Ruby Slippers

From the title, you can probably tell that this update is about boogie boards and what we do with them.  If you don’t know what a boogie board is, I’ll explain - a boogie board is about three feet long and made of foam.  It has a blunt nose and a slightly concave back end.  The bottom and top are smooth and flat, and it is about two inches thick.

You can do a lot with boogie boards: lie on them and surf down a wave, drag them behind the dinghy and try to keep your balance on your knees, or just use them for flotation.  We’ve done all of that, and it’s really fun!  At first, when we dragged the boards behind the dinghy, we just laid on our stomachs, but then I figured out how to get onto my knees without falling off.  When Dad turns the dinghy, I always steer to the outside of the turn, which makes the boogie board speed up a lot.  Sometimes, I go so fast that the board starts to catch up to the dinghy!  Once, in Huahine, I was boogie boarding and an outrigger canoe came up beside Ruby Slippers.  Dad made a sharp turn near the boat, and they thought I was going to hit them, but I let go of the rope just in time and skidded to a stop five feet from the canoe!

When we were with our friends on Soul’s Calling, they started to teach us how to use their wakeboard, but we weren’t able to try it for very long, so I wasn’t able to stand up on it.  It’s a lot harder than boogie boarding behind the dinghy, because it’s harder to get up and keep your balance.  I like the boogie boards better, even though I can only get to my knees.

Boogie boarding down waves is a bit different from surfing down them, because you stay on your stomach and, for me, because the board is easier to control.  When I catch a wave, I usually turn and go sideways so that I don’t get into really shallow water.  Once, when we were surfing on our boogie boards, we actually saw a local standing on his board as he was zooming across a wave.  I can hardly imagine how he got up, much less stayed there!

We have a lot of fun boogie boarding, but only if we have the right conditions.  Wish us luck finding a nice calm anchorage or good surfing beach!

Actually, the Vava’u Group of islands, where we are, reminds me of several places we have cruised.  It reminds me of the San Juan Islands, in that you can be in the middle of a bustling town – restaurants, shops, markets, people everywhere, then you can raise anchor and go about 5 miles away and be in an isolated little cove that looks like no one has ever stepped foot on the white sandy beach at your bow.  It reminds me of La Paz, Mexico, in that many cruisers have sailed this far, fell in love with the country, and have never left.  There are many Americans and Brits who have opened up a restaurant, dive shop, or bakery, and have just made themselves at home.  It reminds me of the Tuamotus in that the people are relaxed, friendly, helpful and seem very glad to have cruisers in their country. 

There is a cave here called Mariner’s Cave.  The only way to get to it is to dive down about 8 feet, swim forward about 12 feet under water, and come back up the other side.  The legend is that a young Tongan chief who, having fallen in love with a beautiful maiden of a family who was due for extermination, spirited her away from danger and hid her for two weeks in the cave.  He brought food and his undying love to sustain the girl until he was able to prepare an expedition to Fiji.  He then picked her up, married her and brought her back to Vava’u only after all the trouble has passed, and of course, lived happily ever after. 

15 years ago, I was too chicken to dive into that cave.  This time, I was more excited to see Molly and Jessie get to experience it.  To ensure success, Jim put on an air tank with two regulators, and anyone who wanted could “buddy-breathe” and get to the underwater cave.  Molly and Jessie did just great; as did the other people we went with.  I have been having a lot of trouble clearing my ears when I go under water even 4 feet, and this was no exception.  I would start to go through the cave, and my ears would scream at me to go up, go up.  So, once again, I missed out.  Had we gone at low tide, I think my ears would have been fine.  Maybe there is time to try again.  Once you are inside the cave, you are surrounded by stalagmites, and a haunting mist sweeps in, covers everything, and sweeps out again, over and over.  I guess it is really something to see. 

There is another cave, named Swallow’s Cave, which you go through by dinghy.  Inside lives about a million swallows, who make their nests on the cave walls.  The trick is to go in at midnight, and motor in very slowly.  The birds hear you and start to make a commotion.  So, you shine a very powerful light around on the walls, and they get very, very quiet, then when you turn off the light, they make an astounding racket. The noise bounces off the cave walls and echoes seemingly forever.  We met Ben and Lisa, some cruisers who have become locals, and they showed us the way.  It was exciting to go in the blackness, jetting across the harbors in our dinghy to the unmarked cave.  We very slowly made our way in, and the swallows performed just as they were supposed to.  It was eerie to be enclosed in the tomb-like cave, but, for me, it made up for not conquering Mariner’s Cave.

