Sights of Tanna

Yesterday before going to see the awesome Mount Yasur Volcano of Tanna (Vanuatu), we walked the short distance from our cabin to the tidy neighbouring Kastom village. It took little imagination for us to conger a fantasy that we were time travellers, cast back in time to an undiscovered people.

The genial folks here live in the old traditional way, without electricity or piped water (they have a central well and pump) and their huts are woven bamboo walls, raised a foot or 2 off the ground and of course all have the thatched roofs. We felt a rare peacefulness in this scene as the subtle sounds of the distant surf lulled us into tranquility.

Peaceful village

The gracious villagers told us we were free to look around and even take pictures if we like. These youngsters at the busy 'town centre' were sucking the tasty juice from bright red flowers and offered us a sample too...

Yummy for my tummy

It was not unusual to see naked toddlers being carried by their slightly older siblings or just running around carefree. In a central clearing, the women and girls were weaving palm fronds for the thatched roofs amidst the prosaic cluck of hens and the smolder from their outdoor cookery.

A timeless scene

Off to the side, close to the large Banyon tree, were the vestigial remnants of yesterday's oven where they made their laplap. It's an in-ground oven where the food is wrapped and cooked by hot rocks all smothered with big leaves and sand.

One of the huts served as a meager store. We peered inside the dimly lit store and were surprised at how little it contained but remembered that they were want for little.

A meager merchant

Later that day we visited a different Kastom village a few miles away where we met Chief Jack. The village was immaculately landscaped with walkways lined with vegetation. A tall tree fern stood near the entrance. The top of tree ferns are always larger than the base as they are turned upside down and replanted before carving.

Jordan with decorative fern tree

The Chief and a few villagers performed a ceremonial dance for us where the men wore not much more than penis sheaths made of bark and the women donned grass skirts of dried pandanus reeds...

Taking a rest between celebratory dancing...

Adorable young learner...

Fire and ice

We were finally at Tanna (Vanuatu) to see the fiery cauldron of Mount Yasur, the world's most active live and most accessible volcano! We had first been told of this volcano by other cruisers (SV Red Sky) when we were in El Salvador and have been looking forward to it ever since. It would be the opposite of our experience at Ventisquero San Rafael (a glacier) when we were in Chile on January 23, 2012.

As we approached the volcano by vehicle, the lush landscape changed to black ash dunes from centuries of ash drift.

Joseph our driver took us up a bumpy steep narrow road almost to the top. The last bit we had to ascend a stair pathway as we watched shooting hot rocks and rising ash drifting into the sky above us. It was still daytime (16:30) and we were the first to arrive. We sat on the high outer rim of the volcano crater to watch the spectacle. Those are Jordan's feet at the front of the photo.

Some hit within 60 m (200 feet) of us

Looking about 60 m down into the crater we saw 3 vents, each hissing gas and spitting hot magma and ash...

2 of 3 vents spouting

Then about every 10 or 15 minutes, a concussive eruption would shoot molten rocks skyward, higher than us by about 60 m. We were instructed to keep our eyes on these hot missiles as it was possible they could reach us. We watched what appeared to be a new vent form down inside the crater as the mounds of ash rolled and curled out from the volcano looking like dirty puffy clouds forming.

New vent

As impressive as this was, it was nothing compared to what we soon would see as the sun set and the sky darkened all around us. In the daylight, the flying debris looks black even though it is molten, however at night, it all shoots up like brilliant red fireworks. The evening show seemed as if there was so much more glowing red lava spurting every few minutes but it was only because of the black night contrast.

Slowly getting darker and more brilliant

We listened to the large BOOMs as the concussions sounded. Everyone would unconsciously lean backward as the sound crashed, your body feeling the reverberations of the cannonade. A rat-a-tat followed as the lava landed, sounding like a soldier's machine gun.

3 vents

Boom!

It was spectacular, amazing, mesmerizing. You couldn't take your eyes away. Nowhere else would you be able to get as close to such a show. A sight not to be missed! Two ineffable and unforgettable highlights of our lives: FIRE of Mount Yasur and ICE of Ventisquero San Rafael. Hopefully, pictures are worth a thousand words!

Port Resolution, Tanna

We had a long and horrendous voyage from Port Vila (Efate Island, Vanuatu) to Lenakel (Tanna Island, Vanuatu) on a cargo freighter. But upon our arrival on September 3rd, we were quite hungry so we went in search of a place to eat. We came upon a thatched hut they call a restaurant owned by the most friendly and gregarious Mary who treated us as though she had known us all her life. This is a tiny place with a couple of tables and benches.

