyclone Martin in 1998. Just before this we got a strike on the trolling rod and Duane went to work on it while I doused the jib sail and brought the boat around into the wind. It was jumping around so was no tuna and soon we saw the unmistakable spectacular colors of a large Mahi Mahi. The sea was rough so it was a challenge as we got it closer and it tried to run under the boat. Each time we would pass the rod around the stern which is a lot harder than it sounds in a pitching sea. Then it went under the dingy which we had trailing behind so Duane quickly passed the rod under the line securing the dingy.
Finally I got the gaff into it and got it on board. The boat lurched as I swung it over the rail and it ended up in the cockpit! I should have left it there except the blood makes a mess which later smells. When I lifted it once more to the deck beside the cockpit it flipped off the gaff. Both Duane and I tried to grab it but what with the boat rolling and it thrashing around in about 3 seconds it was back over the side and snapped the line off. All we had left was the blood sprayed over everything to clean up. These are the prime eating fish around here and I could already taste it when robbed. Oh well, next time better luck.
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Maupilhaa
There are currently 27 people living there and a supply ship comes once a month. The pass into this atoll is very narrow and always flowing out at up to 6 knots. Waves wash over the reef into the lagoon then drain out through the pass. The atoll is about 5 miles across and nearly half of the perimeter is composed of 5 Motus (islands). The rest is reef with waves washing over it. At first we saw no signs of life but as we got further into the lagoon we noticed some small boats pulled onto the beach on the main Motu. No other sail boats were there. Shortly after we anchored a local boat came across and Duane chatted with them as I was in snorkeling. They brought a "guest book" which is signed by all the boats that come to this atoll and left it with us.
Duane and I had just picked up 3 large conch shells so he asked them how to get the fish out of the shell. They said he could hang the shells and by the morning the fish should be dangling out or we could just boil them whole and then pull them out. As it was Duane's turn to cook and he had decreed after loosing the Mahi Mahi that we would eat from something he got from the atoll for supper, we opted for the latter. It was some work still to get them out after boiling but we did succeed and cleaned and sliced the meat to add to a white pasta sauce loaded with onion and garlic. Verdict? - chewy but palatable - there were leftovers which is rare on this boat if that says anything. Then a knock came on the hull and the locals were back to give us a tuna fillet and 6 lobster!! We gave them some grapefruit in return and they were off into the darkness.
That night we stayed up late working on our entry into the guest book. There are not many visitors and the preceding entries were quite elaborate so we were not to be out done. We cut out a likeness of the Canadian flag from some red background in a magazine we had on board and stuck it in along with pictures of the boat and a great shot of me windsurfing at Bora Bora. The text was carefully drafted and scribed into the book. Duane added a special thank you in French for the tuna and lobster.
Next day we went to visit Kalami and Sophia and their 3 children. It is a simple hut with thatched palm frond roof and open walls for the breeze to blow through. They showed us a very different kind of crab which was about 18" spread out, blue in color, big claws and climbs coconut trees to eat the coconuts!! Very different kind of shape too - hard to describe. We took lots of pictures of it. There were a whole family of pigs running around and the dogs would chase the piglets and get them squealing blue murder. There were no doors on the entrances to the home (hut?) so they have pieces of plywood to pull across them. If they got left open in no time the piglets would be inside. Inside the floor is dirt covered with white shell grit and crushed coral. They have a couple of solar panels hooked up to a battery for lights at night. There was a satellite dish and TV in the corner but not sure what powered this up or if it was "just the thing to have to keep up with the Joneses!" They gave a big dishful of bird eggs from a neighbouring Motu and we left them to explore the island.
