• Passage Fiji to Tuvalu

    We’re at the half way mark of the trip now and all is going great. Early on the 2nd day, with Fiji still in the distance we caught our biggest tuna. It was so big that the three of us couldn’t possibly have eaten it all, so we released the poor lil guy back into the ocean. Incidentally, we met a lady on the west coast of the south island who had been white baiting for many years. She told us that whenever they go out whitebaiting they always throw the first catch back, as an offering to the sea, and in turn the rest of the fishing is fruitful. She must be onto something as about 15 minutes after we’d thrown the tuna back we had pulled a really good sized wahoo on board. This is one of the best fish for eating in the area – whoop! So that has kept us full for the last couple of days with pan seared fish and salad, and fish burritos on the menu.

    Robin was on the sunrise watch this morning and he woke me early to see a pod of around 10 dolphins swimming off the bow. They joined us for quite a while, playing in the waves. With a beautiful sunrise in the distance it’s fair to say that it was an incredible way to start to the day.

    On night watch phosphorescence skidded across the sides of the boat, the stars were out, and the occasional cloud showed lightening in the distance.

    Jonas our Italian crew is settling in well. There is talk of carbonara for dinner tonight, and he’s been helping me work on rolling my ‘rrrs’ so I can speak like an italiana or espanola!

    The only thing missing from this trip so far is the WIND! The wind has ranged from 5-15 knots but generally we’ve been traveling slower than what we are used to. As we get closer to the equator it’s getting hotter and we took a dip over the side yesterday in the bluest of blue water. The clarity is ridiculous.

    That’s all for now, here’s a few (low res) pics of life onboard during an ocean passage..

    Fish Day One Wahoo fillets

    Fish Day One Wahoo fillets

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    Sunset over ocean

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    And another

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    Waiting for the rain

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    Bit of evening reading

  • Farewell to Fiji

    It’s hard to say goodbye to a place you have loved and people you love, but we are excited about the trip ahead. It’s great to be back out on the water and even more fantastic to see a pod of dolphins on departure.

     

    New Spanish friends

    New Spanish friends from Caps III

    Sikkim

    Waving good bye to amigos on Sikkim

    First dinner on passage

    First meal on passage with new crew Jonas

    Sunset

    First sunset on passage

    Sun gone

    Sun gooone

    Dolphin visitors

     

  • Final night in Fiji at Vuda Point

    After three months cruising in Fiji the time has come to go north!

    Cheers, salut, skal, and all that to the wonderful people we’ve met over the past few months. Drinks Vuda Point

     

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  • The consequences of consumption

    This sombering story featured last week in the Australian press about yachtsman Ivan Macfayden who recently completed a trip from Melbourne to Osaka and then across the Northern Pacific all the way to the US. It was a trip he did 10 years before, and noted the stark contrast in fish and bird life on the trip.

    http://news.yahoo.com/the-ocean-is-broken-133327474.html

    Next year a film documenting some of the sights of plastic around midway (some of the most remote islands in the world) will be screened. If you are interested in this kind of thing check out the trailer here. Stories like this are hard to watch, but need to be shared if positive change is to take place.

    http://www.midwayfilm.com/

    MIDWAY a Message from the Gyre : a short film by Chris Jordan from Midway on Vimeo.

  • Sunset sessions

    The best thing about living on the boat is you get to watch the sunset most days. Sometimes this is on other boats, sometimes with a beer in hand, and sometimes with a quiet cuppa tea. Here’s some of our favourites (or at least some of the ones we’ve had our camera for).

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  • Savusavu and Sevusevu

    In Savusavu we attended Curlys infamous seminar with a few new friends. Curly very thoroughly informed us of the etiquette for Sevusevu:

    In Fiji when you anchor off a village you should go ashore, make yourself known to the chief and he will welcome you to the village. The catch is he will only welcome you to the village if you come bearing a 1/3-1/2 kilo package of Yaqona, aka Kava. This needs to be appropriately bundled in newspaper (which is apparently read from front to back) and the long twirly sticks of Yaqona are tied together with a piece of ribbon. This tradition goes for Fijians and foreigners alike, and we found it a really nice way to experience the culture. Once the ceremony is finished you are part of the village and are allowed to walk through it, fish, swim, etc. Here’s a picture of the liquor cabinet on Confederate stocked with Kava and ready for action.

    Yaqona

    In Savusavu we caught up with a few boats we met in Tonga – Celtic castle and Toodles. We are loving the somewhat transient community we find ourselves in, and the instant respect for anyone we meet knowing that they have crossed an ocean to get where they are.  All the moments we are sharing with people along the way are really special. We spent about a week with Kate and Gary (a fellow Kiwi couple) with some awesome convos over rum, fish, fiji golds, and a random yet fantastic meal in the thriving metropolis that is labassa.

    Drinks Savusavu

    Tis a good chance to thnk everyone we’ve met so far for the good times and community spirity. Big shout outs to Trish and Dave off Halcyon 2 and Geoff and Sharon off Silhouette who we left behind in Tonga but loved spending time with you guys.

  • Arriving in Fiji

    We left Tonga to a pod of whales bidding us farewell, and arrived in Fiji to a pod of dolphins playing in the surf around us. No pictures – unfortunately we were a bit too excited of a) arriving in Fiji and b) being surrounded by jumping dolphins. We checked into Savusavu after the 4 day trip feeling exhausted but at the same time invigorated. A trip out on the big blue can do that to you – part of you is so excited to see land, the other part of you wants to keep going to Vanuatu or wherever really. Here’s a few pictures of Savusavu in all it’s glory.

    Confederate arriving Savusavu on a bit of an overcast day. Extreme excitement levels

    Confederate arriving Savusavu on a bit of an overcast day. Extreme excitement levels

    The next morning beautiful

    The next morning beautiful

    Savusavu

    Pretty chuffed to be in Fiji

    Pretty chuffed to be in Fiji

  • Tonga to Fiji – Day 2

    An ocean passage is made up of a series of highs and lows. One day you are cruising in a gentle breeze, under moonlight, with whales spouting around you. The next you are in strong winds and picking the curry, that should have been a well deserved dinner, off the carpet. Confederate now smells like salt and curry leftovers. Good good.

  • Sailing Tonga to Fiji

    Can you imagine? I’m looking out at the horizon, the sky is black, but littered with stars ablaze. The wind is gentle and we’re literally drifting through the night air. Suddenly I think I see a fire in the distance but we are already well offshore. The fire grows until it forms a huge orange circle in the sky and slowly turns into a more familiar full moon. This was one of the most amazing natural experiences I’ve ever had. To see the full moon rise over ocean near the equator is spectacular.

    Just when I was thinking it couldn’t get any better than this a pod of humpback whales appeared around us. I couldn’t see them but I could hear the water spouting from their blow holes under the moonlight. I woke Robin up to confirm I wasn’t dreaming, and thankfully they surfaced again minutes later. Special.

  • Crab

    Bella this is for you! The extreme potential of the go pro, our best footage from Tonga. Haha. But we’re getting better and aided by a screen which has helped us avoid catching footage of sky and horizon whilst a gigantic whale cruises past out of view. xx

    thecrab from Anna Cleal on Vimeo.