I appreciate that recent blog posts seem to be littered with constant (and perhaps rather boring) references to wind speed and direction but those are the predominating factors of life for cruising in the Ha'apai Group. When we eventually get to Vava'u, we will be able to find bays that are sheltered from all directions and this obsession should become less domineering. I also realize that we have been moaning about the rarity of sunny days, almost as much, but less expected, than during our summer in Alaska. Yet, the majority of photos on the blog may seem to belie any justification for this attitude. Just remember that gray-sky pictures are not as appealing so I am significantly biased in my selection of photos with bluer skies.

Having just commented, when at Uonukuhihifo, about the scarcity of turtles in Tonga, we saw more on the following two days, which was encouraging. We spotted one underwater at out next snorkeling site, off the southern beach at Uoleva Island, and saw two more splashing around at the water surface when we returned to the anchorage in Pangai.

Increasingly choppy conditions at Uonukuhihifo on Thursday morning (August 24th) encouraged us to lift the anchor and sail north. After rounding the reef to the west of Luangahu, the tiny island by which Devocean had sat-out the previous week's strong winds, we furled the jib and motored easterly into the wind to reach the southern Uoleva anchorage. With overcast late-afternoon skies, it was not going to be easy to pick out a sandy area in which to anchor if another boat was already in the spot we had used previously. SVs Haven and Devocean were anchored just south of the Sea Change Eco-Resort so, as we approached the bay, we suspected that one of them had found the same sandy hole. Luckily, they were anchored nearby but not in the same patch so we could go back to exactly the same GPS waypoint and drop the anchor, confident that we would not be damaging any coral. Such are some of the little joys unique to the cruising life!

This was confirmed the following morning when we snorkeled off Tregoning. Bavo joined us as we finned towards the coral reef that lined the southern end of the beach. The visibility was not particularly good (we had been spoiled at Limu Island) but we did see some interesting fish and found a very cute "garden" of anemones with a "village" of attendant red and black anemonefish.



Red and black anemonefish in a garden of anemones look towards Bavo

After lunch, we raised the anchor and motored a few miles north back to Pangai Village where we would make use of the internet and replenish our supplies of fresh fruit and vegetables. Devocean followed us to Pangai and we joined them that evening to hear about their excitements in the Luangahu anchorage during the blow when we went to Ofolanga Island. While the maximum wind speed that we had observed was almost 38 knots, they had noted 52 knots. We will compare wind speeds while we are together at Pangai to see if our anemometers agree (I suspect that ours may read a bit low).

While they were fairly well-protected from waves in their small anchorage, that was almost completely surrounded by reef, the anchor-holding ability of the bottom sediment was not excellent, and they had to re-set their anchor three times after it dragged a bit. They also had to motor forward to relieve pressure on the anchor in the highest winds but, as we knew from our experience at Minerva Reef, while that helps to some extent, it also causes the boat to swing in large arcs from side to side. This did not seem as advisable in the small anchorage so they did not keep it up for long.

They had selected the anchorage on the assumption that (as at Minerva) the strongest winds would be coming from the west and southwest, where they would be protected by the small island but, in fact, the stronger winds were from the northeast and north (the reason why we went to Ofolanga). So their story finally convinced us that Bavo is not always exactly right in his weather predictions, as it had otherwise seemed.

Their humor and bravado in telling the tale, also suggested to me that they have a greater tolerance than I have for harrowing anchoring conditions so I was happy that we had made our respective anchoring decisions. Their advantage was that having survived the strongest northerly winds, they were able to stay in their anchorage and enjoy exploring the island and reefs when the winds changed to the west, whereas we had to move from Ofolanga when it became too rough. Such are the comparative decisions and outcomes about where to anchor in windy conditions that are a part of the cruising life.

Having returned to Pangai Village, our intention was to get a few supplies over the weekend then pick-up our exit papers on Monday for an overnight sail north-northeast to Vava'u. However, the weather forecasts are not encouraging. With 20 to 25 knot winds predicted from the northeast at the beginning of the week, it looks as though we may have to wait a few more days before we can hope to sail in that direction.

Of course, having just heard that the King of Tonga has fired the Prime Minister and dissolved Parliament, the wind direction might not be the only thing that affects our movement around the islands. Hopefully, there will not be any violent backlash (it would seem particularly unlikely outside Nuku'alofa) and the government offices such as Customs (where we need to check-in and -out) will continue to function. But, of course, although my focus in these blogs on our cruising life can make it seem that way, it is NOT all about us...

Good luck, Tonga, in this time of uncertainty.