we are 124 NM out from 9 pin with 1 to 1.5 mrt S TO SW swell, by this time tomorrow should be on the Q dock . looking forward sighting land and a hot shower. this trip we have had amazing weather clear skies and big moon at night, even looks like the sun is going to put in appearance today, though the cold wind does spoil it abit.

A big shout out to to Gulf Harbour radio for all the work and effort they put into keeping us informed, with affairs of the world and weather. so From Pilgrim and her crew a big thank you.

Pilgrim is now in the top end of the front not had much in the way of rain, there is some showing on the radar.

had very little in the way of wind just one brief period with the rain so progress is all the iron spinnaker. Hampered by a current to boot

The seas have remained calm over last 4 days and this morning the wind is light out of NE perhap 4kts so we continue to motorsail toward Opua, thinking Wed evening arrival. So will be listening to what David has with regards the fronts this morning.

Have made reasonable progress over last 24 hrs the sea state is such that we are not getting knocked back by wave action as all we have is a very lazy ground swell of half a mtr winds of 6-8 kts awesome conditions clear skies noticing a chill in the air though at night now half way. looks like our conditions are not going to change much over the next few days.

well here it is saturday morning 0430 and dawn is up as well progress has been good we have weaved our way through all the sea mounts by avoiding them we find that our passage is much smoother. The motor has had a good work out as the wind has dropped away toward the center of the high currently have 6/8kts of sth of east with 10/12 across the deck. the seas are slight with maybe a SE swell of 1/2mtr 675 to run reckon on wed arrival at nine pin.

Ran out of wind and have motor sailed our way down to near the 22 Sth with wind slowly filling in and now back under sail, well will be shortly despite a current against us. all good here

Just passing Tana very happy with sea state, there has only been a couple of bumpy bits due to sea mounts . Clear skies and big moon nice .

At anchor just outside Port Vila the light rain is still with us , only on and off intend of heading in to Vila today.

decided to stay put in our White house bay after taking a run out to assess the falls as they are termed at devils point meet with head winds in the mid twentys and up to 33kts which would have made for a rather interesting passage, as one has to turn pretty much side on to head into port villa 3 Mtr plus rollers would have been loads of fun , yea right !!! As we are still with time on our side decided to sit and wait it out for the winds to abate.

Ok we left Epi bright and early and made our way towards Port Villa , with wind in just sth of east . a good quarter, only to have it more toward the south making it not such a easy run still we are anchored up in a bay in from Leinamasae point for the night and shall head on into port villa tomorrow as devils point looked very uninviting. dont appear to have any coverage here thats all

We have shifted further down Epi Island now in a achoraged that we and others have overlooked Bonkowai in from Cape Foreland it has very little in the way of roll that has been found in other bays , Lamen is known for roll.

We will be looking at the wind direction over the next few days for that shift into the east is on the way for our hop over the 50NM to NTH Efata.

A cloudless day here in Lamen Bay no breeze as we go into our last day here, time to move on so will spend our last day ashore as its market day here. and got to say our goodbye's to all those here that we have encountered.

A meal is planned at Benny's tonight.

Yes still in Lamen Bay, have found lots to keep us entertained be it take on the walk up the hill to the hospital, the very steep hill I might add. Benny how manages to produce some amazing meals in her little restaurant and a good source veges and fruit. there are several shops that stock some needed supplies. regular supply boats call in in fact there have been 5 this week so far.

good morning from lamen bay on Epi our time here has been interesting with our regular trips out to the reef , to observing the turtles here to the to and froing of the dougon. and our trips ashore to the well organized village . our moving on is delayed until acouple of boats get into NZ as we have good internet from here.

scattered cloud around this morning perhaps 30% so pick it as another warm day here in yeman bay, went to the local restaurant along with 4 others, very enjoyable meal right up to the desert. at this stage we will be moving on tomorrow .

we have found our way back to Lamen Bay on Epi island , having left our much loved west side of Malakula We were only anchored up for a short period before we sighted our first turtle, followed by multi sighting and at one stage had 5 suface at once, the dugoun showed himself this morning as he came into the bay to fed.

I plan to go over to my heavily infested reef and do phase two of eradication now that I have restocked my supply of vinegar . We shall proceed down Epi over the next week stopping where we can.

Will be on yhe move again today not to sure how far, will depend on the weather as we are getting some rain at the moment. Once this lifts, if indeed it does, then one will decide, there are a couple of places that we should be given consideration as stopovers.

Now tucked up in Levualeui Bay behind a island that gives great protection toward the sth end of the bay there are other islands that could well do the sam. Will check them out when its time to move on. There appears to be several villages scattered through out we have visited only one so far.

We are on the move again today but not far only about 5 nm down the coast, the west side of Malakula has been a great find for us providing us with great sheltered bays awesome beaches and friendly as people. If we return to Vanuatu this area has to be included in our itinerary. will let folk know where we end up today as lots of the place are not named on our charts.

Will sadly move on from our little bit of paradise tomorrow, so be doing the rounds today saying our farewells. get a last swim in, the water is so clear here and te coral has been a huge improvement on other places that we have visited.

another spectacular day in paradise with a foray into the village for round two of sewing machine fix ups.

