Month: July 2013

July 31, 2013

We did find out there was one disadvantage to the Matei anchorage: a wide shelf of coral between us and the shore. At high tide we could motor over it in the dinghy, but any lower and we’d have to tilt up the outboard and bring out the yelling sticks.

That’s what I call the oars because as soon as we start to row as a team, we start bickering. One of us (usually me) is always rowing too much, too little, in the wrong direction, etc. We get into arguments about the definition of “straight ahead.” It never goes well. If I were a divorce attorney, I’d have an advertisement printed on dinghy oars, give them out as free promotional items at boat shows, and wait for the stream of clients to roll in.

We had to figure out where to land and decided on a nice beach fronting a park, the kind of a place where young people gather to play rugby or soccer. After being assured by some young men that it was fine to leave a dinghy there, we walked up to the street to explore. This whole area had the feeling of a resort as one landscaped area blended into another, while about a million palm trees surrounded it all.

We walked to check out the local market, Bhula Bhai & Sons. It was small but pretty good once we started poking around. Unfortunately they don’t have produce aside from onions, garlic and potatoes. While it was possible to get a cab down to Somosomo for their produce stalls, not having good meat was a problem. We’d have to stick to our plan to return to Savusavu in a few days to restock.

We also checked out the two small markets down the street to see what they had. These tiny, one-room places are always worth ducking into as you never know what you’ll find. We noted the occasional passing cab; so we felt assured we’d be able to get transportation to the waterfall.

After returning to find our dinghy undisturbed on the beach, and noticing that while the breeze had picked up, we only had small movement on the boat, we felt comfortable about leaving the boat for a day trip to the waterfall tomorrow.

Below, a gallery of pictures from our trip ashore, starting with the view of the shoreline from our boat. –Cyndi

P.S. Good idea Cyndi…

July 31, 2013

I’d been anxious to return to Taveuni Island to see the waterfall we missed on our last visit there. The challenge would be finding an anchorage as it’s generally believed that Taveuni has no decent anchorages. Usually the way to go there is via one of Jack’s outings from Viani Bay or on a ferry from Savusavu.

Early on in Fiji, I overheard someone on the radio mention anchoring off Taveuni’s east end. I didn’t think much of it as I assumed we’d learn more about it when the time came, but I made a note. It was a good thing I did: by the time were headed there, no one we talked to had ever heard of any such anchorage. There wasn’t anything obvious on the chart; it was like it didn’t exist! Very frustrating! It was time to consult the Soggy Paws Compendium.

Soggy Paws is the name of a cruising boat. It’s owned by a couple who have created compendiums where they, along with any cruisers who wish to contribute, describe anchorages and give helpful information, often including waypoints. There’s a compendium for Fiji, and I would say it’s invaluable as, amazingly, there are no good, current, Fiji cruising guides. Soggy Paws has saved the day for us more than once; I can’t imagine trying to cruise around Fiji without their compendium!

I was thrilled to learn that the Matei anchorage really does exist, and while it appears wide open on the chart, it’s surprisingly well protected by the surrounding reef. The compendium had waypoints into the anchorage through the areas of coral reef that surround it. I showed this to Rich, which finally convinced him that this mythical anchorage does actually exist (and that his wife isn’t delusional–at least not about this).

Now we had to figure out how to get through the Rainbow Reef between Rabi and Taveuni. Rich consulted other guides we’d collected in PDF files and found waypoints in a guide called “Mr. John” in Fiji. Mr. John’s intro cautions that while the info he’s gathered is “as good as it gets,” don’t trust any of it as Fiji is so poorly charted.

With that less-than-comforting endorsement, we set out through the Rainbow Reef with me at the bow. Rich did get nervous and made his own turn at one point, but it probably wasn’t necessary. Overall the waypoints worked well. Thank you Mr. John, whoever you are.

Next, we used the Soggy Paws waypoints to get into the Matei anchorage. This one made us very nervous and I stood on as high as I could for a good view into the water. The waypoints were perfect, and soon we were dropping our anchor onto a patch of sand in water so clear it was easy to see things on the bottom, about 17 feet below.

We looked around and were amazed. The wind was blowing 12 knots, but in here the water was glassy calm, perfectly clear, and an astonishing shade of blue. Nearby were an intriguing string of small islets. The handful of resorts and homes onshore had manicured grounds and hundreds of palm trees, making a beautiful backdrop. This may not be one of Fiji’s “destination” anchorages, but it’s so gorgeous it should be. We could not stop patting ourselves on the back for happening upon this place!

