atahualpa
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action or later. Please see Debugging in WordPress for more information. (This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home3/aboarddi/public_html/blog/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6114Had some more Skype calls. Got a chance to chat with son John who’d getting on without Ella and Bao. He’s using Skype to stay [...]]]>
Had some more Skype calls. Got a chance to chat with son John who’d getting on without Ella and Bao. He’s using Skype to stay in daily (if not more) contact with them. He seems well.
We also had great chats with the David and Marian on Kilkea, Stuart and Sheila on Imagine and again with John from Sea Mist who’s now recovering from a hip replacement in Singapore. He’s doing well and for once seems to know not to push himself too hard.
It seems they’ll all be up in Langkawa, Malaysia soon. The opportunity to swing by there on our way out of Australia (by plane) and see our friends again is irresistible, particularly with many offers to stay aboard with our friends. Many factors could influence our being able to do this but it’s very high on our list.
We’ve also accepted an invite and made plans to have a Thanksgiving dinner with the Bristol Roses. Sam will come with us and their sons Elliot and Owen will be there. We last saw them in the middle of the Pacific. Also there will be Jack and Jan from Anthem. The song of the sea is truly playing loudly this side of the shore.
We continue to dance a dance of courtship with Dignity’s buyers. We all need to be cautious but we’re making positive steps. Contracts are now signed, deposits deposited and inspections booked.
This morning Helen found one of the buyers’ website – Helene Young. She’s an author as well as a commercial pilot. She has mentioned us in her blog so I must return the compliment. We’ll continue our dance of courtship and hopefully all get together soon.
]]>At lunchtime we went ashore to meet up with and say goodbye to Stuart and Sheila from Imagine. We met up at Big Mammas pizza with them and the Passages, Screams and Jarana’s who are all here in Denarau right now. There can’t be many more 2010 Puddle Jumpers left in Fiji. Like every family, we eventually go our separate ways.
For a quick flashback on our times with Imagine you can click on the ‘Imagine’ category in the left sidebar or at the top/bottom of this message. I try and keep these categories up to date so our encounters with particular boats can be viewed in one go. I just used the link to take a trip back down memory lane.
As ever the pizza at Mamas was good. We stayed some time and had a few lunchtime beers/wine. The goodbyes were said. Stuart and Sheila are flying back home today and will return next April. They intend to leave soon after needing to get to Darwin by July for the Indonesia Rally. That’s way ahead of the pace we’ll be setting so chances are this was our last goodbye. But somewhere in the backs of our minds we hold onto the hope we’ll run into them somewhere.
After the lunch time libations we were neither willing nor capable of engaging in any serious work in the afternoon.
Today we both get on in earnest. I have some maintenance projects to do while Helen will get on with the inside work. It feels a little cooler today so that may help.
]]>Back at the boat Siwa was booked to take the Ossos, Jacksters and John&Stuart (Sea Mist/Imagine) on a dive west of the island. We got ourselves in on the dive. It was a bit far, we weren’t prepared and we also had plans to move west so we killed three birds with one stone and took Dignity around to the west side of the island while we prepared the dive gear.
The other boats followed a short while later meeting up where we anchored. By then we were all ready. Helen stayed behind, Anne went aboard Osso’s large runabout and John and I followed in our dinghy. The surface waters by the dive were very choppy but down below the visibility was excellent as was the dive. The area was all canyons with lots of swim throughs. Siwa did a very good job as a dive master. I know the Jacksters and Ossos who have done quite a few trips with him have been equally pleased. We thoroughly recommend him. If you’re researching for your trip, look up Siwa in the village of Naqara in Ono. According to our dive nut buddies this area exceeds the more famous rainbow reef at the east end of Vanua Levu so we do recommend this.
Once back from the dive we washed down our gear, showered then at lunch. Straight after we set off. We were soon under sail with two lines out. Anne had chosen the lure for the fishing rod which I had prepared a few days previously. Half way to our destination the reel sang. We soon had the head sail in to reduce boat speed and John pulled in the handline to avoid a snarl up. We knew we had a mahi mahi early on as it had a lot of spirit and leapt out of the water a couple of times. I gave Anne the job of bringing the fish in. We didn’t lose it and soon had it aboard. It weighed in at 10 pounds. I tied a knot round it’s tail allowing us to bleed it out in the water behind the boat. As we were a few miles from our destination we left the fish on the back step so we could focus on arrival.
