KORO ISLAND
Have you ever given a thought to stepping off the grid? Well, here’s a story of some expatriates who have done just that in an unusual style. Koro Island is a rugged remote island in the Koro Sea between the two main Islands of Fiji; Viti Levi and Vanua Levi. There are couples and families from many corners of the globe who have departed their homeland and landed in Fiji. They have had the opportunity to buy cheap parcels of jungle, some of which are on steep slopes, to create a ‘homestead’ you might say and start a new life. Koro Island is not your bustling Salt Spring or Gabriola Island. It’s rural and remote. One couple, a Scotsman and his Japanese wife, Neil and WaYing, built a beautiful post and beam house from native woods and then created a very lovely tropical garden with ornamental plants and fruit and nut trees. Another family of four from the US, two adults and 2 kids 3 and 6 yrs. are just beginning the construction of their new home on Koro. School for the children will be at the local village Primary school. And then there’s Kelly and Xavier who are developing and farming a huge multi hector plantation of native Fijian plants, trees and the raising of many chickens. Kelly has a grand eco-friendly mission to plant a forest of Vesi trees….the native tree that is becoming extinct in Fiji. Jennifer and Robert have built a delightful post and beam house nestled in a charming garden. They spend 4-5 months at their Koro get-a-way retreat and the remainder of the year living onboard their boat in Auckland Harbour in New Zealand. What an experience for us to visit each family and learn of their dreams to create a new life. Building supplies and equipment have to be shipped by freight from Suva. Designing disposal systems, water, and plumbing and electricity services is no easy task either. The local Fijians operate on ‘Island Time’ ….slow and sometimes not as sure. Nothing to say of coping with mosquitoes, rats and other critters. Call it what you like. Off the grid, out of the box, extreme living. It makes our Sea Whisper look like pretty good digs for us!

VIANI BAY
JACK’S PLACE…. THE ROTI PLACE

Viani Bay is in Somosomo Strait on the island of Vanua Levu. ‘Big Jack’ Fischer lives there with his dear wife Sophie. Jack is the native born resident who seems to be the mayor of this pristine bay on Vanua Levu. He runs the show at Viani; anything you need, Jack is your man. Besides delivering bananas and coconuts to your boat he will take you snorkeling to the Cabbage patch; diving to the White Wall, the Purple Wall and the Fish Shack on Rainbow Reef or hiking up to the big waterfall at Mt. Narata and into the Vidawa Rainforest.

ROTIS
At one of the parties on Jack’s beach Sophie announced that she would be making Roti’s the next day and would anyone like to join in? Three of us jumped for joy and said we would be there with bells on! How exciting to learn how to make Rotis from an expert Roti maker. Here’s how it went: 3 ladies from 3 cruising yachts gather some extra flour and a few spare vegetables. We are going to make, and you guessed it, vegetable curry. But first it’s the rotis. 10 cups of flour (a tea cup for measuring), vegetable oil (about 1 cup) and some scolding water, yes I mean scalding, is poured into the pan with the flour and oil. It’s not easy mixing fiery hot dough with your hands believe me….but we did it. It turned out like ‘silly putty’. Then we relaxed the dough. Rolling the Roti’s out flat comes next. Not so easy either getting those roti’s rolled into a nice round shape. Jack and Sophie’s young daughter was in charge of frying the roti’s. She stood over a hot wood smoky fire and turned out one roti after the other. It was a real event. Sophie and I blended the curry ingredients together and before you knew it – presto….the best curry roti’s in Viani Bay at Jack’s house were ready for the eating. We devoured the rotis laden with spicy hot curry. A perfect evening: an abundance of delicious spicy rotis mixed with good stories and laughter, Fijian friends, cruising friends, and happy Jack’s family. What could be better?


