In Rodrigues

We left Cocos Keeling on 29 May. As soon as we had exited the lagoon Mike had the fishing line in the water. Moments later the line was taken, ran off a lot of line and then broke! That was the end of the fishing for a few days! Not just because we had to spool new line but also because the sea was rough and we were not feeling great. The winds were then light'ish for a few days but then increased steadily to around 20 knots. We did manage to catch a nice Mahi Mahi before the winds got too bad.

The first 9 days we averaged 165 mile days which is a new record for us. This was with help from a knot of current but it was still a good speed. It was not a comfortable sail, the swells would come from all directions and when they hit the side of the boat it was as if we had been hit by a truck, with the noise and the way they knocked us sideways. Our worst day we had about 18 hours of winds well over 40 knots (we are not sure exactly what the wind was as we were too scared to look but the apparent wind was 40-45 knots). The swells built in size until some were at least 6 metres and the boat was over at some amazing angles. The noise was deafening the wind was howling through the rigging and the waves were breaking around the boat. For days after we arrived we still had ringing in our ears from the silence! We had the boat all closed up and just had to hold tight! One wave ripped our dodger on the side of the boat and another made it under our covers and filled the cockpit with a lot of water, if we had not had the wash boards in we would have had a very wet boat!

After 2 days of lighter winds we had an amazing sail on the last day covering 180 miles in a day. We did the 2000 mile passage in 12 ½ days, definitely a new record for Chapter Two. Lots of boats have arrived in Rodrigues with lots of damage so we did fair quite well. We have all agreed it was the worst passage we have ever done.

After the crossing Rodrigues was a welcome sight. The anchorage is in the turning basin for the supply ship and when a ship is not in we can also moor along the wharf which is where we were instructed to go on arrival. Our check in was very easy, the officials were incredibly helpful and friendly. It was also very easy as they were eager to go home as we had arrived at 4pm on a Friday afternoon!

We are anchored right in the middle of the main town Port Mathurin so it is an easy walk into town to go to the market or to buy fresh baguettes. It is a very laid back place and the locals are welcoming and friendly. There have also been quite a few boats here so it has been a very sociable stop. There are a number of marked trails on the island so we have managed to do a few hikes. 18 of us went on the first one which probably gave the locals a shock when we all piled on the bus. Our favourite walk which we have done twice is along the east coast. We get the local buses to and from the start and end points. The buses are very cheap and run all over the island playing loud reggae music as they go!

A few weeks ago we hired a motorbike along with friends on Jackie and Gary from Inspiration Lady and Iloo and Ken from Antares. Inspiration Lady we first met in Curacao in 2009 but have seen little of them since as they crossed the Pacific ahead of us. We were heading to the giant tortoise colony. Unfortunately, Gary and Jackie had an accident on the way and Jackie has spent a week in hospital with a deep gash on her leg. After seeing them both onto the ambulance, we continued to see the tortoises. They are from the Seychelles and Mauritius as all the ones from Rodrigues were wiped out by 19th century sailors. You can walk amongst them and stroke them. Some of the small children were also allowed to sit on their backs. There were also caves there which we had a tour around. They were very impressive with lots of stalagmites and stalactites.

There is a local bar called Madame Marcelles in the centre of town which has become our local. It looks a little intimidating from the outside as it is full of men having heavy drinking sessions after work but it is very friendly and they have not minded us women gate crashing their domain. The owner also cooks and serves the most wonderful pork. You can buy a plate of mixed pork and sausage to eat with your drink, a bit different to crisps. We have loved it and have also been having takeaway for our sandwiches!

We have really enjoyed our stay here and are very sad to leave. The only down side of being here is that each time a ship is due we all must leave the anchorage until it is moored and then we are allowed back in. So each week there is a procession of about 12 boats leaving the anchorage at 6.30am and then a rush to get back in and anchor first, as the anchorage is not very big for the number of boats. When the ship is due to leave 2 days later the whole thing gets repeated again. At the moment a ship seems to be visiting once a week so we are all getting very used to the routine.

Tomorrow we clear out in the morning and head to Mauritius. Its 350 miles and we are hoping to get there in 2-3 days. It will probably be another boisterous crossing!

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