Taunga Island - Last Day

We spent the last morning on a beautiful beach anchored off the island of Taunga. Everyone was now relaxed and in the holiday routine so it was a shame to be heading back to civilisation. Luckily there was some sunshine and a few hours left for last minute beach combing and a snorkel. The winds started to pick up around lunch time and we made hamburgers while motoring back to Neiafu. Ian checked the weather forecast on the satellite phone and I got the mooring lines ready for our arrival.

Swallows Cave

On Saturday we took Faraway around the bay to the Swallows Cave. David offered to drive Faraway while the rest of us jumped into the dinghy to explore the caves with our snorkelling gear. The cave was spectacular and very dark inside except for the sea entrance and a tunnel of light that came down from an opening at the top of the cave. Snorkelling was very erie and there were lots of small silver fish sheltering in the dark water. We snorkelled outside the cave and discovered that the shelf around the cave quickly dropped off into very deep water. People often see whales in the bay just outside of these caves but we were unlucky today. Around lunch time we climbed back on Faraway and motored down to our next anchorage called Euakafa. This area was also known as the whales playground but we didn't see any in the bay during our stay. We did see lots of beautiful corals though and the kids enjoyed playing on the beach and discovered the fun of hermit crab training and racing. We stayed on board Faraway that night as the winds became very strong. During the night the anchor started to drag and at first light we got up to move to a calmer anchorage so we could all spend the last morning of the Wright visit on the beach of a secluded island.

Nuku Island

The weather was still nice and sunny so on Friday we decided to motor over to a tiny island called Nuku. We motored along the island of Hunga and into the entrance of Port Refuge. The kids spotted some interesting caves along the way and wanted to take a closer looked so we hopped into the dinghy and motored over. I was driving the dinghy and on the way back to meet up with Faraway a whale dived about 100 metres in front of us. I got such a shock that I just killed the engine and we bobbed around in the water until the whale was clear of us. We finally arrived at Nuku which was a beautiful island fringed with powder white sand and a very healthy coral reef. We all snorkelled on the shallow reef and saw clown fish, sand dollars, lion fish and lots of colourful reef fish. In the afternoon Ian set up the cob BBQ on the beach and we left 2 chickens cooking while we went beach combing. Harrison and Sophie were pretty tired from the days activities and being out in the sun all day so Ian took them back to Faraway in the dinghy after dinner. A wise decision as the adults stayed on the beach drinking but unfortunately it rained heavily so we all had to beat a hasty retreat back to Faraway in the dinghy and arrived on board soaking wet.

Hunga Lagoon

On Thursday we motored around from the Blue Lagoon to Hunga Lagoon. The weather had improved and we were looking forward to a fun day in the water and some relaxation. The entrance to Hunga Lagoon was very shallow in one area dropping to a depth of only 2 metres. We managed to navigate our way in and anchored in a lovely area that David had spotted the previous day when we were in the Blue Lagoon. The kids were keen to get the kayaks out and Harrison found a novel way to kayak in his snorkelling gear (TITF). Ian also took the kids on a fabulous snorkelling tour of the lagoon in crystal clear water. Harrison and Sophie had a great time zipping around in the spare dinghy as well. In the afternoon at low tide Louise and I went for a reef walk and spotted a lot of critters hiding out in the shallows. We also came across a nice couple from NSW who were living in a shack on the beach. They gave us a tour of their house and we managed to get some fresh lemons for our gin and tonics from the wild orchard that was growing in their backyard! We finished the evening with sundowners, a BBQ and a few games of 500 which the kids seemed to be very good at.

