We made it!! We have now completed the South Pacific jump and it wasn't half bad. We're glad to call New Zealand home for the next 6 months. But, boy, it's cold here!! Very cold. And windy and rainy. We're grateful for the warm welcome we get all around. Special thanks to Lynn and John martin, the organizer of the All Points Rally, which we warmly recommend for those making a passage to New Zealand from either Tonga, New Caledonia, or Fiji.

Arrived at Port Moselle, Nouméa, New Caledonia, through the havannah pass. Four days of motoring out of a six day passage! Easy does it.

Arrival in Levuka, Ovalau island, where we clear into Fiji. Not many boats clear there, but the clearance is rather straight forward, although it drags on all morning. We decided not to stop at Savusavu, Vanua Levu Island, which is where most boats clear. The reason is we need to get to Denarau on Viti Levu, where we will leave the boat before our scheduled flight on June 24. It's another 200 miles from Savusavu. A depression is looming and we cannot afford to be stuck in Savusavu, waiting for the weather to turn around. We leave the next day, heading to Denarau, taking the southern route. We have to beat 30-40 knts south easterlies for about 35 miles right on the nose ... it takes us almost 10 hours!! Finally, around midnight, we turn the corner of the southern coast of Viti Levu and we're good all the way to Denarau.

We arrive Friday afternoon at Apia, capital city of this small island. You're supposed to anchor outside the marina and wait for the authorities to show up on Monday morning. The anchorage is wide open, well protected and with good holding in mud 6-10 m. As it turns out, we're allowed to take the dinghy to shore, which we do. And enjoy a great week end, getting acquainted with the fish market at 6:00AM on Sunday (terrific) and the small town. Formalities on Monday are easy and fast. While in Apia, do not miss the show at the cultural center in town. It's a very interesting display of local traditions, songs and food. Really lovely. We tour this pretty island. We'd love to stay longer.

Arrival in this beautiful isolated atoll. We circle around the island to await daylight because it would not be safe to enter the pass without daylight visibility. Harry is the new ranger since 2013. He does not take the entry/exit formalities lightly. Tons of paper to fill out. But, in the end, it's easy and friendly. Anchorage isn't easy -- you choose between deep and very deep, in-between coral heads. In strong westerlies (>20kn), the anchorage becomes rolly and can be very uncomfortable or even dangerous. In 2014, a boat broke its anchor chain in the middle of the night, attempted an exit and ended up on the reefs in the pass. It's since been dragged out and sunk outside the atoll.
We spend 10 days in what turns out to be a little paradise despite all sorts of interdictions (including sailing inside the lagoon). There is nice snorkeling on the surrounding reefs and the isolation makes this place very special.

Today, we leave Bora Bora and French Polynesia altogether to continue our trip westward. We're headed to Suwarrow. We initially planned to go to Niue via Beveridge Reef, but strong south westerlies Northeast of New Zealand in the region are making this plan uncomfortable. Nous voici sur les pas de Moitessier!