2010 Revisited

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

and a very

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2010 has been a year of some incredible distances and certainly some more incredible memories for the two of us aboard the good ship Calypso.  As we see out the end of the year in New Zealand, we can look back at all the many amazing places and remember some wonderful friends and times.

The following collages of pics are a whirlwind photographic reminder in a nutshell of some of those moments.  For us, we can't believe all that we've seen and done and are overwhelmed by the sheer experience. As we stop here for a while, we can reflect back on so much.

San Blas Islands

Panama

Galapagos

Marquesas, French Polynesia

The Tuamotus, French Polynesia

The Society Islands, French Polynesia

The Cook Islands

The Kingdom of Tonga

Our  "Casita"  back in Panama

As the year draws to an end, we'd like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a wonderful Christmas and all our very best wishes for 2011.

Land of The Long White Cloud

Greetings from New Zealand, known to the Maoris as Aotearoa, the Land of the Long White Cloud.

We’ve been here a week and are still anchored outside the tiny village of Opua on the northeast coast of North Island. At a latitude of 35º 18’ south, it is the farthest south I’ve been in my life. Even the tip of the Cape of Good Hope is only 34 degrees. However, someone should inform the Kiwis that it is now December, summertime in the southern hemisphere and should, therefore, be warm. But warm it is not. In fact, living on the water is next best thing to freezing. We’re bundled up in every bit of warm clothing we can find and I can’t wait to get somewhere where there are some shops so that I can buy a pair of fluffy slippers.

We’ve actually seen and done very little in the few days we’ve been here. Firstly, it was a case of trying to catch up with some much needed sleep. Then our dinghy was out of commission for four days so that curtailed most explorations. But there’s also the fact that it’s just too damned cold to jump out of bed in the mornings to get up and go. I’m afraid my get-up-and-go, got up and went.

We did, however, time things well when it came to a Meet and Greet day put on by the incredibly cruiser friendly town of Whangerai just south of here. We were picked up by a luxury bus to drive the hour and a half trip through beautiful scenic landscape down to Whangerai where we were met by various people in the yachting industry. We were taken around a few yards and haul-out facilities, shown where all the significant boatie-type services were to be found around town and then treated to a fabulous dinner before briefly stopping off at a supermarket on the return trip to Opua. I’m sure a few of you are thinking, what’s so great about being shown around boat yards etc, but you’d have to be a yachtie cruiser to understand. This was all invaluable information as we will be taking Calypso down there to haul out and we now know what to expect. Strange as it may sound, these days I would rather browse around a chandlery than a dress shop, but a good supermarket still tops this list, followed closely by a bookshop.

In the tropical latitudes where we have been for the past six years, there were always early sunsets and very short twilight hours. There, as we watched the sun go down, if we blinked, oops, it was dark. Now that we are so far south, the days are much longer and twilight goes on forever. I must confess that I rather prefer this as the late evenings are still bright. However, I suppose the negative side would be the short days during the winter months but we won’t be around to experience that.

It looks as though we’ll be sticking around here a little longer than we had originally anticipated as Paul has had to remove the faulty windlass (that thing that picks up the anchor and chain) and the faulty wind charger (the whirly thing that creates our electricity). He’s also got to pull our autopilot apart to see why it gave up on us midstream. Fortunately, there seem to be all the right people around here to look into these so that makes it all fairly simple. And even more wonderful is; they all speak English! (Well, sort of). No more battling with trying to make ourselves understood with a dictionary in tow, incorrectly pronounced words and hand signals.

Now, off to seek out warm slippers.

A Milestone Achieved

Our First Sighting of Land - New Zealand!

 
Sunday evening just as the sun was setting, Calypso tied up to the quarantine dock in Opua, New Zealand. We're here! From the very beginning, we had always dreamt of the day we'd reach New Zealand and now we've achieved that milestone.

Rounding Cape Brett into Bay of Islands

We can't claim to have had an easy passage. The first few days were beating into the wind and heavy seas. Maybe, one day I just might get to understand why the wind is ALWAYS on the nose in such conditions or too far up the backside to fly the gennaker in calm conditions. Whatever happened to a nice fast beam reach?

