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.

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