Merry Mary and Jordan outside of her restaurant

She quickly served us up 2 large plates of delicious fish, rice, and veggies that we gobbled down. Mary chatted with us, giving us some local info, and asked us all about ourselves. She asked if we had come by plane and we said No, on the cargo freighter Maiko. The Maiko??" she said, The Maiko?! She found it hard to believe that we had actually arrived via the Maiko.

(And throughout our stay at Tanna, anytime someone discovered we had come on Maiko, we were looked at in disbelief. The Maiko?! they would say as though maybe we meant to say By airplane. The upside: when we negotiated a price, we weren't viewed as a typical tourist.)

As we also felt our passage was a bit too adventurous even for us, we decided to buy plane tickets for our return. With plane tickets in hand, we found a pickup truck for a ride to Port Resolution on the other (southeastern) coast of Tanna. The distance wasn't that far (41 km) but the road is in extremely poor shape. Our driver, Joseph, loaded with supplies and people, averaged 20 to 30 km per hour and the trip took about 1.5 hours. He only charged us 2000 Vatu, not the traditional 5000 Vatu (subtract 2 zeros for approximate Canadian price).

Port Resolution (not really a port but a small bay protected from the southeasterlies) was named by Captain Cook - after his ship Resolution - when he anchored there in 1774.

We stayed in a small bungalow/cabin at the Port Resolution Yacht Club, somewhat of a misnomer. This may sound like a very fancy place to stay but it was very pleasantly basic. The setting was beautiful, up on a bluff overlooking the few intrepid sailboats in the bay with its beach back-dropped with verdant jungle.

Cabins that overlooked the point

Our cabin was similar to the traditional inhabitant's structures with thatched roof and thin walls of woven bamboo, however for the tourist, they made the floors of concrete. Although it wasn't the season for them, the 1 double bed and 2 single beds were all covered with mosquito nets. There was a sink with cold running water on the porch. That's it!

Hey, luxury...running water

The washroom was a short walk away along tidy lawns spotted with palms and other tropical trees. There was a clean toilet and solar shower. A tap was outside with a bar of soap sitting on the concrete next to it for washing. They kept everything nice and neat but close to natural.

We were the only guests staying there. We were served our meals in an open air room with its purring resident kitty. There was a long table and chairs and a couple of couches and comfy chairs for lounging placed along the wall. We opened the guest book and spotted a few recent yachts that we know well. The staff provided us with anything we asked for and were very welcoming.

During our dinner, it poured rain and we were feeling lucky that we had decided to wait for the next day before visiting the Island's active volcano.

As we had not slept at all the previous night (sitting on the freighter for 22 hours), we were quite exhausted and went to bed early. Good thing as lights are out at 21:00 when they turn off their generator and water!

Vile voyage

"Misery acquaints a man with strange bedfellows." Quote from The Tempest by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616)

Due to our engine failure near the end of our passage from Fiji, we had to bypass 2 of Vanuatu's southern islands: Aneityum (aka Anatom) and Tanna. Aneityum supposedly has great snorkelling with white sandy beaches and is an easy official check-in spot.

But Tanna, with its active volcano, we had been looking forward to since we heard about it when we were in El Salvador. So bypassing was a great disappointment, but it was prudent to check into the main town of Port Vila where we could remedy the motor problem (failed injector pump).

After ordering a rebuilt injector pump from England, we had some time to kill so decided to go down to Tanna. Flights were not cheap. The other choice: cargo ship. We discovered that a couple of junk cargo freighters will carry some passengers to Tanna. We checked with 1 but it was too late for us as it was already full and leaving in a couple of hours. So we continued to check every day until we saw another junk freighter, Maiko, which made the trip south to Tanna.

Maiko primarily takes cargo but also takes 50 passengers maximum along to Tanna for 4000 Vatu each (about Cdn $40 each). The boat looked pretty rustic, or should I say rusty, but it made weekly trips. We decided it would be safe enough; after all, the locals use it, right? Well, when we say 'junk' freighter, we are being real generous, let me put it that way.

Maiko and waiting passengers

With a free taxi tide in our friend's dinghy, we boarded from the dinghy to the stern of Maiko at 14:30 for a 15:00 voyage. We had to be careful while climbing on because of several large holes in the rusty 'swim deck' of the stern. This was our last chance to change our minds but we were up for a new adventure.

