The Rock Islands – Palau

February 5, 2012 – If you look at any pictures of Palau I’m sure what you’ll see is an aerial view of a chain of islands that look like jewels sitting on a turquoise cushion. The islands have never been settled and now remain as a protected area and a site for world renowned diving. Permits are required to head out to the Rock Islands ($25/person/10 days) plus, for those on sailboats, a cruising permit for the state of Koror ($20/month for a 38 foot boat).

We first came here in 1988 and were only allowed to stay for 12 days. This was mainly due to a dysfunctional bureaucracy challenged by their association with the US and the constant referendums and the assassination of their president.  Well people are now friendly but the fees placed on non US registered boats do not encourage us to hang around a long time in Palau. In what will be two months of visiting here we will have spent well over $400 in permits and fees. We can’t afford another month so we’re going to once again have to rush through the Rock Islands, and here’s our adventure in words since uploading pictures here is impossible. I will do that once we’re in the Philippines.

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Anchorage – Quiet Time

We’re tucked away in an anchorage out of site of any other boat. It feels like the PNW without the mountains. There’s nowhere to walk on shore as the jungle reaches down to the shoreline and bushwhacking is not an option due to the steep nature of the rock formations. The rock is also incredibly jagged and the thought of falling whilst clambering through the jungle is not appealing. However, there’s supposed to be a waterfall somewhere close by. I’ve dinghied around without finding it. I can see from where we’re anchored a gap in the forest canopy but how one gets up to there I have no idea. Ah well, freshwater bath be damned I’ll just have to put up being covered in salt.

What I can’t get over are the sounds. From every part of the hillside there are dozens of different birds calling. I can’t identify many of them as don’t really know the species of birds other than the screeching cockatoos. Occasionally a bird flies out of the forest canopy and if I have the binoculars ready along with the bird book on Palau I might be able to identify the bird I’m looking at. I hope that somewhere through these islands we get a chance to walk in the forest to catch better glimpses of the birds in their natural habitat.

Well, this is the first day and we’re going to have breakfast and move on to another island later this morning. Stay tuned….

Day 2 – Tarzan Bay: Latitude 7.17.42 Longitude 134.24.75

What a day – sailed over from yesterday’s anchorage to Tarzan Bay. No there aren’t any monkeys swinging over the anchorage but it is a little wild wind-wise. The sail over was like a jaunt through the Gulf Islands but with warm water, clear skies and tropical temperatures. All the sailing here is within the barrier reef so the waters are relatively calm and the coral heads can be easily seen through the change in the colour of the water. We weaved our way between dozens of islands to find Tarzan Bay. When we arrived the wind was funnelling through a gap to the northeast. Fortunately the gap was protected by a reef so the anchorage was calm but all day and night the wind blew through at 25 knots. We welcomed that as it’s kept the mosquitoes away and cooled the boat down. We spent the afternoon relaxing and then headed over to a sunken wreck that dates from WW11. It was a Japanese patrol boat located in about 20 feet of water. The fish and coral life was the best we’ve seen so far.

We were joined by Nausicca, an Italian boat, with Marcello and Louisa onboard. We had first met Nausicca in Pohnpei and it was great to re-connect. Needless to say we had an Italian dinner – pizza! We followed that with a great watermelon and finished off with a fine scotch. How better can life get?

Day 3-4 – Cemetery Reef: Latitude 7.14.11 Longitude 134.222.38

You’re right – if you notice the lat/long you can see this is not very far from the last anchorage. However, the Rock Islands is not that large of an area but there are hundreds of different anchorages to explore and one doesn’t have to move too far for a completely different experience. We chose an open anchorage to give lots of air through the boat at night for coolness and also distance away from land to ensure no mosquitoes. In Koror we have to put the mosquito screens on at night which restricts air flow but without them we get eaten alive.

We also chose this anchorage for the snorkelling on cemetery reef. I have no idea why they call it this as the reef itself is teeming with fish life both large and small, an incredible reef which extends 75 X 75 metres. The coral itself is not that wonderful but the fish life makes up for it. What is a problem are the great number of day trippers that stop there for an hour or so. We did see numerous people stepping on the reef and also breaking sections off. Education is a problem as am sure they’re not given the right introduction for the need to be aware of the fragility of the reef system. We did try to say something but language difficulties made it impossible for us to get our point across to the culprits!

Day 5 – Ulong beach:

Yes, a little further this time. We’re out in an open anchorage exposed to the west and situated off one of the few beaches in the Rock Islands. We can look ashore to see hundreds of bats flying above the treetops and onshore walk under the forest canopies to see rusty-capped kingfishers, cockatoos, swifltlets, palau fruit doves, and can hear the red junglefowls. Unfortunately the island is also over run by rats which has a negative impact on the bird population.