Every cruiser who arrives in Tonga procures a chart of the area, provided by the Moorings Charter Company, on which all the anchorages are numbered.  There are about 40 different spots to anchor and explore; some have villages, some larger towns, some are totally uninhabited and virtually untouched.  We spent a few days in anchorages 7, 11, and 12 – sounds exciting, huh?  There was a lovely white sand beach with a great snorkeling spot in #7.  We had to get used to the cold water (86 degrees!), but if we moved quickly, it was fine.  In anchorage #11, we wake-boarded and knee-boarded behind the dinghy, then had a lobster dinner with friends on their boat.  Sunday morning, we hiked for about 30 minutes to go to church.  We made it just in time.  The singing was astounding; so much music that sometimes it felt like your ears were on two different frequencies.  But progress has left its mark.  When we were here before, we sat on the floor in a village church and the singing seemed to start without anyone announcing or initiating it.  In one accord, the people would just start harmonizing.  Now, there is a song leader, pews, and “proper” decorations.  Our goal is to find the very church we stumbled upon fifteen years ago and see if maybe time has stood still. 

There are many pods (totaling over 400) of humpback whales which migrate to this group of islands every year at this time.  They come up from the Antarctic to have babies and to teach their babies the skills they will need to survive in the cold ocean. When we came into the pass, we saw them cavorting and breaching and swimming everywhere.  Tonga is one of only two places in the world where you can legally swim with humpback whales.  They have tour boats that go out and search out the pods, particularly for the mothers and babies.  Then 4 people at a time can get in the water and see the whales up close and personal. You are only in the water for about 10 minutes, but I hear it is a thrill to be so near these huge, gentle animals.  We might do that next week.  It’s kind of expensive, but we may never get this chance again.

We finally have internet, so there are a few new sets of pictures in the media gallery.  We have been to many places since we last posted pictures in Bora Bora.  The world-wide web hasn’t really reached this part of the world, thank goodness!  So, enjoy getting caught up!   ~ Jeanna

“Just like Seattle weather,” we say to each other, secretly delighted.  I stayed on board today and made chili, just because it sounded like what I needed to do on a rainy fall day.

We are still enjoying the Vava’u group of islands in Tonga.  We have spent most of the time close to town, but now are anchored in one of the outer bays (#16).  We are here with our friends aboard Fafner, who have girls Molly and Jessie’s age.

The sailors you become close to out here are those that choose the same islands as you to stop at; you tend to follow each other across the span of the South Pacific, and it is like old home week every time you drop your anchor, look around, and spot your buddies a few boats over.  Having something in common is key; it could be that they have kids, or a fast boat like yours, or a love of snorkeling and hiking.  Maybe they are in need of a good mechanic and you happen to be one.  Whatever the bond, it strengthens each time you anchor near each other.

Karin and Patti are two women on a Baltic 48 named “Ahti”.  They are from the Seattle area, and are doing an admirable job of taking care of all their boating needs themselves.  They have had some mechanical and electrical problems, and Jim has been able to give them bits of advice, but they usually end up doing the actual work themselves.  We see them at almost every island we go to, and they e-mail us and let us know how things are before we arrive.  We do the same for them.

The “Fafner” folks became friends mostly because of their daughters, Claire and Alex.  Same with “Escapade” from Holland; they have two boys that have formed a bond with our girls, even though they don’t speak English.  “Coconut”, from Norway, also has kids on board.  They all speak in delightful British/Norwegian accents, since the mother is from South Africa.  Peter and Ginger, aboard “Marcy”, are also from the Seattle area.  They seem to like to visit the more remote islands, so we see them less often, but are always happy when we get together.  “Soul’s Calling” is a big catamaran from Denver.  Their daughter, Mikaela, is eleven, and Molly and Jessie enjoy spending time with her.  It’s fun for them when the sleepover is on the cat - the main salon is like a gymnasium, and Mikaela’s bedroom spans almost one entire ama of the boat.

Right now, Claire, Alex, Molly and Jessie are on shore, building yet another tree house in a huge Banyan tree at the water’s edge.  They came back to the boat for short time to pick up supplies:  rope, matches, a second machete, Oreo cookies, Band-Aids, and bug spray.  Oh, they also came back for Jim – they needed some of his expertise.

We had hoped to do some snorkeling and hiking, but the weather is quite ugly.  Maybe it will clear up enough by tomorrow that we can go play.  The weather has kept us from our whale expedition; I have heard Humpback whales will dive deep and stay there if the surface water is too choppy.

This Seattle weather has been making me think of home.  I am imagining our friends, getting ready for the new school year; about family getting ready for the fall season and all that it brings, and about our business and the upcoming Seattle Boat Show.  If I get too melancholy, all I have to do is look outside and see the smoke wafting through the palm trees (Smoke!??!  What are those girls doing, anyway???), and the rain dancing on the tropical blue water.  Guess I’ll call “Fafner” on the VHF and invite them over for chili and cornbread.  Have a great day!