DIVING RAINBOW REEF

The famous dive spot in Somosomo Strait near Taveuni Island and Vanua Levu Island is Rainbow Reef on the SW corner of Vanua Levu. With some cruising friends we had a chance to dive 5 different spots on the reef. Some were: The Purple Wall, The Fish Shack, The Cabbage Patch, The White Wall. I’m sure you can conjure up a general image of what these dive sites might look like. Besides revealing a ton of fish, turtles and sharks, the vibrant soft-corals were extraordinary.
For 5 consecutive days Jack transported us out to Rainbow reef in his long boat with other snorkelers and divers. We dove the Purple wall, the Fish Shack, the White Wall to name three.

THE WHITE WALL
It was Day 4 and, after 3 consecutive dives at Rainbow Reef, it was time to dive the Great White Wall. This dive is a perennial ‘fave’ at Rainbow Reef. I was a bit nervous about this dive. Reports from divers who had done it described the dive as a deep one swimming through two tunnels and then a big ascent up the White Wall that is profuse with soft white coral bloom. The famous Jack Fischer transported the 4 of us in the long boat to the site of the White Wall for this amazing dive experience. We geared up and checked each other’s gear before summersaulting backwards out of the long boat. Down we went equalizing our air and preparing to enter the first tunnel. “Relax, relax,” I kept reminding myself. “Breath in deeply and exhale slowly.” Eileen and Ken were our dive buddies and they were very experienced. We were in good hands. Through the second tunnel and there it was….the Great White Wall, a huge white coral-laden wall 100ft. high. Stunning! Obviously, the soft corals thrive in the nutrient rich waters of Fiji’s archipelago. It was a ‘Wow’ dive and I’m glad I jumped in!
And Jack, you are the best Div Guide ever! Vanaka Vaka Levu!

MAKOGAI – ONCE A LEPROSY HOSPITAL
FROM LEPROSY HOSPITAL TO GOVERNMENT MARICULTURE CENTER

We had a brisk sail from Viani Bay in the Koro Sea to Makogai. Several yachts were here anchored in the bay. The interest at this island is the history of a Leprosy Hospital which operated from 1911 to 1969. In the 58 years over 4000 patients arrived at Makogai from many places in the Pacific and many countries in the world. Ethnic groups lived in separate villages. The island was divided in two to prevent the disease from spreading between the patients and the workers and staff. In the mid 1800’s it was thriving with a hospital, town, church, movie theatre, amphitheatre and all the dormitories and housing for the leprosy patients. Nuns came from France and Fiji and doctors from Australia and New Zealand to care for the sick. At its peak time there were several thousand people living here. In the graveyard on the hillside we visited a few of the thousand grave sites including the grave of Fijian Sister Maria Filomena who lived on the island for 30 years and contracted the disease. An interesting historical site of an old Leprosarium. Only relics and remnants remain under the vines and vegetation.

MARICULTURE
Today on Makogai, the fisheries officers who are based here are working on protecting species from being overharvested. They are culturing giant clams and transplanting them to repopulate in reefs around Fiji. The giant clams are stunning to view underwater. We see them in various places when we snorkel and dive. At the Mariculture Center we also saw injured turtles in large tanks which had been rescued from the sea. The old staff quarters of the Leprosy hospital are home to government fisheries and their families. Good luck to the fisheries officers and their projects on Makogai.


VUDA MARINA, FIJI
PREPARING FOR SEA WHISPER’S PASSAGE TO VANUATU

THE BIG BOAT JOBS
After a very pleasant six week trip home to Canada to visit family and take care of business we were back in Fiji in late September. And now the work begins to get Sea Whisper ready for passage to Vanuatu. On with the show! The skeg inside the rudder post had to be repaired. After Lionel spent hours and hours of grinding and sanding, Sikeli, a very skilled Indo-Fijian, completed the fibre-glassing. The next big job was to paint Sea Whisper’s bottom. We also required an up-to-date survey for our insurance. The Surveyor came to inspect the exterior before we went back in the water. After 6 days the big jobs were done and the giant crane lift lowered the Fraser 50 back into the water. Such a relief from schlepping boat gear, dirty dishes up and down the high ladder and going up and down to the toilet.

