We had limited time here and a couple of obligations so we decided to limit our cruising to Noumea, Bay of Prony and the Isle of Pines areas. Those of you who know us well know that we like to take care of our Chilli Cat so some time ago we had booked her in for a haul out in the yard outside Noumea.
We were also fortunate to have guests from Sydney over, Mark and Sylvana. We had the boat in the marina so it was easy for them to find us and the following morning we set out with our new ship mates! We headed east (so it was a bit bumpy) and into the huge Bay of Prony which offers many anchorages, but we decided on the mooring bouys at Isle de Casy. There was a reef, beach and some walking there so we figured it would be a good spot for us all. We tied up easily to the very well maintained bouys and had a swim. Gosh, what a surprise. The water temperature was significantly cooler here than our recent stopovers. Our pals on Maloo had reported a good snorkel on the further reef so some of us donned our wetsuits and fins and headed over. Sylvana and Isabella stayed on board and Isabella learnt some new card games. (she always wins!) The snorkel was nice, we saw something new, the striped sea snake which is highly venomous but as its mouth is so tiny, and its not normally aggressive so is not a huge danger. We still kept our distance from this pretty little creature though. Back on board we fired up the bbq and had a lovely evening, catching up on news from Sydney.
The next morning we decided to explore the little island. There is a resort there which is now derelict. Apparently it didn’t last for long and has been closed for almost a decade. A local family used to reside there too but all that is left now is the family cemetery. It’s a shame as the island is a lovely spot. It is home however to the resident dog, Moose. A big brown softy cross between quite a few breeds, he greeted us as we came ashore, full of tail wagging and kept close to us as we walked around the island. It didn’t take long but It was a beautiful walk through the local pines, along the beach and up into the area that used to be mined with the landscape bare and scarred from the machinery. Moose led us safely back and in the afternoon we came back with some goodies and fresh water for him. The kids played on the beach for a while and Moose curled up right beside us for a sleep. His big eyes were imploring us to take him with us and we were very taken with him but firstly he is way too big for a boat and secondly, taking a dog into Australia is a long and complex process. With the amount of cruisers stopping by, we felt reassured that he would be fed, watered and cuddled regularly.