~ Jeanna

4 of them with guitars.  They are working hard to find musically common ground.  One girl is from Belgium, and plays Spanish/flamenco-type music.  Andrea is from New Hampshire, Claire and Alex are from California, and then there are Molly and Jessie.  Jessie has been learning guitar with Jim’s help.  She is a determined and patient learner.

Jim left to go to shore, and I have been tucked into the v-berth, listening to the girls get to know each other.  I find it odd that they are not talking about cruising at all; their conversation is peppered with talk of grandparents, pets, and weird teachers they have had to endure.  A couple of them are crocheting; the others are playing different songs at the same time.  I never thought our main salon could comfortably hold a gaggle of girls and instruments, plus a few deadly crochet hooks, but it seems to be working!  This has nothing to do with anything, but did you know that a group of ravens is called an “unkindness”?

We have been experimenting with “umu” cooking, which is making a very hot fire on the beach, burning it down to coals, putting all the food wrapped in tin foil among the coals and covering the whole thing with banana leaves.  In an hour, you have a moist, delicious meal.  We enjoyed an umu dinner under the big Banyan tree last night, and invited everyone in Anchorage 16.  We had fish wrapped in taro leaves, chicken, hamburger, potatoes, cabbage, carrots, onion, garlic and breadfruit, all cooked together under the leaves.  Everything was yummy.  For dessert, there were sweetened bananas cooked on the fire, papaya bread, and oatmeal cookies.  There must have been 20 people under the tree, from all over the world.  It was so interesting to hear the different conversations.  It is fascinating to me that the truly memorable parts of this trip have nothing to do with the places you go, the things you see, or the events you attend, but it is the people you meet that stay forever in your mind.

The last of the “kid” boats has left Tonga and headed for Fiji.  Molly and Jessie are beside themselves with sadness.  We have heard that there is one boat we have yet to meet, that has two girls aboard.  I’m sure Molly and Jessie will hunt them down.  We have decided to stay in Tonga, and visit the three groups of islands, then hop down to New Zealand in early November.  We have heard great things about Fiji, but there is also something to be said for just staying in one place for a while and really getting to know the people and different anchorages.

We found a good snorkeling spot in Anchorage #16.  The water has been clear (and a little cold!), with lots of different fish.  Jim and Molly went one day, and saw two octopuses and heard whales under water.  Jessie and I weren’t that fortunate when we went the next day, but still had a great time.  The weather is just now starting to behave itself, so maybe we can check some things off our “to do” list:  swim with humpbacks, go for a scuba dive, go for a hike, and find that church in Anchorage #13.  Then we will move south to the Ha’apai group of Tongan Islands, and see what we can discover there.

I have been trying to upload some pictures in the media gallery, but it has been painfully slow.  I’ll keep trying, so check into the gallery over the next week or so!   

 ~ Jeanna

When we were in Niuatoputapu, our friends on CoCoNut got a puppy! (The pronunciation is Nee-oo-ay-to-pu-ta-pu; you can also use the cruiser version “New Potato”). When they went to shore, they found a very cute small puppy that was so sick and weak it could not even lift it’s head! The island was full of very sick and mangy dogs, but this one was the sickest of them all. It had soft red fur and it was three months old, but it looked like it was six weeks old! They asked it’s owner about it, and she said that her son gave the dog to her when it was only seven weeks old and refused to take it back to its mother! Then they asked if they could take the dog with them to their boat and take care of her for a while, because they loved to take in puppies off the street and nurse them back to health. So, Camilla picked up the dog and brought it back to their boat and they gave her three baths and an anti-bug shampoo. The poor puppy was really tired after that! The next day we came over to see the puppy and we helped Camilla think of names for her; we finally decided on Pixie because she had little pixie ears. Everyone ended up calling her Dobby though, because she had really big eyes like the elf in Harry Potter. She was doing much better the second day, and when she started eating, her favorite thing was sashimi! By the third day, she was up and walking around, and being very playful. That day, I started crocheting a little blanket for her; it was red, yellow, orange, and blue. We were all going to leave soon, so I had to finish it quickly. No one wanted to say goodbye to Pixie, but we could not take her with us. We thought about getting her a vet certificate saying she was a purebred “Tongan Whippet” so we could take her with us, but that would not work. Two days later, Camilla took Pixie back to shore in a cardboard box with a small foam pad and the blanket I made for her bed. Pixie’s owner was very glad to see that she was happy and a lot healthier. Then we left, confident that Pixie is now the happiest and healthiest dog on the island!

Jessie