The beach is also used by the local tour boats as a place where they bring their divers for a lunch break. We’re two miles off of the outer reef. We can just see a couple of very small islands out on the outer reef. We’re tempted to go out for a snorkel to the outer reef but the wind is blowing too hard and it would make for a very uncomfortable and wet ride in the dinghy. We hope to get an anchorage in a place closer to the outer reef at a later time.

Day 6-7 -8– Ulong Beach to Close to Jellyfish Lake Latitude 7.10.575 Longitude 134.22.245

We moved from Ulong Beach due mostly to an uncomfortable anchorage. Anchored on the west side of the island kept us protected from both the strong NE trades but with the swell sweeping around both sides of the island and us being on the lee meant the swell came at us from both sides and with little wind to keep us facing in one direction we ended up rolling around. So, up with the anchor and we motored for the good part of 4 hours against strong NE trades and through a maze of coral patches and across the lagoon to take us close to what is known as Jellyfish Lake, or at least an anchorage close to the lake so our 2 friends on Naucissa could get a chance to visit and dive with the jellyfish. We declined the opportunity as we had done that the last time we were here and we were too cheap to pay yet another fee just to swim with jellyfish!

We’ve found a very protected anchorage. Perhaps too protected as it’s a hot anchorage with an interior boat temperature record of 36 degrees! And there’s very little breeze blowing through the anchorage. So, the best idea is to get in the dinghy, put all the snorkelling gear in and spend the day exploring the outer reefs and taking a picnic to have on the beach. What an area – turquoise water, easy to see reefs, all sorts of fish including sharks and a few, very few, sandy beaches to pull the dinghy up to and have lunch. I think we snorkelled for about 4 hours and met up with Louisa and Marcello after they swan jellyfish lake for another hour of snorkelling the pass i.e. deep water and sharks which always keeps you on your toes.

Tomorrow? Who knows, the choices are numerous and one could spend a long time in this area exploring but time is running out.

Well, the weather turned and the day was marked by squally weather with plenty of rain which gave us a chance to fill up the water tanks. However, in this area it’s dangerous to be running around when one can’t see the shallow spots. So, the day was spent exploring with our friends Marcello and Louisa in a flotilla of floating flotsam consisting of a paddle board, a Melanesian wooden canoe and our kayak. Connie elected to stay onboard Sage unwilling to follow us in the dinghy. We had a great time and came back exhausted late in the afternoon – a great day.

Day 9 Jellyfish Lake to Sunset Bay Latitude 7.15 Longitude 134.22

What a beautiful day. Got an ‘early’(!) start – 0900hrs and are heading back up towards the northern part of the Rock Islands. With only two days left on our permit we don’t want to incur a $100 fine so our time out in these islands is running short. Interesting anchorage on no coral on the bottom which is a real bonus. We always seem to get our chain wrapped around coral and anchoring in depths of 30 plus feet provides a real challenge in diving down to untangle the chain so we can pull the anchor up. However, this anchorage is ideal with sand and what’s known as marl (fine broken coral with the occasional larger bits).

Day 10 Sunset Bay to Coffin (close to cemetery reef) Latitude: 7.15.07 Longitude 134.22.37

Yes, we’re risking it – we’re overstaying our permit! We’re well hidden away though. We went over to a place called Sea Clamp but it turned out to be exposed to the very strong NE winds blowing and made for an uncomfortable couple of hours. We finally decided to move and headed down to Coffin. As its name implies it’s tight. As long as the wind doesn’t come from the shoreline we’re OK. We’re in a narrow channel so the wind is funnelled in such a way to keep us lined up in mid stream. We just hope the wind continues to blow so we don’t wander over to the cliff edges! Nice and shallow, marl and sand and all of 25 feet rapidly descending in front of us to about 4 feet. One of the best anchorages we’ve come across in this archipelago.  One negative is that about 4 tour boats coming racing in between us and the shoreline.  One boat screamed at us that we were ‘in the way’.  We looked around for a ‘No anchoring’ sign.  Seeing none we stayed where we were!

February 3rd – Coffin to Koror

What a day.  When we finally poked our noses out from our protected anchorage we got a rude surprise.  We thought it was just normal trade winds reinforced.  What had happened is that the wind had moved into the northwest and strengthened to 20-25 knots.  What that meant is a hard slog to windward the 12 miles back to Koror against the wind.  What should have been a nice gentle afternoon jaunt turned into a marathon to get in before dark.  With the centreboard down, sails up we roared away across the lagoon making about 15 tacks up the narrow channels and amongst the ‘bombies’ (coral heads) and back into Koror in time for sunset.

Needless to say we went out for dinner being very low in supplies – or were we just lazy!  OK – that’s it for the epistle – pictures to follow when internet connection improves in the Philippines.

Ongoing Palau

Yes, we’re still here.  We’re catching our breath and enjoying the slowly improving weather.

