New Caledonia

Two nights at sea, one very windy (on the nose) and swelly and of course trouble always strikes then. The engineer was hard it again changing fan belts and fuel filters while we dipped and heeled.

And this was after he had fully serviced the engine in Vanuatu. How quickly things go awry.

So we made the marina in Lifou and found our 2 friends, GatoGo and On-Site. David had to fly to Noumea to do immigration and caught up with some yachtie  Noumea friends, Sharril and Bernard from Chamaral.  Through them we have met more French people and we have been invited to play cards  and French bowls (Petong) . And they always  makere that there were some English speakers around.

Ah a French colony…. Cheese, pate, fresh baguettes and wonderful wine.  We made our way  down from the  Loyalty Islands to the beautiful Isle de Pines. Blue, blue water but oh so cold!! 25degs on the water and on the land.  Had to rummage to find long sleeves and sweaters.

On Isles de Pines we got out the bikes and cycled to the village market (6kms). So much exercise for us, even hiked up the mountain for a spectacular view. We found a lovely “snack” or café in Vao and returned many times for coffee and a “croc monsieur” (toasted ham and creamy cheese sandwich). It was lovely to catch up with more yachts that we knew, Blue Dawn, Destiny 5, and GatoGo, and John and Moira from Oz came for a week.

So time to get to Noumea via Baie de Prony. On the way we stopped at Mato, an island with the bluest lagoon and a high hill that overlooked the lagoon. Sensational.!

In  the huge Baie de Prony we went to the head of the bay, in the calmest anchorage and explored hot springs and cascade waterfalls. The scenery was a contrast of red hills and blue water.  We found more islands and bays. The captain’s highlight was assisting a solo woman sailor in Baie Ure. He fixed the electrics, hauled the anchor by hand. What a star!

So now we are in Noumea! Ginny’s daughter Kate has come for holiday and we sailed  around the beautiful lagoon and islands out from Noumea. Its been 3 years since we saw her in Langkawi!

We have been lucky to catch the Melanesian Arts Festival and saw dances and crafts from PNG, Solomons and Vanuatu and Tahiti. There are lots of cruisers here, including a few who came from Malaysia…Solan, Tonic and Forza. 

So its been very social, but always time to browse the shops and find some beautiful black pearls.

But all this must end and this week we have begun preparations for the final passage home. Probably 6 days to get to Bundaberg. We are joining the Port2Port Rally so we will have some company along the way and some parties in Bundaberg.

Vanuatu

The Journey continues through the volcanic islands of Vanuatu . From Espirito Santos we moved to Ambae, where we  anchored in the crater of an extinct  volcano and celebrated the 4^th July with 3 U.S.  boats   GatoGo, Special Blend and Asylum.

At Asanavari, on Maewo,  the spinner dolphins played with our dinghys and swam with us. In the evening we experienced our first local dinner with a string band and some excellent kava. Although the “ever in control “ captain said it had NO effect on him.

As always in these islands there is always some assistance needed from mechanically minded cruisers. David was able to repair solar panels and battery fittings in Lolotong, on Pentecost and fix the generator in the Maskelynes.

It was onto Ambryn, the mysterious magical island, and we anchored where Captain Cook came ashore in Nopul. There we found such friendly people, the best Vanuatu carvers and a wood fire bakery. Yummy bread and freshly caught and plucked chook!!

Onto the Maskelynes in Malekula, where finally David was able to spear some wonderful Mangrove Jacks. We have still been unable to catch  any fish.

On board we were carrying bags of clothes and bedlinen to give away. We had been told that the Ni-Vans were the most needy. In retrospect I think that the Solomon Islands were more needy. So at Revolieu Bay on Epi, we found a lovely anchorage  and went ashore with all the trading leftovers and bags of clothes for the villagers. It was nice to be so well received and to get our forward bunks back!

The rest of our time was spent on Efate, the main island. At Havanah Harbour we did lots of jobs and enjoyed the company of the villagers in canoes travelling from little islands to the big island with lots of fruit and veg for sale.

Onto  Port Vila and a big town for Independence Day celebrations and a tie up to the town seawall. Amazing not to dinghy to shore. Our first alongside in 12 months – power and water. It was here we caught up with Second Winds (Bryan and Glee). Glee is running the paramedic operations in Port Vila and Bryan took David off for a day of spear-fishing and coconut crab hunting. A much need diversion for both of them.

There was plenty of native dancing to see during the celebrations and the town had a festival atmosphere. David got up at 5am one morning to go for a walk to see what all the early morning music was about. He found 500 people rocking in the rain on mud soaked ground but they couldn’t care less. Kava was suspected as the happy medium.

From our berth it was a short  walk to the shops and market  to have coffee and lunch or half price drinks on Friday evening on the top floor of the Casino Hotel. Very civilized. It was also wonderful to see Kay and Grant Ferguson for a week. We realized how much we miss our land based family and friends.

The Engineer was exhausted after completing his list of Port Vila jobs. The AB was worn-out just watching him and passing the odd spanner or cleanup rag.

A bit of respite was needed, so we flew to Tanna island for a couple of days to see the active volcano. So much easier than sailing against those SE trades. It was an amazing island. Huge banyan trees and what a trip to the volcano. We could stand on the edge of volcano (no fence) and watch and hear the explosions of molten red rocks flying into the air above us. In Oz we would have had to view it behind a big fence two Kms away..

So then back to Port Vila to purchase more duty-free gin and fuel and make the big passage ( 2 days) to New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands.