We left Palmerston Atoll with fond farewells and memories. Beveridge Reef would be a bit of a navigation challenge as it is 3 feet high, 2 miles North to South and about 3/4 ths of a mile wide. THAT’S IT. A unspoiled reef in the middle of nowhere. It wasn’t until the last 20 years or so that it’s exact position was correctly charted. Visions, Curious, Bubbas, Na Maka and we crept along slowly in the morning light just before arrival. For those of you who have more interest in Beveridge Reef, I refer you to the following link: http://www.cruiserlog.com/wiki/index.php/Beveridge_Reef Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacifc
The entrance was easy to find with our modern navigation aids and four boats on the lookout. We arrived to find three other boats already here a day ahead of us. We then had, Beach House, Na Maka, Visions of Johanna, Bubbas, Curious, Pakia Mist, Fly Aweigh and Mary Powell. 8 boats at an isolated reef system in the middle of the world…go figure. You can see from the photo that it appears we’re still out in the middle of the ocean as there is NO LAND here at all. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
This is a Niueanan Fishing vessel that had been lost on the east side of the reef. We dinghied over to it from our second (more comfortable anchorage spot). About 60 feet in length, she was a “long liner”. We don’t know the circumstances of her loss. We had a big disappointment with our first attempt at diving on the outside of the pass the day before, but we would quickly find really nice reef/fish and coral on the inner eastern shore. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
We anchored the dinghy in 5 feet of water and with full “rubber gear” felt it was okay for me to brave aboard. Cindy snorkeled around the wreck while I went aboard for some photos. The closest islands were Niue (130 mile to the west) and Palmerston (225 miles to the east). Not exactly a Freeway! Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
Here you can see Cindy snorkeling around the wreck. I’m aboard with the current and surge from the waves breaking over the shallow reef only 100 yards away. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
Cindy stands along side “Liberty” in very shallow water to give you a perspective of the wreck. From her condition, we suspect she had gone up within the last few years. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
She was a pretty “bare bones” no nonsense work boat. No frills or amenities. Our dinghy lends some perspective on the right side of the photo. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
A wreck always has a story, mostly sad. The outer east side reef is in the background. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
This is the “long line reel” aboard m/v “Liberty”. These reels have up to over a mile (on a small vessel) of fishing line that hooks are placed on every several meters. These can catch an incredible amount of fish and often lots of “by catch”. By Catch is stuff that was not intended to be caught like sharks, manta ray, etc. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
Long deserted and stripped, you can feel where the crew was when disaster struck. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
The swell was as calm as we’d seen in days on the outer reef. This made our journey to m/v “Liberty” a relatively easy one. The next day, the swell came up and the current was dramatically stronger. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
Weather Windows (an opportunity to go somewhere by sail when the weather cooperates) are a wonderful and important thing when visiting a place like Beveridge Reef. If the wind and sea are high, most boats who wanted to come here sadly must press on. You can see the west side rocks with breaking waves on them beyond the boats. Our three days here were exceptionally calm. Our last was all by ourselves! Pretty weird in the middle of the Pacific Ocean to have a place like this all to yourself. At high tide, the anchorage (especially by the entry pass) could be like a washing machine. At low tide, it was like being in a marina! You could easily tell what the tide was doing here at Beveridge Reef. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
When we went along the outside of the WEST reef, we were remarkably disappointed as the coral was all dead. We suspect this was due to Cyclone activity, especially the recent Cyclone Pat that effected Aitutaki or perhaps Cyclone Sara. When we dove on the inner EAST reef’s shallow waters, a coral garden appeared. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
Huge coral structures with very clear water in extraordinarily fabulous shape were the hallmark of the east reef. This is in depths between 5 and 18 feet. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
The reef fish were exquisite. The colors jumped in the clear pristine waters of the deep South Pacific. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
The water was decidedly cooler here at Beveridge, our most southern stop this season. It is also the Southern Hemisphere’s mid winter. These guys usually don’t flourish in “hot” tropical conditions. Water temperature around 78 degrees F. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
The hard coral structures were diverse and in fabulous shape. A mere mile to the west, the coral was all dead. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
The further west we would go, the more we would start to see “soft corals”. Beveridge did not yet show us any, nor would we expect to yet see it here due to the cooler water. Convict Tangs (yellow fish with the black stripes) were in abundance. Beveridge Reef – South Central Pacific
