2011 New Zealand – Fiji – Vanuatu – New Caledonia to Australia voyage Blog

Luganville – \”SS President Coolidge\”……

Dear F&F, September 27th – 29th, 2011 (Eastern Hemisphere) We arrived at Luganville\’s \”Segond Channel\” just about 8 pm local time. It was completely dark and all the navigation lights on the charts either were not working or had changed their light patterns! Welcome to navigating in the \”back of beyond\”! We came in through …

Luganville – \”SS President Coolidge\”…… Read More »

Another Sea Story!….Old and new…..

Dear F&F, September 26th, 2011 (Eastern Hemisphere) Today marks 4 years since \”Beach House\” left Marina del Rey, California. Needless to say, much has happened. Two days ago, we were having a brilliant spinnaker run which lasted 16 hours. At 4 a.m., the wind started to pipe up to 25 knots so prudence dictated dropping …

Another Sea Story!….Old and new….. Read More »

En Route….mini boo boo…..

Dear F&F, September 25th, 2011 (Eastern Hemisphere) Day 2 run: 180 nm Position: 16 deg 29.5 min South 170 deg 48.2 min East Speed: Ave = 7 knots Wind: 21 knots, ESE Swell: 6.5 feet (2 meters) Air: 81 deg F/ 27.2 deg C Baro: 1015 steady Yesterday was so nice out here, we set …

En Route….mini boo boo….. Read More »

Nanuya-Sewa, Fiji to Espiratu Santo, Vanuatu…..

Dear F&F, September 24th 2011 (Eastern Hemisphere) End of Day one: 175 nm 312 mile to Pentecost Island Passage, 380 miles to Luganville, Espiritu Santo Island – Vanuatu 16 deg 41 min S 174 deg 21 min E A lovely first days sail, we put the spinnaker up mid day today, winds are SSE at …

Nanuya-Sewa, Fiji to Espiratu Santo, Vanuatu….. Read More »

Nanuya-Sewa, Farewell Joe and off to Vanuatu…..

Dear F&F, September 21st – 23rd, 2011 (Eastern Hemisphere) We went up to check and see if the nice dive sites off the end of Yasawairara were dive able, but the weather was just too strong. So instead, we set sail for the 12 miles back to Nanuya-Sewa. We had a brilliant ride in fantastic …

Nanuya-Sewa, Farewell Joe and off to Vanuatu….. Read More »

Narara Beach…..Cobalt/Turquoise Waters……Yasawairara……

Dear F&F, September 18th – 20th, 2011 We headed up the coast to Yasawa Island\’s Narara Beach. The anchorage was perfect. The water a calm cobalt blue to turquoise in color. We dove \”Paradise Point\” and the reef off Vawa Island. Paradise Point is also a surf spot, but was calm today and offered a …

Narara Beach…..Cobalt/Turquoise Waters……Yasawairara…… Read More »

Sawa-I-Lau Island……

Dear F&F, September 16th – 17th, 2011 Joe arrived on the noon Ferry from Denarau and we immediately upped anchor and headed to Nanuya-Sewa Island. This is a lovely spot (photos not yet posted) and we anchored next to Claudia and Joerg of s/v \”Dreamtime\”. Joe, Anja and I immediately went for a dive at …

Sawa-I-Lau Island…… Read More »

Lautoka…..Manta Rays…..

Dear F&F, September 13th – 15th, 2011 We motored up to Lautoka after a last marketing and fuel up. This is where Kate and I first anchored upon arrival. The check out with the boss was uneventful. They seem to be trying to smooth the paper work as well. Instead of just leaving, the Northern …

Lautoka…..Manta Rays….. Read More »

Musket Cove…..Last Visit….

Dear F&F, September 8th – 12th, 2011 After our arrival from Natodola Harbor, we soon discovered the \”noise\” in the washing machine was getting worse. It finally tripped the circuit breaker and I had our friends at \”Baobab Marine\” investigate. They found a huge aluminum metal piece on the back of the machine that spins …

Musket Cove…..Last Visit…. Read More »

Pacific Harbor to Port Denerau Marina……

Dear F&F, August 29th – September 4th…… After the shark dive, we had birthday cake and wine with Peter and Diana for Peter\’s birthday. Then we had a lovely dinner at The Pearl Resort (Don\’t tell….Anja had a date after dinner with the Brazilian Marine Biologist! shhh! LOL). The next morning, we thanked Charlie for …

Pacific Harbor to Port Denerau Marina…… Read More »