We had a nice lazy day today - a walk to the local village (where we saw only 1 person but around 50 pigs running wild!) and then back to the boat for some rest and relaxation! We were going to head to a cave in the dinghy for a snorkel but decided lounging the sun was more appropriate - cave tomorrow - maybe!
We had Keith and Dianne from Chriselle over for drinks and had a great time with them - they are as crazy as us!!
Salami and green pepper pasta for tea!!
Wednesday, 29 July 2009
Tuesday, 28 July 2009
29th July, Port Maurelle, Tonga
We headed ashore this morning to collect our washing and buy bread before heading off to explore the many anchorages in the Vava'u island group. Getting our washing back from CocoNet was like heaven - it had been washed, dried and folded and was a very nice treat after hand washing!!
We left the town and motored for half an hour to reach our first anchorage where we wanted to visit a nearby cave. We had lunch and headed to the beach. On the beach we got talking to a boat called Moon Glow who had been interested in our dinghy - there were a couple of New Zealand who had sailed up to Tonga for the season.
From the beach we decided to go and say hello to Chriselle who are friends of Christine Anne and Sea Dove. Keith and Diane are a lovely couple from New Zealand who have been circum navigating for 8 years and are now emigrating to Australia. By the time we left Chriselle it was 7pm!!
Back on Newt we had tea and watched a dvd.
We left the town and motored for half an hour to reach our first anchorage where we wanted to visit a nearby cave. We had lunch and headed to the beach. On the beach we got talking to a boat called Moon Glow who had been interested in our dinghy - there were a couple of New Zealand who had sailed up to Tonga for the season.
From the beach we decided to go and say hello to Chriselle who are friends of Christine Anne and Sea Dove. Keith and Diane are a lovely couple from New Zealand who have been circum navigating for 8 years and are now emigrating to Australia. By the time we left Chriselle it was 7pm!!
Back on Newt we had tea and watched a dvd.
28th July, Neiafu, Tonga
We waved goodbye to Christine Anne and Sunchaser this morning as they headed off Fiji – it was great to catch up with them for a couple of days.
We headed over to say hello to Sea Dove who we had met in Bora Bora and felt guilty because we got them out of bed!!
We headed ashore to drop off our laundry and get some fresh fruit and veg from the market. We had arranged to meet a local craft guy to go to his workshop to see some of his carving work but when we met him in the morning he had a job to do and we agreed to meet again at lunchtime.
We headed back to the boat for lunch and then went back ashore to meet the local guy (Tui). We walked out to his house and workshop and he showed us some of the projects he had in mind. He didn't really have any work to show us but it was amazing to see his house and the views he had.
For the rest of the afternoon I did internet jobs whilst Jonny filled in our customs form for Fiji and then we headed ashore for a drink.
We have hopefully sold our spare dinghy from the UK – we just need to blow it up and check that it is working ok as it has been deflated in the cockpit locker since St Lucia.
We headed over to say hello to Sea Dove who we had met in Bora Bora and felt guilty because we got them out of bed!!
We headed ashore to drop off our laundry and get some fresh fruit and veg from the market. We had arranged to meet a local craft guy to go to his workshop to see some of his carving work but when we met him in the morning he had a job to do and we agreed to meet again at lunchtime.
We headed back to the boat for lunch and then went back ashore to meet the local guy (Tui). We walked out to his house and workshop and he showed us some of the projects he had in mind. He didn't really have any work to show us but it was amazing to see his house and the views he had.
For the rest of the afternoon I did internet jobs whilst Jonny filled in our customs form for Fiji and then we headed ashore for a drink.
We have hopefully sold our spare dinghy from the UK – we just need to blow it up and check that it is working ok as it has been deflated in the cockpit locker since St Lucia.
Monday, 27 July 2009
27th July, Neiafu, Tonga
We headed over to the customs wharf this morning to clear in and were visited by 4 different officials – customs, immigration, quarantine and health! All were very friendly and the procedure was easy.
Whilst at the dock we were approached by a local guy whose daughter makes flags. We have all the courtesy flags we need but he said she would be able to make us a new red ensign (ours is looking abit faded!!). We agreed a price and although it seemed slightly expensive we decided it was helping the locals and to go for it. Jonny was going to the bank to get some money when one of the tour operators advised me not to deal with the local guy because he is expensive and the flags are poor quality so I called Jonny back. The flag guy wasn't happy that we changed our minds but accepted it but said he was going to go to the police about the tour guide that warned us off!!
We took Newt back to a mooring buoy and then went for a walk around town. It seems like a very cute place. We had a walk round the market and bought a yacht necklace each (10TP$ each or 10TP$ for 2!!). The guy invited us to his workshop to see some of his other work so we are meeting him tomorrow.