We haven’t made it out to the outer anchorages yet as we’re waiting for some engine parts.  Not complicated but don’t want to move anywhere without an engine temperature gauge.  The engine works but without the gauge and the associated sensor there’s no way to read whether the temperature of the engine has increased – a very important detail on a diesel engine.

So, what are we doing?  Well, with temperatures in the low 30s we lay low during the hottest part of the days and then mid afternoon head out to a place to snorkel and cool off in the tropical waters.  Not 15 minutes from the anchorage in front of Sam’s we can be snorkeling amongst coral and fish in crystal clear water where the visibility goes down about 30 metres.  Now, how could anyone complain about that?

We’re so glad the weather has started to improve.  Talking to my brother the other night I said we were celebrating our 4th straight day without rain in 5 months.  It’s been a tough 5 months weatherwise and we’re glad to see promising trade wind clouds although we’ve seen this before and been disappointed.  Enough of the weather though as I suspect most people who read this blog are probably digging out the snow from their driveways or putting on heavy raincoats to head out into the blustery west coast.  All this while we sit here with, oh, I’m not going to say what we have on!  But we are sitting here in the cockpit with ice in our drinks, a view of the sunset and only a few mosquitoes to bat away.

Unfortunately, the downside of Palau is the internet.  Several years ago the Americans made an offer of including Palau in a fibre optic cable they were installing for the Marshall Islands and Micronesia.  Palau said no and now they’re realising their mistake.  Service is by satellite dish, it’s expensive ($10/3 hours), slow and worst of all skype doesn’t work.  I also cannot post pictures to the web so this is why all this text.  My apologies as I always think a picture is worth a thousand words.

So, what do we like about Palau?

-          Showers every day

-          Indian buffet at The Taj on Friday at noon

-          Friday night get togethers at Sam’s bar

-          Snorkelling within 30 minutes of Sams

-          Music on Wednesday nights at Kramers

-          Fresh water at the docks

-          Listening to the bullshit at the bar

-          Shopping at Surangels

-          Bicycling

-          Safe anchorage

-          Clean environment

-          No ITCZ

-          Shall I keep going?

OK – before I bore everyone to death I’ll post this and hope that when we get to the Philippines we can post some pictures of this incredible place.  If you are a diver even better.  You shouldn’t miss this place as according to all the divers here it’s one of the 5 best dive locations in the world.

Christmas in Palau

Entering Palau Pass

Can you believe it? We made it. We arrived here yesterday just in time to join in the holiday season celebrations. We are very happy to be in and out of the rain and wind. We arrived yesterday and in the little we’ve seen since we arrived Palau has changed a lot.

We used to think that getting to a destination was half the fun. However, we now know that the destination is everything. At least that’s been our recent experiences.

We’re going to be here for a while. The internet is not exactly fast so don’t send a lot of pictures if you’re thinking of doing so as it takes too long to download. However, we would love to hear from you.

Hope everyone has a safe and wonderful holiday season and that the New Year brings you many wonderful surprises and adventures. When I have some more internet time will add to the blog and update on our recent comings and goings. Till then all the best to everyone.

Pohnpei

It’s been quite a mixture here. And it’s been very quiet. The anchorage is well situated for protection from the easterly trade winds, when they blow! The first 3 weeks here we had no wind which means when the sun shone we baked. However, the island has mountains that are over 700 metres high so in

Pohnpei anchorage

the evening the breezes from the shoreline sweep down off the hills cooling the valleys below. Daytime temperatures hover at around 29 C and in the evening we may go as low as 24 C which is wonderful for sleeping especially when there is a breeze.

It appears now that the easterly trade winds may have returned. The last few days we’ve had winds of over 15 knots with higher gusts bringing the rain. In some ways the rain is a blessing. It does rain a lot here and we’ve managed to only once gather water from shoreline resources but apart from that one time we’ve collected rainwater on tarps and awnings so that both drinking and bathing water has been fully replenished. In fact as I sit here we’ve rolled up our collection system as the tanks and containers are full and until we consume a little we don’t really need any. Nice in one way but also here there’s so much rain that things are going mouldy and we’re having to take curtains down to wash them and store away until we get some sunshine. We keep the fans going in the boat day and night just to keep the air circulating to dry and fend off the mould bugs! We’re winning.

Pohnpei itself is entirely fringed with mangroves. There are no pristine tropical beaches here until you get to the outer islands. As a result access to the water from shore is mostly manmade.  It may be just a cut in the mangrove to allow the local fishboats access to their houses or docks or it could be done by invading forces such as those who were responsible for building Nan Modol which was built here some 2,000 years ago

Nan Modol

was built by a conquering group who came to Pohnpei 2,000 years ago quickly subduing the local population and forced them to build an incredible fortified community on the east coast of Pohnpei. The rocks used to build Pohnpei were brought from Sokehs Island which is very close to Kolonia some 15 miles from Nan Modol. The intricate forming of the stone blocks is stunning to see. Some blocks are square and others almost hexagonal and both types used in the construction of the walls. Today we were led out to Nan Modol through the mangroves. Our timing was bad as we arrived at high water and had to wade over to the main section of Nan Modol. That was a shock to the 15 year old guide we had as she had to sit through crazy white people stripping down to carry their clothes over to the opposite shoreline. Am sure the SDAers, or the LMSers, or the Church of Latter Day Saints would not have been impressed with our actions. However, having hiked all the way out there we weren’t going to miss out on strolling through the ruins.