I shall mention that a French chap on one of the other boats here left for Lugonville to seek help at the hospital there some 4wks ago had infection in his foot got that cleared up and now it has traveled up the leg to his knee which is not a pretty site. taking antibiotics has not got on top of it, thankfully they have taken my advise had head off.

Serves as a warning to be aggressive when treating wounds.

we have moved further around Malakula now in the most delightful Coraline Bay to get in here you have to passes the one of choice is the narrowest, great anchorage in 3-4 mrts there are the odd coral heads one has to watch out for.

Thinking of moving on from Metenover Bay today to a bay around the corner as we make our way toward the bottom of.

Malakula. It has been a great spot to anchor visit and explore.

currently tucked up in Metenover Bay toward the bottom of Malakula Island on the west side having arrived here around 0900hrs yesterday in showery conditions. this is a rather large bay with protection from all but the west anchoring on sand with 4 mtrs under our keel. there is a waterfall at one end of the beach that we intend on visiting while at the other there is the pass into a rather large inshore lake. Off into the village to get the lay of the land, re permission as t what and where we can go. but it appears that a lot of the restriction of the past have been dropped.

underway further down Malakula to Wintua. After spending a pleasant night in behind the reef at Lamandranga pt the run should be around the 2hrs.

looks like another stunning day here on the west side of Malakula, in Lambumbu bay where we arrived last night a new and yet to be checked out place all we can hear is birds

this morning find us on the west side of Malakula in Espiegle Bay off Malua village/ school, what a great spot we moved here last night from around the corner at Molin village after spending 3 days in there company both spots are great anchorages on sandy bottom, one can tuck up in depths of 5mtrs in to near on 50mtrs on the shore.

We have finally made the move from Ratu island and crossed over to the Makula island, looking to going down the west side as we head south. anchored up in Espiegle Bay where there is a small village , with lovely people they have the primary school here, so the have the other local children attend. promised to go to there market day tomorrow so guess we wont be moving on until Friday and then only a short way from here to our next proposed spot.

100% Overcast and windy we are still at Ratu Island by Malo great little spot to sit out of the elements but alass we are getting set to move on perhaps not today wait for the wind lay down. PS can hear you here in Vanuatu

We are still at Ratua island finding a great place to chill out turtles and the odd dugeon can be seen . looking at moving on over to makula next week.

Delayed our departure until this morning,as it took us longer than expected to do the last round shopping ( trying to get a signature and official stamp on documentation proves to be a not so easy task) its only 10nm to our destination on Mala as the cloud and misty rain is persisting we are heading out this morning.

Have been holed up at Luganville for awhile, looking at our options for the rest of our time here, to head up to The banks and Torres Islands is going to have to wait untill another trip this way as time would not allow us the benifit of looking around properly. So the dicision is to head out of here over to the top of Malakula with view to cross over to Ambrym then start working our way south.

Good morning we are now back over on Malakula isl after coming over from Pentecost yesterday when the wind went into the SW and made things uncomfortable there, anchored up in Norsup bay just up from port Stanley. this is the area that hold the largely french speaking population. Our intention is to move up to Wala island this morning to check out that area.

We are moving on down Pentecost island today to waterfall bay, Highly reckomend Bwatnapne bay as a stop off to anyone cruising this area .

We departed Maewo island in the aftrnoon after snorkeling the reef toward the point of Asanvari bay while there was current one was able to take in the abundant fish life in that area. while we saw a few Nudibranch if we had used lungs we could have taken in the full extent of what was there. Now anchored up in Batnavine Bay in calm water on Pentecost island a very pretty spot with a long beach in front of what appears a substainal village ( yet to go into shore) . Have noted that it is turtle heaven here, with some 15 to 20 seen last evening.

at the most popular anchorage on Maewo island , Asanvari is by far the best spot down the western side. Not only do we have good protection in a great bay with good holding, One can go ashore to view the impressive waterfall and follow that up by walking up the track to the top where there is a lookout, the view is fantastic and well worth the climb.

Alex asked if we wanted to walk around, if given this chance take it as it meanders through and under some very impressive tropical forest. the highlight was the massive Banyon trees that drop airal roots down some 70 to 80 feet which serve to support there branches, how they survive hurricanes even the locals are not sure but use there massive trunk systems as protection during the blows.

We parked off Naronova village on Maewo island, Which allows one good holding and avoid the slop if you move right in close to the shore. 5/6mtrs about 30 mrts from the beach. The people here are happy to receive visitors found that they like all the islands produce copra and by crop of kava. We are moving down Maewo today to the bottom of it to Asanvari where there is a good spot that we can go ashore and walk up to what is reported as, a spectacular water fall.

Have over the last couple of days been making our way up Ambae island ,having made the jump across from Hog harbour ( Champagne beach) while this island has no real defined bays on te western side there are indentations that do give some protection from the slop that can find its way into the lee side. We are currently at the top of Ambae island where there is a true black sandy beach that affords good shelter and anchorage right in close to it, toward the south end one can find boulders the holding appears good. we are going to move on over to Maewo Island a 8nm run where it is hoped that we find some good diving and snorkeling.

