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Mischief - Michief Blog Cocos Keeling Islands 25th September 2018 to 1st October 2018



A tropical island paradise, white sands, coral and coconut palms surrounded by azure blue ocean and blue skies. A cliche you say, maybe, but its the only way to describe it. Sadly evidence of the global problem of plastic waste could be seen on all of the windward shores. Direction Island was to be our home for the duration of our stay, no money would be required as there was no way of spending it on Direction Island. A truly tropical island where one expected to see Man Friday around every coconut palm. Our first night here was supposed to be a private affair with Misto where we were invited to share a wahoo that they had caught earlier in the day. Sadly they mentioned the invite on channel 72 so the whole fleet heard and enthusiastically invited themselves. Under friendly pressure from the fleet Misto decided to share the huge fish with everyone making a portion for all. Such a feat had not been seen since the sharing of the two fishes and five loaves of bread. Lovely evening spent in good company sharing fresh coconuts on the beach and in the customs office. Customs office? Yes next morning we showed our papers to the customs officers under a pagoda on the beach surrounded by coconut palms. Coolest customs office we'd ever seen.

OK OK Skipper even though it's not in historical order I'll mention it straight away!!!!!!!!!!! (We've not heard anything else since)Highlight of the trip (I'm told)was Dave's golf trophy won at the local golf competition, only the second time he'd played EVER. It was played with the locals of West Island on the World's only golf course situated on the airport runway. P.S. Phew soon bought the golf champion down to earth on the table tennis table when my partner and i secured victory over the skipper's and his. Grave error Neen, I've not be allowed up from the anchor locker since.

The day after the bbq on the beach we headed by dinghy to the bigger island, Home Island, where the locals are predominantly Muslim. Out of respect for their culture and religious beliefs, Wendy and I covered our shoulders and knees. A small museum gave us an insight into the islands history and the very friendly cafe welcomed us for lunch. The beach was just a short walk away via a copse of beautiful trees and supermarket was well stocked for such a small community so the boat was well stocked for the next leg.

The golf, mentioned earlier when Dave won(I'm trying desperately to get out of the anchor locker), was to be played on West Island the next day as was the cycling, coconut farm and art gallery tour. So we rose early as two ferry crossings were required to get us to the Island. The boys were playing golf and Wendy and I, joined by the lovely Agnes from Smoke and Roses decided to explore the island by cycle. Whilst we worked off our lunch on the bikes the boys waited for the golf in the cafe, beer was provided on a sack truck and paid for on an honesty basis. Many beers had been consumed by the time we arrived back from our cycle, we were assured it was purely to perfect the swing. The cycle ride under the canopy of the coconut farms went past a rolling, reef break onto the beaches on our left, the other side the tranquillity of the lagoon both were picturesque and despite the headwind off the Indian Ocean the views kept our minds off the difficulties against the wind. On the north end of the Island we met up with the 745 club (Karen, Sharon and Mike) and formed a human pile up for photos. Helen found us on the white sandy beaches and we took a stroll together following a reef shark in the shallows. The golf (that Dave won)evidently was a riotous occasion with everyone teeing off together. Hilarious apparently. In the evening we all met up together with the locals for pizza and a party in the bar that opened at 17.00 hours. At 8 pm the rest of the fleet left for Direction Island leaving Karen, Sharon, Helen, Mike and myself. We decided to stay the evening at the local Motel on the beach. Blue cocktails were bought out, compliments of the management. After that we danced until we were asked to leave and then carried on at the motel until we dropped. Next day was a sleepy affair as you can imagine. Slow cycling, paddle on the reef, local art gallery and coconut farms. Whilst we nursed our hangovers, our Skipper and Commander led by conscientious Mabel, climbed the mast and with the help of our hero Bones mended the VHF. Thank you Skipper and Commander. They then enjoyed a party and Dave and Bones swam the 5 knot rip seeing colourful corals, blue grunts, eels, barracuda and reef sharks.
We arrived back in time for Dave to pick us up in the dinghy, change our clothes and ready ourselves for a delicious meal with Smoke and Roses including Sean their friendly crew member. We arrived drenched!! The wind over tide sent waves right over the bow soaking us all. Wendy had to have a quick shower when she arrived. We enjoyed a very social evening, American hospitality at its best with a few Irish jokes thrown in too. Luckily the trip back to Mischief in the dark was not as wet.

Sadly this had to come to an end so after the skippers briefing a beach bar-b-que was held for all. During the briefing Wendy and I took a stroll to the end of the island. Hermit crabs were everywhere, we found a large shell for one of them to upgrade into a new palatial home. I was pleasantly surprised during my run the next morning when I discovered one of the more affluent crabs had secured it as his new home. The bar-b-que was interesting as we enjoyed "skippy"(Kangaroo) meat for the first time. Interestingly we have not sat still since. The next morning, a donut boat popped by providing our breakfast as we lifted the anchor to set sail for our next adventure, over 2000 nautical miles across the Indian Ocean.


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