We had a great day heading out to Nan Modol with a couple of other cruisers in a rented car. It was our first foray out of the anchorage on the town of Kolonia. We took great advantage of stopping at every little nook and cranny, every store, every waterfall and at a very nice resort called the Village Hotel. First off were two waterfalls. The first hike we made was a treacherous walk into the bush and along a ridge under an overhang from which the waterfall cascaded. It was a spectacular site but not the best waterfall to bathe under. The next was a short hike along a beautifully designed walkway planted on other side with giant crotons, ferns, hibiscus and palms. Due to easier access it’s definitely the more frequently visited by tourists. However, to be honest there are very few tourists here and most coming here focused on surfing and/or diving. The waterfall was a welcome relief to escape from the heat and humidity.

Time was calling. We had to head back to town but not before a stop at the Village Hotel for a bite to eat and a lazy hour spent being pampered by an incredible setting and great service at the Village Hotel.

The Village Hotel, Pohnpei

The Village Hotel is probably the best resort in Pohnpei with a traditionally built main lodge perched high up on a ridge offering an incredible view over Manta Pass. From there one can watch either the sunset or the sunrise transforming the ocean into brilliant array of colours and moods. It’s probably the best place in Pohnpei for food and view.  We’re very lucky it’s 8 km from town or otherwise we may be broke by the end of the month.

So, in  a few days we’re headed off to Palau.  Kevin, a friend from Calgary, has arrived for the trip with us.  Although the weather is questionable we’re ready to move on for another experience.  We’ll be in Palau for Christmas and New Years and through to the end of January when we’ll be off to the Philippines.  In case we don’t get a chance to send greetings for the holiday season here you are:

Merry Christmas

and

Happy New Year

Kosrae to Pohnpei

As we waddled out of the harbour laden with copious fruits and vegetables donated to us by the local school we were met with fabulous east north east winds, trade wind clouds and a gentle sea. Now this is the pacific. We couldn’t have asked for better conditions. We headed north up the east side of the island before turning to the north east. On our way along the east coast we met up with Maria and Mark onboard their yacht Graziella were sailing back from Okat Harbour.

Mark, Maria and Graziella

They had done a circumnavigation of Kosrae as a break from their day to day work at the Pacific Treelodge Resort. We took photos of each other, waved goodbye and were on our way.

The day proceeded well and the evening memorable although a sunset without the green flash. Interestingly enough we have not had conditions where the green flash would occur. It’s hard to comprehend but we’ve had only a very few evenings which are conducive to fabulous sunsets. I can’t explain it but it’s true and I think mostly due to the influences of the inter tropical convergence zone, La Nina and generally the untypical weather people here are experiencing.

The winds continued at 10 – 12 knots from an east north east direction and in the first 24 hours we covered 140 miles and roared passed an atoll called Pingelap.  Within a few hours the wind became finicky but enough to keep sailing with a few hours of motoring thrown in when it was completely calm.  It didn’t take long then for the new reality to set in.

Within about 12 hours the skies were overcast and the world a different place.  However for the next  2 and ½ days we plugged on through rain squalls, calms, strong winds and generally unlikeable conditions.  Persistence paid off and eventually we found ourselves approaching Pohnpei.

Approaching Pohnpei

However, it was late in the afternoon and not knowing the entrance through the coral we decided it best to heave to (that is stop) for the night and wait till the morning to enter.  We spent the night quietly but rather uncomfortably due to the seas, wind and rain.  Squalls were frequent with blinding rain but with one person below and the other in the shelter of the canvas in the cockpit we made out OK.  So, here we were having left Korsae on a Thursday and arrived off the coast of Pohnpei on Saturday evening. Not a bad run of a total of 360 miles.

By 0500hrs we started to move in towards the island and by 1000hrs we were approaching the main entranceway.  But then another major squall hit us when we were 500 metres from the main pass. Blinded by the rain and wind all we could do was go back and forth along a straight line until the squall passed and we had better visibility.

Pohnpei Harbour

The pass was amazing and I now understand why the surfers call this paradise.  The break was amazing.  Huge rollers were coming in producing enormous breaking waves on either side of the pass, truly an amazing sights.  We got through in the section that doesn’t break and then were confronted with poor navigational aids to help us through the coral patches and down towards the main harbour.  At one point we obviously strayed off course and touched coral but were lucky to avoid anything major.

