A Week in Gwaii Haanas

Aug 21

The southern portion of Moresby Island in Haida Gwaii is Gwaii Haanas, a
Haida Heritage Site, National Park Reserve, and National Marine Conservation
Area Reserve. We had a week to explore with my family. Of course, the first
thing we did when they arrived was head to the Hot Springs (Gandll K'in
Gwaay.yaay). We managed to spend most of the day frolicking in the springs,
testing each of the pools, and some of us even jumped between tide pools on
the beach and the adjacent hot pools. What heaven.

A big highlight was visiting SGang Gwaay on Anthony Island - an ancient
Haida village recognized as a UNESCO world heritage site. This site was
amazing with its many long house pits, standing corner posts, poles and
other remains. This site is in much better condition that the others we've
seen, as it was the last village on this island to be occupied on a
full-time basis. All 6 of us were enthralled by the site, snapping away on
our cameras madly, as Elsie toured us through the village and explained this
historic significance of the area. I feel privileged to be able to see this
site, before the landscape takes over and returns the area to it's natural
state.

The remainder of the week was spend fishing, crabbing, and exploring. We
ventured through the exciting Burnaby Narrows, up Louscoone Inlet, down to
Cape St James, into sandy Woodruff Bay, and all around Kunghit Island. We
saw plenty of whales, a few porpoises, and oddly enough, we even saw a
SHARK! We caught a couple salmon, many rock fish, and some crabs along the
way. We ate like kings!

It all went by so quickly and a very short week later we were in Rose
Harbour awaiting the boat that would pick them up and return them to
Sandspit. What a week - full of sun, fish, crab, and lots of laughs!! Now it
really feels good to be coming home!

Snug as a Bug in a Rug

Aug 15

My family arrived for a week with us at Haida Gwaii. My Mum, Dad, sister Amy
and Strahan all showed up alongside Renova ferried to our location by a
local tour company. If only Mike and Tara were here, we would be complete.

If you've been on Renova, or been following the blog for a while, you're
probably scratching your head wondering where everyone would sleep. We too
puzzled over this difficulty. On paper, Renova has space to sleep 6, but we
use one of her bunks as our 'garage'. The "pull out" berth at the table has
food bins stashed behind, and behind the other settee are three large
windsurf sails. Not exactly four star accommodations. But my family are
pretty laid back so they arrived undeterred and toting sleeping bags and a
tent!

It turned out that we all slept very comfortable. Well, at least I didn't
hear any complaints! Amy and Strahan ventured to the beach and slept with
the bears and deer on a couple of nights. The remaining evenings, they made
use of the cockpit and set up a cozy nest outside. We were so lucky with the
weather, it didn't rain once. Amazing.

It's a common cruising adage that the perfect boat will seat 6 for drinks, 4
for dinner, and sleep 2. We've always thought that was a pretty good
description of Renova. But now we know her true capabilities. She can sleep
six snoring family members with no problems, provided that everyone is
offered complimentary earplugs. We've also learned that she can handle 11
good friends squeezed into the cockpit for cocktails. And just once, we had
8 people cuddled into the cockpit for a yummy birthday dinner. It's no
wonder we have a bad case of two-foot-itis!

Haida Gwaii - New Crew and Hot Springs

We were surprised to get a call on the radio one evening, with the news that
our crew was just around the corner! The company they had hired to drop them
off was re-scheduling some of their trips, and brought them a day early. We
had a nice evening catching up and planning where we would go tomorrow!

We spent our first day at Hot Springs Island. Amazing. One of our favourite
hot springs anywhere. There are three beautiful pools overlooking the ocean
- magical!

They Arrive!! HURRAY!

My idea of heaven.

Haida Gwaii - Windy Bay

We have a couple days to kill while we wait for our new crew to catch up to
us. We enjoyed visiting Windy Bay, where we wandered through old cedar and
spruce forests. This was the site of the huge protests against logging in
the 80's that led to the creation of this amazing National Park/Heritage
Reserve.

"Looking Around and Blinking House" was built at Windy Bay during the logging blockade of 1985 that led to the protection of the area and the creation of the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site.

Hundreds of pink salmon were preparing to make the arduous journey up the stream to spawn.

 

We saw lots of Culturally Modified Trees here...

And a HUGE western red cedar tree. Around 800 years old...or so.