The rough conditions must have been to blame as while we were having our breakfast on Thursday morning, "George", our beloved auto pilot system, gave up the ghost. Now, the demise of George might not mean much to most landlubbers, but it is a major dilemma in our lives especially on a long passage. Paul pulled the system apart, cleaned everything and reassembled again, all in tossing seas, but to no avail. George would not reawaken. 

Foot Steering (Hands were too cold)

We had less than 200 nautical miles to our destination which meant that we should be arriving some time on Friday afternoon, however now, we were forced to hand steer the entire time. As we'd already had four nights of watches, we simply couldn't contemplate non-stop at the helm. After a full day of it taking turns every hour or two, (and you've got to know just how damned cold it was out in the cockpit), we gave up and decided to heave to for the night. This enabled us to get a bit of a rest but the downside was that we lost 17nm in the wrong direction and it took us half the morning to get back to the starting block. The winds and currents against us made it impractical to motor against them so we spent the next day tacking back and forth, only managing to progress a mere 35nm before we hove to again that night. Not exactly an impressive distance.

Paul's Catch of the Day

To make an overly long story short, eventually conditions improved so it really was rather pleasant out there. We were entertained by dolphins playing in the wake of our bow and the comical activities of all the albatross and petrels trying to catch our dragging lures or diving for the fishy guts of a tuna we had caught. In total, we hove to for three nights and made good time on our last day when we thought we'd have to go on for a fourth, so all's well that ends well.

Wonderful sights of Albatross

Opua is not really a town from what we can see, it is a marina and official entry port set in the back of the Bay of Islands. The Bay of Islands can only be described as magnificent. A beautiful entrance to what we've always known to be a beautiful country. And we even had a welcoming dolphin escort just before pulling up to the quarantine dock.

And officialdom here? What an absolute pleasure it all was. Friendly, efficient, welcoming and just ever so painless. We knew that they would confiscate certain food items but it wasn't nearly as bad as anticipated and they were just so very nice about it all. 

Now comes the time for some serious boat work. Poor Calypso is feeling somewhat bedraggled and she is suffering from leaks in every quarter. What needs to be done and what we can afford to do are two separate issues but we know we have to haul out for bottom work and try to address some of the more serious items. At the same time, we didn't come all the way to New Zealand to labour solely on the boat; we are really hoping that we can tour around to see some of the sights of these beautiful islands.

It is possible to buy a second hand car here on a buy back basis so we'll be looking into that as an option once we've had a chance to investigate. As today is our first day, we'll find our feet a bit first before making any major decisions.

Wednesday Night Racing Through the Anchorage

As a PS to the Minerva Reef issue, it appears that things have been happening during our trip down here. Firstly, the news went out to Tonga and New Zealand. Tonga is reportedly irate and New Zealand actually sent out a plane to investigate, communicating with one of the other boats affected. It is rumoured that the issue will now be taken up at the United Nations. All this over a circle of reef that doesn't even stick up above sea level! I personally think that the Fijian patrol boat was out on a training exercise and, as it was full moon and the reef is full of lobster, they wanted it all to themselves to reap the rewards. If that is the case, they were extremely stupid to have made an issue of us being there. They could have anchored away from us, said nothing and still collected the lobster without any repercussions. It seems that we'll be following this little saga for a while yet.

Now for some catch up sleep.

En Route to New Zealand

Minerva Reef proved to be a rather interesting stopover. As we were preparing to leave the following morning, two other sailboats arrived in the lagoon. No sooner had they settled in when we were called on the radio by a military-looking vessel sitting just off the entrance to the pass. Without identifying themselves, we were questioned as to who we were, where we were from, where we had most recently checked out and where we were headed etc etc. 

We were then informed that we were in Fijian territory and were anchored illegally and must, therefore, leave immediately. Before long, a second vessel appeared outside the reef. When we had checked out of Tonga, we had been told that Minerva Reef was in Tongaan waters so we were now a little confused. They finally identified themselves as the Fijian Coast Guard and as this was their territory, we must leave or be arrested. As we were leaving anyway, it wasn't so much of an issue but we felt for the other two boats who had obviously looked forward to a night of rest. 

