New Caledonia : So many islands, so little time.

20th September – 15 October 2022

After arriving back to the metropolis of Noumea after our jaunt south to Isle of Pines and surrounding islands we realized there was still a heap more exploring to be done. But first things first… a  much needed provisioning trip to the fresh market and then on to the supermarkets. We spent four busy days lapping up life in the marina before heading out again.

The majority of islands dotted around the western side of New Caledonia are uninhabited. These islands or cays are really just sand strips with a bit of vegetation thrown in for good measure and are usually drop dead gorgeous.

Our first stop this time was L’ ilot Mbe Kowen  and yes it was drop dead gorgeous. In company with our friends from Eye Candy we stayed a couple of days. Swimming in the pristine aqua shallows, watching the turtles glide past and walking on the white sand beach filled our time there perfectly.

                         The photos below are of a couple of fury friends we found at an abandoned resort

Next up was a rendezvous on Isle Laregnere to meet up with our Kiwi friends from Otama who would be Australia bound to Gladstone the following morning. Also a big thanks to Clair from Eye Candy for taking this photo when my camera battery died .    

And off they go to Australia

Yet again the little gem of L’ ilot Nge was another beautiful spot and perfect for walks  ashore. 

Sharing the serenity with a couple of Pukeko

Sundowners with Ted and Adrian from Otama 2nd and 3rd from left

Great spot for sunset and sundowners too.

Over the following eleven days we spent most of time back down in the Prony Bay area visiting a plethora of anchorages and small islands. There was more socializing on shore with new found friends as well as trail walks, ruins to discover, hot spring pools to soak our weary bones in and dinghy trips up narrow coconut tree lined creeks. It’s never a dull moment when you are out there cruising.

There is always time for a catch up ashore at Casy Islet

GWTW anchored at pretty Casy Islet.
And below a hard way to take your punishment.

Enjoying the hot springs. Thanks again to the Eye Candy crew for the photo.

Our last stop on this itinerary before hitting the big smoke again was one of our favourite islands Bay Vere. It is a lovely horseshoe shaped bay with just a hut and a kayak rental area which didn't look like it was in business any more.

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Exploring the islands and anchorages of New Caledonia

8th - 20th September 2022.

Our first anchorage was within spitting distance of Port Moselle Marina, and to be frank we were quite exhausted after the 3 nm journey. Two weeks tied to the dock makes you soft.

Anchored off Ilot Maitre

Ilot Maitre was our destination for the night. It was a pretty island with trendy overwater bungalows. We’d heard on the grapevine that the resort didn't welcome cruisers ashore so we stayed put on GWTW and were happy with that.

Next morning we weighed anchor, rolled out half our jib and had another massive passage of nearly 9nm to the well protected  Baie Maa on the west coast of the mainland. The winds were pretty puffy rushing down the surrounding hills but our anchor was dug into thick sand and we never moved an inch all night.

There was really nothing in the bay to keep us more than a day.

 And with that on day 3 we pointed the bows south west for 34 nm toward Anse de la Est in Pyrony Bay which would be our jumping off point to the famed Isle des Pins   ( Isle of Pines) the following morning.

Sunrise before heading to Isle De Pines

In company with Aussies Clare and Andy from Eye Candy we set out at 0600 for the 40 plus nm passage. It was a bit of a dogleg to get there needing a keen eye to spot the many reefs and rocky outcrops which play hazard with boats plying this route.

Being an overcast and hazy day it was vital to keep a good lookout at all times as many boats have come to grief getting to the island .We arrived around 3pm and dropped the anchor in 21ft off a beautiful sandy beach.

Anchored off the Island

The next three days were spent exploring the island on foot and by car

We rented a car at the local resort and the four of us piled in to see the sights…churches, cemeteries, two prisons, the local fresh market which had very little on display as well as walking to see several wood carvings dotted around the foreshore of where we  anchored.

Wood Carvings along the shore

The owner of this sign sure didn't mince his words!