At another hut they had a big tray filled with water and baby turtles. They told us they had hatched and were raising them until they were big enough the birds were not a threat to them. At another place a big turtle was tethered to a palm tree so he could swim a bit or come onto the beach. The men work at producing copra (dried coconut meat) and some pearl farming. The rest of the time they fish, collect eggs and enjoy their little unspoiled piece of paradise. The wind was blowing really hard so we decided to stay an extra day. The windsurfing was extremely challenging in these conditions and a number of "rescues" had to be staged. The one time Duane took the dingy to get Steve who was a long way downwind and an hour later they were not back and when I checked they were almost out of sight downwind. I could only find them with the binoculars. I got Clemencia to raise the anchor and we motored across the rough lagoon to pick them up. The outboard was playing up once again but as we got nearer they got it going.
The following day it was still blowing but it was time to leave anyway. We took a detour however to the Motu with all the birds nesting to stock up on eggs and ended up collecting 12 or 14 dozen. There were 4 or 5 species nesting here but we weren't able to find out what they were other than one was from the Frigate family and another looked like a Boobie with blue beak and big eyes. Duane got a bunch of pictures of the birds and their big, fluffy, gangly chicks with beaks wide open and burping up whole fish they had just been fed by momma or poppa. It was sad to leave this very special place that very few people ever see.
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Blown Away
The wind was blowing pretty and we were out windsurfing!! I can get going a good 15-20 KM/h across water is pretty fast!! To much fun!! Steve is trying to bring the board back in because Clemencia got stuck way down wind. This big storm comes in and it is raining so much we cant even see him anymore. When it dies down I go out to get him in the dingy and once I get there we cant get the stupid thing going again. During our fix job to extend out the outboard handle the cut of switch at the end it has this tendency to get jammed so it always trying to turn off!! Couldn’t get the stupid thing going still, and cant figure out what is wrong with it!! Dads getting all worried on Rhum Punch, so he starts the engine, pulls up anchor and comes out to get us!!! There's shallow coral heads all over the lagoon, some only a couple of feet under the water and boys from all the pearl farmers that string them all over the place to float around!! And dads trying to rescue us in the middle of them all before we get washed up on the reef, dumped in some huge breakers (waves) and drown!! But we got back to the boat alright!!! Good story ehh!!!! J
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Passage to Rarotonga
We made good time for about 12 hours and then the wind petered out to nothing and it was time for motoring. The passage to Rarotonga should take us 3 days with decent wind but now it is at least 4 and maybe 5 days. The rudder will be patiently waiting for our arrival to pick it up. The temporary one has been working without a problem while the wind is blowing which is the only time we use it seeing it is part of the wind vane steering system. Yesterday morning I set the rods out and went below. Half hour later I went back up and the rod was facing straight back but line was limp and tangled and twisted. Something big had obviously grabbed it and broken it off. Now we have two new rigs made with colorful plastic squid skirts on the lures as this seems to be the favorite of the Mahi Mahi. We make up our own lures and rigs from supplies of hooks, swivels, wire leader and decorative squid shaped "skirts". This is just as well as we would have run out of gear a long time ago. The one Penn reel has stripped the gears in it so we will be looking for parts for it when we get to civilization. The drag system on another is just about fried from the many blistering runs it has been subjected to!
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Record Catch - 20th of June 2001
We caught a 45 lbs. Mahi Mahi today, record catch for the boat!!! Same as a Dorado fish in Spanish. I was sleeping when dad got it on the line and was waken up by him stomping up and down the deck. It broke the reel halfway through pulling him in so we had to pull it in by hand the rest of the way!! I got up and gaffed him with the big fishhook. Could barely get him out of the water and dad had to help get him on deck. The anchor locker was open so we dropped him in there to try and pin him and he still managed to get some of the way out!!! They look hilarious! They have this big humungous forehead! The thing was a monster. We clubbed him with the hatchet like ten times and he was still twitching!! Dad got one of the hooks stuck in his pants and was lucky it wasn’t his foot!!! That thing would of caused a mess thrashing around. He did get his toe in his mouth some how and got it cut on the fish’s teeth. Sharp as daggers!!! I caught a little one a few days ago but when we got it on board it went into the cockpit and went we pulled him back out he flipped off the deck, broke the line and got away!!! We were so mad!! Ohh well We make nooses now, to put around there tails when we land them, so they cant go anywhere, anymore!!!
