We left Veymandhoo(02 11.336N 073 05.289E) about mid morning on our way to the next atoll. We left at low tide and still had 5 feet under out two meter keel. Pass between a very small island and a concrete pad to the left. We anchored in about 30 feet in soft sand. Great holding.

First, I had to launch Puff and go rescue Jason off Yolo that had gotten marooned in the town. In our last post, I wrote that his outboard had failed him due to a defective fuel filter. Well the replacement did the same. Who ever made these thing used a glue that dissolves when it comes in contact with gasoline. Hey, it's a gas line filter! What are the chances of it having gas in it? Pretty good I'd say!! Any way, Jason had gone to town about 1900 to have dinner with one of the doctors at the regional hospital. What he got was the social event of the season at Veymandhoo. He feasted with all the doctors, as well as the Iman from the Mosque, the man who owns all the regional ferries as well as the main government official for the atoll!!! There were more but that's all I can remember. Karen, Jason wife had been invited also but she decided to stay on Yolo as a big storm looked bad on the horizon. Now, I'd left out VHF on as well as our cell phone just incase. Well, the "incase" actually happened. His outboard quit just as he left the entrance to the harbor. He managed to row to shore but not before getting swept around the end of the breakwater. Good thing he had oars. I guess the volume on my VHF was too low because I'd stayed up till close to midnight. Why my phone didn't ring, I have no idea on that one.
Any way, I knew something was up when I got up and saw no dinghy at the stern of Yolo. We called Karen and she told us Jason's story and we of course offered to go get him. I guess it's a good thing I hadn't gone along(stayed on board--storm and sick wife)since while Tracy has launched Puff by herself, it's not a fun task. We launched Puff and I took off to get Jason and his dinghy. No problem but it sometimes helps to have a "buddy boat" for emergencies like this.

During the conversations, Jason found out that the first call to prayer is about 0445 and it is optional while the rest(five) are not optional. The women of the village decided that since they get to pray at home, every woman will sweep the road in front of their house before the morning prayer and make sure the house is spotless. They do this everyday. The Mosques are set up for men only. The women of the town only pray at home. While they were having dinner, there was an emergency at the hospital. One of the men on another small atoll had been rushed to the hospital after having a heart attack. He passed away shortly after getting there. I talk to Jason and get more information and pass it on. Wish I could have gone.

We both met some wonderful people while we were there. From what Jason found out, there haven't been any cruiser boats to visit the town in several years(about 8)!! No clue why as it's a great place with lots of small grocery stores and a place to top off my internet service till we get to Gan at the south end of the atoll. For those of you that are reading this post that are coming after us, PLEASE, stop in and visit the town. Nice people with lots of kids to say hello to and watch them giggle. I'm guessing that none of them have ever seen cruisers before.

We are now anchored just off a small island near Maavah(01 54.140N 073 15.443E) in 44 feet of water in broken coral. We scoped out around Maavah and found most places were either too shallow or too deep for us so we motored over the the next island and put down the anchor where we could find a safe place. Tomorrow afternoon, we will be taking off for the next atoll. It's about 65 miles from here so we need to leave just as the Sun is going down tomorrow so we arrive when the Sun comes up the next morning. The winds are forecast to be light with about a three foot swell. Today, we had winds of about 14 knots out of the west and very riled swells approaching 6 feet or more. They threw us from side to side violently at time. Poor Blue(one of our kitties) decided she didn't like it in the cockpit so she plunked herself down just out side it on the upwind side(shadier). It was also the side the waves were hitting and when we got smacked with a really big wave, well poor Blue nearly got washed overboard. The nets we have along our lifelines kept her safely on board. She came running back into the cockpit soaking wet. I promptly took her(once I could pry her claws off the ledge of the floor)below deck for a fresh water rinse. I've never seen her scramble so hard to stay out of the sink. Her legs and paws were everywhere grabbing what ever she could find to stay away from the sink. In the end, she got a nice rinse and a wrapping in a towel(even more mad at me)to dry off what we could. She took off once sort of dry and hid in the forward section of the boat, panting and with eyes that seemed ready to pop out of her head. I stopped and petted her for a while and later found her tucked in behind much of the supplies we have piled on that bunk. Now that she is dry, she seems better but I have a feeling it's going to be a long time before she sits in my lap again. Pissed is an understatement.