Wright Family Visit - Vavau

My brother David and his wife Louise and 2 kids Harrison and Sophie visited us in Tonga on Faraway from August 30 to September 5. They arrived at the tiny Vavau airfield on Tuesday afternoon in a fairly ancient airplane that actually had square windows. We had a great time sailing around the islands of the Vavau group. We spent the first night in Port Refuge catching up on family news and getting organised for the busy week ahead. In the morning we collected food supplies from the village and sailed in light winds towards the anchorage we had chosen called the Blue Lagoon. On the way there we spotted a humpback whale mother and calf and watched them for half an hour. The whale watching boat was there as well with snorkelers in the water so we had to keep our distance. The kids managed to see a few flukes and blasts from the mothers blow hole. It was a wonderful experience. In the meantime we had spotted birds fishing nearby so we steered Faraway away from the whales in the direction of the birds so David and Harrison could cast a few lines in the hope of catching dinner but nothing was interested in the assortment of lures that David had bought from Sydney. The Blue Lagoon was a beautiful anchorage for the second night and the kids and adults enjoyed the snorkelling. The colours of the water were absolutely incredible and Louise felt like she had truly arrived in paradise. We spent the evening having Sundowners and Ian cooked some rather well done BBQ steaks!

NEIAFU VILLAGE

NEIAFU VILLAGE

Position: 18D39'S 173D59'W

Sunday, August 28 - Yesterday we spent most of the day exploring the shops and services in Neiafu. It's a beautiful town but the services are pretty basic. I managed to buy a sandwich maker which made my day as we could now add more variation to our diet. The Tongan people that we met along the way were all very friendly and helpful to us. I went to the fruit and vegetable market and the variety of food was incredible. There were lots of stalls all with different local produce. I picked up nice pineapples, bananas, tomatoes, cucumbers, chillis and cabbages. Unfortunately the market closed at midday so a lot of the produce was already sold by the time I arrived. As Ian wasn't around I also accidently stumbled upon the crafts market and spent time browsing the carved bone necklaces and woven pandanus mats. Ian eventually found me and we went to pick up our hot bread order. Today is a day of rest in Tonga and nobody is allowed to work which I think is a great idea. However, our watermaker desperately needed repair so Ian spent most of the day down below replacing the pump. The beast worked well for about 10 minutes than developed another problem which he hasn't been able to fix. We are hoping that tomorrow will bring us some better luck.

VAVAU - TONGA

NEIAFU - TONGA

Position:  18D39'S  173D59'W

 

Friday, August 26 - We arrived 12 miles north of Vavau at midnight on Thursday night.  The weather had deteriorated even more during the day and we were looking forward to some calm seas and light winds in the lee of Vavau islands.  Unfortunately the weather wasn't a lot better in the lee and we had to sail up and down the coast until sunrise taking turns to sleep and sail.  When the sun finally came up the clouds came over and we were hit with a torrential downpour.  The visibility was terrible and probably explains why the boat that sailed into the entrance a half hour before us saw whales and we didn't everythough I was scanning the water from high up on deck.  The islands were unusual formed from limestone and covered in lush green vegetation.  There weren't any shades of brown to be seen except for the lower exposed rock faces that met with the seawater.  I put the quarantine flag up and Ian motored through the channel to the Neiafu anchorage.  On arrival we had to tie up with another yacht on the dock while Customs and Quarantine inspected Faraway and then we had to visit immigration for our clearance.  This process took all morning but we got the chance to scan the shops and services and see the fruit and vegetable market. I managed to grab 2 cold meat pies for lunch which tasted pretty good after our journey. After lunch we headed to the mooring ball field but most of the balls were taken due to yachts coming in for shelter from the bad weather.  We motored around trying to find ones that weren't booked and/or secure enough to hold our yacht.  After 2 hours and suffering from complete exhaustion we finally settled at the end of the mooring field in a peaceful bay.  A bit later the Tasmanian yacht Cosimo found a ball right next to us so we had good company as well.  I started cleaning up the boat from our long passage while Ian went to shore to pick up watermaker spare parts sent from the USA.  We collapsed early in the evening and enjoyed our first full nights sleep in a long time.  It was complete heaven to sleep in a comfy bed, not have to get up during the night and more importantly not having to stop yourself from being rolled and thrown around in the cockpit.