Monthly Archives: November 2022

Musket Cove Regatta

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Matt and I are so excited to be here during the world renowned Musket Cove Regatta week!  We do want to participate, but we don’t want to race our home.  We do however, register Sugar Shack so that we are eligible to sign up for the hobie cat race, the SUP challenge, and we get access to the opening and closing night dinners.

About a month before the race, we ran into our friends on the sailing boat “Wow.”  We met them in French Polynesia and stopped by to say “hi.”  They were keen to race in the regatta and needed additional crew so we happily signed up.

Wow is a stealth 14GT and weighs in at a surprisingly low 5 tons.  To give you an idea of how light that is Sugar Shack weighs close to 14 tons.  Wow is super light and fast!

We spend one day practicing and getting to know the boat which is pretty different than Sugar Shack. 

Opening Night

The opening night was held at the local Island Bar located on the beach.  Tickets are required, free rum punch for the first hour, and dinner was served.  It was a great opportunity to get to know other cruisers.  We head in with the sailing team on Wow and our friend Chris (lower left corner).

There are three boat races that are held during the 5-day race week.  The first race is called “beachcomber” then the most challenging race is “Around Malolo Race” and the final is the “sand bank” race.

In addition to the boat races, there are hobie cat races, the SUP challenge, a fun run, and a beach cleanup.

Hobie Cat Races

The first race that kicks off is the hobie cat races.  Matt had sailed on hobie cats when he was in college, but I had never been on one before.  We had hoped we could watch a few rounds so we can see the course, check the winds, and figure out a game plan. 

But that was not in the cards for us. We were literally the first team, out of 60 teams, on the water! 

There are 4 hobie cats.  You race two teams at a time with a beach start.  We have mere moments to look at the boat before we start.  This is Matt and I with the marina manager, Patrick.  The lower right photo is just a silly hat that I had to share.

The course started at the beach, at the whistle, you run and jump onto the boat, and two pushers give you a shove to get you started.  As you can see, I had a rough entry!  I had to run around the pusher as the boat was moving and face planted!

We had a good start but it quickly went downhill from there!  The course had you go around two markers, past the start, back around the two markers, and back to the beach.  After 3 rounds they shortened the course to just once around the course.

The hobie cats are relatively simple. You have one-person steering using a tiller and another person working the jib.  I was up front working the jib. 

We didn’t do so bad on the first of 6 legs.

The Challenge isn’t the other boats, but rather the boat itself

With the first tack (attempt to turn the boat) we realized we had a problem.  The batons on the jib were too long and had a hook on the end.  Each time the jib passed the mast to make the tack it got stuck on the halyard preventing the jib from doing its job which is filling with air to help steer the boat.  It caused us massive fits and troubles and we lost valuable ground. 

Needless to say, I came up with some creative curse words and we lost by single elimination heat.  I can at least say we came in 2nd in a race with 60 boats were racing, can’t I?

As soon as we came back to the beach, the race committee tried to repair the batons on the jib – clearly it was not a Christine problem – well this one wasn’t at least. 

The good news is that we did not flip the boat!  Unlike another team.  Not sure how they flipped their boat as we had incredibly light, light winds.

And there were moments where we sort of looked like we knew what we were doing.

All in all, it was a fun day.  Not the outcome we had hoped for, but still loads of fun.

SUP Challenge

The SUP (stand up paddle board) challenge was held in the lagoon on the same course as the hobie cats.  The first leg was up wind until you rounded the first mark, then it was a nice down wind run until you rounded the second mark which led you to a cross wind run to the finish.

Matt was going to participate but his hands were covered in blisters so we both melded into the cheering crowd.

Next up we race in the Beachcomber race and participate in pirate day!

The events from this blog occurred in early September 2022.  Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual events.  In our last blog we finally arrive to Malolo Island after a few short stops. 

Malolo Island Passage

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It was difficult to leave Tomba Ni Ndaku (Vunisei village) on Kadavu, but we had to get back to Malolo island to prepare for the Musket Cove regatta.

We left Tomba Ni Ndaku and headed for an anchorage with a long beautiful beach.  However, when we got there, we found that there was no internet so we moved on.  Normally, we are not a slave to the internet, but this particular day we needed to be connected to communicate with family.

So, we motored a few more miles around the corner to the large town of Drue.  Two of our friends were also anchored here, but by the time we dropped the hook we were tired so we did not leave the boat.  It was a super lush hillside and anchorage.

The next morning, we had another beautiful moon rise with a little bit of fog.

The sail from Kadavu to Malolo is a little over 125nm which is near impossible to do during day light hours unless you have great winds.  Unfortunately for us, we were forecasted to have light winds so we decided to stop at a tiny island half way to Malolo. 

Vatulele Island

This little island is not visited often because the pass can be tricky to enter.  We had no tracks and no information from other cruisers.  All we had to go on was our charts.  The sail to Vatulele island is about 40-45nm.  As we set out for the day, we hoisted both sails and motor-sailed the first several hours.  The wind started to pick up so we turned off the engines and enjoyed a lovely day on the water.

By the time we got to Vatulele we had 17-18kts of wind and 1.5meter seas.   In addition, we some how managed to time the pass entry at low tide which was less than ideal.  The decision was made to skip this island as conditions were not conducive for a safe entry through the pass.

