We are currently
sitting on the island of Koro hiding from the rain. It seems to rain
a lot in Fiji which is probably why everywhere is so green! Its a bit
like Wales only much warmer!
We left Savusavu as
planned and motored around the coast to a very protected bay called
Dakanuba. The following day the weather was very calm so along with
friends on Victory and Superted we snorkelled and then dived the
pass through the reef into the bay. After that the weather
deteriorated and so we spent the days working on boat projects and
the evenings socialising. The day we were due to leave all the boats
got together to help the family ashore fix their boat as the bottom
had torn apart. This took most of the day so we decided to postpone
our departure until the next day.
Our next stop was Viani
bay which was only 7 miles away. There was a a passage there inside
the reef provided the light was good so as it was a sunny day we
went through it. We had to go slow and stand up on the bow to see the
reef. It was quite tricky but we got through without hitting
anything!
Viani bay is very
protected by the island of Taveuni and seems to have it own weather
systems especially, it is dry and mostly sunny!! Taveuni is very hilly
so the rain stops on the hills and never makes it across to Viani. It
was lovely being in a sunny dry anchorage!
Our first day at Viani
we dived the famous White Wall with a local dive company. It is rated
as one of the top 10 dive sites in the world and we were not
disappointed. There is a local called Jack Fisher who lives in the
bay and he comes onto your boat and guides you to the best
snorkelling and dive sites. What is really important is that he
understands the local tides and currents which are very strong. Jack
always seems to know somewhere to go where they aren't a problem.
We took our boat to a
site called the fish factory which was amazing. 7 of us went
snorkelling while Jack watched us from the dinghy. Another day 8 of
us went on a trip to Taveuni with Jack on board 'Victory'. Jack
watched the boat while we all piled into a taxi really meant for 6
and visited the waterfalls. It was quite a long bouncy drive around
the island to the falls so we only had time to visit the first of the
3 falls. Still, it was very pretty and we all enjoyed a swim in fresh
water. On the way back to the boat we all did lots of shopping and
somehow managed to fit it all in the van!
We left Viani to head
to the north of Taveuni to anchor near the airport. A friend, Kevin,
was coming to visit us the following week and we needed to ensure we
could get ashore and meet him. Then we crossed to the island of Rambi
where we spent a night in Katherine Bay. It was a fraught crossing as
the charts are not accurate and it was too cloudy to see the reef
clearly. After a rest we headed to the north of the island to Albert
Cove. The channel on the west of the island is very deep and we
caught a good sized Giant Trevally on the way there. Albert Cove is a
lovely bay with a tree lined beach and is surrounded by reef. We went
ashore to donate half the trevally to the locals but found only one
elderly man. He was very hospitable and gave us some bananas but
clearly didn't want company for too long. We had a lovely snorkel the
following day but the remainder of the time it was raining and
cloudy.
We left Albert Cove and
were hoping to visit Kioa but within a short time of leaving the rain
was so heavy we could not see the island. Fortunately we could follow
our track back and stay in deep water. The visibility was very bad so
there was no way we could explore new places and we had no option but
to return to Katherine bay. The following day we had to meet Kevin's
flight which meant a bash into 25 knots of wind and rough seas, not a
pleasant experience as once again we could not see the reefs we were
crossing.
Kevin arrived on time
at Taveuni airport. After he had changed into clothes which could get
wet we walked back to the dinghy and had a wet slow ride out to the
boat dodging the reef as it was low water. We decided that it was
best to head back to Viani bay and we had 4 lovely days there. 2 days
we all went out with Jack on a Catamaran called Gypsy Heart with
owners Sandy and Rankin. There were about 10 of us each time and some
of us dived while others snorkelled. Kevin got to meet lots of our
friends and it was a very sociable week.
We headed back to
Taveuni for Kevin's flight to Melbourne. His flight was not until
lunch time but we headed ashore early to go shopping in the town. On
our way back we stopped at the airport to drop Kevin's bag before
taking a walk. He was then told that his flight had changed and would
not reach Nadi in time for his connection. At this point the earlier
flight arrived and he was put on it and had left within a short time
so it was a good job we had got ashore so early.
We headed back to Viani
to rest and decide what we were going to do next. The anchorage was
very busy when we got back and the following day the ICA rally
arrived making it even worse. We managed to catch up with friends Ann
and Mark on Blue Rodeo and Chris and Rani on Ladybug and get another
snorkelling trip in before we left.
We decided to sail to
Koro as most people were going the opposite way and we were looking
for some peace and quiet!!. It was a 50 mile sail and we left at
5.30am to ensure we arrived with good light. However, the winds were
very good and the passage was very fast but a little rough and we
were moored by 1.30pm. The bay had mooring balls which are free for
visitors to use which is good as the bay is very deep. There is a
resort here but it is not for holiday makers. People buy plots of
land and then build their own houses and the resort is for their use.
We went ashore yesterday and met some of the residents who are from
Germany, NZ, USA, etc. Some live here permanently while others use it
as a holiday home. We are told the diving is good here so we are
waiting for good weather to try it out. So far the weather has been
raining and windy so not good for swimming or exploring!
