Aboard Dignity (Lagoon 420) Blog

We had absolutely no reason to stay any longer in Denaru so as soon as we were both awake we left. The Fiji marine forecast had a strong wind warning with easterly winds of 20-25 knots. That had put some folks off but we were keen to go. One can always reef down in strong winds. That being said, we also anticipated some wind shadow from the mainland.

Having left the harbour we were soon in a fresh breeze and were sailing along on more or less flat seas. Could it get any better than that? It didn’t. The anticipated wind shadow soon appeared and left us with 2-3 knots of wind from the west for the next 2-3 hours. We had no choice but to motor. When the wind finally found us it was strong. We were glad we’d left a reef in the main as the wind was now in the forecast range.

On the way we’d been in contact with Dreamcaper as we had a planned rendezvous with them. Boree had overheard us on the radio and we were soon in contact with them. Unfortunately their plans had them heading south down the group to which we’re heading so we’ve missed our chance to meet up with them.

We approached the area of the Manta Ray Resort from the south making our way through the cut that separates the island of Nanuya Mbalavu from the island to the east. The resort is so named after the manta rays that frequent the pass to our north. Some of our friends have had a great experience here with the mantas while others have waited many days and missed out.

The anchorage was pretty packed when we arrived. There clearly had been some excitement as many people had just returned and on questioning the boat next to us the mantas were in town. Without rushing and endangering ourselves or the boat we anchored Dignity as quickly we could, dropped the dinghy and headed around the corner to see if we could join in. By then the action was over and we no success finding the mantas.

Back at the anchorage the boats were turning and some were leaving. We were now too close for comfort to one of the other boats so we raised the anchor and dropped it where we now had more room.

In the evening Portia and Steve from Dreamcaper joined us for dinner. We first met them back in the Galapagos last year. They’d left their boat in Tahiti and carried on this year ahead of the main 2011 puddle jump fleet. Our meeting up will be fleeting as they too are on their way to Australia via Vanuatu this year and will be leaving Fiji by the end of the month.

We’ll hang around here today and hope to catch the mantas. An hour or two before high tide is supposed to be the best time. As high tide occurs at at 2:33pm today this should work out well. Fingers crossed.

After doing a wash and having a delicious breakfast of toasted raisin bread we took the kayak ashore to explore the island to the south of where we are anchored. The beach to the west looked more interesting but Helen didn’t like the look of the surf – perhaps remembering our experiences in the surf in Costa Rica where the waves were much, much bigger. We ended up on the beach immediately to the south of our anchorage and dragged the kayak up into the bushes.

We walked to the east end of this breach then back to where we’d left the kayak. From there we climbed the rocky promontory separating our landing beach from the beach to our west. From the top of this rocky outcrop we had a fantastic view of the beach ahead of us as can be seen from the attached picture.

The way down from here was a little too steep so we headed south to the island high point before finding a way to descend and head back to the beach. Along the way we kept our eyes open for a cave the two fishermen had mentioned the previous day. They’d said that the cave was where visitors could leave a sevusevu offering if they were unable to give grog otherwise. We peered into a few places but nothing struck us as being a proper cave. Along the way we could occasionally hear goats bleating. At one point we ran into some baby goats and at another we found some bones.

Eventually we did find the cave in the next rocky outcrop and nearby was what looked like a small grave but turned out to be the place where grog could be left. In fact someone had already left some grog sealed in cling film although it was hard to see as it was pretty small.

From here we continued on westward and traversed the sandy spit that took us to the large rocky outcrop ahead of us. As it was now near high tide waves would occasionally make it up and over the sandy spit as we made our way across.

We went no further. We stopped for a while sitting on a rock to take in the place. It really is an island paradise.

Heading back we decided to scramble around the outside of the rocky outcrop that separated the beach we were on from the beach where we’d left the dinghy. It was wet and slippery but had plenty of hand holds so we made it round without a problem. As we were on this section, the other boat in the anchorage left waving goodbye. Now we had the place to ourselves. Not that we wanted rid of them but the place was extra magical having it all to ourselves. We crossed our fingers hoping it would stay that way.

Back on the boat we read the rest of the morning. An hour or so after lunch we took the dinghy to the reef that sat between us and the shore to our south. It was pretty good too. I’d taken my Hawaiin Sling to try out. I did spot a small lobster but it was saved by my ineptitude with the sling. The water clarity varied from place to place but was certainly better beneath the surface. We agreed afterwards it would be a good place to try out the hookah.

After another brief rest I took the kayak ashore to the beach to our west where I collected firewood piling them in a small nook amongst some rocks towards the east end of that beach. We’d had one boat visit the bay only temporarily so we approached the evening with the place to ourselves.

Around five we both went ashore with our two waterproof bags packed with towels, pans, torches, sausages and beans. Ashore we lit the fire and built it up. Once it was going well we walked west to the end of the vegetation on this section of the island to sit and watch the sunset. This took about half an hour. It was one of those perfect moments just sitting there, watching the sun go down, discussing and comparing shapes of the twisted pieces of wood around us.

Once the sun had set we made our way back to the fire which had now died down to embers. I popped a few more twigs on to liven it up before putting the frying pan and saucepan on to cook the sausages and beans. It turned out we’d forgotten the plates so we ate out of the pan/saucepan sticking the sausages into rolls and bread. At one point Helen thought she’d got sand in her food but it turned out later that one of her teeth had broken. This may necessitate a return to the mainland sooner than we anticipated but this is not clear yet.

After we’d eaten we piled more wood on the fire. We sat on the beach warmed up by the fire as the night settled in. Helen was again getting worried by the waves. As darkness fell the sound of the surf seemed to grow. In the light of our dive torches it did seem as though they’d grown. Personally I didn’t think much of them but it’s all in the eye of the beholder.

We eventually packed our bags and tied them to the kayak. We pushed it into the water and shoved off. It was impossible to paddle as well as point the torches so we just paddled out. One wave ‘crashed’ around us then we were out. No problems at all.

Back on the boat we watched another episode of Dexter, watched the stars then retired for the night.

Except for Helen’s tooth, a brilliant day.