We are anchored up in a Aore bay on having hopped our way up from Epi island stopping at the Maskelynes islands for afew days, known for there healthy population of mossies, plenty of repellant of detol and baby oil. they were very friendly non demanding but happy to trade ,the island of Sako is only about 1 mtr above high tide consisted of 6 villages with well worn path that one can walk around the whole way from one tidy village to the next. attempts to swim with dugongs was a failure due to clarity of the water could only see the outline of them.

Headed up the coast of Malakula to Crab bay such a neat spot in calm still waters.

Tomorrow we have about 3nm to Luganville to await our passengers and restock

Departing Lamen bay on Epi island for Malakula only a 20nm hop, te stay here has been interesting as this is the island high school added to that the 50yr celebrations of independence which was carried out over the last 5 days, lots singing , games and heaps of speeches. the bay here holds a goodly number of turtles that are not worried by us. reports of a manatee was seen yesterday here as well.

We arrived port vila Vanuatu at 1800 hrs, after what can be described a pretty fast passage , motorsailing all but the last 20hrs. Sea state was considered calm, Have to track down customs and get ourselves here officially. what have noticed is the bird song is great, haven't heard it like this hear at other islands that we have visited.

this report finds us with 83nm to run to Port Villa @ 0630hrs. We manage to off the motor around 2300hrs and enjoy a peaceful sail now have a breeze of 12/15kts.

The wind has filled and we now have 8 to 10 kts not quite enough to allow us to sail and keep up a reasonable speed . we have 235 nm to go so looking like friday morning arrival.

cleared out of fiji yesterday, and got underway at 1200. we are now 403 NM away from port Villa, the seas are quite mild so making progress easy .

Our last day in Saweni Bay as we get ourselves ready for our trip across to Vanuatu it appears that the rain has passed with the sun shining and very little cloud around.

sitting in Saweni Bay on a wet saturday , about to venture into Latoka to do a reprovisioning in prep for our departure to Vanuatu on monday some 600nm to the west.

have moved up to Waya island with the intention of seeing the weather system out, south is the only direction that could exposed.

now down in the Blue lagoon area , after the quite of our last couple of weeks there is a marked increase of activity.

looks like another stunner day for us sun is already up and will be including going up to the main village to do our Sevusevu in our activities

Arrived at Yasawa island at 1700 hrs last night after a very enjoyable sail from Yadua looking forward to our time out here as it has been 5yrs since we were last here.

We are moving camp today, departing Yadua to the Yasawa's so its a early start for us to avoid making the pass before the light fads

the front/low has found us and w have had light to moderate rain most of the night .

this report finds us still at Yadua with intention of moving on around Wed

Things are going great here at Yadua Sean and I took the run around to the village while the wind was down to a gentle zypher around 7 miles. There are 70 people in there village with well established gardens solar power to all homes and the chief was able to tell us the score for the sevens as well as the Crusaders and Chiefs matches.

we ended up returning back to pilgrim via the weathered side, encircled the island we did.

been out snorkeling and finding good coral growth here well stocked with reef fish along with our targeted Nudibranchs with such vast area we are going to have our time cut out covering as much as we can. At least the wind is not so bad now and the day is shaping up to be a hot one.

This morning finds use out at the Ladua Islands which we visited some 5 years ago they are unique from the point of view that Fiji's iguana was discovered here and only on the smallest island, hence we are are not allowed to land on it as they are endangered and there is a protector who lives there. Ladua is at the other end of the Bligh straight so is subjected to the wind that can honk through the area ( no power issues as wind generator keeps pumping away)

Now at Yadua island intend spending sometime here.

we have moved on from Savusavu an dare now in Bau Bay around from coconut point. Apparently was a base for the removal of the sandlewood. today we make the short hop over to Yandua island , looking forward to going back there again.

yah! the pump arrived can now plan on moving in the direction of Yadua, putting pump to work today cleaning up our fuel, getting supplies from the well stocked shops already done the market, mustnot forget the sevusevu packs.

Going to be here in savusavu for duration of at least the rest of the week not, that its a bad place to be.

there is a lesson here for other folk if ordering in parts from overseas never ever use the postal service, DHL may cost but there service is great. I ordered from NZ 2 x packages both departed nz they same day Thursday so the paper work said.

I had the one that was sent DHL in my hands on Monday , How ever the other which I requested DHL they sent NZ postal it still has not arrived and wont be here until sometime in the weekend. Not happy with the people who did not send as requested.

getting twitchy waiting for parts to arrive , once they do we will move on undecided where to but would like to head up Rambi way and around the top via Ring golds. Our permit has all islands on it Hmmm don't think that's possible in one season.