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Rarotonga
We are nearing Beveridge Reef and at this point are over the deepest part of the ocean in the world. The Tongan Trench is about 10,000 meters deep. What makes it incredible is that there are underwater mountains high enough that we can anchor on top of one (if we are lucky). The Pacific is the largest of the oceans being able to contain the area of all the worlds landmasses combined with some space left over. It is even more amazing in volume - all the volumes of the worlds landmasses could be buried in it with enough space left for a second Asian Continent (Everest included) and it would still swamp them all!
We left Rarotonga 3 days ago after spending 3 days there. This is the only one of the 15 Cook Island group that we had time to visit and we found it a pleasant friendly place. The replacement rudder was waiting at the bonded warehouse at the airport and was no problem to pick up. Since food is much cheaper here than French Polynesia we had deliberately run our supplies low and did a major reprovisioning here. We also had time to visit a couple who were previous neighbors to Dad and Mum in Perth. They live at the family group of homes on the east end of the island in one of the prime spots. Duane helped set up their new computer and we took them some of the Mahi Mahi we are still struggling to finish. They gave us a watermelon and some oranges to take with us. Very friendly local people.
Late on Saturday we received word on the radio that Cook Islands were on a Tsunami Alert. Pandemonium broke loose in the harbor among the cruising boats as they ran around like chickens with their heads cut off. Trouble was the information was so lacking that no one could plan. It apparently stemmed from volcanic or seismic activity in Peru but that was all anyone knew. Everyone was asking us if we had heard anything more as we were getting prepared to put to sea (but we were doing that anyway since we had unexpectedly received customs clearance that afternoon). "What are you going to do" they asked, so I said we were not worried as we are heading out to sea and Tsunamis only bother you near land or in shallow water. This didn't help their predicament!
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Passage to The Reef
This leg of the voyage has been like most others in that we had to motor part of the way. For 36 hours then we have had wind out of the south at about 20 knots and romped along at up to 7.5 knots (10 knots surfing a swell). The wind has dropped now and we are motor sailing at 6+ knots so we can arrive at the reef in decent daylight. Yesterday, very early morning, Duane discovered a foot of water in the bilge with the bilge pump running and loosing ground. A quick check indicated the pump motor was running but not pumping water. This was the first clue to some thing amiss as we have got to know our energy consumption so exactly that Duane knew something was running that shouldn't be. I think it had been running for about 10 hrs before we found it. Lucky we had a spare pump and in the middle of the night we are down in the bilge swapping pumps. Duane did most of the work. I pulled the cover off the faulty one and discovered a wad of hair had wrapped on the shaft so thick that it broke the impeller away from the shaft. The hose from the wash area in the head drains into the bilge so this was the source of trouble. The bilge was also coated in oily soap scum - I guess this is why we mostly wash on deck.
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Beveridge Reef
It's 2 days later and we have just left Beveridge Reef first thing this morning. As we approached it 2 days ago we were eight miles out and could see nothing. All I had was coordinates and notes indicating that the position of the reef had been also reported 3 miles NE of this position and a third report that it was 4 miles SW of the coordinates! Luckily visibility was good and there were a few hours of daylight left never-the-less I was a bit uneasy. The radar couldn't pick up anything either. Then I climbed up a few feet beside the mast and could just see the rigging of a boat sticking over the horizon and the first hint of the white of breakers on the horizon at about 4 miles distance. A few minutes later the radar picked them up also and we could see we needed to go about 3 miles north to round the top of the reef. We thought the boat was moving at first but as we got closer I put the binoculars on it and discovered it was a fishing trawler tilted high but not dry on the reef!
