The Road to Vanuatu

The Road to Vanuatu
We have come 1100 nautical miles or 2000kms since the last note. And 10degrees south and 10degrees east.  Our current position is 15s16 167e60 in the northern islands of Vanuatu. And David reckons that the Able Seaman is still a paid passenger.
In total we spent 3 months in the Solomon Islands. The Solomons we saw was a country still living as their ancestors had done. The villages usually have about 100 people living in very tidy houses made of sago palms and surrounded by gardens of bright flowers. A few have a solar panel and battery for lighting, some have a generator. They all have canoes and use them to travel long distances. But by and large they live a subsistence life and seem quite happy.
We felt that the government was ripping them off by not providing more services from the foreign aid and that their local MPs were pocketing most of it.
Our favourite spot was the Western Province, in particular, Marova Lagoon. They say West is Best.  In company with Blue Moon we travelled 60 miles in a month in the lagoon searching out the best anchorages and islands for snorkeling and spear fishing and beach BBQs.
The best had to be Samurana Island where we celebrated the Captain’s 61st birthday. Copious amounts of port were consumed that night on the beach, under a full moon.
Another special place was Charapoana Island right next to the renowned diving resort at Uepi. Unfortunatley the owner dislikes yachties and wouldn’t even serve us a beer or let us snorkel in “his” water. So we moved close to a uninhabited local resort and used their cooking fireplace and drank cocktails on their jetty. Our own private resort.
During this time the search for lobsters and the ideal carving occupied a lot of energy. Marova Lagoon is renowned for its expertise in carving. Every canoe (and there were plenty) that visited the yachts had a piece or two of  carving for trade or sale.
David was in his element. They don’t call him Scrooge McMaxwell for nothing. Bartering was his game. So on board we have an elaborate mask (!!) and assortment of bowls. Take it straight to the pool room! And for the princely sums of $10 or a heap of sandpaper or rice and sugar.
Not only were carvings  not safe from his eager dealings, the trade for lobsters and fish brought tears to the AB’s eyes. She  couldn’t watch as David managed to procure 8 lobsters and 2 fish for 1 kilo of rice and a T-shirt and 2 packets of noodles.
In  fact we met with some very generous fishermen who provided a plethora of seafood for us over the span of several weeks and we were happy to give them whatever they needed. It was usually material to assist their carving endeavours or basic food essentials.
Finally it was time to depart and leave Blue Moon to head further south. The Captain was concerned about the weather and increasing southerly winds in May. The AB was concerned about being on her own with Captain Bligh. We had been together with Blue Moon for 8 months so parting was very hard.
So to Honiara and shopping and restaurants we went. 6 days anchored outside the Point Cruz Yacht Club was heaven. Ex-pats galore to talk to and drink with. David again was in his element getting duty-free (cheap) fuel, booze, and meat. The highlight was Eggs Benedict on smoked salmon for breakfast at the yacht club. The best I have ever had!
After such excesses we moved on eastwards towards the Santa Cruz group, the most easterly of the Solomons. The last indulgence was to anchor at Tavanipupu Resort (owned and run by an American Woman, Pamela) for a great dinner and marvelous company.
The weather was very kind to us, except for one day of huge seas and wind on the nose. Lucky for us we were still within range of an island, the 3 Sisters, where we took shelter for 4 days till the system passed away.
The people on the Santa Cruz islands lived a very basic life. Their only means of communication is the HF radio. The Engineer spent time trying to fix their microphones, generators and solar panels. And we were rewarded generously with 16 lobsters, 3 fish and 13 mudcrabs. Pura Vida now sports a bow and arrow and walking stick for the aged Captain from Vanikolo Island (furthest SE).
By now the trade currency was DVDs for fruit and veg. Even the poor  villages still had DVD player, bought from the proceeds of the logging on their islands.
Still trying to daysail, we had one more overnight passage to Vanuatu and the Torres Islands. Expecting a decent wind, we set off and straight into wind almost on the nose. This also meant stronger seas on the nose! And alas the engine stopped .. blocked fuel filters.. so we tacked and sailed while the Engineer got some sleep before going to work on the engines. Ably assisted by Virginia with torch in hand in rolling seas.
We made Vanuatu and the Torres Islands mostly under sail. These are remote islands with very few villages. We continued to island hop until our clear-in point at Sola in the Banks Islands.
The transistion to the lower latitudes has meant that we now get more “weather” higher, winds, seas and rain. On more than one occasion we have had to scurry back to the anchorage to wait out the storms and repair the storm damage.
After the Banks it was Espirito Santos and, at last, civilization and other yachts. We had come 1000 nm without seeing another boat, ferry, freighter, fishing boat or yacht or bigfellah, whitefellah.
The last two weeks have been filled with trips to the “shops”, beach BBQs, sundowners, 50th birthday celebrations with other Aussies, Nzer’s, Yanks and Swiss. I forgot to mention lunches and dinners out at restaurants. Luxury!!
Our anchorage at Oyster Island was so calm and friendly and easy to wait out the big winds that seems to happen for 5 days every week. Very hard to drag to AB away to the serious business of exploring the other Vanuatu islands. But first its time to open the dutyfree Bombay Saphire and have Gin and Tonics and watch the sun go down.
See you down the track