Stunning morning in Savusavu cloudless sky, we are awaiting the arrival of DHL packages that should be here Monday, Once they arrive we are out of here, not that we dont enjoy it here

we are going to be holed up in Savusavu for awhile just catching up with all those little jobs that one never got done before departure or got added on the trip ( part of the joy of cruising ) maintenance in exotic places , but hey it is a great place to undertake and tackle that list.

big welcome backs ! tells us that we are in Fiji check is a breeze. Customs informed us that we are number 13 , no dought that will change over the coming weeks

this morning finds us approaching Savusavu , should be making our way up for check in around 0830. so to all those folk that have been following us on YIT Pilgrim is now in Fiji. What a goergious day it is to there is nothing but blue to be seen overhead so picking 30deg will be on the cards for us.

this morning finds us 18NM from the pass between Matuku and Toyata leaving us 163NM from Savu Savu we have been motoring since about lunchtime yesterday as the wind has moved on without us the sun is shining in under a blanket of cloud that is dropping light rain from time to time we are hoping that wind will return at some point

the sun is rising on what looks to be a very nice day as we motor sail toward Fiji the wind fell away around 2400hrs so are making use of the iron sail.

The wind has dropped back from the 25 plus range to a sedate 15/16 time to Say our goodbyes to sth Minerva today and the folk that are in here it has been fun the fish are tasty along with the cray certainly will call in here again if we pass this way again. Savu Savu here we come reckon Wed

Our time at sth minerva in coming to a end with plans to move onto SavuSavu tomorrow , Glad that we made it to here ,fascinating place and yes I would return, less wind would make getting around to the prime snorkeling spots

What a ideal spot to take a break and catch up on things and fellow yachties

We made it South Minerva last Night now caught up on the sleep and enjoying this place looking forward to exploring

Making good progress toward Minerva with ETA around 2200hrs was hoping to make sth before dark but not counting on it. My repair seems to be ok so we have a motor again. enjoying the sailing conditions

should make Minerva wed Morning, had to do a repair on the exhaust accumulator tank as it sprung a leak going to refit today providing the repair is a success we carry on as planned otherwise it is on to Savu Savu.

made pretty good progress in the last 24hrs now 381 from Minerva nice morning clear skys enjoying the passage

A quite last 24 hrs except for the motor as we crawled our way toward the wind which was above us now at last have enough to shut the motor down we are 525 away from Minerva and should make better progress

Day one finds us 120NM off the coast and 665 from minerva we had a starry night now the odd rainy looking cloud

We are checking out today and making tracks towards the warmth. Intend on stopping at Minerva on the way to Fiji ( Savu Savu)

Good morning, Pilgrim is in Opua awaiting departure to places warmer, looking at Thurs day departure at this time enroute to Fiji via Minerva.

good morning we have arrived back in NZ in fact we are 2NM off the 9 pin and should be up on the Q dock around 1100hrs the breeze picked up late in the day which saw us getting over 8kts through the night at times . It is now time to shake ourselves off and get ship shape and paper work filled out Thanks for all the help Patricia and David.

170NM out from 9 pin and by my reckoning should be around 20 off at this time tomorrow with arrival at Opua after lunch sometime. We are still enjoying a armchair passage as the wind remain in a favorable quarter coupled with the ease of the sea state. There is cloud around now as we are entering the disassociated front and the odd shower has shown up on the radar ( see we do listen to David) It would be nice to give pilgrim a wash down.

well folks we are under the 30 just and not far from home , Thursday is looking at our day of arrival , not sure of the time but our guess is around after lunch . this passage has been so easy with good direction and strength and for the sea state for being what sailors dream of not getting thrown around another than the to b Bare expected back in the passes around Fiji. and it looks like we miss out on the boat being washed as 6mls in front is a rain shower.

good morning from 470nm out the day starts arriving at 0530 daylight saving time. we have clear skies overhead with a bank of cloud behind us to the nth and east .

our progress has been great with runs of around the 150nm helped by the state of the sea and wind direction. 468 to opua.

All in all a enjoyable passage.

still on target to make opua by thursday evening , we have ideal sailing conditions with both sea state and wind direction. seas long period SE swell of 12 to 15secs of 1mtr

making good progress in ideal conditions already noticing the cooler nights.

we are underway found sloppy conditions out through the pass with odd swell 1.5 mtr seas are now what can best be dicribed as settled conditions winds have been less than expected which is allowing us to make good progress

busy getting the last little bits and piecses sorted before our check out. Last check on the passge weather ( which appears to be all indicating the same , always good to see, so with all the dots and dashes in place and fair winds should be in Opua thurs evening.

good morning we are now at Levuku getting orselves ready for a thursday departure . Things are looking more settled condition wise, our expected arrival date is thursday eveningish stunning morning here weather wise wind has dropped away over night now about 5kts SE but should build later in the morning .

here we are still at Makongai, intending hanging out here for the rest of the week enjoying the good patch of weather . Work is on going a they get the buildings and the turtle raising back up and into full swing not mention the giant clams. We will start looking for that perfect weather window sometime after the 5th with departure from Ovalau

we have moved over to Makogai for awhile as we start going into count down for our return to NZ somewhere around the 15th Nov here's hoping that the rain moves on and allows us some opportunities get out in the water.

we are still holed up at Volivoli it is a great spot to stop allowing plenty of great anchorages around this area . We have plenty to do here before we move on , which will see the reinforced trade depart.

well good morning from just off Nandi. We have woken to light rain and cooler conditions after the last couple off days of temps up in the 30s giving us on shore breezes leading to afternoon rain and thunder. We will be moving on from here on wed having picked up our passenger/crew member. Our plan is to return around the top back to eastern side at this stage.

we have relocated and are now anchored up about 5nm above Latoka made the move down a bit earlier than intended but did so as the water clarity was not the best for our snorkling.