We made it to the commercial port and for some strange reason, since we’re in the same country as Korsae, had to clear customs, immigration, port authorities and agriculture.  Each and every one wanting between 10 and 30 dollars.  What a pain.  The next part was to find a safe anchorage where we may find a few other yachts.

We could see in the distance where they were anchored.  Connie made some enquiries about how to get there as it wasn’t obvious and the channel wasn’t marked.  No-one seemed to know.  So off we went to feel our way down the channel.  However, the water is cloudy due to run off from the mountains so it’s not exactly tropical clear water.  On our way down we went aground.  Quickly placing the engine in reverse we managed to pull ourselves off and hopefully no damage but can’t check until we get clear water.  We then anchored in the channel and eventually waved someone over to ask how to proceed.  He kindly led us through in his dinghy to the place to anchor.  Obvious when you know how.

So, we’re here.  However, there is only one other cruising boat here.  There are no facilities ashore for yachts to bring their dinghies and no services other than in the town.

Yacht anchorage

On top of that one is quite a way from town via a very steep hill that in this climate makes it doubly difficult.  Anyway, we’re thankful to be in and we have made some shore contact with a family who has kindly allowed us to bring the dinghy ashore to their home.

We’ve been in for a few days now and as usual have managed to orient ourselves to the landscape, done some shopping and the laundry, bought a new battery to start the engine, replaced the float switch on the bilge pump, mailed some postcards, had lunch out and met a few people at the Rusty Anchor which sits on the hill above the anchorage and has some of the most delicious wood fired pizzas!

Kosrae

Kosrae – The Island of the Sleeping Lady. So called because of its profile. Just what was needed after Majuro. The island is richly swathed in greenery and bordered by mangroves. It has a small population on a 42 square mile island and a mountain, Mt. Finkol, which rises to 2,069 feet. Currently there are 7,000 people living here and are spread throughout the island other than a small concentration in the harbour called Lelu (pronounced Layla).

We anchored in Lelu Harbour and were able to take our dinghy ashore to a stone wall in front of the home of the owner of the local Ace Hardware store. He also had access to water collected from the roof of the Ace Hardware store located adjacent to the home. Smith was most welcoming and helpful. I’ll admit there isn’t much going on in Korsae other than snorkelling, diving, kayaking, exploring the Japanese caves built during WWII and fighting off the vines that seem to threaten not only the land but out in the water towards the boat. There is a Japanese vine (for which I don’t have the name) that was planted during WWII by the Japanese. It was supposed to grow and cover over entranceway to their caves and armaments. Now it’s run rampant. Looking up at the hillsides the jungle is covered in the vine to the extent one cannot see the trees. I suppose what will happen is that it closes out all light and will kill the trees. At this point erosion will become a big problem and more of the hillside will threaten homes built along the shoreline. For now it looks incredible but it has its hideousness as well when you understand the damage to the local environment.

A lot of time I spent kayaking through the mangroves that line the shoreline. Watching the birds, drifting amongst the roots and generally thinking I was living in Jurassic Park. So many channels to explore and get lost in and when it’s dusk and one hears strange noises all one can think of is “are they sure there aren’t any salt water crocodiles here?”. Luckily they aren’t as it was perfect territory for salt water crocs. And crocs have migrated from Papua New Guinea to Palau so it’s entirely possible that they could make it to Kosrae as well!

So time moved on and before we knew it 2 weeks had gone by and we still hadn’t moved. We couldn’t resist all the wonderful things on the island which included Tuesday movie night at Bully’s, meet and greets at Bully’s on Fridays and to top it all off a Halloween party at Bully’s. Bully’s is part of the Treelodge Resort and is located behind the hotel on the banks of the mangrove channel. It’s an enchanting location for a lovely restaurant. One walks along one of two walkways through the mangroves out over the water. One of the walkways is concrete. At night time, with the overhead lights sparsely lighting the way and the glass in the concrete sparkling like diamonds it’s a perfect setting for Halloween. It could be Transylvania except for the humidity. Ghostly vines hang down over the walkway, mysterious sounds come bubbling up from the mud below the walkway, mysterious objects fly overhead and with a little wind the trees rattle and whistle. Of course Bully’s is the hangout for the 12 ex pats that live and work in Kosrae. For Halloween everyone gets dressed up and the local kids come in (over 100 of them) to collect their candy and gawk at the expats playing silly games! It was a great evening and Mark and Maria, the owner/managers did a great job.

Halloween gathering at Bully's Richard's gone troppo

Richard's gone troppo

We were really enjoying our stay there but it was getting on time to leave. Korsae is not the easiest place to purchase needed supplies. The island had been out of eggs for 2 ½ weeks, it was almost impossible to buy a ripe and edible papaya and believe it or not coconuts were in short supply. One cannot just walk onto someone’s property and pick a coconut so we relied on the local vendors (few that there are) if that’s what one can call them. We were out of almost everything and we needed to get to Pohnpei. It was only our good fortune that Connie had earlier gone to the local Lelu Elementary School to drop off some school supplies. On the day before our departure we were saved. The principal and the teachers at the school had got together and put together this incredible load of bananas, drinking coconuts, Kosrae tangerines, peppers, breadfruit, tomatoes, cucumbers and to top it all off someone had baked a banana pie.