Judy in upper left (her seat for 22 hours)

The ship was still being loaded with everything from sacks of rice, flour, building material, beds, bikes, drums of fuel...all arrays of island life supplies, not to forget, finally a small work boat.

Loading the hold

Just before sailing, there was a roll call for the waiting paid passengers to climb aboard, each choosing their spot on the upper aft deck for the crossing.

Time to board!

As we surveyed our surroundings, we began to see what level of luxury our booking had provided. The craft was colourful - rust red! The views from our seats were nice as the decks were see-through. We were provided with 'natural' air conditioning as we were virtually exposed to the elements. Our smiles and nods were returned with quizzical gazes from the solemn natives. We finally slipped the lines at 16:30, wondering what we got ourselves into.

Motley passengers

Within half an hour, we were out in the open ocean, beating against a stiff wind and wave action. The passengers started to take their lying positions, some on their traditional woven mats but mostly on whatever horizontal surface they could claim. It quickly became rail-to-rail reclining human cargo.

It didn't take long for the passengers, not used to rough seas, to become seasick. There was only 1 bucket available which was not adequate for everyone to use. And to make it worse, it was a LEAKY bucket. We sat on our narrow bench seat as kids and adults who couldn't commandeer the puke pail hurled in their rolled up T-shirts, on blankets, on their dad's shoulder, or any open deck within close shot. The odorous drainage soon reached the floor by us and we moved our backpack just in time. This became the night's drama.

Being used to sailing on the open sea, Jordan and I took the motion in stride with no effects, especially since I had taken a seasick pill (Stugeron) before leaving.

Across from us, in the midst of and inconsistent with the scene of the sick and sleeping, sat a couple of young men oblivious to their surroundings. They were swaying, but not so much from the motion of the pitching boat but from the hilarity of a loud jubilant conversation. This went on endlessly for hours - with only us, I think, noticing.

With amusement, we watched as after almost every Bislama (native language) sentence they would rock back with loud open laughter or rock forward to head between knees, slapping their thighs and stomping their feet, roaring with a deep 'uncontainabl'" laughter. We thought What could they find so funny for so long? Actually we found it not unusual to hear such laughter in the scenes of Vanuatu. They are a happy people (except maybe for rough boat travel).

This chilly voyage lasted 20 hours (plus 2 hours on board before leaving) and thankfully we had brought a couple of sandwiches with us which we managed to eat while exchanging forced cheerful glances at each other in the dreadful conditions. But 22 hours is a very long time. Too long. So where could I find a toilet?

Jordan warned me and said I would not use it. Don't even consider looking in it! I didn't take him seriously, but when I saw it, I could not even enter the tiny room. Jordan described it as though it could be a scene from an exaggerated, humourous, horror movie! The evil lidless toilet bowl was covered in vomit and all kinds of 'crappy' stuff, as were its contents that it threatened to gush out upon its guest with every surging wave. And of course there was only the 1 toilet and no sink or running water.

Needless to say, Jordan stood guard while I quickly peed in a corner on deck, which was quickly washed away by the spraying ocean water over the sides. This little cutie who hardly said a word for the entire voyage was the luckiest being clad in diapers.

No worries for me!!

We had not expected the passage to take so long but the wind and waves were against us, slowing the ship's speed. When we finally arrived, it was to a concrete pier mostly exposed to the waves. As the boat bucked and rolled, we were helped off Maiko to terra firma at the little town of Lanakel on the west side of the island of Tanna. We had never been so thrilled to be back on land again!

At last, safely disembarking

The passengers, once on the pier, regained their jolly countenance and it was a abuzz with unloading activity that matched the jovial waiting villagers.

Fire dance

A 10-minute drive up the coast from Port Vila (Efate Island, Vanuatu), there is a beach area called Mele. There, right on the beach, is a fun 'happenin' bar/restaurant called, what else, The Beach Bar. On Friday nights, there is a very popular fire dance performance put on by a group of young volunteers. Fortunately, as it was packed, we went early for dinner and show and were not disappointed.

These young performers put on a captivating show that impressed all, in spite of the fact that it wasn't at all a culturally traditional Vanuatuan-type performance.

Impressive sight in the contrast of the black night

Mesmerizing swirls

They will also be offering up a circus evening starting next week. Hmmm...sounds interesting.

Around town

As we wait for engine parts, we have wandered all around town. Tree ferns are an unusual sight here in Port Vila (Vanuatu). Tree tops are chopped off and statues of ancient beings are carved in the porous trunk and displayed in gardens and yards.