Soon after the catch we briefly spied dolphins in the water behind us. They didn’t approach the boat too closely but one did a flip out of the water to show off. We could see them splashing off into the distance behind us so perhaps they were hunting.
Given the time we left after lunch the most appropriate land fall was the bay west of the village of Daku. With Helen and John at the bow we threaded our way in between the reefs anchoring in very protected and calm waters.
Once we were safely anchored we turned our attention back to our mahi mahi. I lopped of the head and tail which we put into a bag along with some more of the Wahu of which we still have a fair amount. I cleaned the fish and cut it into four steaks. I filleted one side of one of the steaks leaving the other seven halves to Anne. John and I took the dinghy ashore navigating a shallow but vibrant reef to give sevusevu to the headman at Daku. We met the headman, Epi, on the beach. He took us to his home where Epi performed the ceremony. We learned we were the first boat here this year and felt really bad telling him we were only stopping for the night. We know how much the villagers like to hear from overseas people and it was a shame to have to stop by so briefly. I said that Helen and I would be coming back to Fiji next year and hopefully we could stop by then.
Back on Dignity the filleting and clean up was complete and the mahi mahi curry was progressing well. It turned out to be an excellent meal. Fresh deep water fish on the table in three hours. It doesn’t get much better.
We finished the evening off by watching a movie. Despite it being very engaging we all felt extremely tired and failed to reach the end of the movie. That will have to wait.
This evening we’ll be sailing north west to Musket Cove marina west of the main island. It will be an overnight sail so today we’ll be one of relaxation to prepare for the trip. We may move Dignity into the reef area in front of a nearby resort but nothing more taxing is planned for today.
]]>In the afternoon, we had hoped to go diving. All the good spots are on the west coast of Ono. Siwa had gone out with the Osso Blancos and Jacksters in the morning. They’d had a rough time in the area where the winds had shifted to the SW. He had decided that an afternoon dive would be untenable so that idea was scratched too.
However, the day wasn’t a complete washout. The weather was definitely improving. Although we had a few patched of rain, we did have more than a few patches of sunshine which warmed us up. In the evening, a beach party with bonfires and dancing had been planned by the villagers. We all prepared some snacks for the villagers and headed ashore at 7pm. Due to increased winds, the bonfire idea had been abandoned. We were taken to one of the nearby huts where the villagers were all set up. As we approached they fired up their instruments and went into song. I was asked to share the message that when each song started we could select one of the locals to dance with. And that we did.
Grog (cava) was freely flowing. Somehow we decided we would sing them a song in return. However we could not find a song for which we all knew the words. In the end we picked Let It Be. I went back to the boat to pick up some beer to give to the villagers (for which they were very well chuffed) and to print out some lyrics. Our eventual rendition went pretty well I think.
The evening ended with the now familiar Isa Lei being sung. By the time we returned to the boat it was 11pm – very late for us cruisers.
Weather permitting we’re going to have another try for the mantas this morning. We need to make the trip to Musket Cove either this afternoon or tomorrow afternoon. The trade winds are beginning to reestablish themselves so either day should work well for us. The ocean swell is looking better, in terms of being lower, tomorrow and the direction should improve. With the winds also expected to be more easterly I’m expecting it to be warmer. So I’m plumping for a Sunday/Monday overnight passage. The only question now is whether to leave from here or to sail somewhere a little further west this afternoon to improve our wind angle and shorten the distance. We’ll see.
]]>The hike took us through some very lush landscape taking us just over an hour to climb the 338m [...]]]>
The hike took us through some very lush landscape taking us just over an hour to climb the 338m hill. At the top we were let into the vodafone tower complex and shown the equipment comprising a wind generator, a vast array of solar panels, a generator, some power/switch boxes and the tower itself. We were then offered the opportunity to climb the 25m tower which was quite a surprise. Jo, John (Sea Mist), Helen and myself took on the challenge reaching the top of the tower holding onto the lightening conductor for support. The climb was tricky as the tower became narrower and narrower as we reached the top making the space we were climbing in awkward. On the positive side it was good to have something at our back in case we needed to rest. The view from the very top was awesome.
