By KT
The eastern islands of Fiji were fabulous ... and really we had intended to write pages upon pages, accounting for every detail. But we once again find ourselves falling behind! However, I reread our BLOGs and realize that while somewhat brief, they seem to capture most of the highlights for our eastern tour. So if you've been following the BLOGs, then you can just skip this "journal", however if you haven't been following the BLOGs, I've copied them below (to save you the effort of linking to a different page!).
BLOG: Making way to the Lau
LOCATION: Naselesele Point, Taveuni
POSITION: 16 40.940'S 179 52.437'W
NEXT DEST: Lau Group
It feels SO good to get out of the 'city'! We finally left Savusavu on the 16th for Fawn Harbor (a six hour day sail away). We were the ONLY boat in the bay and loving it! A short walk from the harbor was Bagasua Village, where we enjoyed meeting a number of the natives.
On Saturday, the 18th, one of our good friends, Flipper, joined us. It was quite the trip for him, first flying from LA to Nadi then two small island hopper flights (between Nadi and Suva and then Suva to Savusavu). After that he had to find the right bus for a two hour ride on unpaved
roads out to the village! And if you can believe it, it all went off without a hitch, Flipper arrived right on time!
We spent Sunday in the village enjoying the gracious hospitality of the locals. Monday we made our way to Naselesele Point just off Taveuni Island. What an unbelievable anchorage, we are surrounded by corals heads (YIKES), sitting in turquoise water, with tiny islands all around. Again we are the only boat, and the serenity and peacefulness engulf us! It feels so good to be cruising again!
We will continue our day hops making our way to the LAU group (probably getting there by the 22nd or 23rd).
BLOG: Loving the Lau Group
LOCATION: Malaka Bay, Vanua Balavu, Lau
POSITION: 17 14.2'S 178 58.1'W
NEXT DEST: Staying put
Vanua Balavu and the Bay of Islands (Lau Group, Fiji) is everything we had hoped for and we are extremely pleased that all the cruising rumors about the "must see" Lau Group held true.
As expected the wind was right on our nose as we tacked back and forth making our way towards Vanua Balavu - sailing over 100 miles to cover the 50 mile distance! Luckily the seas hadn't had time to build up, allowing us to actually make a somewhat decent heading. Even with all the tacking, it was a beautiful night with a brilliant full moon guiding us along!
Arriving on Wednesday, June 22nd, we made our way through the pass (relieved that Calder's Fiji Navigator's Notebook was spot on) - especially since clouds and rain were rolling in, somewhat skewing our view and making it difficult to easily spot reefs. Our first order of business was to get in touch with Ratu Joe and Helene of Nawanawa Estate (they are our sponsors for visiting the Lau group). We spotted two other boats anchored in Malaka Bay and they informed us that the holding
there was a bit better than around the corner near Nawanawa Estate. It was pure mud, which Billabong doesn't seem to like so it took a few attempts before we held. Exhausted from actually having to work at sailing (all that tacking) we called it day, opting to check in with Joe & Helene the following morning.
Thursday Joe and Helene greeted us with huge smiles and lots of chatter. As it turns out Joe's daughter, granddaughter and daughter's boyfriend were all arriving that morning on the weekly flight. Since they too would be doing a Sevusevu at the Daliconi Village, it was decided that we'd all go together later that afternoon. Joe and Helene are terrific 'hosts', providing a number of services and full of information. Helene was instrumental in helping us arrange a flight for Flipper the following Thursday. Daliconi Village was spotless, clean, serene and full of smiling faces. Set right next to the water and surrounded by green cliffs and palm trees - who would ever move away? The Sevusevu was short since we didn't actually have to drink any "grog".
Friday we explored one of the nearby islands - easily accessible by dinghy. By now there were four other boats in the bay, having gathered for the Friday potluck hosted by Helene. It was quite the feast with roasted pig, garlic fish, and Kokoda (raw fish marinated in lime juice w/ coconut cream).
Saturday we moved over to the Bay of Islands … WOW! This is true cruising perfection. Turquoise waters, limestone rocks, mushroom islands, palm trees, mangroves, chattering birds, and jumping fish (all within protected bays with sand bottoms for anchoring!). Numerous little hidey holes to lose yourself in! We spent three nights there; swimming, kayaking, exploring caves, snorkeling and star gazing. While we were enjoying hanging out with new friends, we are somewhat excited that three of the four boats have departed, and the fourth is somewhere unseen … it is as if we have the Lau Group to ourselves!
On Tuesday afternoon we motored into some pretty strong winds back to Malaka Bay in order to get Flipper set for his departing flight on Thursday. With the way things work in Fiji we are keeping our fingers crossed that the everything goes off without a hitch, otherwise we'll be making our way back to Taveuni - something we aren't quite ready to do! We can't wait to get back out to the Bay of Islands, which we'll have almost to ourselves (yes, we're a little greedy, wanting to hog the entire place!)!!!
BLOG: Lau to Matagi & on to Budd Reef
Location: Budd Reef
Position: 16°29.74' S 179°41.78' W
Next Dest: Rabi Island
We truly enjoyed our time in Vanuabalavu & the Bay of Islands (Lau Group). Flipper departed on the 30th (of June) and a few days later the last boat around also departed, leaving the Bay of Islands all to us! It was unbelievable serene having the place to ourselves. Unfortunately the weather didn't fully cooperate as we had a lot of wind and some rain, which didn't exactly motivate us to go exploring. However the anchorage was well protected so at least we didn't have to stress over the safety of Billabong (not too much anyway). We did manage to get in some snorkeling, kayaking, and to visit the "Vale Ni Bose", a spectacular cave considered sacred by the Fijians.