Today we will make our way over to denerau

still in the top of Viti Vevu Rakiraki Bay it has been very enjoyable here with settled conditions allowing us the chance to get out to the reefs toward the pass. Well worth the effort with lots of fish life and coral can now understand why peps keep heading this way to dive . we are moving on today toward Denerau.

We are now tucked up in a nice bay/anchorage at the top of Viti Levu on the island of Nananu-I-Ra after crossing the Bligh water from Coconut point in good time and a enjoyable sail. this area is well supported judging by the mass of lights one can see , with resorts such as Volivoli beach resort. The gate way to some great dive sites so should prove interesting stay in this area.

today is departure day from Namena island which has not failed to impress with the awesome diving and abundant fish life, this Island is doing its best to recover from the effects that Winston left. The buildings are starting to receive much needed repair work is beginning this week to restore the wharf, trees are much improved since last year with about 80% now showing foliage bird life has also increased in numbers.

the rebuild is going to take sometime 2 to 3 yrs by then the coral that was destroyed above the 4mtr should be in full recovery there is new coral being established on pretty much all the reefs that we have looked / dived on.

good morning the good ship pilgrim is now at Namena marine reserve island looking forward to swimming/diving. The bird life is thriving

pilgrim is now in Dere Bay on Koro Island and will taking to the water to check out the diving sites.

The resort that is here has suffered major damage from winston and is far from being back in shape to start operations again. It is for sale, as is where is !

have made the break from The Ring Golds and are now down at Taveuni where we overnighted.

On to Koro island today.

have moved over to Rananitiqa island which will be our last island that we visit in the Ring Gold there are 7 islands that make up the group which has Duff reef on the outer edge toward the NW

good morning from the Ring Golds yes we are back out at them missed the nice clear water. there are so many dive spots out here that one needs more time to take them in. So its out to the volcano island today.

looks like we have a stunning day ahead of us clear skies very little wind , Paradise !

well Rambi island turned it on for us yesterday with a pretty much clear sunny hot day.

Spent about 2 hours plus in the water with the at a guess 20 Mantas with up to 8 at times in one camera lens awesome ! So we have decided that our chosen task today will be a repeat visit.

we moved over to Rambi yesterday with plans to return if time permits. catching up with the Mantas is our goal here in Rambi and saw evidence of there presents as we came in.

Loving the Ring Golds going to stretch out our stay here as long as we can.

Good morning from the Ring Gold isle we are enjoying our selves out here with nice clear water and the villagers are very welcoming lots to to see so reckon on being here for awhie.

its been awhie but we are finally back on the road again with all good fridge and freezing ya! have now made our way up to the ring gold reef system with hopes that the weather allows us to stay in this region for a while.

now up in Savu Savu have had recurring fridge and freezer issues. so will be here for awhile until we get it sorted, have replacements being freighted up. Other than that all is a bunch of fluffy ducks.

goood morning welcome back. We are currently in Makongai taking in the HX of the place , and realizing just how much the place suffered at the hands of Winston

currently in Makongai with plans to stay around a week rather a fascinating place with all its history. One thing never knew was that they took lepers from all round the Pacific.

Have moved over to Naqara village and set up camp here for a while a damp last 24hrs just light rain so has been a onboard maitainance.

One just cant sleep in here at Buliya island Kadavu, the road traffic (boats) begins well before daylight as people get there ride to what ever resort, or program the film crews are set building. A walk into the village and one finds very few around it is good to see but in some cases hard on the enviroment as beaches are dug up channels are dredged out with the sand piled up on a island.

still at Kadavu we have been making the best of the good and light air weather.

the coral is in bad shape at all places we have visited it is so sad that lose of it is and will impact on the fish life my attempts to remove the damaging crown of thorns has been to little to late. other factors may contribute to its decline like the removal of sea slugs.

a pleasant day at Vurolevu island water is clear and the Mantarays are here, checking out the reef here has shown that the last cyclone that passed this way has done alot of wave damage.

good morning we are back on station at the islands of Kadavu wishing we had picked up more vinigar while up in Suva may be that we can restock down at Kavala

We have relocated and are now on the The Great Astrobe Reef side of Kadavu taking advantage of the light air conditions over the next few days at Vatulutu in fro Naigoro Pass

We have relocated and are now on the The Great Astrobe Reef side of Kadavu taking advantage of the light air conditions over the next few days at Vatulutu in fro Naigoro Pass

back in the water today to see how my crown of thorns are enjoying there vinager they reckon it takes 3 days to knock them off but I want to see if tey move around from were one injects them.

we took a run in our dingy down to Kavala were they have a stock of Kava in there well stocked shop. $110 a kg $40 cheaper than Suva at the market.