No Wind, No Travel

Mike's been here a full week, and we're still in Majuro. We've got a very
weird weather system around us. Absolutely no wind. For the past week we've
had less than 5 knots of wind in the forecast. Not ideal sailing weather. So
we've hung out here in Majuro, while we wait for the wind to return to push
us to our next stop, Aur Atoll.

No problem, we're still keeping busy and having fun. We went to our
favourite local hang outs - Eneko and Enemwanet. We snorkelled. We swam. We
lounged. We bbq'ed. We paddleboarded. Mike even wakeboarded.

Now it rains. Torrential, sink-the-dinghy kind of rain. Sheesh. And we just
bought water to fill our tanks. Figures.

Good Starfish, Bad Starfish

We are always learning on this adventure. We've learned that not all
starfish are good. The Crown of Thorns starfish are interesting
critters...central body with 'legs' similar to other starfish. But the
number of legs is more than 5. And not necessarily multiples of five. They
eat coral. They are eaten by Napoleon Wrasse and other big (and locally
absent) fish.


Here on Majuro Atoll and adjacent Arno Atoll, these starfish are in the
midst of a population boom. The scientists don't really understand very much
about them and are not sure what causes these localized explosions. But they
do know that where these leggy critters are in abundance, the coral is
decimated.

An instructor at College of Marshall Islands (CMI) and the local fishing
industry association (MIMRA) have joined efforts in an eradication program.
We were asked to join in the effort. So John, Mike (my brother), and I
joined five cruisers and 10 others and jumped on one of the local fishing
transport boats to nearby Arno Atoll. Even though we were planning to stay
only one night, we were loaded to the gills. On board was dive and snorkel
equipment for everyone, 2 dozen tanks, food, coolers, sleeping equipment and
so on. We could have stayed a week! The trip was fast, travelling at least
20 knots - we arrived in less than an hour, propelled by two huge 150hp
engines on the back of this open vessel.

We arrived and staked out the accommodations at a local B&B. Shortly
thereafter, we had a brief intro from Dean, the CMI instructor to discuss
what we were looking for, how we would capture them, and how to avoid being
stung by their sharp thorns. We were diving at night, as that is when they
are most active, and will be easiest to capture.

At 8pm, we all (remember - 18 of us) jumped into the back of a truck for the
ride to the boat. We spent an hour sorting out our gear and getting suited
up and then the boat dropped us onto the reef, just 100m away from the dock.
We worked in pairs or triplets, with some people responsible for scanning
and searching for animals, others wielding the long handled bbq tongs for
their removal, and all of us with multiple straw sacks tucked into our
BCD's/wetsuits that we were to fill with dozens of creatures.

After an hour of searching John, Mike and I had caught one starfish. ONE.
Most other dive teams had similar luck, with only two or three animals. The
snorkellers were having much better luck in shallow water, but we didn't
know that until we all rendezvoused back on the boat. Our trip definitely
added to the knowledge pool on this creature: shallow areas were preferred,
rather than the deeper sites; animals remain hidden and are not especially
active during the full moon; and coral with bleached spots may indicate a
nearby starfish.

All in all, it was a good trip. We did some snorkelling the next morning,
and a few more Crown of Thorns were added to the 45 that we collected the
previous night. The coral at Arno is some of the most beautiful we've seen
anywhere in the Pacific, such diversity and explosions of colour. Fabulous.

Mikey arrives on a shitty day

My brother, Mike, has arrived for a three week visit!! We're thrilled to
have his company on Renova. Too bad Tara couldn't join him.

Our first day was pretty relaxed. We sat around and caught up on news, and
enjoying unpacking the treats that he had brought with him from home. We
were thrilled with the books and magazines that he brought for us, as well
as lots of dried foods that will be great for the long sail home next month.
Our first evening was spent having dinner with the yachties.

Wind is light this week, so we've decided to stick around Majuro, until we
have some wind to push us to the outer islands. Even without wind, life
hasn't been dull. Mike's first full day was spent watching John rebuild our
head (toilet)...the most loved boat project aboard. Unfortunately, we
discovered a crack in the pedestal, so we've had to order a new part. Oh
well...it's a good thing we have great mail service here. There was no
shortage of poo jokes around here. Two boys, a toilet in pieces in the
cockpit and the kitchen, and the chief mechanic is also the chief cook. Yep.
Good times.

Shit-eating grin :O)

Oh yeah. And it poured rain for his first two days.

Merry Christmas to You and Yours

Since we are one of the first time zones to bring in Christmas day, we are
sending out a BIG holiday greeting to all of you!