The left chart shows the little island just below Viti Levu.  The right photo shows you the narrow and very shallow pass.

So, we continued 33nm to Natadola Bay as we could make this anchorage just before sunset.  It has a wide pass; we have tracks coming and going, and our friends on SeaGlub were anchored here.

Natadola Bay, Viti Levu

We drop the hook and high tailed it over to SeaGlub where our friend Chris graciously offered to BBQ.  It was a lovely evening with good friends, tasty food, and cold beverages.

The next day, we motored 40nm to Malolo island where we claimed our anchor spot for the Musket Cove Regatta.

The events from this blog occurred in early September 2022.  Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual events.  We experience the full sevusevu ceremony from pounding of the root to consumption in our last blog post, and neither one of us gagged! 

Vunisei Village

Sevusevu at Vunisei, Kadavu

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We leave Yadu Island riding a huge high from our manta experience and head to the large island of Kadavu.  About six or seven weeks ago, we visited the south side of Kadavu, but we did not have a chance to visit the north side.  We motor-sailed 12nm from Yadu to the bay of Tomba Ni Ndaku and visit the Vunisei village. 

It was a beautiful, calm day to be out on the water.  A slight downwind run with clear, sunny skies.  We arrived the bay of Tomba Ni Ndaku around 1400, dropped the hook in a nook of the bay and headed into the village of Vunisei to do sevusevu.  Can you see the village in the lower photo tucked in the mangroves?

Vunisei Bay, Kadavu

Vunisei Bay, Kadavu

The village of Vunisei is not really visible from our anchorage.  We have to weave our way through a lot of mangroves before the beautiful village is revealed.  On our way in we encounter a panga with loads of kids happy to wave and shout “BULA” to us.

Welcome to the Village

We’ve been in Fiji now for almost 3 months and have performed the “short” sevusevu a dozen times.  But each ceremony has been the short-condensed version where the chief receives us, claps 3x, prays, welcomes us to the village, and we have a short chat.  However, this time, we get the privilege of a full and complete sevusevu ceremony!

We are greeted by Joe, the chief’s son who takes us to the town hall where the ceremony is to take place.  Joseph, the chief arrives along with the torang-ni-koro (headman), and 7 other men in the village.  Yep, I am the only woman present.

We politely explain that this is our first full sevusevu ceremony hoping they explain what they are doing along the way — which they happily did.

Sevusevu

The fresh kava root that we gifted to the chief is handed to his son Joe to pound into powder (step 1, upper left corner).  It is placed in a metal cylinder which is in a hole in the floor. He then uses a steel metal shaft to pound it into the cylinder.  Matt thinks he used a propeller shaft from a boat because it looked remarkably similar.

Step 2 includes placing the freshly ground powder into the tree bark (see the dried tree bark on the kava bowl in the upper right corner photo).  The tree bark is long and sort of looks like hair but is wicked strong.  Water is added and then the powder is all rolled and rolled and rolled amongst the tree bark in the water.  Infusing the kava with the taste and smell of the bark. This is new to us as we were told and had seen other villages use a tea towel instead of the tree bark.

Step 3 is when the liquid is cleaned and all powder residue is removed using the tree bark.

Step 4 is the final preparation for the grog.  All remnants of the kava root and tree bark are gone and the grog is ready to consume.  Using a coconut cup, the first one is handed to the chief, then the toranga-ni-koro, then me!  Oh dear, no pressure, please don’t gag or make a face.

The Grog and its effects

I clap once, say “bula”, and gulp the entire cup in one go, then clap 3x and say “Vinaka.”  I think to myself, “well done.”  Next up is Matt.  This is his first-time tasting grog and I am curious to see how it goes.  He somehow manages to dribble a wee bit down his chin, but other than that it goes swimmingly well. 

The cup is passed around a second time before we are able to extract ourselves politely.

Within a few minutes of drinking the second cup we feel a slight numbing sensation in our mouth, tongue, and throat.  It did not last long, maybe 30-45 minutes.  Keep in mind that the villagers do not drink, this is their recreational drink of choice.

Vunisei School

We walk to the top of the mountain just behind the village to visit the school.  I had brought a few school supplies for the teachers and wanted to present them personally.

From the hilltop, we had gorgeous views of both Kadavu village and Vunisei village.

On the way back to the town hall we came across loads of children.  There are 70 people who live in the village and about 25 of them are children.

Back to the Boat

We go back to the village chief and leaders and politely thank them for their hospitality and for walking us through the entire sevusevu ceremony.  They had wanted us to stay for more kava but 2 cups is all I can take so we graciously declined.

The water was flat calm when we left.  I just can’t get over how beautiful the entrance and exit is to this village.  What a lovely way to come home every day.

Matt got out the drown and took some beautiful photos at sunset.  And it just keeps getting better and better as the sun goes down.

Tomba Ni Ndaku is a beautiful anchorage with a lovely village!  We were invited to church the next day, but unfortunately, we had to move on to our next adventure.

We prepared to leave the next day at dawn and were greeted with a gorgeous moon set.

The events from this blog occurred in early September 2022.  Our blog posts run 6-8 weeks behind actual events.  We play with the manta rays while they eat and get cleaned.  Check out this blog post!