The smell of fresh baked bread tempted us as well. filled a dull day well some of it .

Went and did SevuSevu yesterday at Naqara village in the process found that things are happening around Ono and the rest of Kadavu Naqara is host to a Australian mining crew that are now test drilling for gold. There are heaps of countrys doing surviver programs here and other places in Fiji , French are busy building a big studio on Buliya. will do a further fill later

plan on hanging around this area as has proved to be great for snorkling will pop around to the village and say Hi (do SevuSevu) looks like we are in for some rain here today

sitting out this weather system at Ono island has been windy over night with 20kts and gust to 30kts a good day for reading

still sitting at the same anchorage/ island very comfy a bit of roll coming through on high tide. intend on move on today not sure where as yet.

parked up at Yaukuvalailai island intend checking this area out before we move on ,so far we have been finding some excellent coral. The day looks set to be bright and

looking like we are going to have another nice calm day with not much wind. Yesterday proved a superb one, went and did our sevusevu at Draveuni . They are not big on tradition just thanked us and then we were told we we could go play. They had cruise ship here when we arrived the day before. so we were only small fry.

have relocated , now at Namara island in the KADAVU much more tranquil intend spending sometime here as we love it

it is one great looking morning here in Suva not a cloud in the sky and sun doing its best to get up over the hills. We are looking at heading down to Kadavu today as our parts arrived yesterday.

much clearer day with the odd cloud around , where there are clouds here there is bound to be the odd drop of rain. Have most of our missions sorted like the hair perm .

O/C light rain, no wind, there has been a steady number of new arrivals here over the last few days we have manage to sort out our engine woes .

just awaiting the arrival of parts from NZ then looking at pulling out of here.

another calm morning in Suva looks like situation is normal with the odd shower around in the hills we are going to be here for around 10 days while we get our motor sorted and await parts from NZ

good morning our ETA at Suva is 0920hrs after a hassle free trip of 7 days from Opua Even had to slow up so as not to get in to early.

made good progress over last 24hrs we are now only 150nm out from Suva will look at slowing down so as we arrive around the 10 which doent look to hard as we have come into the wind shadow of the land only have 7/8kts of breeze

enjoying some actaul sailing no need for Mr Ford weather has been stunning sea are comfortable now looking at ETA on monday giving us a pretty fast trip ( thanks to Henry and the Fossils0

still motor sailing to maintain a enough speed to get on top of this high and have change course more toward Fiji the days have been sunny and warm but the nights still have a bite to them. got enough wind to actually sail yesterday hopefully the wind will pick up today and give us chance to turn the motor off.

still motor sailing to maintian a enough speed to get on top of this high and have change course more toward fiji the days have been suuny and warm but the nights still have a bite to them. got enough wind to acually sail yesterday hopefully the wind will pick up today and give us chance to turn the motor off.

managed to make reasonable progress over the last 24 hrs sea conditions allowing the ease of passage. still trying to put easting in as long as the wind direction allows. nights are still cool looking forward to those warmer conditions. Had a smelly flying fish come right on into the boat, now back from whence he came.

making pretty good progress considering the lack of wind, motoring with a hopeful main up calm smooth seas did note a very slight lift/ swell out of the S/W should be across the 30 by this evening enjoying the nice sunny weather up on deck during the day taking in the sites.

motor sailing with intention of getting up above the 30 and over toward the 180 to avoid the possibilities of head winds as the winds turn toward the nth east.

enjoying the smooth conditions in light airs. Heading for Suva

in Opua doing the check out thingy today

dropping off our mooring today and heaading toward Opua

as by now you know due to the snitch at opua that we are in after a fast and sporty trip at times . PS note that Carola are just at the nine pin have them on my AIS

on the home stretch 65 to run to 9 pin reckon on being on Q Dock around 1900 hrs making this our best passage so far with doing it under sail. Done and dusted in 7 days

just over 60nm to te magical 30 sth seen a gradual decrease in wind strength over night to just 10kts this morning so out goes more rag and wALLA one of davids clouds appears wind now at 18kts. Crew very happy to be sailing maybe just maybe we wont require the iron sail for once.

all is well on board, seeing mostly blue sky, waves continue to knock us around, crew all bit fatigued, 18:30, Happy Thanksgiving all who celebrate this holiday, 350/1100 nm

Had good 24hrs ,with 664 to go we are now pointing in the direction of Opua and this will improve as the high moves over winds have come up with moderate seas though we did come through some very short choppy stuff around 2200hrs All well aboard

Having a good trip so far enjoying the calm conditions . which allows us to make reasonable headway

left Suva at 1300hrs for Opua in pleasant sail conditions having done 100nm making Kadavu about 45 astern our SOG is being affected by a current

Today is check out day and rush around getting the last stuff that one thinks they may need/want for the trip back sth.there is 3 others here that are heading off as well

Move back down to Bulliya Island have woken to a pretty much a cloudless day what better place to spend it.