We hope your Christmas is happy, healthy, and shared with loved ones!

Our Christmas in the Marshall Islands has been fabulous so far. We woke
early to fresh scones (thanks, Brandy)! We took our time opening our
stockings and a couple of presents (aka boat parts) that we'd bought for
each other. We were spoiled with treats that Ron had brought from home
(thanks to our family)!! John had bought a new camera to replace the one I
dropped in Kanton, and so did my brother! We're finally once again a two
camera family! Hurray!!

It's been a great morning. We're rolling sushi in preparation for a
Christmas potluck ashore with the other yachties here.

Enjoy your Christmas, wherever you might be!!

Cockroaches, Car Rentals and Late Cargo - by Ron

Dec 19

We had great intentions for our trip to the town of Laura at the north end
of the atoll. We had a nice breakfast and although the skies looked rather
grey, we had a rental car waiting and cargo/luggage to pick up from the
airport.

I got a first hand experience with island time twice today. First was our
experience at the rental place. It took us well over an hour to get the
rental car, only to find it had a nice little colony of cockroaches and
ants. John had a small freak out, which led to us getting another rental
car. It too was full of cockroaches. John sucked it up though, but he sat in
the front seat.

It reminded me of a time when John, Mom and I had gone to the local fair
that came to town every year in Campbell River. John was about 8 and I was
6. It was on this day that I realized my brother was afraid of things. He
freaked out at the top of the Ferris wheel, and the attendant had to bring
us down.

Regardless of the cockroaches, we decided to carry on. We had planned lunch
and an afternoon at the beach. Unfortunately, a lot of rain got in the way!
We had fun driving around checking the north end of the island. We stopped
for boiled eggs, cupcakes, fanta and ice cream for lunch at a side road
store.

The main reason we had rented the car was to retrieve the cargo/luggage that
was coming in from Guam. This was my second experience with "island time".
We were told to come back at 8pm by the cargo guy. Nothing arrived and we
were told to come back at 11:15pm.we got back to the boat at 1:30am (the
airport is only 25 minutes from the boats). It was a very long evening
getting the cargo. Needless to say it was enjoyable hanging out just John
and me and talking about our thoughts and plans for the future. We went
through the bags when we got back to the boat and headed off to bed. I went
to sleep knowing I would have clean underwear in the morning. Yahoo!

Snorkelling, Sailing and Supper - by Ron

Dec 18

I woke up early and read, made coffee and waited for John and Naomi to wake.
I was up at 4am (7am Vancouver time). I am staying in the master suite; very
nice!

I arrived yesterday from Honolulu, Hawaii to an airport that consisted of
one air strip on about 1 km wide piece of land. The arrival/departure
building was from circa 1960, but worked just fine. The luggage was brought
to the luggage drop off by a forklift. Unfortunately, my bags did not arrive
(they say it will be here Monday night). I am now wearing my brother's
shorts, and not much else as it is too warm for jeans. All is good.

I have easily switched into relax mode. I am so enjoying being on a boat for
an extended length of time. As well, it is so nice to be around Naomi and
John and share in part of their adventure. The Laysan is truly an amazing
vessel; 1st class!

It was a sunny day, but the wind has been rather intense. We decide to take
the Laysan out for a test run. It was nice to go to a protected island for
the afternoon. We tried out the sails and cruised around the lagoon. Naomi
and I snorkelled on a coral reef around a sunken helicopter and airplane. It
was one of the highlights of the trip so far. The fish were amazing to swim
near and came in many beautiful colours, shapes and sizes. We saw one huge
puffer fish (as big as a nice sized tyee). We explored the coral and the
beach.

We had yummy left over spaghetti for lunch and an afternoon cocktail. It was
a lazy and enjoyable day. I seem to have designated myself "preparer of
food". I made sweet chili pork and rice for supper. We ended the day with a
movie on the flat screen t.v., which magically ascends from the living room
cabinet. Life is not too bad at all. I crashed by 11pm.

First Day in Majuro - by Ron

Dec 17

Ron is keeping a journal of his experiences in Majuro, and has agreed to
share his thoughts on the blog. Good thing...since I've been downright
negligent of late. Introducing Renova's newest crew and blogger -- brother
Ron...

