August 7th Sunday

Port Resolution Bay, Tanna Island, Vanuatu We
have been on the island of Tanna for the
past few days and the wind has been blowing
hard. The anchorage is one of the few good
ones in Vanuatu and we have been safe. We
visited the village itself which was quite
small and traditional and also the "Port
Resolution Yacht Club" The constuction of the
native dwellings are a little different from
Fiji but are along the same lines. There  is no
infrastructure or significant tourism here
only a few eco-resorts dotted around the island.
Port Resolution is named for one of Captain Cook's
ships. He was here in this very same spot in 1780.
The main attraction on the island is Mt Yasur one
of the few active volcanoes that one can get close
to in the world and we really were able to get close!
The tour started at about 1600H in an open Toyota
pick up truck. The roads are almost non existent,
just tracks really,  and full of huge holes and ruts.
The journey to the volcano is about 20 Km. and it
took over an hour due to the terrain. The scenery was
impressive though, through rain forest and hills with
banyan and pandanus trees. On approaching the volcano,
the land changed from lushgreen to a sterile ash field
where only a few stunted and scraggly palm trees grew.
You could already  see smoke and hear the rumbling of
the volcano from 2 Kms.
At the volcano itself was a rickety trail which guided
us up to the caldera and we were able to walk around it
to get to within 100 meters of the crater itself. I have
certainly seen nothing like this before. The volcano was
indeed quite active and two large vents intermittently
exploded spewing molten rock and smoke and steam 300
meters into the air. The noise and rumbling was
incredible and Idoubt that we could have got this close
to nature's violenceanywhere in the US. There were no
guard rails, no mindersno ticket booths or concession
stands just us and the mountain. We spent a couple of
hours and got some good photos and then took the truck
ride back to the boat which was again an experience in
the pitch dark. We have spent the last couple of days
just lazing around and walking on a  pristine beach
just past the village. The weather has settled down
today and we will leave for the Island of
Efate and Port Vila today. It's about 130 miles and
we should get in early on Monday morning. Photos of
Tanna and Aneityum to follow when I get some internet. 

4 August, 2011

We are now on the island of Tanna about 50 miles
north west of Aneityum. The weather has cleared
somewhat though it is still blowing hard. We had
a nice down wind sail in 15-20 kts of wind to
this location yesterday and the anchorage is well
protected from swell and surge. The jib furler is
working well again after getting a new belt fitted.
The main attraction here is an active volcano that
we will visit today. Apparently, you can get to
within 100 meters of the crater. The volcano is
certainly active and we saw it spewing smoke and
steam from 25 miles away and getting close to it
should be spectacular especially at night  when
we plan to go. Should get some great photos.
We will stay here for a day or two before going on
to Port Vila on the island of Efate for some
civilization and internet!

Monday, August 1st, 2011 Aneityum Island, Vanuatu

Colin the customs guy showed up at 1000H today and
did the customs clearance. He was very pleasant and
did not seem interested in searching the boat for
hidden booze supplies, which is just as well. The
quarantineguy should be here tomorrow and Colin said
that we can wait until we get to Port Vila to do
Immigration. The rain is pouring down again but the wind
has settled down. There was a brief respite in the rain
this morning and we were able to go ashore for a few hours.
We changed some US dollars into Vatu at the tiny bank and
toured the village. They are still in the midst of their
Independence Day celebrations and today was Sports Day
with local teams competing at soccer and volley ball
accompanied by deafaning Reggae music. We were invited to
lunch but declined.
Vanuatu became independent of Britain and France on
July 30, 1980 and used to be called the New Hebrides.
The people are Melanesian and the speak Pidgin English,
proper English or French depending which village they
come from. We will stay here another day or two until
the weather clears. Next stop is the island of Tanna
where they have an active volcano and the have guided
tours that get to within 150 meters of the crater.
Should be interesting. The jib furler is fixed.
It broke another belt and fortunately I have some  spares.
All other maintenance jobs have been completed
and I have plenty of time for Admiral to beat me at
Scrabble again today.  

29 July, 2011

We are now anchored up in Analgewat bay on the tiny
island of Aneityum, the southernmost island in the
Vanuatu chain. We are awaiting customs clearance by
a chap who is supposed to show up in a dugout canoe.
It's Saturday here so I don't expect to see anyone
until Monday and even then it may not happen. We got
in this morning at about 0900H it was pouring with rain
and it blew a full gale from the south all night.
The anchorage is very settled, with no swell and it's 
only blowing 20 kts in here. Last night was not too
much fun to say the least and I'm going to need at
least 24 hrs to recuperate before fixing all the things 
that broke on the ride here. I'm quite tired. Hot shower,
a cup of tea and a nap is in order. Admiral is doing well,
she is a real trouper. Further installment tomorrow if I
can find some internet  

Fiji-Vanuatu Day 2

We had a much better day yesterday. The weather was
warm and clear and wind velocity lessened to a
pleasant 15kts and the sea state improved also. I
got the gen-set running again without too much
trouble the sea water pump impeller went bad
and needed to be replaced. An hour of hot and
sweaty work in the engine room and it started
up without problem. It has been slow going without
the jib and we have been mostly motor-sailing.
The Admiral beat me soundly at Scrabble (twice)!
Today looks like more of the same and we should be
in at first light tomorrow.Current position is
19 28S, 172 22.6E speed 7.0 kts Course 239M Wind
is about 15 kts ESE Sea state remains sloppy with
6 foot swells from the south. 150 miles to go. 

Fiji-Vanuatu Day 1 0600H July 28, 201

We are currently at 18 36.11S,175 03.74E. Course is
240 degrees M and we are making 7.0 kts. Yesterday
was quite rough with winds to 30 kts, fortunately 
behind us but we had some big swells and we are
rolling quite a bit. My electric jib furler failed
and the gen set won't start but we have back up
systems until I can get them both going again.
This morning the weather has cleared and the 
wind is down. We had a beautiful moonrise followed
by sunrise and I'm sure I can get the genset to
start today. We have 2 days and 311 miles to go.

Leaving Fiji

We did our check out and last minute veggie shopping and left Lautoka yesterday afternoon and anchored up in Sawena bay about 5 miles to the west and spent the evening with our friends Dave and Jacqui from Jackster. We left at 0800H and are now approaching the Navula Passage in the reef to the west on our way to Vanuatu, a journey of about 500 miles. It should take us about 3 days and Jessica will post our progress on a daily basis