Very weird tree structure

There is a very large and well stocked market near the Marina and it seems to run from early in the morning till late in the evening. Apparently the proprietors stay all night, sleeping under the tables on their home-made mats. It is nicknamed Mama's Market, probably because 99% of the workers there are older women. Some of it is totally outside in the open air but most of it is covered overhead with a roof.

Mama's Market

It is full of fresh fruits and vegetables including 2-foot long yams, nice tomatoes, live chicken, nuts threaded onto bamboo shoots, peanuts still attached to their vines, mega flowers that are huge, etc.

Fresh from the vine

Flowers everywhere

In one area at long rows of tables, women, waving off incessant flies, are selling cooked snack meals of fish or chicken and starchy taro or manioc all served on leaves (I think they call it laplap). At lunchtime, you can barely walk down the aisle as patrons choose their meals!

Which one should I try?

When not walking, we have occasionally caught a bus or taxi. The taxis are vans and they are everywhere in great abundance with van after van after van following each other up and down the one main street of town. Just wave one down and you have an instant ride for $1500 Vatu each (about Cdn $1.50).

Locals have a different definition of quality, as shown here:

Once again, we are at a dock at full moon. But this time, we don't have to jump up or down to reach Sea Turtle as at Vuda Point Marina in Fiji. Instead, we walk the plank! All boats at the concrete seawall use a plank to get to and from their boat. This can be daunting at the extreme tides or when the boat is rocking.

While tied up, we are delightfully serenaded by a small local bird, twice the size of a hummingbird, with a wide range of song. Tweets, chirps, whistles, and warbles - daytime, night-time - around he goes...

Tank you very much

After doing some troubleshooting to find out why the motor (Perkins 4.108) had quit on the last passage from Fiji to Vanuatu, Jordan discovered what the problem is. The injector pump's shaft sheared. Evidently it injected water that caused the seizure. Two possible sources: seawater entering the fuel tank vents OR water in the fuel when we filled up when we left Fiji.

We had a very rough passage and rough seas, so it is quite possible that some seawater did come in through the vents that are on the exterior sides of the cabin. We do have shut-off valves for these vents but never thought we needed to close them at sea. But from now on, if we encounter bad conditions at sea again, we will be closing them to make sure.

But the other real possibility was bad fuel (water in the fuel) from our last fill-up in Fiji. Jordan remembers the fuel attendant there said we were the last to get a fill-up before the fuel truck came to supply them, so who knows, maybe we got some stuff from the bottom of the barrel so to speak.

How can a shaft so thick shear?

Jordan has been in contact with several possible suppliers from around the globe and has ordered a rebuilt injector pump and 4 spare injectors. We will get a small credit for our old one when they receive it. (We will be sending it back on the slow boat to save shipping.) This mechanical repair will be an expensive one.

So the question remained, what's the condition of the fuel in the tanks, and for that matter, what is the condition of the tanks? They have never been cleaned out because they never have had inspection/access hatches.

So while waiting for parts, Jordan thought it not only prudent but imperative that the tanks get checked out. He had to cut 11.5 cm round holes in the tops and fabricate cover plates. Then all the fuel had to be pumped out, about 360 L, jerry jug by jerry jug, then carried to the drums on shore. The bottoms of the tanks indeed had 30 years of nasty sludge and crud build-up - to the extent that it was surprising that the fuel outlet ever let fuel through!

Drums for diesel transfer

It was a horrid painstaking procedure of reaching down with scrapers and rags, rinsing and sucking up the gunk repeatedly until acceptably clean. Then all the fuel had to be pumped, jerry jug by jerry jug, back into the happy tanks although he didn't even hear a Tanks. It was a Tankless job. Does he want to do that again soon? NO TANKS! Yes, he was wearing a tank top.

Now we wait for our package to arrive...

Mi toktok Bislama

In Vanuatu, most people speak to us in either English or Pidgin. Vanuatu has 105 local languages, as well as English, French, and Bislama. Bislama is a form of Pidgin language which enables people from different areas of the country with different dialects to converse with each other. On the surface, it seems to be a fairly simple language that even Jordan and I can understand, well, at least when reading some signs.

Do you know what the following signs are saying?

Staff room

Sign held up at the Microfinance Tradefair

Sign in a tourist area

To ask What's your name? in Pidgin, you would say Wanem nem blong yu? The response My name is Judy would be Nem blong mi Judy (i.e. The name that belongs to me is Judy). And of course, don't forget Mi wantem bia (I want beer).

