Vanua Balavu Island

We had been watching the weather, looking for the right conditions to make the passage from Qamea to Vanua Balavu Island, about 70nm southeast. If we do about 7 knots, this is a 10 hour passage, too much to do in a day and still arrive when it is light. But it is an easy over night passage and the

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Bula Fiji!

In most places, when you pass someone you don’t know on the street, the most you expect is a nod and maybe a polite ‘Good Morning.’ In Fiji, you often get a loud and enthusiastic ‘Bula!’ with a big smile. It almost feels like you just got a hug from a good friend. Fiji is a very special place. We

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Goodbye Tonga

Back in Neiafu for July 4, but there were no fireworks or other celebrations, this being Tonga, not the US. Still, we had a good time at a fund raising dinner for a veterinarian who travels from New Zealand to do mostly free work for the Vava’u community. On July 5 we went whale watching. Tonga is one of the

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Tonga At Last!

We left Samoa on June 9, sailing along the northern coast of Upolu to the Apolima Straight between Upolu and Savai’i, the two main islands of Samoa. The wind died when we got into the straight but picked up again as soon as we exited the southern end. The seas also picked up and we were in 2.5 to 3

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Samoa?

Our plan had been to go from Palmerston to Niue and then to Vava’u, a group of islands in northern Tonga. While we were preparing for the trip, we were also watching the weather. It was clear that some heavy winds and waves were coming up from the south and would soon arrive in Palmerston so we needed to move.

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Palmerston – The Story Of William Marsters And His Three Wives

Palmerston is a small coral atoll about 200 nm west of Aitutaki and part of the Cook Islands. It has 37 residents and they are all descendants of William Marsters who came there in 1863 with three Polynesian wives. Initially, he was part of a company producing copra but in time he took over the local operations and was officially

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Maupiha’a – A Special Place On Our Way Out Of French Polynesia

On May 1 we pulled anchor and headed west, destination Maupiha’a. This is a small island, still part of French Polynesia, with 8 inhabitants in three homes. The people are mostly involved in copra, the harvesting of coconuts. Every 2 to 4 months a ship comes by, drops off supplies and collects the coconuts that have been split in half

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Moving On!

April 20 – May 1 Our time in French Polynesia is coming to a close. We arrived nearly two years ago in the Marquesas and have had many great times. But if your boat stays longer than two years, you need to pay an import tax that would come to tens of thousands of dollars. So we needed to be

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