11/03/2009, Tonga
Just a year ago, we were leaving San Diego headed for Mexico and the excitement and preparation feels familiar.
After a longer than anticipated, but uneventful upwind slog to Nuku'alofa we arrived and spent our last carefree tropical night for the foreseeable future anchored off a peaceful outer island. Once we moved the boat into the inner harbor, it has been non stop boat chores to get ready for the 1200 mile sail to New Zealand. The long list of miscellaneous but necessary tasks included topping off water, diesel, propane, laundry, swapping the headsail for a smaller sail, and all of the normal boat prep for a long trip.
Mary cashed in her best birthday present ever and flew to New Zealand with the boys two days ago. We had a bit of a fright this week when both the boys woke up covered with angry red bumps and the initial diagnosis was possible chicken pox. With all the screening for swine flue and infectious diseases, Mary was terrified that New Zealand heath officials would not allow them into the country when they arrived on the plane. Fortunately, Mary and both bumpy kids were successfully checked in and are now enjoying themselves in New Zealand.
I am done schlepping diesel and water jugs, cleaning up the boat, and am looking forward to Dad arriving tomorrow morning. All that is left is a half day of navigating Tongan Immigration and Customs, a market trip for fresh food, and then we can move the boat to a clean anchorage for a final scrub of the bottom. Despite heavy overcast and rain presently, there is a good weather window for the passage, and I am hoping to leave on Friday morning.
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10/25/2009, Tonga
Yesterday we had a very nice day-sail through the islands. Our goal was to find a nice overnight anchorage to prepare for jumping off to the next island group and the capital city of Nuku'alofa. We wove through the coral to a sandy spot on the windward side of a beautiful little island where the guide book described "lagoon like protection in all weather". I do not know where the author stayed, but this was the roughest anchorage since La Cruz with wind waves sweeping over the reefs in anything but the lowest tide. It was getting late in the afternoon and the next option was dead upwind, so we stayed for a bumpy but uneventful evening.
Mary has spent the morning baking and making lentil salad for dinner tonight. After lunch we will leave for the 100 mile trip to Nuku'alofa and hopefully will arrive around this time tomorrow.
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10/24/2009, Tonga
Another kid boat, Imagine, joined us off our private island and we had a fun filled day snorkeling and playing on the beach. Imagine has two boys and a girl all around the same ages as Timothy and Finn, and the kids had a blast together. While the kids played, we enjoyed a quiet couple of hours sitting on the sand and chatting in the shade of palm fronds. By late afternoon, the families migrated to Whisper where the kids created a Lego extravaganza, the women made cocktails, and the dads escaped to hunt and gather with the spear guns. Marc speared his first fish, an enormous brown and black cod, and after spending considerable time and effort to get it out of the hole in the coral it had retreated to, we returned victoriously to the boat just in time for a sunset and the tail end of happy hour.
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10/21/2009, Tonga
After a very enjoyable month in the Vava'u island group, we have moved southward into the Ha'apai islands. Leaving Vava'u at dusk we had a very easy overnight passage, arriving off Haano Island at first light. We were escorted in by two enormous humpbacks and a calf who surfaced within 25' of our stern and all breathed together. Though we had been watching them approach, it still gave us a fright to have them so close and so loud.
Visibility was poor with the low sun reflecting off the water and we ran smack into a huge coral head as we entered the anchorage. Ooops! We now have a big scuff on the leading edge of the keel with coral stuck to it and plenty of shaken nerves aboard, but fortunately no real damage. Everyone in the anchorage was up with their first cup of coffee so we were the morning entertainment. As soon as the light was better it was apparent where all the coral heads are, so I am sure that the anchored boats could see the impact coming long before we did. Depth went from 75' of water to less than 6' in a vertical cliff that is pretty obvious in good light, but we did not see it until it went under the bow. At least we were going very slowly.
We moved on to a picture perfect anchorage off one of the Tongan King's private islands. The island is pretty as a postcard with broad white beaches almost all the way around and the softest sand we have seen. Beach combing is amazing and we have collected a bucket of beautiful shells and several pet hermit crabs. Snorkeling and spear fishing continue to be great, though the water is quite cold at this point. The fish are getting smarter and more wary as we move south and I am scaring far more fish than I catch.
Last night I went on my first night dive with another cruiser, on a quest for "slipper lobsters". These are strange little prehistoric creatures that resemble a cross between an armored crab and a small lobster. First impression of night diving: very creepy, very cold and very dark! For several hours we swept the reefs with the underwater light until we spotted a green armored alien creeping along below us. Rene would hold the light on it and I would dive down and try and pin it to the reef with my hand before it blasted away with powerful flips of its tail. Once immobilized, I could get my hands around it, surface, and we would stuff it into the dive bag. The excitement and action kept me warm, and the comic sight of me swimming after the ones that tried to get away kept us laughing. We returned to the boat with an entire bag and they are happily living in a bucket in the cockpit awaiting lunch.
Today is overcast and windy and we are hunkered down doing school, catching up on chores, and looking forward to lunch.
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10/09/2009, Vava'u
The Malone boys continue to dominate the dinghy class in the Vava'u yacht club Friday night racing series with Timothy posting another commanding first in class in yesterday's race.
Sailing a shortened course, Timothy skippered the Whisper's Dingy "Shout" to an exciting finish as the first dinghy and the second boat overall in a dramatic down to the wire finish. With steely nerves he called for rights and crossed a charging 40' keel boat and tacked for the finish line in a move that left spectators gasping.
The first place big boat bought him an orange fanta at the yacht club after the race and congratulated him, commenting that his eyes were as big as saucers when they ducked below us. Thought the race committee was not sure if they should award Timothy with second overall, or first in class, he was pleased to accept his certificate for two free soda's and a large fry from the Mermaid bar and grill.
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10/09/2009, Vava'u
We continue to enjoy exploring the islands here in Vava'u. The main activities are school and a few boat chores then snorkeling or sailing to a new spot in the afternoon. The water has gotten colder and Mary the boys are sporting a collection of hand-me-down wetsuits. We are relying on spear fishing more and more for lunches and dinners so that seems to be my main chore after boat tasks. The fish are getting smarter and smaller, but we have managed to vary our diet of beans and taro roots. We need to maximize our time in the water, as we move farther south it will soon be too cold to swim.
Mary is busy making plans for her stay in New Zealand, and my Dad and I will be sailing together for the passage. It will be first time in long time that we have sailed together and I am looking forward to it. Mary is just so relieved and excited not to be facing the passage to New Zealand that she is on cloud 9.
As nice as it is here in Vava'u we are planning on checking out with Customs early next week and sailing to the Ha'api group about 80 miles south. We are getting a bit itchy and Ha'api is reported to be beautiful and far less visited. Until then, we are just lazing around and enjoying the easy cruising.
We had another tsunami warning following a recent earthquake in Vanuatu, but fortunately there was no effect here. Nerves are stretched and everyone was on their boats anxiously listening to the emergency service updates, but the warning was canceled after several hours.
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