Rainy Lazy Day in Tonga! Wednesday, Sept. 12, 2018
12 September 2018 | Vava'u anchorage #7
Helen
We got a lot of rain last evening and overnight. We watched more Game of Thrones and retired after 10 pm. There were two other Moorings catamarans with us. Then today we got big rains. To the point, Mark scooped out 5 gallons of water from our dinghy and that was not half of it. We will save the water for washing the boat. Our poor towels and swim suits were saturated from the many rains. Eventually, we rung out the water and hung them back up. Some tour boats showed up with snorkelers and anchored just off the coral line. Then boat after boat joined us. Anchorage #7 is really protected with this SE blow! We are liking the flat waters. It feels like close quarters, though! It was well after lunch when we got into our swimsuits and headed out in the dinghy. Checked out some of the rock faces on the island beside us. None of the carve outs were actual caves. They didn't go deep enough to be a cave for us to swim in. We motored off the shoreline and dropped our dinghy anchor in about 8 feet of water. The breeze was still and cold so the water actually felt warmer. The sun tried to shine thru, but mostly hid behind clouds. The snorkeling was interesting. There were lots of tiny colorful fish, purple, neon green and yellow. We also saw several purple starfish. Some looked to be intertwined on the coral structures. I switched to a new snorkel set because my flippers are too loose on my feet. The new ones worked well. I pulled up the dinghy anchor as Mark drove us back to Charabia. At this point we had 6 more boats joining us. Several are Moorings charter boats. One more catamaran joined us just before sun set. We dinghied back to Charabia and got back in the water to scrub the hull and removed a few tiny barnacles that have latched onto our bottom paint. By the time we got out and showered, we were both extremely cold. We dried off, changed into dry clothes and warmed up with a cup of coffee and Baileys! I think my feet are still cold and I put on a pair of socks. We do not have a heater onboard but it is still 80 degrees in the cabin. When we cook anything the heat remains in the salon. Listening to Stan Rogers as prepare today's blog entry. Thanks for your emails and messages! The sun is just setting for today. All is well in Paradise!!