That day, I mentioned the encounter on the radio net and it now appears to have started a bit of an international issue. Tonga are definitely laying claim to the reef but these chaps were Fijian so... We'd heard that the Tongaans and Fijians weren't exactly the friendliest of neighbours and this could well sour relations further. A fellow cruiser already in New Zealand is making enquiries so it will be interesting to follow up.

We are now just a couple of hundred miles away from our destination and having a rather torrid time of it. It's been pretty rough out here and, therefore, a tad unpleasant. Also, it's freezing! I have great similarities to an Eskimo right now and it has nothing to do with skin tone or facial features but rather in the clothing I'm wearing. For six years, we've had warm clothing buried in the bottom of the boat somewhere and this has all been brought out again: socks, hats, gloves, boots, fleecy underclothes, foul weather gear, blankets and duvets. The water temperature has dropped from our usual 28-30ºC down to about 15ºC and we've still got another 200 nautical miles to go southwards.

I saw my first albatross today. Just a juvenile but what a wingspan! Other boats ahead of us tell us that there are quite a few around now so I will keep my eyes peeled whenever I dig up enough courage to poke my head out into the cold air. 

I remember all those bumper stickers at our yacht club back home saying "I'd rather be sailing". Well, I must confess, at this stage, I'm thinking of wearing a t-shirt with the slogan "I'd rather be gardening!" Once we arrive on terra firma, I know I'll soon forget but right now, digging up weeds certainly has a certain appeal.

Tonga to New Zealand

After two months, we have finally left the Kingdom of Tonga heading southwards toward New Zealand, another major milestone in our travels.

Tonga was a terrific stop but, sadly, we now have some very tragic memories of our stay there. A wonderful young Swedish lady, Alessandra, whom we had only recently got to know very well, developed a sore which turned septic and within a few days, she died of blood poisoning. We reeled with shock while trying to come to terms with this news and, of course, her partner, Per, was absolutely devastated. Such a vibrant and beautiful person had been taken away in what must have been some of the best years of her life; far too young to even contemplate. Just a few days before, we'd been out snorkelling together, full of life, full of fun. It just didn't seem possible. They had been dubbed the Viking and the Mermaid and now the mermaid was gone.

We had actually checked out of the country that very day but stayed on in the hopes of offering some support. Otto and Lily aboard Vagabond were absolute pillars of strength for Per while desperately trying to sort out the legalities and complexities involved in having her body returned to Sweden, not an easy task. Alessandra, you were a very special person and will be very sorely missed.

After a couple of weeks, we moved out to another anchorage. The fact that we had booked out of the country meant that we shouldn't be showing our faces around town weeks later so we resorted to giving ourselves another name when calling on the radio and staying clear of any officials. We used up another week or so doing some snorkelling and the usual maintenance that seems to be forever part of our cruising life. 

It was now time to move on. An overnight sail took us down to Nomuka'iki Island in the Hai'pai group where we stayed only a couple of nights. After having been in absolutely flat calm anchorages for a couple of months, this seemed almost impossible. It was extremely rolly but the snorkelling was excellent so it was still a worthwhile stopover. We had seen a couple of humpback whales cavorting on the trip down and dozens of spinner dolphins in the anchorage: a sight which never becomes tiresome.

We decided to give the main island group of Tonga'tapu a miss and head off southwards. We were already running almost a month behind schedule and were told that there was a good weather window opening that should get us all the way down. However, true to form, there was something along the route that just HAD to be visited. 

In the middle of absolutely nowhere, miles from anything, lies a couple of atolls known as Minerva Reef. These are not like the atolls of the Tuamotus that had little (and some not so little) islands dotted around the reef. There is nothing but reef, no islands, no trees, no rocks, no nothing. Just breaking water washing over a coral reef way out in the southern Pacific. If you can, check it out on Google Earth. As I type this, we are anchored at 23º 37' 437S and 178º 53'919W in six metres of water with nothing to see but ocean for 360º around us. Quite awesome.