In between our boat work, we took time off to socialize with some of our cruising buddies.
At the Oktober-Fest celebration, Lionel and I won a dance contest! He laughed, as he said, “No-one will believe this as I don't dance!” We had to dance together with a blown up balloon held in various parts of our bodies without dropping or popping it. We ‘oldies’ won over about 8 other younger couples. Great Fun and the prize was a bottle of Fijian rum.

Now it was time to take local buses and taxis to Lautoka to provision Sea whisper for many weeks and months ahead as we were heading West and then North into remote territory of the South Pacific…..the Solomon Island group. With a lot of thinking, planning, shopping, record keeping and re-arranging and storing all the provisions, we were almost ready. Just the fuel and water tanks to fill. We spent our last two days socializing with our good friends, Colin and Ana aboard Ithaka, our dear Swedish friends, Sabina, Per and Ella aboard Breeze and saying goodbye to all our buddies working in the Marina who were now like family to us.

Log entry: October 8, 2015 Enroute Luganville, Vanuatu
1315 hrs. Depart Vuda Marina. Sunny NW wind. Sea Whisper provisioned, fuelled. Many goodbyes to all our friends. Heading to Navula Pass. 625 miles to go. ETA Luganville October 12th.

The passage was a brutal one. Right out of pass of the barrier reef we started to encounter the diversities: auto pilot was not holding course, extreme wind shift from NNE to ESE, 30 kn. winds In rough sloppy seas, tender tummies. For the next 2 ½ days we battled very strong trade winds and lumpy, sloppy and confused 4-5 meter seas and rain squalls. It was an absolute relief to make landfall in Luganville, Vanuatu at noon on October 12, 2015.

Log Entry October 12, 2015
1200 Arrived Luganville Harbour. Anchored in front of old wharf for Immigration, Customs and Health clearance. Uncanny observation: Captain Lionel gave the required advance notice of Sea Whisper’s arrival time in Luganville to be noon on Monday October 5th. How’s that for betting on Sea Whisper’s performance!


LUGANVILLE….FROM A JUNGLE TO A CITY TO A DIVING MECCA

The history of Luganville, Vanuatu’s northern capital is a fascinating story involving WW11 and the battles in the South Pacific.

Some interesting facts:
1942-1945 Over half a million Americans were stationed in Luganville ready for battle in the Pacific.
Infrastructure and roads were laid everywhere
Four hospitals, five airfields, jetties, torpedo boat base, market gardens, as well as Quonset huts for offices, workshops and servicemen’s accommodation were all constructed.
After the war the surplus equipment got dumped in the ocean: hence MILLION DOLLAR POINT, a great dive spot where one will find bulldozers, aeroplane engines, and jeeps and lots of Coca-Cola bottles. We found all this stuff on our dive of Million Dollar Point…even the Coca-Cola bottle bits and pieces.

THE LEGENDARY USS PRESIDENT COOLIDGE
DIVING THE BEST WRECK DIVE IN THE WORLD

GO WRECK DIVING
On Day 2 in Luganville, we were syked to sign up for another dive on the world’s most famous shipwreck, the President Coolidge. Originally a 200m by 25m, 22,000 ton luxury liner, it was converted into a troop ship in WW11. In October, 1942, the ship came to its demise when it hit a US-laid mine coming through Segond channel. It was doomed. The Captain ran the ship aground. Five thousand troops abandoned the ship with only two casualties. Last year we dove the bow and top of the deck and also into the cargo holds where we found weapons, gas masks and trucks. This year we will dive through the ship to find the porcelain ‘Lady’.

