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Firefly - A night in the Blue Lagoon



The strong winds blowing through Vava'u finally started to drop yesterday and we headed a few miles south west to the Blue Lagoon, timing our arrival so that the sun was both high and behind us. The entrance to the lagoon is strewn with coral heads and while the Navionics electronic charts are good - the principal navigation becomes visual as the coral areas show up so well.



According to the pilot book we are using, this is the most beautiful anchorage in Vava'u and we certainly would not disagree. The water depth varies and creates a kaleidoscope of blues and this contrasts with the pristine white sand beaches. The lagoon is formed by several islands and coral reefs and we anchored in about 10 metres. For once we managed to find some sand without any 'bommies' - small coral heads that are both unavoidable and also a potential hazard when the anchor is retrieved.



The snorkeling was reported as being good here, but as we have found so far during our stay in Vava'u - in a lot of places the coral is dead. We are not sure of the reason for this but believe its most likely to have been caused by a recent cyclone. Taking the dinghy we tried 3 sites and in each case, as we went closer to the lagoon entrance the coral became increasingly more beautiful and there were large numbers of fish.



We were the only yacht anchored in the Blue Lagoon for the night and enjoyed a potato and bacon bake cooked by Paul (both unusual and surprisingly good) washed down with an excellent Sauvignon Blanc from NZ - to complete the picture there was a near full moon so it never actually got dark.



This morning we got up early, carefully left the Blue Lagoon and headed to another snorkeling site called the Coral Gardens. This is a place that all the World ARC yachts have been visiting and recommending as the coral is very varied and fully intact. The Coral Gardens were good but later we found a better spot called Langitoto island, noted on the Navionics I pad charts as being a dive 'hotspot'. Here we have seen some species of spotted fish we have not seen before and the highlight of the swim was seeing a turtle - the first we have seen while snorkeling since Galapagos.



Tomorrow, (Friday 13th) we will head back into Neiafu to stock up with food and water and check out before heading to the remote Haapai group of Islands. Most of the other World ARC yachts are already en route to Fiji but we are able to stay in Tonga longer as our 'extra year in the South Pacific' itinerary means we will be dropping off the rally soon and will then have plenty of time to explore Fiji and Vanuatu before we head for New Zealand for the southern hemisphere summer.



Paul and Susie


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