One of many beautiful churches dotted around the island

A road side cemetery

The Oumagne Grotto

One of the two Prison ruins on the Island

On our way back to return the car we stopped for a coffee over at a resort on the opposite side of the bay which we patronized as they had free Wi-Fi available. It was then that we learned of Queen Elizabeth's passing a few days before. We were all saddened by this news.

Feeding Fido

During another of our shoreside lunch excursions Liam befriended a local dog who was highly trained in the art of begging for food.

Once Liam and his friend had gobbled down Liam's’ meal said pooch, now with a tummy full, moved on to the next table where he had equal success with his new found family.

The supply ship arriving from the mainland

The days were slipping by and It was now the 15th of September and time to say goodbye to the Isle des Pins.

 It was another early start just after dawn and the posse of two headed out under sail to pretty Ilot Ua arriving just after midday, 

A long pristine beach greeted us as we plopped the anchor into wonderfully clear water. Sundowners on the beach, well on a tarp actually were the order of the late arvo.

Another perfect beach just made for sunset drinks 

All was going well until a couple of uninvited guests of the variety known as slithery headed our way.

Liam our resident snake handler was quickly on the job and persuaded them to move on with the help of a big stick.

 You probably didn’t know that sea snakes could fly did you.

After a lay day and some uninspiring snorkeling we headed back towards the mainland once again with the top stopping spot being Ile Vere, a  horseshoe shaped bay with excellent protection from the SW winds.

Once gain we had sundowners ashore where this time we met up with a family of locals (Kanaks) who were most interested in our travels around the globe. They were cooking up fresh caught fish on their makeshift BBQ and offed some to the four of us. Didn’t need to ask us twice!

After another couple of lay days and watching the late Queen’s funeral in French it was time to head back to the big smoke once again for a much needed provisioning run.

Another perfect Pacific Sunset

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Noumea, New Caledonia

27th August – 8th September 2022

As we had arrived into the country on a Saturday afternoon both the Customs and Immigration departments were closed. However the Biosecurity was open and we were instructed  by the marina staff  to remain onboard  with our yellow quarantine flag up until the  Bio Officer had paid us a visit and cleared us for entry. Within an hour we saw the lady officer strolling down the dock towards GWTW. She introduced herself and hopped aboard. She was most impressed that I’d already bagged and tagged what little rubbish we had.

Gwtw at Port Moselle Marina

I still had some fruit and veg left and when she checked it she let me keep the lot saying that it had originally come from NZ even though I’d bought it in Fiji as Fiji don’t grow apples or oranges or potatoes. She was really sensible about the fruit and veg. Such a refreshing attitude.

Before she left she asked us to keep our yellow flag up for about two hours in case a Customs officer decided to drop by. Her parting words on that subject was, they won’t come they never do. We were then free to do whatever we wanted until Monday when we’d need to pay Immigration a visit. Customs never did come to the boat.

The delightful cafe at the marina

Over the following two weeks comfortably  berthed at the marina  we explored Noumea and surrounds both on foot and by car. 

The supermarkets were right on our doorstep as were the fabulous fresh veggie market and the fish market and chandleries, butchers and of course patisseries. There was no excuse not to eat well.

 This city is relatively small and compact in comparison to other capital cities we've visited so it was an easy stroll around.

There was a huge variety of fish available

And the best fruit, veg and meat since leaving New Zealand

China Town but we only found two Chinese Restaurants

A very popular beach for tourists, Plage de la Baie des Citrons

Saint Joseph Cathedral

Our friend Andy from Eye Candy had met with a nasty accident en route from Vanuatu to New Cal when it was fish vs man. 

As he rushed out of their cockpit  to land the Mahi Mahi a small piece of metal attached to the aft gate tore through the flesh on his calf and into the muscle leaving a very angry gash.

They were still 24 hours away from medical assistance but with help from  both Marine Rescue Coordinators and Gulf Harbour Radio in New Zealand an appointment was set up in Nouema with a local doctor just across from Pt Moselle Marina for when they arrived.