After lunch Jonny took our genoa over to Christine Anne to fix the UV strip and I did internet jobs.
At 5pm we headed ashore with Christine Anne and Sunchaser to the Balcony restaurant which was a great evening with lovely food.
Whilst at the dock we were approached by a local guy whose daughter makes flags. We have all the courtesy flags we need but he said she would be able to make us a new red ensign (ours is looking abit faded!!). We agreed a price and although it seemed slightly expensive we decided it was helping the locals and to go for it. Jonny was going to the bank to get some money when one of the tour operators advised me not to deal with the local guy because he is expensive and the flags are poor quality so I called Jonny back. The flag guy wasn't happy that we changed our minds but accepted it but said he was going to go to the police about the tour guide that warned us off!!
We took Newt back to a mooring buoy and then went for a walk around town. It seems like a very cute place. We had a walk round the market and bought a yacht necklace each (10TP$ each or 10TP$ for 2!!). The guy invited us to his workshop to see some of his other work so we are meeting him tomorrow.
After lunch Jonny took our genoa over to Christine Anne to fix the UV strip and I did internet jobs.
At 5pm we headed ashore with Christine Anne and Sunchaser to the Balcony restaurant which was a great evening with lovely food.
Sunday, 26 July 2009
25th/26th July, Neiafu, Tonga
Although Tonga is not at 180 degrees it is classed as being on the other side of the dateline so the day started of as Sat 25th and Sun 26th – Jonny is very upset because he feels he has missed some meals!!
We spoke to Christine Anne and Sunchaser as we approached the north end of the island – they are both on buoys at the town and we were looking forward to seeing them when we arrived. As we approached the harbour we radioed the Aquarium Café and got a mooring buoy and Russ (Christine Anne) came out in his dinghy to meet us and show us where it was.
Russ then took us over to Christine Anne for coffee and chocolate cake and Sunchaser came over with another chocolate cake. It was great to catch up with them again.
Back on the boat we tidied the boat up and put it all back to together. Luckily in the squall last night we only broke a baton in the main and we had a spare so Jonny was able to replace it.
We headed ashore with Sunchaser and Christine Anne to have fish and chips at the Aquarium which was yummy!!
We spoke to Christine Anne and Sunchaser as we approached the north end of the island – they are both on buoys at the town and we were looking forward to seeing them when we arrived. As we approached the harbour we radioed the Aquarium Café and got a mooring buoy and Russ (Christine Anne) came out in his dinghy to meet us and show us where it was.
Russ then took us over to Christine Anne for coffee and chocolate cake and Sunchaser came over with another chocolate cake. It was great to catch up with them again.
Back on the boat we tidied the boat up and put it all back to together. Luckily in the squall last night we only broke a baton in the main and we had a spare so Jonny was able to replace it.
We headed ashore with Sunchaser and Christine Anne to have fish and chips at the Aquarium which was yummy!!
24th July, Niue to Tonga
We carried on making good progress throughout the day. The wind eased slightly but without the reefs we were still making good speed. Towards the end of the day the seas had eased off and it was a comfortable sail.
At 9pm the wind started getting up and there was a huge black cloud in front of us so I called Jonny to come and help me put a reef in. We got the first reef in but as the wind was still increasing we decided to put the second reef in as well. Suddenly the wind went for 15 – 20 knots behind us to 35 – 40 knots on the nose and torrential rain. We decide to drop the main as it was out on the preventor and was going to get damaged. For 2 hours we battled into 35 knot headwinds and big seas doing less than a knot at times – not a very pleasant experience!!
By midnight the wind and seas had eased but the wind was still on the nose so we carried on motoring towards Tonga.
At 9pm the wind started getting up and there was a huge black cloud in front of us so I called Jonny to come and help me put a reef in. We got the first reef in but as the wind was still increasing we decided to put the second reef in as well. Suddenly the wind went for 15 – 20 knots behind us to 35 – 40 knots on the nose and torrential rain. We decide to drop the main as it was out on the preventor and was going to get damaged. For 2 hours we battled into 35 knot headwinds and big seas doing less than a knot at times – not a very pleasant experience!!
By midnight the wind and seas had eased but the wind was still on the nose so we carried on motoring towards Tonga.
23rd July, Niue to Tonga
We went ashore in the morning to check out, pay for our mooring buoy and spend any remaining NZ$ in the supermarket. After lunch on the boat we headed off on the 250 mile trip to Tonga. As we were heading out of the bay a whale swam passed which was amazing. We were making good progress with just the main up and the dinghy was in the way of the spinnaker pole which we would have needed for the genoa and also the UV strip on the genoa had started to come unstitched so we decided to just sail with the main. It was a rocky and rolly evening with some good wind and we were making good progress despite having to put 2 reefs in the main.