Still tucked up at Namara island in Kadavu as we sit out the systems that are presently in Fiji.

Have moved locations now at Namara Island at Kadavu with the hopes of checking out the reef systems around this area.

A damp overcast day here at Naqara on Ono island with light rain . we intend moving back up to Namara Island at some point during the day as we start our move back toward Suva later in the week

very still morning 0 wind moved around the corner still at Ono island in Kadavu shall stay in here for a couple of days then look at moving back up through the the islands toward the top pass

Staying in the Naqara area on Ono island at Kadavu as we can simply just move around the corner into the village bay if and when the wind direction heads into the nth. either way looks like a day of jobs aboard with rain in the air.

We have relocated over to Ono island ahead of the pending system that is heading our way in a nice sheltered bay over the hill from Naqara village. spent time here last season and yes the crown of thorns has made its presents felt here a quick look around proved that more work to be done. On the bright side there is a high presents of turtles.

Still at Bulliya Kadavu proving to be a good spot to sit out blows from sth through to NNE

Still parked at Bullya island Kadavu may look at a change in the near future as pretty much covered all sites here .

Looking like another stunning day here will decide where we go by dingy later

still parked at Bullya island Kadavu provided good sheltered protection from the weather that we have had over the last few days. The chief in the village here is interested in any information that will help him understand the health of the coral reefs so that kept me busy looking on the net

Have being seeing a few turtles while out and about around our anchorage here in Kadavu, why mention them you may ask , well we received video footage from Paws in time of a Mahimahi that they caught and opened it up reveal some 25 baby turtles. These poor things up against it from the get go.

moved back over to Bullya Island yesterday after wind shifts had us seeking a calmer anchorage. Had the local and NZ custom authority's come aboard to check out our paper work. Good to see that attempts are being made to catch and reduce the movement of people and there illegal substances by moving through the Pacific with the Cruises.

made the short hop across to one of our favorite spots/Islands of Vurolevu also happens to be where the Mantas do there feeding thing so with any luck providing they are still around shall go and have a swim with them.

Hot and muggy night after a great day yesterday rain came in around midnight. did sevusevu yesterday and scored some fruit while there, certainly well organized village .

we have made the move, now over at Bullya island we spent quite a lot of time here last year with a good anchorage.

I did a removal of crown of thorns here. So hit the water to check out there reef, what I saw was looking healthy, though found 6 of the nasties which I removed.

looking to shift today wind has started to to back toward east, cloud started filling again last night.

Much better day the sun has put in appearance and wind has backed off some what . Supply boat is due in today, so that should take care of the entertainment for us, as lighters to and fro loaded to the gunwales.

The village of Naqara is nestled in a bay and surrounded by hills on 3 sides, these were planted in pine 40yrs ago some of which are now to millable size though still small to our reckoning. there was a bit of a opps with a fire and it got away and has taken out near on 2/3 of them, luckily there village did not surcome as well. The land is not suitable for Kava so that cant be a underlying factor in the accidental burn, after all Kava is now at 130 a kilo.

We made a move from Namara island, a decision trust on us by the 25/30 kts of win that made our little spot slightly uncomfortable. Now in the quite of Naqara on Ono island we get the wind here but not as bad , but anchorage is good the folk are great and water calm. Once the winds pass on and things settle we will head back to our little group of islands.

A gray old day so perhaps may not get out to play today, we dingy over to Dravuni yesterday having not been in there before doing a delayed sevusevu. What a great set up they have there with good anchorage and pretty laid back folk.

Namara is still holding our interest, may move on once current weather conditions settle

Liking Kadavu still hold up at Namara island finding some nice spots for snorkeling I removed a lot of crown of thorn's from around these islands last year and like to think that has attributed to the coral that I am seeing.

Have already picked more off this time.

today looks like starting out like yesterday windy apart from that fine, in the afternoon wind eased back making it a very nice warm afternoon, making for good snorkeling conditions here at Namara island

After checking out the coral around where we are finding it in not to bad of shape reckon staying around Namana for afew more days. the water is clean as well

Arrived down at Kadavu from Suva about 1600hrs after a good run in a 15kt SSE which had us motor sailing, had to make water so used that as a excuse. Anchored up at Namara Island in the company of 2 others and spotted 2 others parked by the village on Dravuni island. So we are not all fleeing from Fiji just yet.

getting ready to pop down to Kadavu soonish today for about 3/4 weeks until time catches up with us and we star planning our trip back to NZ.

It is Fiji day today so we have a public holiday and lots of merriment me think and they love there fireworks , so plan on a stroll around town to see what the good folk get up to.

should be moving out of Suva in next few days just awaiting our visa extention . always interesting in here taking in the hustle and bustle of the place.

busy Suva was made even more packed with the arrival of the rather large cruise ship. Still managed to get our application in for visa extension.

hoping to get all our official requirements out of the way over the next couple of days then out of here, undecided as where we will head next. depends on wind strength and direction.

been a year since we have visited Suva it is all go, except for the the sunk and sinking wrecks the are dotted around the landscape. it is still a busy place with lots to see and catch up with.