At the north end of the reef I spotted a plume of a whale's spout and its back as it broke the surface. Out came the cameras and it kept surfacing until we were as close as 50' sailing by. It was a humpback heading up from the southern ocean for the winter vacation. All we knew was that the passage into the lagoon was about half way down the west side of the reef so we were impressed to find the coordinates were right off the entrance on the west side. We came from the east so had to go around. Funny enough was that both the other reported coordinates are right to - they are just opposite ends of the same reef. There was a strong current running out but we had no difficulty entering and motoring across the lagoon to anchor in 10' of sand just 100 yards inside the reef where the wrecked Tuna boat lay on its side. After anchoring we put the dingy in the water and rowed over to it. The "Nicky Lou" is Seattle registered and about a 60 footer. It was spooky crawling around on it as it doesn't look that it has been there that long.
Next morning we jumped into the crystal clear water to give the boat bottom a scrub as the weeds were starting to sprout on it again. After a while I swam across to a coral head and a giant moray eel stuck its head out and looked like it was snarling that it was his reef and I better leave it alone. When I returned to the boat I noticed a 8' Black Tip shark circling in the distance. Visibility is easy 100' here so it was no trouble pointing him out to the others as they scrubbed the boat. Closest he would come was about 10 or 12' and we got some good underwater pictures then the others went across to see the Moray Eel. The shark then got bold and circled in closer finally coming within 2' of me at which time I decided it was time to get out of the water. I looked across to where Steve and Clemencia were snorkeling and they were starting to come back to the boat.
Soon Clemencia sticks her head up and calls out to me "He's following me" in a nervous voice. I could see his shape right behind her and was a bit worried myself. I called for her to swim slowly without splashing and to try and keep her eye on him. Steve later said he was so close to Clemencia he was sniffing her! They made it back OK but we decided to see if we could catch him. By the time we rigged up hooks on some cord he was nowhere to be seen so I jumped back in again and splashed around and in no time there he was with a smaller mate! Mahi Mahi was on the menu as we baited up and dropped the hooks in beside the boat. In a minute he was on and hauled up beside the boat. I took a knife to try and finish him off before they pulled him on board but he gave a mighty kick at the touch of the knife and broke the leader and was gone. During his thrashing around we had seen 2 more sharks move in so that was the end of our swimming.
We made up another steel trace and baited up and a few minutes later another big one struck but bit off the steel leader as we let him swallow the hooks too far. At this point we had a vendetta to settle and wanted to try and recover some of the gear we had lost to them. A third rig was dropped into the water and a few minutes later a shark was on. This one really thrashed around and it was a challenge for Duane to gaff it. When he did get it on it went berserk and could not be pulled on board. The heavy duty gaff got bent up so out came the axe and Steve whacked him on the nose a dozen times to sedate him. We then took turns putting the knife to him. Duane finally cut out the set of teeth and we dumped him back in to see if the other sharks would tear him apart. They seemed spooked after that and wouldn't come so close. We never did get any gear back!
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Passage to Tonga
Our whole time at Beveridge Reef there were no other boats or any sign of civilization other than the wreck. We were glad we had stopped to break up the 850 mile passage from Rarotonga to Tonga group and as it worked out the wind was very light while we were there. It would have been very uncomfortable at sea. This morning the wind came up so that was perfect timing. We are currently doing 7 knots close hauled with wind out of the SW. It is Clemencia's watch and the wind is gradually swinging south which puts us closer to the ideal beam reach for sailing.
The next day the wind had swung all the way to the east and started picking up. We took a reef in as it was getting hard to control the boat at the speed we were sailing on a dead run. Within a half hour we needed to half roll the genoa and put a second reef in the main sail. The wind continued to build and 15 minutes later we were back up the 7.5 knots and almost broaching on the swells. Duane rolled the jib most of the way in and put the third and final reef in the main sail. At this point the jib is about the size of a windsurfer sail. In the gusts we still did over 7 knots! We were planning to arrive in Tonga in the Ha'apia group of islands in daylight but with the extra speed we were going to arrive well before daylight so I decided to play it safe and take down the sails altogether. Under bare poles we ran at 4 to 5 knots with the wind screaming at 35 to 40 knots (force 7 on the Beaufort scale). The swells were breaking and leaving great foam streaks. Spray was being blown off the tops of the waves. We could see all this even though the moon was above a solid layer of clouds. Either the moon was bright enough to send some light through them or the luminescence of the breaking water was lighting up the bottoms of the clouds or maybe both.
