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Firefly - Cruising Vava'u - Kenutu, Vaka'eitu, Blue Lagoon and Ovalau



When Firefly arrived in Vava'u on Wednesday 27th May it was after a breezy sail north from the Ha'apai Group. The weather was surprisingly poor with rain and wind gusting over 30 knots so we went straight to the the main port called Neiafu, picking up a mooring in the very sheltered bay. It was a good move as Firefly was very still all night despite the strong winds elsewhere. The next morning the VHF was alive with calls from the first 10 World ARC 2015 boats, arriving from Niue, having been at sea for a couple of windy days. We are joining this rally at the beginning of July and it was great that we have coincided with them here as we had the opportunity to meet several of the crews.

There was an additional benefit as the Immigration and Customs Officers relocated to the Mango Cafe to check in the WARC fleet and we were able to complete our internal clearance, saving us visits to 2 different offices in the sweltering heat. The rain had stopped, the sun was out and the humidity was really high. Having been without land based e mail for a while we had a morning in an internet cafe, caught up on news from home, completed our Fiji advanced information for customs and stocked up with vegetables and fruit at the excellent outdoor market.

After 3 nights of great socialising with both ICA and WARC crews we left the 'big smoke' of Neiafu with a great weather forecast of sun and light winds for a week of cruising around the the Vava'u Group. We had the first 2 nights at Kenutu Island, on the East side of Vava'u with about 10 of the boats from the ICA fleet. We had been there last year and really enjoyed it. A long thin deserted island with a sandy beach and anchorage in the lagoon on its lee side - the windward side faces the Pacific trades winds and is steep and rocky, at either end of the island there are barrier reefs that break the waves so that the anchorage is calm - but there is a constant roar and it looks fantastic.

We had a Pot luck BBQ on the beach the first night - two boats took BBQ's ashore, we took and cooked our own meat, plus we made a salad to share. It was a really good night, the setting was wonderful and the steak that has been in the freezer since NZ was tender. During the following day we walked along the beach, spotted a kingfisher, visited a Tongan Fisherman's lookout on the windward side, had a swim and did a few jobs on Firefly. The second night we all went ashore again, this time just for sundowners - its dark here by about 1830. We were the last to leave and it was probably not wise as we got quite a few bites from either mosquitos (although its a non Malaria area) or probably sand flies.

We left the next morning and sailed to Vaka'eitu island and again it was lovely weather with light winds. We flew 'The Admiral' for the first time today. Its a new Gennaker, made by North Sails in New Zealand and is named after our brilliant insurance Company who replaced the one that was deceased (by drowning) sometime ago when we were approaching the Marquesas. When specifying 'The Admiral' we were able to select the colour scheme and are very pleased with the combination of sky blue, yellow and white as well as the size and shape of the sail. It is used on our fabulous mid line furling system made by Facnor - it really is a great system. While in New Zealand we had managed to sell our Parasailor and the space it has freed up is where the Admiral now lives, on the fabric shelf above the aft cabin berth. The Parasailor never really 'did what it said on the tin', perhaps it was us or it did not suit Firefly.

We anchored in a superb spot, and on our own for change on the very eastern point of Vaka'eitu right up by the reef that runs for about 100 meters to Langito'o Island. It is absolutely beautiful, hard to describe in words. The water is shallow up to the reef and it has a white sandy bottom - with the sun shining down the azure colour of the water takes our breath away each time we look at it. The crew on Dancing Walrus gave us some yellowfin tuna they had caught on the way to Minerva and it was taken out of the freezer earlier, sliced and covered in lime juice ready for the addition of various vegetables and sauces to complete the Cerviche - eating it, sitting in the cockpit we discussed how much we are enjoying Tonga the second time around and whether this anchorage could be the best one ever?

Yesterday we had a short trip of about 5 miles to the Blue Lagoon. A bit of motoring to charge the batteries and then 'The Admiral' came out for another session, flown without the mainsail but still pulling Firefly along well. The Blue Lagoon was a favorite from last year and when we arrived, just after low water it was like a mill pond. However, we had invited friends Glen and Jillian from Malakite over for drinks and noticed that before they arrived there was starting to be some waves in the lagoon. It was a lovely evening with a full moon riwsing just after sunset but as we approached high water Firefly rocked and rolled as the waves increased and everyone had to hold onto their drinks tightly!

Today is Thursday 4th June and we have one more night before we head back to Neiafu and are spending it anchored off Ovalau Island - more beautiful turquoise water and a spectacular coral bommie, surrounded with fish is just swimming distance from where we are anchored - we came here last year and its another lovely spot. Malakite is with us again and we are off to have sundowners with them tonight.

In Neiafu on Friday afternoon there is a yacht race arranged, the first one of their season and along with others from the ICA we plan to compete. Then on Saturday we have briefings on how to check out of Tonga and the details for arriving in the Lau Group of Fiji - its about 300 miles and will be 2 nights at sea. Sunday we have a feast at the Botanical Gardens a few miles out of town - its not really a botanical garden by English standards but consists of various specimens of trees and was impressive when we visited last year. Monday we check out via customs and Immigration, get fuel and water and leave - probably tucking into a bay for the night before we go to sea on Tuesday morning in order to reach the Lau Group of Fiji by Thursday Morning.

Paul and Susie


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