By the time we made it back down and to the boat it was already 1pm. We ate lunch then had a brief nap before going snorkeling. Only it wasn’t so brief and and afternoon disappeared. Unfortunately, earlier hopes of a clearing sky failed to turn into reality. While this was good for the morning hike, we are all beginning to miss the sunshine. John and I prepared for a snorkel but it started to rain so we called it off.
At six, all the boats here headed ashore in our dinghies for a meke – a dance and music put on by the village. We met up in the community hall. Here we were given plates of food that had been prepared for us and some delicious lemon tea. The cava bowl had been broken out and the cava was flowing. We were first entertained by five of the younger men who performed an energetic dance largely sitting down.
After the dancing we mingled with the villagers in the room chatting with them while a group sang Fijian songs. The evening ended with the farewell song Isa Lei.
One surprising thing we learned was that last year the bay had no boats visit and the year before only one. This rare run of southerlies has now brought seven boats into the anchorage which is very rare.
There was mild panic at the end when reports of our dinghies drifting off started circulating. I’m not entirely sure what the problem ended up being. I think one had drifted a short distance. Ours ended up being stuck where we’d anchored it. Because the evening had gone on longer than we’d expected I had a bit of a wade out to it to bring it back to the beach. It had gone nowhere. I towed in Sea Mist’s dinghy who was in a similar spot.
Today we’re hoping to go swimming with the mantas and maybe go for a dive this afternoon. The weather continues to be a bit depressing and the forecasts are not overly encouraging. The villagers are planning to put on music and more dancing this evening so we’re looking forward to that.
]]>As the morning progressed the chop picked up but the weather showed no sign of improvement. On the first sign of queasiness aboard we set off heading for Naqara on the north side of Ono. The prediction was for several days of southerlies so this was our best bet. We set off and as Sea Mist and Imagine had much the same idea, off they went too.
Naqara had not been on our list of possible places to go but this is how it goes. The weather often dictates our actions and that can bring surprises. It wasn’t far to go so soon we were anchored in a tranquil bay, protected from the chop and swell.
Ashore we could see a few buildings but there were hints of more behind. It was now late morning. The three vessels agreed we should do sevusevu but decided to go a little later in the day.
Aboard dignity we rested and relaxed. I did a little handlining and caught a small grouper which was eventually released once all had seen it was possible to catch fish.
After lunch we all (including Sea Misters and Imagineers) all headed ashore to see if there was anyone with whom we could offer our respects via sevusevu.
It turned out there was village of 60 tucked behind the palm trees. We were greeted at the beach by one of the locals, Siwa, and taken to the community hut where we gave sevusevu to the chief via his head man. Here the ceremony was taken quite seriously with long speeches in Fijian followed by the formal welcome into the village in English.
We were then taken around the village by Siwa. The real highlight was visiting the school for the 6-12 year olds. 60% of the students were from Naqara and the remainder from the next village having to board each week. Some of the children were taking a maths exam so we quietly left them to it. In another block the teachers organised the children to give us a presentation. We all shared our names and backgrounds with the children and each of them, in turned, shared theirs. Some were bold, many were nervous. It was all good character building. Then the children sang two songs for us which was a wonderful surprise.
For their efforts Anne handed out the sweeties which were welcomed. We said our goodbyes and headed back to the beach. Along the way we made arrangements for the next day, at least the morning. We have a hike planned to the cell phone tower at the top of the hill. In the afternoon we may go to see the mantas.
Back at the beach the locals were collecting coconuts for us. One chap was up the tree tossing fresh ones down and others were cutting the tops off and giving them us to drink. We’ve not had this done since Tonga so this was all a nice surprise too.
Soon we were off back to our boats. On the beach we met the Jacksters and Ossa Blancos who had just arrived with the same need to shelter from the southerlies. It was nice to greet them again. We’ll be meeting up soon.
Back on the boat Anne and John tried out some fishing. John almost landed an octopus but Anne did well catching three fish with the fishing line. Four if you count the rock fish she hauled in which looked remarkably like a lump of coral.
As the sun was setting I took Anne ashore to give the fish she’d caught the last fisherman to go ashore. The fisherman appeared very pleased with the extra fish as he didn’t have too many himself.
We had a quiet dinner aboard followed by cards which didn’t last very long due to tiredness.