Well, we consulted the meteorological maps, paid homage to the gods, checked all the fittings and now it was time to waddle off to Pohnpei loaded down with our Kosrae storehouse!

From Here to There

Korsae before the rain

Here’s the story of our trip from Majuro to Kosrae in the Federated States of Micronesia

October 8^th – day 1 – Leave Majuro – a beautiful day to depart. Wind is gently blowing from the east and we’re finally on our way west once again.

October 9^th – day 2 – first 24 hours 105 miles

Sailing out of the Majuro atoll we saw another sailboat heading in. They took 2 months to sail up from New Zealand onboard a Wharram Catamaran rigged very much like some of the Marshallese proas one sees sailing across the lagoons in these atolls. The sailing was pleasant with clear skies and a nice trade wind blowing.

By the early evening we were experiencing lightening, thunder, plenty of rain, no wind and on top of that an east setting current which saw us losing 15 miles as the wind completely disappeared and we drifted rather than starting the engine. A mistake. Rain came pelting down for 5 straight hours. Huge thunderclaps overhead and seeing the lightening which scared the hell out of us. We retreated down below and for the rest of the night stayed hunkered down in our berths. What a night. Morning light came and still no wind but at least the rain had abated. By 0800hrs we turned the engine on thinking we’ll head to Jaluit, an atoll to the south. A south wind came up so we headed west motor sailing and trying to make up lost ground and get away from what we thought was backward setting current between the two tolls called Jaluit and Alinglalaplap. It’s frustrating as even when we motor we notice the difference with a 2 knot current working against us and being only able to motor at 5 knots in the best of conditions.

October 10^th – day 3 – 52.1 miles

Another day of being plagued by lightening and thunder. Wind remains light but we’re escaping the east setting current and making a little progress to the west.

October 11^th – day 4 – 84 miles

The days highlight was seeing the abundant bird life: seabirds, dolphins and fish but none on our hook!

Where else to birds rest at sea?

October 12^th – day 5 – 67.3 miles

Wind started to pick up as we were motoring and so after a couple of hours with the motor going we shut it off and managed to sail for about 3 hours with a good wind. Then a rain squall went by, took all the wind and now we’re back to motoring again – yuk. When will all this end. God, one wonders what enjoyment there is in all of this. I have just spent the last 2.5 hours out in the cockpit in unbelievable pouring rain. Raining so hard you can’t hear anything but the rain hitting the deck and canvas, the sea flat as a pancake as the rain is pounding the sea into submission and all because we want to go another 500 miles. As I write this I am down below as fed up with the whole process and really wondering if there’s any chance of selling the boat and changing direction. I can’t believe this weather. We’ve got the engine going as there’s little or no wind, the sea is not large but it’s uncomfortable as there is no wind in the sail to stabalize the motion.

We’ve made little progress over the last few days, or at least in comparison to previous sailing we’ve done. Every mile is a struggle. There are some memorable events such as yesterday afternoon when a booby (sometimes called gannet) decided to take his place at the end of the boom as the mainsail was not in use and seemed, I guess, like a great place to roost. The booby stayed there all

I'm not really good looking!

night preening and sleeping and in the early morning moved over to the top of the radar pod before flying off. We’re waiting to see if he returns this afternoon. However, in these conditions he’s probably smart and flown off to somewhere in the sun!

We have another 280 miles to go. At 260 we’re halfway there from our point of origin. However, I don’t think we’re going to see the 260 mark today as soon have to turn the engine off and wait for the wind to return. We just don’t have enough fuel to motor all the way.

October 13^th – 93.8 miles

October 15^th – day – 89.3 miles

Scary moment this morning. I was on watch from 0300 to 0600hrs. There was no wind, we were motoring and the sea was quite calm. Getting pretty tired by the time 0600hrs came by I did one more thing before heading down below to wake up Connie and tell her it was her turn at the helm. I checked to see if there were any messages on the satellite phone. No there wasn’t so proceeded below to find water above the floorboards and Connie fast asleep on the settee. Well, did I scream! That got her going pretty quickly as we started to tear things apart to try and figure out why we were sinking.

We stopped the engine (which isn’t always the best thing to do if the engine’s going – it can serve as a pump to get water out of the inside of the bilge) and started to bail out the water wondering whether or not we were going to have to get into the liferaft. While we’re trying to maintain our footing amongst the floating debris we’re also trying to figure out how best to try and get ahead of the ingress of water. Soon, using buckets and hand pumps we finally concluded we were winning and in actual fact weren’t going to sink! It still didn’t mean we had a hell of a mess to clean up.

Of course it was all salt water and in diagnosing the problem after we cleaned up I discovered that a clamp used to attach the exhaust elbow to the exhaust hose had come undone. Luckily the hose didn’t let go but rather allowed a portion of the cooling water to pass into the boat while some went thru the system and out the stern. That’s why when I was in the cockpit sitting listening to the engine I could still hear water being pumped out the stern so I wasn’t alerted to the issue until heading down below.

So, I guess that trumps it all. We were both quite tired from struggling to make way in not the most ideal of conditions for the last 5 days. This put every other problem into perspective and by the time we finished cleaning up, dried off those items that needed drying and repaired the problem we allowed ourselves a really lazy afternoon as we approached Kosrae.Kosrae’s now in sight,Korsae at 10 milesit’s 5:00p.m. and we expect to be going into the harbour in darkness which isn’t my favourite thing to do since we’ve never been here before. However, we want a good nights sleep and if we get there before midnight we may just do that. No, we’re hove to (no sails up) and drifting just outside the harbour waiting for first light.  October 16th – 60.3 miles Yahoo – the harvest moon last night was amazing. It came up as a blazing orange orb slowly casting a golden light across the sky. Then as it rose completely above the horizon it provided us with a wonderful night of full visibility with the island of Kosrae outlined against the night sky only 10 miles to the west.Entrance to Lele Harbour

Another game of scrabble to calm the nerves

Enough for today. Tomorrow being Sunday I may find an internet cafe and get this off to you but that all depends

Yes, it does rain

on whether or not I can clear customs/immigration/agricultural and the church police!

Another reason for travelling

Manit

Bishop's Museum matt - 1830's

Okay, what’s Manit? Manit is a national holiday in the Marshall Islands and specifically is a chance to celebrate the culture of the country. The schools are focused on centering their activities that celebrate the arts and culture and include the making of traditional foods, parades and whatever can be supported with their limited budgets. Other activities take place around town and the one main event we joined in on was a celebration of traditional mat making.

There has been a lot of effort put into teaching and learning some of the lost weaving skills. With the support of the Bishop’s  Museum, and associated trust fund, and the work of people from across the Marshall Islands, they have been attempting to understand how the mats were made and working to improve the current standard of workmanship. For the last 6 years there has been a national competition in mat making. The main criteria for judging the mats are: traditional material i.e. pandanus, must be in made in black or white or brown (i.e. no coloured threads), and symmetry i.e. made as square or rectangular as possible.

The culmination of the competition is the exhibition held each year at the Marshall Islands Resort. This year there were approximately 40 mats of varying quality. The judging was conducted during the day and then in the evening there was a silent auction. 100% of the funds raised at the sailing auction went to the individual weaver of each mat. For everyone attending there was a $5 entry fee. We decided to attend and glad we did. It was a great evening providing a chance to not only see all of the mats on display but also a chance to actually handle two mats that were brought in from the Bishop’s Museum and dated back to the early 1800s. Amazingly there were gloves provided and attendees were able to actually handle the mats with gloved hands. They were quite amazing – finely woven, supple and in fine condition.

The silent auction generated a lot of interest. With about 80 people in the room and about an hour in which to bid on a mat there was lots of interest generated. In the end the highest bid received was $260 and the lowest at $60 (this is the mat we bought!). We thought the prices were low for the quality of the mats. In previous years prices for the top mat have gone up close to $500. However, this year both the judges and particiapants were in agreement that this year the quality was the highest and there were more participant weavers than ever. So for Manit that’s great.

So, this is where we say good-bye to Richard and Lee.  We are off tomorrow heading westwards and Richard and Lee

Lee and Connie

are staying behind to do a little more exploring of the Marshall Islands.  We’re not sure where we’ll meet up again but it may

Kazeko, Lee, Tony, Connie and Richard

WordPress - wish I had someone who knew more about this software as can’t seem to format the slideshow so that it doesn’t cover the last two photos in this blog.  Interestingly enough I’m reading a book written by a Cuban blogger called Havanna Real: One Women Fights to Tell the Truth.  It’s story of her experiences blogging using WordPress.  It’s an interesting perspective and an insight into the power of how open the internet is in allowing people in countries like Cuba to finally have a voice.  It’s a quick read and worthwhile to see what one persons life is like who decides not to hide behind the rhetoric and take the risk of speaking out – a brave woman and an innovator.

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What`s happening

Welcome to Laura

We`ve been quite quiet for a while but that`s not because of being inactive. We`ve done our fair share of lounging in the cockpit, taking walks around some of the islands in the atoll and even rented a car to drive the total 50 kilometres of road

Lee, Desay and Connie on the beach at Laura

in the atoll and down to a picturesque town at the southwest end called Laura. Laura was the original settlement and remains today as the location where agricultural activity thrives. They have more irrigated land and a Taiwanese agricultural station that supplies a few of the needed fruits and vegetables to Majuro.