Suva

today is the day we are departing this great island of Matuku heading to Suva for visa extensions and stuff doing a over nighter.

planning to to depart Matuku on late monday evening for Suvu arriving there Tuesday morning.

enjoying this drop of weather here at Matuku had the folk come out of the woodwork as there supply ship came in rather a big event for them

our day here just got better and better as it went on yesterday, giving us great diving out on the reef. a interesting thing occurred here in the late afternoon we spotted a contact on our AIS nothing wrong with that except it was 2542 NM away at 60s and 179e a fishing boat.

Matuku proves to be a quite anchorage as there is no fetch though the wind does rush down over the hills

still at Matuku did the sevusevu yesterday and meet the very friendly folk in the village that made us welcome. today plan to get out to see what Matuku has to offer in the way of diving/snorkeling and in particular creatures of interest.

Now in Matuku island ( Daryl and Sonya's favorite spot)surrounded by the high hills and the bird song being Sunday when we arrived have yet to go and introduce ourselves. The school bus/boat called by and said Hi well bula actually, There 2nd words were do you know Daryl and Sonya. Looking forward to our time here .

we are departing Falunga today and doing a over nighter to Matuku arriving there in the morning, our time here is something we will long remember and thank the people for making us so welcome going to miss them.

today looks like a repeat of yesterday, so its back out to the outer reef system snorkeling in the pools that are left by the receding tide.

what a day we have woken to, looking forward to taking a walk through to the outside where we are parked there are about 3 places that the water come through into the inside lagoon. One is able to walk pretty much around to the village once the tide drops down, some interesting rock pools left on the retreating tide al so a large sandy beach.

we moved over to the sand spit area yesterday. There is 3 of us in Falunga still that is untill a rather large ketch came in fairly late yesterday ( not Jonathon as expected)

We went into the village yesterday to pick up some carving, if one is looking to purchase or look at what they do here it is well worth the effort. The work is of good quality, our xmas presents are sorted. that is until we decided to keep two of the items for ourselves. If they don't have what you would like then ask and they will more than likly do it for you and can have it made with in a few days if not by the next day depends on your request.

good morning from Falunga our time here drawing to a close with about a week time thinking of moving on. we were boat 90 to visit this year and the season is not over our host's are great ( same ones as Trev and Jan)George and Mia have taken us in, just great great people. still got more to get around and take in over the next week.

Oh Falunga how this place grows on you, the people, the relaxed atmosphere, all one needs is time to take it all in. We are off clamming today with our host should prove interesting

I can see now why those that make the effort to come out to Falunga find there anchor is reluctant to part company. we have time on our side so can just kick back and take in as much as we can.

relocated to Falunga and I can clearly see why one can get lost here and forget to return to cruising. Blown away by the hospitality. nope this will do us for awhile.

enjoying the settled conditions here at the Yagasa cluster enabling us to move around quite freely

one more Island to check out in the yagasa group and I am sure that it won't disappoint may move onto Falunga tomorrow, making a note that one must return to here.

enjoying our time here at the Yagasa cluster taking in the pretty much untouched scenery prepared to spend more time here to dive and snorkel.

now in the Yagasa Cluster which are reported to be as nature meant untouched there is fisherman that come here from time to time. Very keen to look around all 4 islands that make up this group.

planning on moving on from Komo today doing a 9mn across to Yagasa

still in Komo Island what a plesant spot has some of the best coral that we have found and great people so glad we called in here .

did the 20nm hop across to Komo island yesterday heard that it is a great island and the smallest occupied one in the Lau so off to meet and greet today. PS thanx for the kind words yesterday it has been a great journey .

currently at Oneata island very friendly place good anchorage just gets rolly from half tide on

still in the delightful bay at Susi unfortunately looking at departing this afternoon to get outside the reef so as to do a overnighter down to southern Lau. Oneata Island is our intended 1st stop.

now over at Susi furtherest settlement in vunua balavu to the east and where we made water for the village last year will be great to catch up with them here

decided to delay our move until today so it is around the corner to lomaloma for stores and to see how they have coped with their rebuild as their village was all but destroyed, then over to susi for the night and catch up there as I made water for them last year.

relocated yesterday down to alittle bay ? called tota a great anchorage may head from here to Loma Loma tomorrow intending to move on from Vanua Balavu before the Oyster boats arrive.

tucked up in the northern side bay with the yacht club such as it is now after winstone amazed at how much the trees have recovered here last year there was barely any foliage and the clean up of all the downed coconut palms is well underway with planed replanting over the next year. a further 6 years after that before there is any return.

now tucked up at the yacht club in Vanu Balavu after a very relaxing passage across from Taveuni

on passage to Vanua Balavu with eta 1630 this afternoon. Northern Lau group Fiji.

departed taveuni for venu balavu this morning not sth lau as you thought eta around 1630hrs

didn't manage to take your advice as crew had late flight out but are starting to get underway soonish

farewelling family today as they head back to NZ enjoyed having them aboard. lookout lau here we come.

still in Savusavu until most likely the weekend when it is hoped that winds will be favorable for us to head out to the lou group