The new day has started with better weather. The water is very calm. The skies are a little cloudy which is perfect for our walk. Should be a good one.
]]>The winds did pick up coming from more or less right behind us. We had the headsail out for a while to get a bit more speed while we assessed how much the wind may strengthen. It didn’t get any stronger so we furled Helen’s favourite sail, the Code Zero. That allowed us to shut the generator off but we still used the electrics to make a half decent speed south. Then we were overtaken by some very wet weather with very variable winds so we furled the Code Zero and went back to motoring. By the time the squally weather left us we were close to the pass through the reef so we only used the headsail to carry on to our destination.
The best surprise of the day was to hear Sea Mist on the VHF hailing Jackster (but not getting through). We were soon in contact with each other and soon realized we were heading for exactly the same spot. Not only that, Imagine were not far behind. It didn’t take long before we’d agreed a pot luck aboard Dignity that evening.
Needing protection for the evening against the continued northerlies we had all chosen the southerly side of Buliya to anchor and there we did.
We heard later from Jackster who were also heading this way but hadn’t the time to make it to Buliya before the light dropped.
John and Stuart had already been ashore for sevusevu so we all piled into the Dinghy shortly after arrival to head ashore to offer our sevusevu. We were taken to the village elders by a big chap called Bill (we learned later there was someone else called Big Bill) who were sitting in a house quaffing cava. They accepted our sevusevu with much formality. I got the feeling they were more into something else, perhaps the cava, but maybe some discussion so our treatment was brief. We told about the mantas they can take us to for which they charge a fee. It’s a little unusual compared to our recent experiences but we can’t deny people a chance of an income. We said if the weather permitted we’d like to see them.
Bill then took us round the village. We were surrounded by about 10 small children eager for the small sweets I’d brought. They held our hands and swung from our arms when we let them. We had to wait out some rain before returning to the dinghy. Kidding around I offered the last round of sweeties to them if they heaved the dinghy into the water. Surprising all of us they managed it. I do like to encourage a good work ethic and they earned it.
By 6 O’Clock we had everyone aboard for a very jolly evening. Except for bumping into Sheila in Savasavu once, we hadn’t seen the Sea Mists or Imagines since New Zealand so it was great to catch up – especially to hear first hand Imagine’s harrowing experience getting to Fiji.
By cruisers midnight we were all pooped and retired to our various vessels.
Overnight the winds have reversed and the anchorage is getting bumpy. The weather is not promising for today. The obvious thing to do is to head over to Ono and take protection on the north side. I think this is where Jackster is. We’ll take a view on whether or not to do the mantas today in poor light or try for later.
]]>So here’s [...]]]>
So here’s today’s local forecast.
Squall warning. Waves may rise rapidly during squalls. Friday: Northeast 20 knots rising to 25 knots gusting 35 knots this morning. Changing northwest 20 knots this afternoon, then easing to 15 knots this evening and to 10 knots tonight. Squalls of 45 knots possible until evening. Moderate sea becoming rough for a time this morning, then becoming slight this evening. Poor visibility in rain, with some heavy and thundery falls until evening.
If we were out at sea and had no choice and this came down on us we could deal with it. We wouldn’t like it but we’ve done it before. Does it make sense to leave land with this happening? Easy answer. No. In all good conscience I cannot set sail into possibly dangerous weather while we are close to shore.
So we probably won’t leave today. We’ve got to let this one pass. We had planned to fuel up and check out early morning. I will at least delay this until we get a longer read on today’s weather but as I said, chances are we won’t leave today.
Looking out to tomorrow it’s not looking so good either. The low pressure system to our SW is now projected to come a little further north than yesterday’s forecasts were suggesting. This puts a more northerly component into the winds we can expect over the next couple of days. We would have to sail extremely close to the wind to make some decent northing. Yesterday the seas were flat. We know this from the folks who motored up from anchorages on the coast. I don’t mind sailing close hauled on flat seas but not those kicked up by squally weather. So, if tomorrow’s winds remain just west of north (as they are currently predicted to be) tomorrow won’t look good either.
But this is all on a hair trigger which is this low to the SW. If it stays a little further to the south that is all we need to kick us up northwards. So now it’s a waiting game.