It's nice to be able to converse in foreign countries!

Double celebration

It's always fun to celebrate a special day such as a birthday, anniversary, etc. And even more fun when you can celebrate the same special day twice, only a day later!

As we are on the opposite side of the International Date Line here in Vanuatu, we are one day ahead of our families back in Canada. On our anniversary date, we had a nice evening out, and then again, on the next day which was our anniversary date back home!

Does that mean double presents too?

State of coconuts

Coconuts grow in Vanuatu and Jordan and I have been eating them for years on our travels. The juice is delicious as well as healthy and was even used during the war as an intravenous when normal medical stocks ran out.

We have not only drunk the juice but we have of course snacked on the white "meat" raw and also fried, as discovered in Tonga. We have also shredded the white with a potato peeler and fried it with salt, which then tastes similar to bacon, as unbelievable as that sounds.

But we have discovered something new about coconuts. From a coconut that has started to sprout with new leaves starting to grow skyward, you break it open and you will find that the juice has turned to a solid, the consistency of which is totally different - not a hard solid but not mushy either. But in a kind of desiccated state.

Long sprout and desiccated flesh of coconut

The mound of flesh broke apart easily and we crumbled it into a bowl to be used for breakfast. Jordan added corn flakes, water, a wee bit of brown sugar, and coconut cream to his; and I added just crackers, water, and coconut cream to mine. As weird as that sounds, it was very delicious and we will be doing it again soon!

To purchase a sprouting coconut in this area of the country, simply ask for nafara.

Going in circles

Vanuatu is a nation of 83 islands and only gained independence in 1980. We wanted to drive around the island of Efate and so did Rod and Elizabeth on SV Proximity so we all rented a car and headed out for the day. Efate is not very big and could be circled in about 3 hours, with no stops - no roads go to the interior mountainous terrain.

Our first stop was when we spotted a sign claiming The Blue Lagoon. Sounded like an intriguing place. The Lagoon was very blue and very pretty, and Jordan snapped this lady perched on an overhanging branch taking photos.

Photo of a photo

Jeff (SV Proximity crew), Jordan, and I walked away from the Blue Lagoon in search of the ocean that we could hear crashing somewhere. We muddled through the rainforest branches and sharp lava ground and finally found the breaking waves. Mission accomplished! Upon return to the Blue Lagoon, we shared an enjoyable picnic lunch with baguettes, cheese, wine...

Pass the wine

We were trying to find a beach where we could take a dip and stopped at this picturesque one but the surf was too strong. We were also hoping to swim with the large friendly Dugongs, a close cousin to the Manatees, but were informed that they had all left the area in search for their favourite food, seagrass.

What island is that? Where are my charts?

Our final stop was at the Top Rock Site where an informative guide told us all about the area flora and fauna, including large resident coconut crabs. He showed us a wooden pig killing club and we were told that these same clubs were also used for killing humans when cannibalism was still practiced. The last recorded cannibal killing was actually as recent as 1969. But now, no worries, your only chance of being baked is by the tropical sun!

Stay away from me with that!

As we circled Efate Island, we drove past many, many villages where residents lived in thatched huts, grow their food in gardens, and raise pigs if lucky enough to afford them.

We encountered very little traffic and only had 2 or 3 vehicles pass us the entire day. It seemed so weird to be driving on the right-hand side of the road (as we do back in Canada) after driving so long on the opposite side in New Zealand. Our rented vehicle even had a large imprint on the windshield reminding you to stay on the right side of the road as there are so many Aussies and Kiwis that holiday here and they are used to driving on the left-hand side of the road.

Pull, paddle and prance

Micro financing has been successful in Third World countries to help subsistent people start mini-businesses. In Port Vila (Vanuatu), a Microfinance Tradefair ran for 3 days from August 15th through August 17th. On the waterfront, many tents were set up with basic business folks displaying and selling their services and wares with bands playing throughout each of the 3 days.

There were a lot of fun things going on...

Children showed their muscles in fun competitive Tug-of-Wars with lots of encouragement and cheering from the crowd.

Pull harder!

On the water, there were outrigger races and lots of other boats around watching. During the race, one outrigger with his partner tipped over to their dismay and the laughs of the spectators!

Paddle faster!

We almost made it...

There was a competition between the ladies of their fancy Mother Hubbard dresses. These 4 strut their stuff (lady in orange was the lucky winner).

But the biggest event seemed to be the daily traditional dance competitions. Most of the costumes were quite impressive and children were also dancing. Near the end, spectators would join in and merrily dance with the competitors. Great fun was had by all.