As it was we still were approaching islands and reefs in darkness. Steve saw a light and woke me to check if it could be land. The GPS indicated we were still about 14 miles out from islands. I hoped it was a light on a boat and not a GPS or chart inaccuracy! I stayed at the ready to start the motor and swing around as we strained our eyes in the driving rain and blowing spray. Every 10 or 15 minutes a breaking swell would send a great sheet of water over the decks and sometimes into the cockpit. Between the rain and spray driving down the companionway, our dripping foul weather gear, steam from our cooking condensing and the sea finding its way through various spots the interior of the boat was dripping wet throughout. As dawn slowly gave its light we could just make out the smudge of an island about 4 miles ahead. We had to get within 2 miles to make a positive identification that we were in the right location for the pass through a barrier reef. By this time the swells were lumping higher and throwing us around making steering difficult.
Duane fired up the radar and picked up what we couldn't see to confirm our position as we approached the pass. I called him up on deck to help me as we prepared to run through it. With the big swells I was afraid it may be breaking across so we both kept harnesses tethered in the cockpit. We could see the huge breakers crashing on the reef both sides of us and then without warning a swell broke right over our stern and filled the cockpit. The boat shuddered under the impact and was sluggish to respond with all the water washing over it. I looked behind just in time to see the next swell towering behind us. This one didn't break but picked us up until the bow was pointing down into the trough and we broke into a surf that broached us. We righted without a problem and the worst was over. Apparently there was current running out the pass against the swells and tripped up the two that got us. The force of them was broken beyond that point and all we had to do was stay between the reef each side of us.
A half hour later we were in protected water and getting ready to anchor off a beach of Uoleva Island. With all the water we had taken on the depth sounder must have got water logged and stopped working. Steve and Clemencia went to the bow to help eyeball us in through the coral heads. When we thought we had about 10' of depth we dropped the anchor with a sigh of relief. So here we are in Tonga. They are the west side of the date line so we skipped from Sunday right to Tuesday with the 24 hour jump ahead. We now have less than 2000 miles to go to Australia with about four weeks left to do it.
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Pangia
A week later and we are slowly approaching Suva, Fiji. The wind has not cooperated (wrong direction and very light) at all and we used up all but our reserve fuel capacity motoring. So we have had to sail as slow as 1 knot but mostly about 2-2.5 knots. Only 60 miles to Suva but it will take the next 24 hours at our current rate.
After arriving in Tonga the wind kept blowing and raining. We went to clear customs but found everything closed as it was the King's birthday holiday. The next day I tried again and it took most of the day as they didn't know who was handling immigration since a July 1st change of government responsibilities. We spent the extra time wandering around the town of Pangai and noticed the proliferation of pigs and piglets roaming the streets and yards along with dogs and chickens. They get very few tourists in this central island group of Ha'apia so it is very quaint and laid back.
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Tofua
From here we sailed at midnight by the full moon through reef infested waters to arrive at the volcanic island of Tofua at day break. There is an active volcano that we hoped to be able to climb. As we approached the 1500' high coastline we saw 4 men climbing down the cliff to a narrow beach. They were waving to us and eventually one of them jumped in the water and swam out to the boat. He told us it was fine to anchor the boat right where we were and that he could guide us up to the volcano. It was very rough with swells breaking on coral lumps so we weren't sure. Duane jumped in with a snorkel on to look at the bottom and find us a snag free patch to anchor on. I was not very easy about leaving the boat in this very exposed and unsafe anchorage but decided to chance it. The dingy ride in was a hoot as we got hit by 2 braking waves which half swamped it and everyone except me ended up jumping out and swimming in while I bravely rowed on with out camera, etc, wrapped in plastic bags.