Despite the fact that as we get further and further south and the water is getting cooler and cooler, I was persuaded to get in to have a look around. Chilllllllyyyyyyy: but incredibly crystal clear with lots of large and beautiful fish. I have to confess that I didn't stay in very long as it was a rising tide and the current washing over the reef was a bit more than I could handle. Paul stayed in just long enough to catch us a nice grouper for dinner.

Next stop: NEW ZEALAND! And so ends the route known as "The Coconut Milk Run".

Fantastic Tonga

View from one of the few high points in Vava'u

We've now been in the Kingdom of Tonga for a month and are absolutely loving it. As I write this, we are being dumped upon by an awful lot of rain but we have experienced some great weather as well. The season is now changing to the summer weather which brings more rains and, of course, the concern of cyclones. This is a La Nina year so predictions around about indicate that cyclones could come a little earlier. Fortunately, we can get some very good weather reports and predictions via radio and our on board email service.We had checked out of the Vava’u group with plans to sail down to the Ha’apai group further south but somehow haven’t managed to drag ourselves away yet.

Tonga is most certainly a jewel in the South Pacific. It is the oldest and last remaining Polynesian monarchy and the only Pacific nation never brought under foreign rule. It is made up of 171 coral and volcanic islands of which only 36 are inhabited. When we arrived in the Tongaan waters, we first visited the most northern group of islands called the Niuas where we anchored in Niiuatoputapu’s lagoon. The Niuas are only three islands and so remote that supply ships only visit a few times a year.

The Vava’u group lies 160 miles further south comprising of 60 very picturesque islands. We have stopped at quite a few anchorages and found the entire region to be wonderful cruising grounds with picture postcard islands, beautiful waters, corals, sandy beaches, rocky bluffs and incredibly friendly people. The entire nation is often referred to as the Friendly Islands and for good reason.

Within the Tongaan waters but off to the west, are several uninhabited islands where volcanic activity is prevalent. Islands often surface then sink only to erupt again later on. Definitely not recommended cruising grounds. Earthquakes are another regular feature in these parts. Almost every day on the radio, we hear of rumbles a few hundred miles away ranging from 4,5 to 6,5 in intensity. However, here in the established islands, life is more settled and it appears as though cyclones are the only concern.

Life is simple and the people very religious. On Sundays, no sporting events may take place and it is unlawful to work or trade. As visitors, we are asked to respect this and not show signs of working aboard our boats. Tonga is a traditional country and its customs and morals reflect its heritage. The mode of dress is very conservative and it is illegal for anyone to appear topless; women always cover their shoulders. When “dressed”, both men and women wear long skirts and ta’ovala or waist mats. This traditional garment is made of woven pandanus and wearing one reflects a sign of respect to “God, King and Country”. On formal occasions, it would be unthinkable to appear without one. In Niuatoputapu, we noticed that they were worn as part of the school’s uniform.

Wherever we’ve been, the locals welcome us warmly. They have many “feasts” where we would also be welcome and they love you to visit their schools and attend church services. Unlike much of the Caribbean, for people who have so little, their extended hand is one of greeting as opposed to that of begging.

I received some photos of whales taken by fellow cruisers when we were anchored in Palmerston so, although out of sequence, I've included them here to give you some idea of how close they came to us and just how big they are as well.

PHOTO GALLERY:

Tongaan Dress (not my photos)

These photos of humpbacked whales were taken in Palmerston

Helping to dig trenches for the first telephone cables in Palmerston

Vava’u, Tonga

The Vava’’u group of islands is definitely an idyllic cruising ground. Although there are plenty of shallow coral reefs around the group, the majority of the good sailing areas are between islands in very deep waters. These are quite different to the other South Pacific islands we have visited to date in that they are rocky, not tall but rise straight up out of the sea. However, there are still plenty of beautiful beaches and coral reefs around for us to explore.

Paul likened the islands to blocks of chocolate floating out there. I know the photos will not do justice to the overall impression we are getting but they should give some idea.

The little town of Neiafu was our first stop in order to check in after our trip from Niuatoputapu, a very boisterous overnighter. The winds weren’t that strong but the seas were very choppy due to some huge swells coming up from Australia where they have been experiencing some rather foul weather. We were flying along at over 9 knots on a tiny bit of headsail and a triple reefed main.