We left the Lau group early on July 6th, headed for Matagi. We were a bit disappointed in the passage, as we lost most of our wind about one hour out, and therefore ended up motor-sailing the remaining 9 hours (YUCK!). But we couldn't have been more pleased with Matagi … a horseshoe bay surrounded by high cliffs filled with green trees & unique rock formations; a perfect white sandy beach lay at the top of the horseshoe; fruit bats sang and fluttered among the trees; and the blue & turquoise water was so clear it was like a looking glass into an aquarium! And as if that wasn't good enough, nighttime brought out spectacular stars that lit up the sky!
The next morning we clambered (like Billy-goats) up the side of the mountain to the ridge with Karl & Julie (from Shadowfax). It was an exciting exploration as we attempted to avoid stinging plants and spiders the size of my hand, all while praying we didn't loose our footing and go sliding down the mountain! Once along the ridge things were much easier (there was actually some resemblance of a trail) and we were able to take in some awesome views of the bay below. We walked the
entire ridge, making our way out to the both horseshoe edges. We than made our way down the other side of the Island, where a beautiful resort sits along the coast. After a few well earned beers we were in no mood to hike back and were lucky enough to hitch a ride in one of the Resorts motor vessels! Chris & I couldn't stop saying, "Wow - what an amazing day!".
The following day Shadowfax departed, leaving us the bay to ourselves. We still can't believe how few boats we've seen on the East side of Fiji! We snorkeled, did some dinghy explorations and enjoyed the cloudless day.
We met up with Shadowfax again on Saturday (the 9th), as we both made our way to Budd Reef. Just having arrived we haven't yet explored the sandy beaches, high ridges, or underwater life … but from Billabong it all looks outstanding and we can't wait to get started!
BLOG: Budd Reef & Rabi Island
Location: Dalice Bay, Also Island
Position: 16°13.22' S 179°50.15' W
Next Dest: Heading West on the North side of Vanua Levu
We spent our first full day in Budd Reef exploring the nearby beaches which provided some excellent shell searching and coconut hunting. The calm anchorage rocked and rolled during the night as the wind shifted around and started blowing directly in. The next morning, tired of the bouncing, we moved Billabong (with Shadowfax following) over to the other side of the Island. This was a great move, as not only were we now protected from the winds, but we also had easy access to the Village and were able to easily dinghy in to present our Kava for Sevusevu. After our meeting with the Chief and his son Willy, Willy gave us a tour of the village. We had expressed an interest in going over to Cobia (an neighboring Island with an extinct volcano that now hosts a lovely lagoon), and Willy offered to guide us on a hike.
We all gathered on Billabong first (for lunch) and then headed over to Cobia. It's about 2n.m. away and reminded Chris and I a bit of the Volcano in Northern Tonga. Chris had just asked Willy, "Are there Whales here?", when lo and behold, a fin surfaced nearby. Just as we were gawking excitedly yelling "Did you see that?", the whale surfaced again, barely 10 feet away from our little itty bitty dinghy (and no, I'm not exaggerating on the 10 feet)! The whale (which thankfully didn't hit us) gave us a perfect view of his tale before disappearing. We could see a few other whale blows off in the distance, but nothing nearby.
The hike on Cobia was spectacular. The views were outstanding and Willy was a fun and terrific guide. We ended the hike with refreshing coconut juice before heading back to our boats. It was an exhausting, but extremely rewarding day.
We decided that we needed a day to veg out, and spent most of the 12th doing just that. Willy sold us a few lobster and we feasted with Shadowfax over a truly gourmet dinner!
We moved on to Albert's Cove on Rabi (pronounced Rambi) Island the next morning. Shadowfax scored by hooking up a large Mahi Mahi, which they were generous enough to share with us. Chris and Karl went to shore to say hello to the locals who piled them up with Papayas. It still amazes me how generous islanders are - they give so much (especially for people who have so little). That evening it was another feast aboard Billabong as we enjoyed some spicy fish curry and continued in our Chinese Checkers tournament (which had begun the previous night).
The following day (14th) we all went ashore to visit with the local family and present a few gifts as thank-you's for the Papayas. In return they prepared a fermented Coconut juice drink for us (called Toddy). After one bowl, Julie and I left the rest for the boys to finish up! We followed the Toddy with a walk along Albert's perfect white sand beach.
On the 15th we walked the supposedly "easy" trail (easy per the locals standards) over to Smiley bay. It was a dense trail, and there wasn't much to Smiley Bay, but the adventure was fun none-the-less.
We didn't do too much the next two days, just enjoyed the sun, water, and beaches and of course played a lot of Chinese checkers. Chris did a bit of fishing from the dinghy and snagged a pretty good size Barracuda. We shared half with the local family and then split the other half with Shadowfax. Surprisingly Barracuda is good eatin'!
On Monday (the 18th) we moved on to Dalice Bay off of "Also Island" (on the north side of Vanua Levu). We are truly enjoying the unique experiences of this Island and Cawaro Village. But more on that in the next Blog …
View Photos (PDF files):
Fawn Harbor
Lau Group
Matagi & Budd Reef
Rabi Island (includes Also Island)
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