0600 position 13-15S 163-07W. At anchor in 32', sand and coral bottom.
Suwarrow Atoll
We were both up at first light anxious to explore. After a pancake
breakfast we launched the dinghy among the dozen sharks that were still
circling Moku Pe'a and went over to visit the monohull. Turns out the two
boats are cruising in company and arrived earlier the same day we did.
The Austrians aboard had been ashore, and the island was currently
uninhabited. Excellent. No formalities and no fees. So we went ashore
for a look-see. Tom Neale's house has been replaced by a more modern one
in the same location. His concrete bust is still there. The book
exchange is still operating but in the new house, and a new two story
structure has been built nearby for the official caretaker who is likely
to arrive any day now. A sign ashore indicated that "Suwarrow National
Park" is open from 1 June to 1 Nov which explains why no official is here
yet.
Rocky and I met the German couple from the catamaran on the beach. Nice
folks who have been cruising for 4 years now. We decided to walk the
perimeter of the island both to identify landmarks from the books we had
read and to look for glass balls. Rocky was going to take a swim in the
spot Tom Neale identified as his favorite swimming hole, but the presence
of a black tip shark changed his mind. We swam instead on the leeward
side of the island where the water was calm, clear, and shark free.
While we were ashore an armada arrived. Eight boats, part of some around
the world rally, came in and anchored. I was pleasantly surprised that
they all appeared to know what they were doing and none felt compelled to
anchor too close to us as is often the case. These rally guys have big
bucks. Most of the fleet is in the million dollar range. We are by far
the smallest and cheapest boat here in the anchorage. A passerby would
look at the fleet, point at us and say "What are THEY doing here?" We are
the only boat with laundry hanging on our lifelines because we are the
only boat without a dryer.
After our adventure ashore we went back to the boat for a work day. We
both did laundry. I tried to fix two nagging window leaks, tightened the
steering cables a little more, calibrated the speedometer, repaired some
chafed stitching on the mainsail luff, wiped down floors and bulkheads
with fresh water, and gave Rocky a haircut. Be sure to tell him how great
it looks the next time you see him. The mast light, which fixed itself
after being out for a few nights, has decided to go on strike again, but I
am going to wait until we get to Vava'u to fix it. The anchorage is a
little bumpy here and I'd rather go up the mast in smooth water.
The water here is incredibly clear. I went to the back of the boat at
midnight and in the moonlight it looked like the water was only a couple
of feet deep. I could see the coral heads and sand clearly defined on the
bottom. Quick, turn on the depth sounder for a check - thirty two feet
deep.
I recall a similar experience on my first visit to Moorea in 1976. The
full moon's light reflecting off of the sand bottom eight feet below the
boat made the crystal clear water completely disappear. I took the
dinghy out for a paddle on that perfectly still night and it looked and
felt like I was floating in the air.
You may be wondering why I haven't mentioned cribbage much lately. Guess.
Rocky is now up eight games to three, which defies all odds. He's
keeping track. I'm just grateful that we aren't playing "Gladiator
Cribbage", where the loser dies.
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