• 🇳🇿️ Kawau, Coromandel and Woolshed bay

    The anchorage at Kawau island, a former mining area, is a large deep bay called Bon Accord harbour with many jetties. It is well known for its walks and we will all look forward to that, time for a good workout. The nearby floating jetty is a safe place for the dinghy and it is easy to step on land.

  • 🇳🇿️ Back in the Westerlies

    Ahoi, land ahead! At dawn the first contours of New Zealand become visible. The gentle wind that brought us here all the way from Fiji has now turned into a stiff headwind. We should have stayed in the lee of the east coast for shelter. Engine on. Speed over ground only 2 knots, what to do ?….

  • 🇫🇯️ Lets sail to.....New Zealand!

    Too bad we got sick! Covid like symtoms. Probably got infected in the bus from Nadi town a few days ago when visiting customs for a “facilitation letter” for my brother Michael who comes soon to sail with us to New Zealand. The infection disabled Stella for a week and Stefan for more than 14 days….

  • 🇫🇯️ Makogai, Levuka and Astrolabe reef

    Makogai lies 130 nautical miles west of Vanua Mbalavu. We sailed quickly with the wind behind us at 6-7 knots through the night. It was just getting light when we arrived at Makogai. After carefully navigating through the narrow pass in the coral reef we arrived in the lagoon in front of a village.

  • 🇫🇯️ Bay of Islands and Plantation Bay

    From Daliconi it is a short sail to the Bay of Islands. An astonishing beautiful expanse of water with numerous small islands and islets. Please choose your anchorage of the day! We anchor in front of a wall where hundreds of large bats fly when the sun sets.

  • 🇫🇯️ Daliconi Malaka Bay

    When you anchor for the first time near an island of the Lau group it is often necessary to do a sevusevu ceremony. Shortly after our arrival near the village of Daliconi in Malaka bay, Vanua Mbalavu a neighbour-cruiser popped over to tell us that the chief had asked all who had arrived to come to his house at 1pm.

  • 🇫🇯️ Viani Bay and Rainbow reef

    The pass out through the reef surrounding Namena Island is without any markers which is a bit nerve wracking however we have our track to follow and we motor out smoothly enough. There are dive boats in the distance as we leave one of the best diving sites ever, so they say.

  • 🇫🇯️ Savusavu and Namena island

    We pulled the anchor up and left at last from Vuda Point. We headed north past various rusty hulks outside Lautoka. We saw the pile of orange sugar cane chaff again which had smelled so sweet from the bus. Motoring north in idyllic conditions following Ocelots or Paddy’s tracks inside the reef.

  • 🇫🇯️ Hauling out in Fiji

    Again a beautifull sail from Suva to Denarau out following the wide access channel through the reef surrounding Suva harbour. South through the Beqa passage avoiding the shallows at Caesar rocks. Then following the South coast outside the reef over a track donated by a generous cruiser.

  • 🇫🇯️ Suva in Fiji

    The wind on passage from Port Maurelle in Tonga’s Vava’au group to Suva in Fiji is just right. 15 to 20 knots of tradewind pushes us gently downwind. Jimmy Cornell’s book World Sailing Routes advices to take a small detour further South to avoid dangerous reefs in Fiji’s Lau group.