Daring

Striking

Dazzling

Mother Hubbard

'Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard...' remember that Nursery Rhyme? Everywhere you look in Port Vila (Efate Island, Vanuatu), you see women dressed just as Old Mother Hubbard may have. Introduced by 19th century missionaries, they are actually called Mother Hubbard dresses and provide local women with a sense of identity.

8 women all in Mother Hubbard dresses in 1 small area

Their expressive dresses in colourful patterns usually have puffy sleeves, side flaps, and are decorated with lace and/or ribbons. I found a shop downtown that was filled with ladies who sewed and sold their creations. Aisle after aisle of sewers and displayed wares...

Which one do you want?

Women also sewed and displayed pretty blouses and attractive men's shirts, sarongs (wraparound skirts/cover-ups), and even Mother Hubbard dresses in children's sizes.

A competition of fancier examples was included at the 3-day Tradefair that we attended. First prize went to a lady in a bright orange dress with surprisingly no pattern but still with lots of ribbons and lace.

I feel so pretty!

Would I wear one of these dresses? No, but on the other hand, everywhere you look in many countries all you see are people in plain old blue jeans. Maybe there's something to be said for colourful Mother Hubbard dresses...

VANUATU passage

Time to leave Fiji. But first we had to backtrack from Vuda Point Marina to the town of Lautoka (S17°36.108' E177°26.456') on Sea Turtle for the officials to check us out for departure on August 5th.

One last trip to the market for fresh produce and to find something to blow our last Fijian money on, then to Customs. Just as we finished up, friends on SV Water Musick [sic] arrived to also check out. We weighed anchor at 16:50 for an expected 4-day passage to the islands of Vanuatu. Little did we know.

Dinghy dock by Customs

We had to make it through a narrow pass between reefs but the late start put us there well after dark. Navula Passage, which was well marked with lit channel markers, waypoints on our digital charts, and ranging lights to keep us on center made for a safe but tense exit. We were out to the wide open Pacific Ocean once again with a good breeze on a comfortable point of sail.

We were surprised at how windy it was because we had been expecting to motor into a predicted windless high. But we had a great first 4 days with a good wind from behind pushing us along nicely - and Jordan had a line out and landed a 15-kg beautiful yellow-fin tuna.

Fish for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners!

Then, 25 nautical miles (5 hours) from our intended landfall (Island of Aneityum), it was like King Neptune put his hand up and said, "No you don't." What did we do to annoy him?

There was a huge squall line across our path with lightning and gale force winds now on our nose, tough to sail into. We slogged with winds and high seas making virtually no "make-good" headway. Then all of a sudden, while directly under a towering cumulus cloud, we had torrential rains and no wind! The seas flattened out under this so we started the motor to make some valuable distance but the motor slowed and stopped. Did we pick up a line in the prop? Would Jordan have to dive to cut and untangle it and fight off sharks in the sea?

We decided to heave-to and rest until it stopped pouring rain. After we drifted a bit, we got out our GoPro (small underwater camera) and attached it to a pole and sent it down to investigate the prop entanglement. Surprise, surprise - the prop was clear of everything. So we tried the motor again and it came to life. Strange! But relieved.

The gale winds returned on our nose, so we decided to skip this southernmost island (Aneityum) and head north to the next island (Tanna) where we knew some friends were but again found it near impossible to make any westing. We found another small island so we ducked behind it to go out on deck and secure and tidy up loose ropes, etc. When we resumed, the wind abated enough so we decided to motor-sail to make some better headway, but after only an hour, our motor suddenly stopped. King Neptune must have really been annoyed!

Okay, change course again. Under the circumstances then, it was an obvious wise move to head north further to Efate Island to the main town in Vanuatu with a better point of sail and where we could sort out the motor problem. 120 nautical miles with a good wind on the beam - but a little over half way, the winds almost completely died, so we ghosted along trying to use puffs of breeze.

The last 50 miles, which under normal conditions would take Sea Turtle about 10 hours, was a 24-hour endurance of patience. But we finally got to Port Vila, after a 7-day passage that should have only taken us 4 to 4.5 days.

We dropped sails at daybreak just at the mouth of the entry to the inner harbour and Jordan towed us in with our launched dinghy at 07:00 where we set anchor (S17°44.264' E168°18.626'). Amazing how easily such a small dinghy can handle a much larger sailboat. Maybe we don't need our motor fixed!

Come along, Sea Turtle