I arrived to smiling faces and hugs from John and Naomi. Naomi laid me with
a Maumau. I was a bit battered from 20 hours travel. I got settled, had a
nap and we headed into town. We did a big grocery shop and went for lunch at
a local restaurant called Dar. So yummy! We had two couples over for a
sunset cocktail. It was nice to visit with the neighbourhood sailboats. At
night I made a great spaghetti dinner and caught up with John and Naomi some
more. I crashed by 8pm.

Ron's Here

Ron has arrived!!! We've been looking forward to the arrival of John's
brother for months. It is great that he's now here, and we are looking
forward to 10 days of touring Majuro, sailing, and celebrating the holiday
season.

Unfortunately, his bags did not arrive with him. We'll go back to the
airport today, in hopes that they've now arrived.

Dom's Photos

Dom has posted his photos online from his recent visit to us. You can check
them out here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/underwaterwanderer/sets/72157627237726076/

Good bye Beautiful Samoa

We're leaving Samoa. 

"It's easy to say hello, but hard to say goodbye". That is what our cab driving friend Tiali told me today. How right he is. We've had a great time here. We've met incredible people. We've seen stunning natural features and landscapes. It is an incredible country. 

But, our pocket books, calendars, and livers are all screaming for a break...so tomorrow, we head for Canton Island, in the Phoenix Group of Kiribati.

We will not have internet again for many months. Please hold off on emailing us with your photos for a while. We will continue to update our blog via the satellite phone. Unfortunately, I won't have enough time to update the blog with all our Samoan adventures, but here's a few images of Samoa.

Dancers at the Fia Fia

Dancers at the Fia Fia

Daniel cruising down at the Sliding Rocks (photo by Michelle)

Renova disappearing in the swell (photo by Eric)

Here is Renova and Evangeline bobbing about as we left the harbour during the Tsunami warning. (Photo by Eric)

A few of the interesting items at the fish market (photo by Dom)

Fire dancing (photo by Dom)

The sunset dinghy derby. FISH ON.

Earlier this week, I've added a few other posts of our time in Samoa...but you'll have to scroll down to see them...they are backdated. 

Return to Savaii

We decided to go back to the island of Savaii. Another island in Samoa - less populated. We took the boat there, but because of prevailing winds, we didn't get to see the South part of the island, which we are told is also beautiful. So Eric, Dom, John and I decided to part with a very large amount of Tala (Samoan currency) and book a trip with a local tour company. It was awesome. We took the ferry over...which was similar to our BC Ferries...except that the ferry was donated by some Japanese company that hopes to build a mega resort here. Hmmm.  The return trip on the smaller boat was more like travelling to Quadra or Gabriola Island. And we used the time to play a little dice.

Anyway...this is what we saw...

A local waterfall. Photo by Eric.

Small piglet

Cute kids

Crazy blowholes, which in typical Samoan fashion, you can get right up close to, peer inside, and hope not to be washed away! Photos by Dom. (Note the coconut husks being thrown from the hole at the very top left corner of the picture).

The Driver's house for lunch

 

A local beach for snorkelling, where Eric and I saw turtles. 

A local home where they showed us how they make siapo (or tapa cloth from the bark of the mulberry tree). Photo from Eric.

A great day! We were exhausted.

Touring

Eric (SV Secret Agent Man), Dom, John and I had a fabulous tour around the island with Tiali. We saw the To Sua Ocean Trench, some great falls, beautiful beaches, local homes, a Bahaii house of worship. After a day in the car...we were exhausted...but happy!

Tomorrow, we leave marina comforts for the less developed island of Savai'i. We've been granted permission from the Prime Minister's office to tour around the island for one week.  

Christmas in Samoa

Dom is here!! He arrived late on Monday, with a pack FULL of goodies from
our wish list, and odd treats sent from friends and family. Thanks to
everyone who filled his bag, especially Amy, Dave, Mum, Murray and Celina!
We are now happily fixing the outboard, eating chocolate and conditioning my
hair! Ahhh...the simple pleasures!!

We spent his first day exploring town and seeking the Prime Minister's
permission to explore some of the outer anchorages. Today, we hope to tour
the island with our taxi-driving friend, Tiali.

Touring Tahaa

Yesterday, we took the advice our the hotel owner and took a full day tour of the neighboring island, Tahaa. The islands of Tahaa and Raiatea share a coral reef lagoon, therefore travel between the two islands is protected. While Raiatea contains the second biggest city in French Polynesia, Tahaa is very natural and relaxed and is home to only 4500 people.

Edwin picked us up in a huge outrigger canoe (powered by a merc 150) from the hotel dock, and we went around Tahaa to the north end. We anchored in ankle deep water and walked across the coral reef to the outside of the lagoon. Then we stepped into the water, and let ourselves drift into the lagoon with the current flowing into the pass. It was wonderful snorkeling, and we quickly walked across the reef to do it all again!

One of the guests managed to get a spine of an urchin into her heel. Our guide was only two happy to assist by providing some of his own urine to pour over the wound. An hour later the guest raved that the remedy was successful!! In addition, a couple of us managed to get small scrapes on the coral (mine was a result of chasing my wayward shoes through the shallow reef). Edwin quickly cut open a lime and sqeezed the juice and pulp all over the would. It stung like crazy - for at least 10 minutes. But today, it has healed faster than any other coral wound we've had in the past!

After the snorkeling, and snacks of fresh papaya, mango, banana, pomplemousse, and coconut, we headed back across the lagoon and visited a local pearl farm. 1992, there were 50 pearl farms on Tahaa. Now there are only 3. We had a full tour, showing us the grafting and production process. It was all very interesting, and we managed to leave with our wallets intact.

Next, we loaded into 4x4 Land Rovers, and headed across the island to a Vanilla Plantation, owned by Edwin and his family. They gave us an interesting tour (again, in english and french), explaining the production
and drying process. Surprisingly, they didn't even offer to sell any of the beans, but we managed to go home with a few to test out. After the tour, we were treated to a delightful lunch, created by Jacqueline and her daughters. We feasted on rice, coconut bread, taro root, sweet potato, blue marlin poisson cru, fish balls (also blue marline), mahi mahi with crème freche and vanilla, and other delicacies.

With full bellies, we loaded back into the trucks, and headed across the island on a dirt road. We had heard from other sailors the they had to get out and push the truck through one of the deep mud holes last week!!
Luckily, we were able to stay in the truck for the entire trip. It was rocky and rolly, but we were rewarded with a spectacular view point from the top of the mountain overlooking Hanamene Bay.

Finally, we loaded back into the canoe and were taken across the lagoon, back to Raiatea. This was the best tour excursion any of us had taken...what a treat! A full day with lots of local info provided by Edwin, Jacqueline and their son Ivan. We returned to the hotel still full with barely any appetite for dinner!

A Day on the High Seas

Well, the folks were tickled pink when we organized a day of adventure on
the high seas...well, actually, a 'toodle' around the lagoon to give the
engine a good test and to scope out a couple new snorkelling locales. We had
a great day, the engine ran like a dream, the sun was shining and all
passengers who left with the good ship Renova, were returned to port at the
end of the day, happy and glowing!
We motored to the east side of Raiatea, to the pass through which we entered
last July, and dropped the hook off a small islet. Immediately, snorkels and
suits were donned, and we were admiring the brightly coloured fish that
surrounded the boat and the reefs nearby. The captain prepared a lunch
feast, and we ate before weighing anchor towards the next islet and
snorkel/exploration expedition.
The interesting part of all of this is that Renova does not have a boarding
ladder to speak of. We have a small rope ladder, that had a few pieces of
pvc as rungs, but is notoriously difficult to use. John and I have become
adept, but only after much practice, and a considerable amount of swearing.
We suggested that the best way to board the boat, was to snorkel to shore,
where we could get in the dinghy, and then get into the boat from the
dinghy. Whew.

I got several excellent photos of the day...but most are on Nola and Mum's
cameras. So this will have to do for now (they are currently exploring Bora
Bora for two nights - honeymooner's paradise)!

We've finally moved out of the marina, and we're currently on an illegal
mooring ball, waiting for someone to notice (or cut us loose in the night).

Around the Island

We rented cars and went touring around the island of Raiatea. All in all, it was interesting to get a glimpse of the terrain and the beautiful flora, but it certainly wasn't a show-stopper for any of us. A huge marae (ancient
religious and ceremonial site) was the highlight, with excellent interpretive signs, and a great beach for a lunch stop.

The folks are staying at the Sunset Beach Hotel - with modest bungalows set amid a beautiful coconut plantations. It's close to the marina, so we walk over each afternoon for cocktails and dinner. I believe my Dad's words were that he's happier than "a pig in s**t".

To top it off, we've been fortunate to buy fresh tuna from fisherman on the side of the road, so we've certainly been eating well. And Dave and Nola raved about their first sashimi experience!