After a couple of days in Neiafu, (see the photo of our anchor as we tried to extract ourselves from this spot) we headed out to visit a few of the outer islands, the first being a little bay with a lovely sandy beach. We boarded a friend’s catamaran one afternoon who took us to Mariner’s Cave, an underwater cave where we had to swim down a couple of metres then another four or five metres to get inside. Although I know I can hold my breath for a reasonable amount of time, I was a tad nervous especially thinking about coming up too early and not reaching the air inside. Paul, on the other hand, can hold his breath for many minutes so made it look so simple. I watched everyone else doing it so took a deep breath and headed in. Inside was incredible with the only light being the sunlight coming through the underwater opening – very spectacular.

Later, we went over to another cave called Swallow’s Cave. We didn’t have to swim into this one, we could actually take the dinghies inside but it was still a magnificent sight. Then we swam around to another small underwater cave nearby and went inside; by now I was an old hand at this stuff.

Our next anchorage had possibly the most pristine coral reef we’ve ever experienced. The colours were magnificent, the fish life abundant and the experience amazing. Apparently it had been totally destroyed in a cyclone 20 years ago but is now recovering very well. It was certainly a thrill to see this especially after seeing the devastated reef in Moorea. We could hear the whales nearby while underwater but they were a little elusive as we never saw them.

There are fabulous whale watching trips available where tourists are taken out to swim with them, usually with a mom and her calf. Unfortunately for us, this is beyond our budget so we have to be content with seeing them on the surface from our deck. Even though we saw plenty of whales while living in Simon’s Town, it is always such a thrill to have them come near our floating home.

The next anchorage was just a short distance away where the chaps were hoping to do some spear-fishing, however true to form, ‘dinner’ wasn’t playing the game and they returned empty handed. The next day, they set off again in Imagine’s dinghy, dropped anchor and were just preparing to get into the water when a huge wave came out of nowhere and flipped the dinghy, dumping them all unceremoniously. After trying to retrieve their belongings, swimming/paddling back and salvaging the outboard, they were all too exhausted to give it another go that day. Pasta for dinner AGAIN! Well, maybe next time.

We’ve just returned to Niafu for Saturday’s market day and then will head on off to a couple more anchorages. With any luck, we’ll be eating freshly speared fish on a couple of occasions.

PHOTO GALLERY:

Niuatoputapu

 

This lovely anchorage, with a well protected inner lagoon,houses some of the friendliest people one could imagine, starting with the three laughing and smiling customs and immigration ladies who came on board to clear us in and to welcome us to their island, right down to the little children all around.

And all this happiness prevails despite the fact that one year ago this month, the villages of Niuatoputapu where literally wiped off the island by a huge tsunami, leaving them with nine deaths and almost no buildings or infrastructure. The islanders are still living in tiny plywood huts donated by the Red Cross but we never heard a single word of complaint, just a little sadness for those whom they lost.

We were welcomed by Jamie and Lucy of Bamboozle as well as Stuart of Imagine, the latter who we hadn't seen since they left Panama some time before we finally departed. After a quick kip to try to catch up on five nights of next to no sleep, we were enjoying a dinner aboard Bamboozle catching up on all the news from them and Stuart.

The following night, the ladies from the village weaving group put on a wonderful feast for all the cruisers and demonstrated their skills, a very fine form of weaving mats which is one of the islands main sources of revenue.

A walk down to the next village took us past many indications of the damage to the homes but the school was new. We had to visit the local bank and government offices which were all housed in tiny portable-type huts and all run with typical island style casualness but still they got the job done.

We hadn't expected the snorkelling to be very good as the tsunami would have damaged the lagoon reefs however, just on the outside, we found it to be very pretty, a myriad of fish and certainly lots of evidence of newly formed and colourful coral heads. Some time ago, we had watched a BBC documentary that showed how the Tongaans are growing coral to reconstruct their damaged reefs. I doubt they'd got as far as doing that here but it was exciting to see that this is a country taking care of its resources. It also showed how they have turned their whaling industry from killing them to swimming with them, now a major a tourist attraction.

We're shortly off to the Vava'u group of islands 180 nautical miles further south so will send more news from there.

PICTURE GALLERY: