20 October 2010
We needed to order a new alternator from NZ to be fitted At Port Denauru and as it was going to take several days for it to arrive. We returned to Australia for a week to attend to “real life”. While we were gone we arranged for the pitch on the max propeller to be reduced. This is a job that Stephen has wanted to do for several thousand miles and Salacia had to come out of the water for this job. We took advantage of having her up on the hard stand to have her anti fouling redone because it had worn through in places. We also had a sailmaker adjust our dinghy cover to fit the new dinghy and made a great sling and cover for the new outboard motor. We were delighted with the quality of the jobs that were done, and the low labor costs certainly made it economical. The staff are very efficient and know their job. They also look after the super yachts so we knew that our girl would be in good hands while we were gone.
We arrived back in Fiji in a torrential downpour, and the Fijians were delighted because they have been experiencing a drought and have very strict water restrictions. As far as the Marina was concerned, anyone at the Marina wanting water has to fill empty bottles. All hoses have been disconnected.
Getting down to Salacia at Port Denarau was hilarious. By the time we took our gear out to the boat on the marina finger we were “squelshing” in boots full of water. We literally had to empty them out. Even Cyndy’s red leather handbag was full of water and the passports were saturated. Murphy was lurking and the torch that we had left at the locked hatch couldn’t be found. Every towel we could find was put into service to mop up the water that we had bought down below on our nice dry boat. We immediately unpacked the bags of “boat things” that we had bought from Australia to minimise damage.
While in Australia we bought a set of Mariner 500 Headset Communicators which are waterproof, aviation style “hands free”, long range – 300ft, and full duplex (2 people can talk at once). This allows us constant communication between the person on the bow and the helmsman when anchoring or in close quarters and they have been fantastic in Fijian waters with so many reefs.
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Cyndy anchoring Salacia wearing Mariner 500 Headset Communicator |
After reprovisioning we left the marina to explore the north western islands.
A voyage to these outer islands offers the opportunity to taste the true nature and generous hospitality of the Fijian people. When visiting a Fijian village, a small offering of Kava roots to the chief of the village is considered polite. This is usually given and accepted at a ceremony called a sevusevu.
The Fijian group is made up of over 300 islands, of which only a third are inhabited. The two main islands, Vitu Levu and Vanua Levu are volcanic and make up most of the 85% of the landmass, whereas the rest of the islands vary greatly in size and are largely coral limestone.
Our first overnight stop was at Nanuya Balavu Island at the south of the Yasawa Group.
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Salacia anchored at Nanuya Balavu Island. |
To get there we motored Salacia through the Mocelutu Passage in a northerly direction and up the western shore of Nanuya Balavu Island. We then came south through Qarucuva Passage through water depths as low as 4.5 metres before we found a wonderful 16 metre hole to anchor for the night.
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| Chart Plotter position of Salacia marked by a red anchor |
The weather was like a mill pond and perfect for exploring other bays in the area by dinghy and there was abundant fish, coral and manta rays. If you look closely at the picture just taken over the side of the dinghy with a small digital camera you can see black and white striped fish, tiny irridencent blue fish and aqua fish as well as healthy coral. Giant clams and brilliant blue star fish were in abundance
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Photo of Coral taken over the side of the dinghy |
There were 2 catamarans and another yacht in the anchorage with us and when a 15 – 20 knot south easterly change came in early the next morning we all departed within 10 minutes of each other.
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