More on Tonga...

(Additional photos as promised)


Sunset and storm clouds


Palms


Our little Britannia


Waves crashing on the coral


The blue blue waters of Vavau


Nieafu, the main town in Vavau, Tonga


A crabby crab we walked by on the beach


Blue star fish are everywhere here!

Sorry guys... I wanted to post more, but the internet just came to a screeching halt. I hope this posts and I can add more next time.
All's still well in Tonga. Krister's delivery is going well and he'll be back soon.


Pigs searching for food on the beach at low tide (anchorage 25)


Birds diving for fish


Beautiful anchorage

Tonga-tastic; What we've been doing all month

Britannia under a colorful rainbow after a squall

So you may have noticed we've slowed down quite a bit. Tonga has plenty to keep us busy- of course I'm playing it fast and loose with the word "busy." It maybe better to say that we're not bored yet. Krister and I have tried to balance playing, fun times with work and boat projects. Here's the quick run down of what's been going on with us and Britannia in Vavau, Tonga.

• Sailing; lots of it. Fabulous wind, fabulous weather, and over 30 anchorages all within a day's sail. Racing Friday nights on Piko with friends and in the Vavau Regatta (We took dead last in the Boot and Rally Race).


Friday night racing on Piko with Adam and Eve

• Snorkeling; colorful coral gardens, diving into lava tube caves, free diving, swimming over to visit friends, and of course checking the anchor.


Tonga's rocky, blow-hole filled coast; not a place for swimming or boats!

• Beach Days; thin strips of white sand beach to search for treasured seashells, read books, walk, and sometimes even sleep.


A day at the (most perfect) beach.


Walking another of Vavau's white sand beaches

• Sun-downers and Pot-lucks; there's alway something going on. We're thankful for the wonderful group of cruisers that always have a story to tell, advice to share, and something delicious to drink and eat.


Celebrating Rob's Birthday (and Blue Moon's 25th)


Cruising couples from Dillagaf, Britannia, Architeuthis, and Shalimar

• Boat work; never-ending cleaning, resealed the leaky portholes, tested and stowed the para-anchor and drogue, fixed the furling line, replaced sheared-off transmission bolts, cleaned the winches, created a rainwater catchment system, loads of laundry washed and wrung by hand, organized the provisions and lockers, garbage duty and we still have more on the list.


Birds on Britannia's bow kept me company on laundry day

• Sight seeing; Swallows cave, Mariner's cave, blow holes, sink holes, whale watching, jungle hiking, and going to the market.


The amazing blue water of Swallow's Cave


A dinghy full of explorers


Taking a walk


Tongan basket weaving


Vavau's market

• And there's never enough time spent on listening to the rain, watching the sun set, playing guitar, beading jewlery, knitting (yeah it's starting to get cool here at night), staring at the wall, and drinking coffee.




The latest news is that due to unforeseen circumstances, Krister will be helping to deliver Dillagaf to New Zealand along with Lauren-boy from Piko. The boys fly to Nukalofa on Monday and are hoping to hit a good weather window on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Lauren-girl and I will be on mooring balls at Ano beach taking care of our boats and getting ready for our own passages. Krister's friend, Joe, is joining us on November 5th to crew on Britannia. With Krister doing two passages back to back, we'll be lucky to have him along. Krister and Lauren should return the first week of November. Although we'll probably have to skip the Hapai group, we'll still be basically on schedule; arriving in Opua, New Zealand mid-month.

Still loving it! Life is good!

Happy Birthday Kathie!

Congratulations Convivia!

And Happy Halloween to all :)

Nothing Short of Amazing; Whales

What you've seen so far on our blog has been interesting right? Maybe you've been imagining what it's like to travel like this... living vicariously? You may have even experienced a sailing trip similar to ours, but until you've done it yourself, you'll never be able to comprehend the experience of swimming with humpback whales. Even now I wonder if it really happened.

We booked a whale watching tour with Dive Vavau for Thursday along with Piko, Dilligaf, and Eden. The morning started early and we were all a bit groggy still as we embarked. The day was sunny and warm, the water calm and blue. The wind from the speeding power boat blew across my face helping me to wake up. The group chatted with the guides; asking questions about whale behavior, what we might expect to see, and life in Tonga. After about an hour we spotted a couple spouts. Then we waited. Paul, our guide, timed them to see if we should hang around- 10 minutes passed, then 18. He said they we're probably sleeping and wouldn't be back to the surface for a while. (Whales sleep with 1/2 their brain at a time so they can surface to breathe). We moved on.

We passed beautiful anchorages that we decided to go back and visit, asked about surf spots, and where to find good beaches. Being accustom to the pace of a sail boat, it was fun just to motor around, to be able to see so much in such a small about of time. Things aboard were pretty mellow- just hanging out with a bunch of friends sight seeing.

Then the guides spotted another set of whales. We got closer. They recognized the mother and her calf from their excursion the day before. The momma whale had a distinct humped and hooked dorsal fin. Paul began to time them. Just four minutes later they resurfaced. All of a sudden, a chain of events were set in motion that changed us all. The first group (Piko and Dilligaf) were told to get ready. We were all so excited.



Tonga is one of the only places in the world where you are able to get into the water and swim with humpback whales. They migrate here from Antarctica to mate and give birth (gestation is about 10-12 months). While they're here, they fast, sing, and mate, while the calves eat and eat. The mothers lose almost 1/3 of their original body weight. The males sing a song that changes every year- one distinct to their geographic group. How they know what to sing, who starts the song, and may other behaviors are unknown to us. Intrigued?

