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July 29, 2023

Havannah to Epi

We enjoyed our time in Havannah Bay, anchoring in remote areas with stunning vistas. We decided to remain here on the island of Efate for the remainder of the week to allow the heavy winds from a local storm system to subside. During our respite, we had a chance to try out our new standup paddle board. It is very nice and stable, but we still managed several pratfalls. We had the pleasure of meeting the crew of Firefly, two young brothers sailing on a beautiful catamaran with all of the appropriate toys (a go-fast dinghy, scuba equipment, surfboards, and an eFoil). They took us on a tour of a local cave at the ocean’s edge (sorry, no photos; I forgot to bring a camera). The boys are Canadian, but they grew up in Vanuatu as their father served as a local doctor on the island of Tanna. They look like SoCal surfer dudes, but they speak the local dialects fluently.

We also caught up with the crew of Rhumb Runner who we first met way back in Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas Islands. We will buddy boat with them for the next several weeks as we explore Vanuatu and then make our way to Papua New Guinea.

Once the weather had cleared, and following an outstanding dinner at a local resort, we packed up and sailed out the pass leaving Efate in our wake. Following a nice downwind sail, we arrived at the island of Epi and dropped the hook. We were the only sailing yacht in the bay at the time and we were lucky to catch a glimpse of a local dugong (as well as several sea turtles). The dugong is a local marine mammal very similar to the manatee. We will explore the island tomorrow, which happens to be Vanuatu Independence Day.

July 23, 2023

Moving On

Havannah Bay

Sadly, we said goodbye to Scott and Matt who have returned to the US. We also said our goodbyes to the rest of the rally fleet. Australia is another dog-hating country that we must skip, but the rest of the fleet is headed there next. Instead, we will spend the next few weeks exploring the rest of Vanuatu before we make the long passage to Indonesia with a layover in Papua New Guinea.

After refilling our diesel tanks, we exited Port Vila and headed around to the northern part of the island of Efate to Havannah Bay. As we wove through the narrow channel, we encountered nearly a mile of lovely jellyfish (no swimming here, thank you) and passed a recent wreck of a large sailing yacht. We anchored at the end of the bay in a very secluded spot, surrounded by jungle.

July 19, 2023

Port Vila

We enjoyed a fast downwind sail to the island of Efate with a top speed of 16.5 knots. On arrival, we picked up a mooring ball in the harbor of Port Vila which is the capital and largest city of Vanuatu.

We had never heard of Vanuatu before this trip, but this nation has an interesting history. Vanuatu, formerly known as New Hebrides, comprises 83 islands which lie around 1000 miles east of Australia and 1000 miles north of New Zealand. Vanuatu is part of Melanesia which describes one of three major cultural areas of the South Pacific; the other two areas being Polynesia (including French Polynesia, Cook Islands, Tonga, Pitcairn Island, Easter Island, etc.) and Micronesia (including Palau, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, etc.). Melanesia includes the islands of Papua New Guinea (PNG), Fiji, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands, and, of course, Vanuatu. Anthropological theories of Melanesia purport a migration of ancient humans from Africa eastward into Asia and onto the (then) combined land mass of Australia and PNG via a land bridge (lower sea levels at that time). Melanesians then spread among the aforementioned islands. Europeans eventually arrived and brought missionaries and the era of colonialism. England and France jointly administered the island during the 20th Century until Vanuatu achieved independence in 1980. Cannibalism was widely practiced throughout Melanesia, and the last recorded incident in Vanuatu occurred in 1969. According to the Vanuatu tourism website, the average cooking time for a human is 3-5 hours. One final bit of trivia: according to the Happy Planet Index, Vanuatu is the fourth happiest country in the world!

Back to Port Vila. After mooring Leviathan, we dinghied to shore for the first available bar (fab) and awaited the arrival of our friend Matt who just flew in from California.

Over the next few days, we explored Port Vila and visited a beautiful farmers market which is supposedly open 24-7 (we did not find this to be true, but they are open late). We traveled a short distance by bus for a hike to the Mele Cascades, a picturesque waterfall supplied by natural spring water.

We were lucky to be in town for the Melanesian Arts and Cultural Festival. The participants paraded down the main street from the harbor wharf to the cultural center in native attire or local colors.

On our last day, we rented a car and drove around the island. There is much to see, but it is time to move on.