A work in progress?

Our sailing plans we`re to include a trip north to the atolls of Aur, Wotje and perhaps Ailuk.  We did make an attempt leaving last Monday for Aur. The day had been sunny with a pleasant and not too vigourous east wind. Leaving late in the afternoon for the 60 mile overnight trip to Aur we exited the atoll through the northwest passage and within a couple of hours night fell (no moon), the wind increased, the rain started and due to the fact we were heading north and into a northeast wind the sea felt violent.

From there is just worsened – we got wet, cold and started making bad decisions. We kept going – why? We could have very well taken all sail down, tied the helm to the leeward side and retreated below to dry out and take a break. But, no, we decided to keep going. You would not have believed the amount of water that was pouring into the cockpit as we tried to make our way northward against a NE wind.  Water, both fresh and salt, was pouring into the cockpit.

Yes, a new style of outboard available only in Majuro

Ah well, a lesson learned – the ITCZ is not a sailors friend. In the end we kept sailing until early morning and with the situation worsening we turned back to Majuro within only 20 miles from Aur. Going from the sublime to the ridiculous as we entered into the pass at Majuro, just passed the first marker, wegot hit by 45 knot winds, no visibility (couldn’t even wear my glasses) and looked at the chart plotter to realize that the previous tracks had been deleted and we had no idea where we were

ITCZ in action in the anchorage

in the pass.  We were sailing in but had little control with just the mainsail up and so turned on the engine to help keep us in one place within the pass and wait till the visibility improved.  It was frightening and made a dramatic end to the trip. There are many memories from sailing but this is one of the one that will stand out for a very long time.

So we’re back in Majuro. The ITCZ remained in place for the next 5 days and brought buckets of rain which brought the temperature down to a very cool 26 degrees and for the first time since leaving Victoria we’ve had to turn off the fridge as our solar panels cannot keep up to the electrical needs on board. I know this may sound funny to those of you entering into a Canadian falls season with cooler temperatures and shorter days but here in what should be tropical skies we have no sun. So the fridge is off (gives us a chance to clean it finally!) and we’re using an ice box and letting the batteries regenerate once the sun comes out.

Tony repairing sails

We also need to repair the sail we tore apart on our trip to Aur and dry out and rinse off all the salt water gathered from our trip. We’re in the planning stages now of moving west on to Jaluit and then Kosrae in the Federated States of Micronesia. Different islands and different territory. We’re looking forward to sailing downwind!

Do you have a building permit?

Kayaking in the atoll

Majuro – cont’d

551 lb marlin - Bill Fish Tournament winner

Am sure many are wondering why we haven’t moved on from Majuro. Can’t say it’s a paradise but there are some things going on that we’re staying around for. Of course there’s always the fishing.  Can’t say we caught this monster tuna but sure helped consume some of the 551 lbs.  This was the overall winner for the Marshall Islands Bill Fish Tournament held last weekend.  Lots of tuna, mahi mahi, wahoo and marlin caught by teams from Japan, Marshall Islands and the U.S. An exciting day for fisherman but a sad day for vegetarians!

   

Here's the head - where's my body?

The other reason for a delayed departure is due to the fact our cruising buddies Richard and Lee on Before are here and it’s great catching up to all our sailing since last seeing them in San Francisco last November.  Once we leave here we may or may not see them as we move eastwards.  Saying goodbye is always the hardest thing to do so I guess we’re just reluctant to say good-bye.

The ITCZ continues to plague the anchorage. Today, while ashore one squall with rain shower went by and in the last 4 hours it’s gone from beautiful sunshine with a nice breeze to black and blasting winds and tropical downpour 3 times. Routine is to put on the bathing suit, go out in the rain for a shower after closing all the hatches and then wait 10 minutes and open it all up again. Of course, this changes again in about 30 minutes as the clouds start to gather again and move across the lagoon.  One of the best activities here is to watch the proas making their way through the anchorage.  There is a ‘Canoe House’ where they train young Marshallese in the fine art of canoe building.

Canoe House

There are many types of canoes and I’ve only got pictures of a few here.

More proas

They are amazingly fast vessels on  a reach and can beat any cruising yacht that tries to compete.  However, they don’t do so well on a beat so that’s the only place we can catch up to them.  There are races each weekend in the winter time and unfortunately we won’t be here to participate.

Had someone swim by the boat the other day, invited him onboard and he turned out to be a helicopter pilot on one of the large tuna boats. He regaled us with stories of flying helicopters after schooling tuna and stories of lost helicopters due to pilot error. He also told us that when the nets are out from the ship to encircle the tuna he jumps in the water and swims around the perimeter of the net. He hasn’t got an underwater camera but soon hopes to be able to buy one. Can only imagine he would get some great pictures.

Playing at the docks

Model proa under construction