The first group slipped into the water and swam the short distance over to the whales. After about 15 minutes they came back and we exchanged places. I don't know how to explain the magic of it all. For a half hour we watched, fascinated. The calf cuddled under its mother's pectoral fin, surfaced to breathe, and even got curious enough to swim over to check us out. Luckily, our friends on Eden are excellent underwater photographers. They say a picture is worth 1000 words; and in this case the pictures are priceless. Each group swam with them twice. Dive Vavau limits the number of people in the water at a time and the amount of time spent with a whale to 1 1/2 hours so as not to disrupt the calves feeding and their normal routine. We moved on. A whale breach right in front of the boat and disappeared. We spotted a couple more, but didn't get into the water again. Sometimes the whales are not in the mood to hang out with tourists. It was a perfect day and we all returned to the dock in an excited daze. What a surreal experience.





The largest living creature I've ever seen, less than 10 feet away from me; docile, peaceful, beautiful- so similar to us and yet so different.

Passage to Tonga and many firsts

We've just arrived in Vavau, Tonga after our most boisterous passage yet. We had 15-18 foot seas with sustained winds of 25 knots gusting to 35- and Krister says the squall that gave us our first pooping knocked us at 40. Pooping sounds messier than it really is- it just means we had a wave break into the cockpit with enough green water to fill it 6 inches. The real mess was bestowed upon us by our hick-hiking booby birdie friend that I named Albert. He settled upon our solar panel and rode with us for several hours- until we were within sight of land. While there, he squeezed out a few juicy, milky treats that splattered our companion way and into the nav station and galley. It's alright though- I loved having him around.


Albert our boobie buddy

The crossing from the Cook Islands to Tonga gave us many "firsts." Our first boobie, our first sail change underway, our first pooping, my first time across the dateline (yes we are living in tomorrow now), and in the middle of the night, the first time we had to change course to avoid a collision at sea. Fortunately for us, the boat we were on a collision course with was Piko, and as Lauren and I debated how we should alter course, Krister took the wheel and tacked behind them. I had no idea how close we came to each other until I saw their stern light swing swiftly to our port side.



Tall following seas


Our yankee-cut jib used for heavy winds

To our delight, our radio traffic woke Barb on What Cha Gonna Do (Who we thought were long gone to Fiji, but have actually been waiting here for better weather.) And so, at 2 in the morning, Krister woke from his off watch nap, giggling with happiness to talk with Barb and make plans to catch up with them as soon as possible.

We arrived at dawn and cleared through customs, immigration, agriculture and health quickly and easily. Finding an anchorage was much more difficult. We eventually settled on picking up a mooring ball for $13 Tongan (like $8 US). There are several boats here, some waiting for better weather, and some waiting for the regatta, which we are joining too. We'll be racing on Piko, trying to pick up a few pointers from Lauren, the racing pro.

The town is lovely and everyone is very friendly. It kinda reminds me of La Paz Mexico, very cruiser freindly. Happy hour is about to start, and even though the internet is painfully slow, at least we have each other and a cold beer.

Rarotonga, Cook Islands

Britannia Med-moored in Rarotanga

Hey everybody!

We've been having our fill of Indian food, less expensive beer and hot showers. Yesterday we rented scooters with Piko and hit the pavement. It's quite a trip driving on the left-hand side of the road- even for me the south-paw. The speed- that's 50km/h was exhilerating after spending most our time traveling sailboat speed (5-7 knots/hr). On our way around the island we checked out a few beaches, stopped by Hinano's cafe and gardens, filled our bags and bike with provisions (Ramen noodles are very important to us) and finally pulled the hog up to the Roadhouse bar for a beer.



It's a Dumb and Dumber moment



This boy is crazy for Ramen noodles

And of course we found another great hike! It makes me so happy to get out into the rich jungley vegetation, get my sweat on, and get a great view. Thanks to WGD, we met a few locals that make our day extra special. Ron and his wife Gyna and their daughter Rongyna showed us around- kept us on track and added a bit of local knowledge to our trek.



Our friends from Piko hiking along with us.



Look up! There's the "needle" we sweated to see.



Can you see the trail?




Great view!



Refreshing waterfall at the end of the "needle" hike.



Our Aussie friend Ron helped us navigate the wild Rarotongan trails.


We also met the queen's granddaughter, Hinano. She runs a cafe with the world's best cheesecake with acres of beautiful gardens surrounding it. It's like going to the spa; it's just so peaceful and relaxing there. She lives right across the street and and let us lounge around her backyard (private lagoon beach) for the afternoon.



Hinano's gardens



Beach day!



Just chillin' after a long slow passage



Prehistoric plants huh?



Another day gone, but not forgotten!

It's been a lot of fun, but it's time to go!
We'll write again when we reach Tonga!

Hiking in the Leeward Societies

Natural Beauty Everywhere you look

Raiatea, Taha'a, and Bora Bora




Looks fun huh?

After leaving Tahiti we sailed over night to Raiatea. It was a nearly perfect sail- great weather and beautiful scenery. After so much time in the city, I was happy to get off the boat and back into the jungle. The leeward island have provided a variety of hiking experiences. From paved walks down the road, to strenuous climbs up slippery jungle cliffs, and we've enjoyed them all.



Over looking Uturoa in Raiatea




Snail we meet on our hike to the radio tower above Uturao



Hiking trail on Raiatea



Sun beams over Taha'a



Haamene Bay in Taha'a



Hurepiti Bay



Deep in the jungle of Bora Bora



The ropes were necessary to make it to the top



Bora Bora- beautiful beautiful



Krister at the top of Mt Otemanu



We'll be leaving Bora Bora soon- too soon and heading west yet again to the Cook Islands.



Britannia on the water