The men turned out to be boys. The oldest was 26 and the younger ones about 19. They told us there are only 7 or 8 including themselves that live on the island and they grow Kava root to export as well as various other fruit and vegetables for their own use.
The trail turned out to be steep and rough. It was 500 metres up to the rim. The main crater is extinct and has a big lake about 3 miles by 3 miles in it. The vegetation was lush green and thick. Tropical birds called from the tree tops and the view from the rim was spectacular. We hiked about 5 miles around the rim to were the active volcano is grumbling away. We went down inside the rim to its very lip. Every 5 or 10 minutes it would rumbles and hiss and constantly sulphur laden steam was belching out of it. We tossed several large rocks over the lip into it and they just disaapear without a sound - as if the thing is bottomless. We wouldnt have found it without Heamani and his nephews to guide us. We didnt have much time as we had to get back before dark to the boat. I was worried about it as it looked like the wind had shifted and the anchor could have dragged or swells started breaking where we had it. I set the pace on the way back and was well ahead of everyone else. It was a huge relief to me to find the boat safe. As it was the sun set as we got back on board and Duane had to dive the 30' depth to unwrap the anchor chain from coral mushroom shaped lumps by twilight which is very short. At 7pm we were under way and heading on to Fiji.
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Passage to Suva, Figi
The main exicitement since then was last night when the rod started peeling out and Steve took a turn at bring it in. We had left the lure out as we were moving so slow I didn't expect anything to strike especially at night. It was still a 3/4 moon and from the splashing and jumping we guess it was a Mahi Mahi. The day before Steve had lost a big one right at the boat so I was hoping this one was coming onto the boat. It gave a great fight and finally Duane had it gaffed and swung over the side were it went berserk. Steve grabbed the hammer to try and knock him on the head but that only got him going worse. Duane and I still had him lifted high on th gaff but he jumped off anyway and this time flipped into the cockpit with Steve. The fish is still thrashing and the next we know is Steve is down with the other hook through his leg and the fish with other ganged hook still in his jaw banging around like crazy. I grabbed the fish with both hands around his gills and dug my fingers right through to the spine and just squeezed with all my might to take the weight of it and hold it still aagainst Steves leg so it didn't rip his leg open any worse. I was yelling for Duane to get cutters from the tool box to cut the hook off but with a lurch of the boat it amazingly pulled out of his leg. Everyone was in shock and Steve in severe pain. Clemencia cleaned and washed the wound with Hydrogen Peroxide and I got him some Tylenol 3's. Blood was everywhere through the cockpit and down the steps into the cabin. It was a major clean-up while Duane filleted our 4' long Mahi Mahi. This was about 3AM so finally every one went to bed while I stayed up for my watch. We will get Steve's leg checked out in Suva when we get there.
Many of thr places around here were named by Cook, Bligh and Tasman during there first exloratory voyages in the 15 and 1600's. We came through Bounty Boat Passage approaching Fiji. There are many interesting ilands we have passed already but Fiji stricktly prohibits stopping anywhere before cruising boats arrive at their official port of entry and do customs and immigration formalities.
Steve had his 21st birthday yesterday so Clemencia baked a Upside Down Pineapple Cake and we had a little party. It was his cooking day and he insisted on doing it himself. Duane let Steve sleep through the night by doing his watch for him. That was his birthday present to him.
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>Suva, Fiji
We are now about 70 miles from New Caledonia and 900 miles from Australia. Once again we have been forced to motor because for the third day now the wind has been from the SW which is the direction we are heading. There must be a large stationary high between Aussie and NZ to supress the normal SE to East trade winds for this long.
It has been 7 days since we left Suva, Fiji. We found no problems relating to the recent coup and the people we asked said it was over sensationalized in the news. Their racial problems have been brewing for a hundred years now so nothing has changed. We actually found the East Indians very friendly and helpful. On arrival dustoms, immigration, health inspector, quarantine office, agriculture inspector, port security and harbour masters office all had to be visited and forms filled out in triplicate. I didn't get finished with it until the second day. The first morning when we anchored Steve noticed a brown and yellow banded water snake swimming beside the boat. It came around to where the dingy was floating at the stern and swam with its head up as if trying to decide if it was worth slithering into. We kept an eye on it to make sure we new where it went and finally it gave up on us and swam off down wind.