Geared up and gear checked we begin the shore dive to the line where we descend to the foredeck. Our Dive Master Tanu checks our buoyancy and decides I require another 2 lbs. One is always a little nervous at the start of the dive. I remind myself to breath slowly and rhythmically. We are diving down to 137 ft. and our bottom time will be 46 minutes. I don’t want to miss ‘The Lady’. We swim to a large hatch opening and down the three of us descend into the dark and gloomy hallows of the President Coolidge. Through the First Class lounge and state rooms we carefully manoeuvre and suddenly with our flash lights she appears, ‘The Lady’, a porcelain doll-like statue resting on a horse. A surge of excitement reaches Lionel and me. I study her, remove my dive glove and touch her face. She’s beautiful….’The Lady’. Check air, depth and gear. Dive signals to each other “All is Well”, and we begin our ascent through the pitch black ship and cargo holds passing rows of toilets, tools and trucks. Safety stop one- two minutes, safety stop two – five minutes and safety stop three - 10 minutes to allow the nitrogen bubbles out of our system. We reach the surface. A great dive. We almost wish it wasn’t over. Hope we can do another dive to learn more about the legendary President Coolidge.


ISLANDS OF NORTH VANUATU
THE HITCHHIKE, A FUNKY YACHT CLUB AND A NI-VAN WEDDING DRESS

We’re charting new territory and heading north through some of the northern villages of Espiritu Santo. We chart courses to Oyster Island, Hog Harbour, Port Orly and Sola. Waking up early in Hog Harbour (better known as Champagne Beach), we start the engine to move to the next anchorage. Whoops! Dead engine battery. How do we get to town, Luganville, 55 km. away to hopefully buy a new 12V battery for Sea Whisper? The answer is hitchhike. It is the only mode of travel. In the blazing midday sun we start out on dusty trails to find the main road. After a farmer shakes down 2 coconuts from a palm coconut tree and offers us the delectable juice we carry on. A pickup truck stops and transports us 10 km. On the side of the road we wait. It’s hot. It’s humid. Wait, wait wait while a young ni-Van told us the story how he walked into the hospital and picked up two babies whose mothers had decided to give them away!!. Fifty minutes later ride number two shows up. We hop into the back of the pickup and this guy takes us, after scouting out more gas from a farmer, all the way to town. We find the battery (approx. 30 kilos), fill our baskets with fruit and veg. at the market, drink an iced coffee at the Friends Café and 5 hrs. later return with all our stuff to Champagne beach in a decrepit van with nine other ni- Van and all their stuff including a 2 day old baby and the 18 yr. old mother.

At Sola in thee Banks Island group we check out of the Vanuatu country. But first we discover the funky Yacht club known as the Leumerous Yachtclub. We spend time with Robert who has a certificate of Hospitality hanging inside. There is a sand floor and 2 or 3 rudimentary handmade tables and stumps and to one side a sort of kitchen where he can prepare a meal given advanced notice. We sign up for a dinner the next day… only to be pre-empted by a Russian cruise ship (ex ice-breaker) whereby Robert would be preparing their lunch onboard. Better deal for Robert!

One more stop at UreParaPara on the volcanic island of Norbarb in the Banks. Officials gave us two days to leave the country. Amazing and beautiful volcanic island where the crater blew out
one whole side leaving it shaped like a horseshoe. The village people were delightful. The Chief and his daughter Breanna came out to Sea Whisper to greet us with coconuts and papaya (paw paw pronounced po po) and invited us to dinner. In the dark we fumbled through the mangroves and made our way to the grass hut. There we were presented with fresh flower leis. The next day (Sunday) it was the Anglican church service with its sand floor and rough park benches. Breanna tells us the family is preparing for her big wedding on January 6th with 4 couples to be wed. “What will you wear, I ask?” I would like to find a white dress or skirt but they are too expensive in Santo. “Come out to Sea Whisper and let’s see if we can find a dress. One hour later Breanna was fitted with a white full long tiered skirt with sequins. Aaha! How happy we all were.