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 Yasawa\’s were tempting and on our way. So we headed back to Manta Ray Bay Island and hoped to meet up with Joe Tui as a private dive guide. Joe is the guy with the blue \”camo\” wet suit petting \”Tiger Girl\” in our photo gallery.
We had a nice smooth uneventful trip and anchored in the pass. This is also the place where the geneker sail was torn to shreds and lost. The next morning I took Anja out to the Manta Ray site and she had about a 45 minute snorkeling experience with two mantas. She was jazzed. As I had done this many times with Cindy, I just did the spotting from the dinghy so she could geta nice experience. There was quite a bit of current in the pass, so someone really had to stay with the dinghy and be able to chase the other person drifting away. It\’s effortless for the Manta\’s of course; sleek and graceful. As they are plankton filter feeders, Anja got to see them with their large hula hoop size mouths open while filter feeding.
The tourist boats arrived and this was our cue to go home as once the overly excited jump in, the Manta\’s don\’t hang around very long or at least go deep.
We were supposed to meet Joe today, but he literally \”missed the boat\” (Ferry from Denarau) and we had to wait another night here to get him the next day.
The next morning, Anja got the same private experience with the Manta\’s again and even got to pet one! What a thrill…believe me. These Manta\’s are small compared to the ones Cindy and I experienced in Mexico, but this is a life experience. If you ever get the chance, don\’t miss it.
Scott and Anja