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Free & BrEasy - Pedro and the Volcano



We left Vuda Marina, Fiji, shouting fond farewells to the many friends we had made during the 3 week stop. Fiji also marks a schism in the fleet as about 15 of the 43 boats that left St Lucia, are leaving this year's WARC, here, to cruise New Zealand and rejoin the next spin of the World ARC round the globe in 2015. We missed the rendezvous at Musket Cove so can only wish them all Fair Winds and Safe Sailing.

The passage from Fiji to Tanna, a small island in the Vanuatu archipelago, was a short 5 day, 450 mile hop. That statement alone shows how adapted we are to cruising life in the South Pacific. The winds on the first night were decidedly "sporty" with gusts of 40 mph and big changes in wind direction. Free & BrEasy took it all in her stride and we noted by the upright stance of the mast each morning, that the new shrouds with their lollipop fittings were functioning correctly! We approached Tanna in the early hours of a beautiful moonlit night. In the distance we could see the red glow of Mount Yasur, the island's volcano, which turned out to be very close to the anchorage at Port Resolution. As we rounded the point at the southern end of the bay, a forest of fairy lights suddenly appeared. It was the WARC fleet which we had caught up at last!

The next morning we had to rub our eyes because Port Resolution is not a port but a beautiful tree lined bay with mountains in the distance, its very own smoking volcano and even steam vents in the rocks on the shore. The dinghy took us through rocky shallows and after wading ashore to a sandy beach we took a short path through the trees that led us to a village that did not appear to have changed since Captain Cool landed in 1774. A large football field was surrounded by small huts made of sugar cane and coconut leaves over a wooden frame. The only thing that hinted we were in the 21st century was that the children playing football were wearing brand new football boots generously donated by some of the World ARC crews. There was also a tiny café where a few familiar faces were lounging in the sun on the grass watching what looked like every single one of the children in the village, playing football. The inter-island football tournament which out shone the World Cup, is coming soon and Tanna is determined to retain the trophy and win the prize money. We then went to the yacht club to see immigration and customs to clear into Vanuatu. This was along another dirt track which had been swept clean! In fact the whole village was squeaky clean. The Port Resolution Yacht Club (PRYC) has got to be the coolest club in the world. Like all the buildings it is was made from coconut leaves with open sides but inside it was festooned with flags left behind by cruising yachts and surprisingly contained comfortable settees. A good place to chill with a beer, talk about sailing adventures or watch the coconuts grow! Due to our late departure from Fiji we had missed a welcoming party for the World ARC boats but we were still given a selection of fruit and vegetables which the village had provided to each boat.

That evening we set off to see the volcano and as a special treat, we took Pedro the polar bear. Clutching onto our seats on the back of a 4x4 truck we drove at brake neck speed down the pot-holed dirt tracks. Without any warning, the truck jammed on the brakes coming to a halt by a family of wild pigs at the roadside. Johnson, who was one of our guides, dived out of the truck and grabbed a youngster by the back legs. This prize specimen was trussed up using cane leaves and left by the side to be picked up later and taken home for fattening and the pot. Pedro eyed the proceedings with great mistrust thinking he would be next!

We wound our way up to the desolate ash covered volcano and after a short walk, we were staring into the crater of a live volcano. Suddenly there was a deafening explosion, a feeling of air being sucked out of our lungs as our bodies were being vibrated and red hot rocks were ejected vertically hundreds of feet in the air right before our eyes. Instinctively we flinched and moved backwards but then stood transfixed as the red hot larva fell back into the crater. These mighty eruptions took place ever 2-3 minutes and were really scary because of their immense power. One of fleet said he had done some stupid things like sky-diving and bungy jumping but they were nothing compared to witnessing a live volcano eruption! Pedro never saw an eruption as at the first explosion he hid deep in the rucksack. Volcanoes are no place for polar bears!

Our visit to Tanna was all to brief. After a lovely evening meal on Adela, we set off the next day for the 24h sail to Port Villa on Efate. Port Villa is a busy town completely the opposite of Port Resolution. We parked Free & BrEasy end on at the harbour wall "Mediterranean style" under the gaze of everyone in the café and hit the bar. Alejandro and Michael distinguished themselves by propping up the bar for a solid 10 hours. Thirsty business this sailing!



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