The market is very large and interesting in Suva. Food and most things are very cheap here. Restaurants are excellent and so cheap it would cost more to buy the food and cook it ourselves. Obviously we ate out most meals. For example a huge dish of curried lamb with rice, vegetables and a drink was Fijian$2.50. At current exchange this works out to less than US$1.20!!
At the marina where we went on Saturday to fuel up and take on water we met an old geezer from Pickle Lake in Manitoba. How he ended up sailing around the world I've got no idea. Bob Shuttler is his name and he is in the Guiness Book of Records as the oldest person to single handedly sail around the world. He was 76 when he finished. That was a couple of years ago and now he is on his second circumnavigation. He needed to copy some of our charts so we helped him out and he gave us some wild rice he had brought from Pickle Lake and had taken around the world.
His 20' sailboat was washed over the reef at Torres Strait near Cape York and he patched it up and kept right on. He said he left from Mexico to cross the Pacific and didn't stop until Frederick Reef just before the Great Barrier Reef. He only stopped there because his steering system had broken down and he had hand steered for 3 weeks and was tired! I asked him why he didnt stop at any of the islands he passed and he replied. "You dont have to worry about the open ocean, its the land that gives me problems - I just aim to stay as far away from islands as possible and then I dont have to worry." Tough old coot if ever I saw one.
We had arrived on a Thursday and by the time I done all the formalities and Duane and the crew had gone to the Australian Consulate for visas it was too late on Friday to clear out to leave. It was not possible to do this on the weekend so we had to wait until Monday. Saturday we stocked up on produce from the market and Sunday I rested and got ready to leave the next morning. I set out at 7:30am to fill out another string of forms and finally by 3pm we were underway heading out of the harbour.
The big hold up in getting cleared out was caused by a Chinese fishing boat that had just arrived at the dock with a dead crew member on board. Turns out he had been knifed by another crew member back near China and the boat had kept right on until Fiji. They had built a coffin and stuffed it into one of their refrigerated storage rooms. I got tired of waiting for the immigration officer to show up and walked across to where a police line had been set up. They had just jimmied open the coffin and put the unfortunate bloke in a body bag. They just about dropped it getting it from the boat to the wharf and caused a commotion when they banged its head on the tail gate of the police pickup truck as they tried to swing the bag into it. The crew of about 30 were all lined up on deck and were being questioned through interpreters by numerous Fijian officials. Finally they were all loaded into police vans and taken away at which time I nabbed the immigration officer and dragged him back to his office.
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Passage to New Caledonia
We had planned to anchor at another mid ocean reef (Conway Reef) about half way between Fiji and New Caledonia but since the wind has been slowing us down I decided we didn't have time. We had also planned to spend a day at a small island close to New Caledonia before going to Noumea for the official clearing in. Since tomorrow when we arrive will be July 24th and having about 800 miles or more to go to Aussie I decided to forgo that also. Actually the weather has been cold with the south wind blowing constantly so we are not so anxious to stop for snorkelling and swimming.
Yesterday I decided it was time to catch a fish again so dropped the lure in the water. Less than 10 minutes later we pulled a small Bonito on board. We steaked it and had half for supper and the rest in fish cakes for lunch today. Steves wound from our last fishing experience has healed up remarkably well.
If all goes well we will only be in Noumea a day before we set out on the last leg to Bundaberg, Queensland. All systems on the boat have been behaving and the motor is still chugging along so considering some other much newer boats and their troubles, we have been lucky. A French boat came into Suva the day after us and their motor and transmission is shot. Back in Rarotonga a very new boat came in with their refrigeration out, generator motor shot and autohelm steering on the blink. Whereever we go boats are waiting to be repaired or for parts to arrive.
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