Thursday, 23 July 2009
22nd July, Niue Yacht Club, Niue
We headed ashore at 9am with Andy (Calysta) to pick up our hire car. We had an amazing day driving round the island - the road around the island is 68km long but it took us all day to get round because there was so much to see. The caves were fantastic, the rock pools were stunning and the chasms were great. The only downside was we tried to find the Vaikona Chasm which Lonely Planet said was a 1km, 20min walk. It talked about 2 pools you could swim in and how you could explore further if you were brave. It said that you followed the red arrows to the cave and that a local guide was essential - we thought the guide would just be if you wanted to explore the caves further than the initial two pools so headed off following the red arrows. After an hour of scrambling over coral rocks and scrambling through jungle we arrived at the entrance to the cave which was a narrow gap into a gorge. Jonny went down to explore and said that it was spectacular but that you needed climbing gear to get to the pools - obviously why a local guide is needed!! So we trekked back to the car!!
Back in town we stopped at the Yacht Club for a burger for tea and to check the weather before heading back to the boat. The swell has gone down alot today and the motion is alot more pleasant.
Back in town we stopped at the Yacht Club for a burger for tea and to check the weather before heading back to the boat. The swell has gone down alot today and the motion is alot more pleasant.
21st July, Niue Yacht Club, Niue
A rolly night on the mooring buoy as the swell started coming from the south. In the morning we headed ashore to book a car for tomorrow, get a Niue driving licence from the Police Station and then go on a round the island tour with the locals. We had been told by the Immigration lady that one of the villages was having a drive round the island as part of a festival and we would be welcome to join them - we tried to find the meeting place at 12 when we were told they would be leaving but could no sign of any cars. After a while we gave up and headed back to the boat. About 1.30 we heard cars tooting their horns at setting off - it was obviously 12 local time!! I spent the afternoon in bed - still trying to catch up on some sleep from the passage and Jonny did some jobs.
When we had come back from lunch we picked up another buoy with a stern line to pull the bow into the swell and make the motion better but got a call from the yacht club to say that we couldnt do that as it would be putting strain on their buoys.
Whales - i keep forgetting to mention the whales. On Sun night as we were entering the bay Jonny briefly saw a whale then that night we coiuld hear them around the boat in the dark but couldnt see them. When we arrived back at the boat on Mon afternoon we could see a whale in the distance jumping out of the water and doing huge slaps - even from a distance it was spectacular. That night again we could her the whales - one even woke me up!! On Tue night the whales were even closer (less than 10m from the boat) but because there is no moon at the mo you couldnt see them just hear them.
When we had come back from lunch we picked up another buoy with a stern line to pull the bow into the swell and make the motion better but got a call from the yacht club to say that we couldnt do that as it would be putting strain on their buoys.
Whales - i keep forgetting to mention the whales. On Sun night as we were entering the bay Jonny briefly saw a whale then that night we coiuld hear them around the boat in the dark but couldnt see them. When we arrived back at the boat on Mon afternoon we could see a whale in the distance jumping out of the water and doing huge slaps - even from a distance it was spectacular. That night again we could her the whales - one even woke me up!! On Tue night the whales were even closer (less than 10m from the boat) but because there is no moon at the mo you couldnt see them just hear them.
Tuesday, 21 July 2009
20th July, Niue Yacht Club, Niue
We were planning on going ashore at 10am to check in because thats when the yacht club opened and someone would be able to help us with the crane to lift the dinghy - because of the swell that they sometimes get they have a crane to lift your dinghy out onto the wharf!! However at 8.30 we got a call from Niue Radio saying that customs wanted us ashore at 9am. At the wharf they were some construction workers who showed us how to use the crane which was great fun!! We headed to customs and then to immigration to clear in. On the way back to the bank we were met by Keith, the commodore of Niue Yacht Club, who took us for a drive along the coast to point out key things to us. In 2007 Niue was hit by a cyclone. The most damage was done by waves that were 35m high washing houses off the cliffs. In the bank we changed some US$ into NZ$ - vthe bank only takes visa credit cards (and has a high charge for doing so) so the best way to get money is to change another currency.
From the bank we headed to the yacht club and had an ice cream - yummy!!
After lunch back at the boat we headed back ashore to use the internet at the Yacht Club - it was a slow connection but we managed to check our e mails.
We had been invited on a walk with some of the locals in teh evening but we were still tired from the passage so headed back to Newt for tea and an early night.
From the bank we headed to the yacht club and had an ice cream - yummy!!
After lunch back at the boat we headed back ashore to use the internet at the Yacht Club - it was a slow connection but we managed to check our e mails.
We had been invited on a walk with some of the locals in teh evening but we were still tired from the passage so headed back to Newt for tea and an early night.
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