Thank you Soggy Paws: if it weren’t for your compendium, we never would have gone to the anchorage off Matei.

Below is a small gallery featuring the clear blue water in our anchorage off Matei (Taveuni Island, Fiji). Click to enlarge and scroll. –Cyndi

July 30, 2013

Our plan was to head to the Matei anchorage at the east tip of Taveuni Island, and after some morning rains we made our way out through the pass. We had waypoints through Texas Reef, just east of Rabi Island, but there was a problem: a line of nasty-looking squalls headed in that direction.

We pondered this, watching the line of big black mushroom cloud formations as they marched towards the channel between Taveuni and Rabi Island. We could try to beat them, but there was a chance they could catch us as we motored through the passes in the reef. These things looked nasty, and the last thing we needed was a torrential downpour and strong wind gusts while threading our way through coral reef.

We decided to change our course and head to Katherine Bay back at the other end of Rabi Island, spend a night, then head to Taveuni the next day.

On the Google map below, the green line is the route we would have taken to Taveuni. The purple line was the route we took to Katherine Bay.

 

We made the right decision. It was calm motoring between Rabi Island and Vanua Levu, and the sun even came out. We decided to fish and caught a nice mahimahi.

Katherine Bay is not one of the main “destination bays” in Fiji; it’s more a place to stop on the way to or from Albert Cove. That said, it’s a nice spot, a deep bay surrounded by lush green mountains and a good-sized village. The water was dark and muddy, and we had to move quickly to turn off our watermaker as we motored in.

On one side of the bay is a Methodist church, a big structure whose white, mission-like features just fit in with the jungle green. On the other side is the Catholic Church, basically a shack by the water. They don’t have the pretty church structure, but the congregation sings beautifully. (Catholics, get over here and do some building; the Methodists are making you look really bad!)

This is one of those places where it’s easy to go make friends with the local people. A trip ashore (or even just to your cockpit if one of the local outrigger canoes is passing by) will net you an invitation to visit the village, maybe even someone’s home, and certainly a visit to church.

Our goal was to simply spend the night, share our mahimahi with our friends on Bright Angel (who had decided to come this way and were due in here this evening), and head out in the morning towards Taveuni across the channel. Thus, we implemented our Church Avoidance Action Plan, which entailed ducking below if we saw a boat about to pass by. We felt kind of bad about doing this, but it’s so much easier not to be asked then to have to tell someone “no, thank you.”

(A side note rant: I don’t know what planet those writers in women’s magazines come from, the ones who advise busy women to just say no to requests and offer no explanation. On this planet, “no” needs to be followed by an explanation as to why not. If you don’t offer it, you will be asked. And worse, your explanation will be evaluated and even debated (“Why do you need dental surgery? You should cancel; my dentist would be much better qualified to do that procedure. Why on earth would you go to that dentist in the first place?”))

Anyway, back to Fiji. A canoe did come by, and Rich told them we might come ashore tomorrow. That seemed to be a satisfactory response that pleased everyone. I have to say again that Fijians are maybe the nicest, friendliest people in the world. I would wonder if it’s genetic, but this is true of Fijians who originate from other cultures (Banabans, Tuvaluans, and the Indo-Fijians). It must be something in the air or water.

That evening we had a lovely fresh fish dinner with our friends. The only thing better than catching a fish is catching one and being able to share it with your buddies. –Cyndi

Below, a gallery of Katherine Bay (click to enlarge and scroll).

July 26 – 30, 2013

After four days in this beautiful bay, it was time to head on. But this would go down as one of our favorite places in Fiji. Above is a gallery of photos, click to enlarge and scroll. –Cyndi

July 26 – 30, 2013

Rain! We had it off and on during our time in Albert Cove. I know rain and clouds don’t make everyone happy, but I love a rainy day here and there. It means reading, napping, working on blog posts, thinking, planning, and having some time to listen to that inner voice urging you do to something that may not yet make sense, but will in the long run. The only way to hear this voice is with a time out, and sometimes the best way to get that time out is with some bad weather (at least for us non-Zen masters who feel compelled be productive in good weather).

I love sunny days for all they offer, but there are times when I breathe a sigh of relief at the arrival of a rainy afternoon. Out comes the brownie mix, the bad-but-fun movies, the good book, the internet trolling, the IPad solitaire, the thinking and dreaming, and maybe even the rum if one of the crew’s being a bad influence.

Anyway, here are a few rainy-day pictures from Albert Cove. –Cyndi