That was the weather. Now the news. I’ll summarize.
Customs were notified of our probable departure today. Paul arrived. We borrowed a car from Phil and drove to Opua for lunch and fresh food collection. In the evening we went ashore for dinner at the yacht club. A few more of the puddle jumpers have arrived. Two new comers to Opua were Callisto and Boree. Nice to see them. Everyone was talking about the weather of course and possible plans for leaving. There were many opinions and all were good to listen to. Also there were Imagine, Passages, Paleides, True Companions, Blue Penguin, Avante, Curious and many others. I totally violated my no drinking night before passage rule. It doesn’t seem to have mattered.
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Yesterday we did have plans to go sailing but given the latest reversal in the weather we stayed put and did some final, final prep. A brief bullet list of what we did :
Laundry Vasalined dodger/sail bag zips Inspected all shackes and cable ties (preventing pins unwinding) Inspected [...]]]>Yesterday we did have plans to go sailing but given the latest reversal in the weather we stayed put and did some final, final prep. A brief bullet list of what we did :
I spent a couple of hours aboard Imagine in the morning helping out Stuart while he performed some work atop the mast. It was nice to chat to Sheila while we provided support to Stuart. He was changing bulbs on his anchor / tricolour lights and found some corrosion in the wires which needed fixing.
There really isn’t a great deal more to be done today. We will surely think of a few things but generally we should get a chance to relax. We will do one final supermarket pass today for fresh veg.
Based on the very latest forecast we’re aiming to refuel and check out of NZ tomorrow morning with a view to set sail around midday. We may have to motor up the bay before the winds turn but that’s ok as we need to get into clear water to run the water maker and top up before we leave. The bay here is still brown from the run off from the recent deluge. Not the sort of place I want to run the water maker.
Finally, we received some form of entertainment yesterday watching a small yacht being salvaged. As a sober reminder of the conditions we experienced last weekend, this smaller vessel had been overwhelmed by the conditions and had sunk with just the top of it’s mast showing. A floating crane was used to bring it to the surface where a strong pump was used to pull the water out of the insides and float it.
]]>Tuesday it was sort of back to normal in a [...]]]>
Tuesday it was sort of back to normal in a way. I managed a fairly typical 2 hour run to drop off trash and pick up a package from the chandlers. Typical in that it really should have taken 10 minutes but I kept bumping into folks and “hello” leads to “bloody weather” and then time flies. With a reasonable part of the day left we tackled a few important issues. Two were leaks made apparent during the recent deluge. Gone now is the leak via the mount on the forward starboard shower hatch. Gone now is the leak from the handles to the stern locker hatches, the starboard one in particular being, I believe, the root cause of the bilge alarms last weekend. Last job was to mount the man overboard pole securing it to the horse shoe float. That way, if someone goes overboard we can throw it in the water. The swimmer can see the flag/pole and find the float. Those left aboard can see the flag/pole and find the swimmer.
In the evening was a pot luck dinner for the fleet of cruisers stuck in Opua. We ended up sat at a table with the Imagines and Callypsos joined later by John from Passages. All good company. We left quite late.
So. The bloody weather.
The model forecasts available yesterday provided no inspiration at all. The huge high pressure system well to the east of us seemed immovable and creating a traffic jam of systems out our way. The Delos boys are stir crazy and have a notion to leave today and head east before heading north. A bold and brave move in my opinion but I can understand the move.
Knowing the models to be in a volatile state demands close attention to how the solutions are evolving. And this morning I see a glimpse. Perhaps a chance to leave on Friday. Low pressure systems are doing the tango south and west of us. One of them is now looking to take and hold a position just off the west coast on NZ bringing northwesterly winds Friday afternoon followed by westerlies. If we left then we would get a day and a half of good sailing before encountering a line of high pressure spots with confused and light winds. This would require careful threading through and maybe a little motoring. Beyond this we would be into south easterly flows which would put us back into decent sailing conditions. The final obstacle would be a low pressure system over Tonga way which could cause a combination of opportunities or problems depending on your destination and how it evolves. My overall synopsis is that its looking good for those heading to New Caledonia, perhaps a good chance for those Fiji bound and a bit chancy for those bound for Tonga.
In about 3 hours we get the next model output. I’ll shake the cup and read the tea leaves again then.
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