July 13, 2023

The Inferno

Customs and immigration are required when entering and exiting any country, even for visiting yachts. Depending on the nation, either you must go to the officials or the officials may come to you. In Vanuatu, we had a little bit of both. First, a customs officer arrived on Leviathan for initial formalities. Next, we dinghied to shore to the local yacht club (a simple hut with no electricity) and completed paperwork with immigration and biosecurity (no problem with the dogs in Vanuatu. Hooray!). Anticipating the arrival of our fleet, the locals set up a “bank” to allow for exchange of dollars for the local currency.

Vanuatu was hit by two cyclones in March and the island of Tanna received a direct hit. The predominant local architecture utilizes bamboo poles and woven palm fronds. As a result, the storms wreaked havoc and decimated large areas of the island, including our current location, Port Resolution. The island is in the process of rebuilding.

The most prominent and obvious local attraction on Tanna is the active volcano Mount Yasur. The volcano continuously spews a cloud of gases which merge into overlying clouds. Our group has organized an afternoon tour of the island and volcano. Loading up into the bed of a pickup truck, we traversed a deeply rutted and eroded dirt road that wound across the island. We passed many villages and received warm hellos and waves from the locals (especially the children). The conditions on the island are quite primitive by our western standards, with no electricity and no running water. Nonetheless, the locals seem quite content. In one village, we were treated to a performance of traditional dance in traditional attire. Trinkets were available, and we purchased a beautiful necklace crafted from bone. As the sun began to set, we arrived at our ultimate destination: the volcano. In darkness, we hiked to the brim and were amazed by the glow of the lava and the frequent eruptions (every 5-10 minutes). Apocalyptic. Interestingly, there are no guardrails or warning signs. The ground is covered in loose soil and you can walk right to the rim of the pyroclastic cone and observe the fire show. Totally worth the miserably uncomfortable truck ride.

We returned to Leviathan by 8pm and despite our fatigue, we elected to pull up anchor and head to the island of Efate to meet our friend Matt who just arrived from Fiji. We are also trying to beat the heavy weather that is due to hit the area this weekend.

July 11, 2023

Get Ready to Rumble

Passage to Vanuatu

Scott arrived on the nonstop flight from SFO to Nadi, Fiji, and we were at the airport at the crack of dawn to pick him up in our rental car. We then drove to Port Denarau, where Scott and I boarded a ferry to Musket Cove on a nearby islet. Planes, trains, and automobiles. We attended a briefing for the next passage to Vanuatu, had a nice breakfast, then took the return ferry back to Denarau. Yong picked us up, and we then completed our provisioning and made it back to Leviathan.

The next morning, we awaited the immigration (and biosecurity) officials to check us out of the country. Our appointment was scheduled for 0800 and they promptly arrived at 1130. This phenomenon is locally referred to as “Fiji time.” Once the rubber stamps were applied and our guests had departed, we untied our lines and cast off for Vanuatu.

As we exited the lagoon through the Malolo passage we sailed right by the islet of Tavarua and the world-famous surf spot called Cloudbreak. As we entered the ocean from the lagoon, we were treated to a dolphin show (we never get tired of dolphins).

Ahead of us lies a 450-mile passage to the island of Tanna in the nation of Vanuatu. We enjoyed a lively beam reach and arrived after 2.5 days. As we approached the finish line outside the anchorage at Port Resolution we were alerted to an unusual red glow. An active volcano! More on this later. We crept into the anchorage in the dark and found a cozy spot to drop our anchor. Following a quick libation, we hit the sack to rest up for the next day’s adventure.

July 4, 2023

Detention in Fiji

(For the dogs, not us)

The dogs remain under house arrest on Leviathan. Fiji Biosecurity will not let us move from our current location until we receive the results of an updated rabies antibody titer which the vet drew upon our arrival. We now doubt that we will receive the results before we leave the country. Oh well. Yong and I will at least tour the island of Viti Levu. We hired a local tour guide to show us around. We visited the Garden of the Sleeping Giant which was a spectacular botanical garden and trail. There is a nearby hot spring with a mud bath, but we decided to skip this particular ablution even though we were assured that it would cure all known skin diseases and restore our youthful glow. We also visited a Hindu temple and enjoyed shopping at the open air farmers markets located in the towns of Nadi and Lautoka.

We barely noticed that the 4th of July had arrived. Surprisingly, other countries don’t celebrate America’s independence (that was thinly veiled sarcasm). No fireworks or barbecues. We have a few boat chores to complete before our planned departure on July 8. Our friend and loyal crew Scott (who joined us on our Atlantic crossing and Panama Canal passage) will be arriving on July 7 to help us sail to our next destination of Vanuatu.

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