It was a bit of a long saga to get the gash to heel with many many visits to the doctor. But slowly, and I mean very slowly, we’re talking over a month, before it finally healed and Andy and Clare could get on with their cruising life and Andy could get back in the water once more.

And on that note it was time for us to drop the dock lines and explore more of this sub tropical Island.

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Passage Fiji to New Caledonia

23rd –27th August 2022

After having breakfast ashore as it was our 37th wedding anniversary and with our customs clearance in hand we headed back to GWTW. On went the engines and we motored toward the Mololo Pass and through the reef to the open ocean.

Bye Bye Fiji

Looking back over our shoulders we bid goodbye to Fiji and the friendly people who live in this island paradise. Two hours later as Liam was pulling in the first reefing point in our mainsail the reefing point and sheave let go with a mighty crack. Luckily the sheave landed in the dinghy and we figured we could replace the broken part once we arrived in Australia. But until then it would be  sailing with the second reef or nada. Not a good start to the 800 nm passage.

Even with  just the second reef in the mainsail we were romping along with speeds of  nine + knots, a SE wind 15-20 knots and the seas were 1-2 metres. At 1800 Liam got his first strike on one of his three fishing lines. Sadly whatever it was it was big as it chomped off his best lure, possibly a marlin and we sure didn’t want that coming onboard. With a starry night above and a sliver of moon we had a very comfy first night at sea.

Day two had similar conditions to day one. We have a long range SSB radio and keep a radio schedule with boats around us when on a passage. Tonight we heard that Andy from the vessel Eye Candy had succumbed to a five inch gash in his calf as he raced to the transom to pull in a Mahi Mahi. He would more than likely require stitches once docked in Noumea.

Rather small Yellowfin Tuna

Just on dusk Liam heard the familiar ping of the fishing line and pulled in a small Yellowfin Tuna. He’d just got it on the transom when the other line pinged. 

This time it was a decent sized Wahoo which put up quite the fight.

 Once he was dispatched the Yellowfin got a second chance to grow up and was put back in the water, happily swimming away at pace.

Woo Hoo a Wahoo

For the next two days there was no wind or very little so the iron sail came into play and did all the work. We saw no ships and there were no fish to be caught. Quite boring really.

At 0650 on day four we entered the Havanna Channel with a a decent ingoing tide giving us 10 kts of boat speed. 

Rough conditions as we entered the Havanna Channel

Now inside the channel proper the seas calmed down

Nickel mining has scared the landscape

Looking up the channel, Pine trees were everywhere

By 1300 we were tied up at Port Moselle Marina in Noumea with a welcoming committee of Aussies, Andy and Claire from Eye Candy and Kiwis Ted and Adrian from the sailing vessel Otama.

Having an after passage beverage with friends from Eye Candy

It felt great to be back in a French country again and were looking forward to gobbling down fresh baguette's, pate and cheeses and all the delicacies that were on offer.

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Fiji Revisited

21st July – 22nd August 2022

When we called Port Denarau Marina the morning after we’d arrived to ask if  we could we come in for clearance we were politely told that we should stay at anchor as the marina was full at the moment and that they’d get back to us asap re clearance procedures.

It was Friday and we really wanted to clear in to avoid the weekend overtime charges. By the time we heard back from the Marina staff the wind had come up and we were instructed to bring our tender in and collect the officers and take them to our boat. We explained that we were anchored approximately two miles from the marina and that with the  current wind direction it would be a very wet ride out for all concerned.

As our friends on Pogeyan also needed to be cleared both tenders were launched and we shared the load of the officers, but they still all got wet. Our clearance went just fine so now we were free to do whatever we wanted.

Yet another perfect Fiji sunset

First up was to re - provision our fruit and veg, followed by haircuts for both of us and re connecting to the outside world again with a great Digicel phone plan for calls and data. We were back on the grid once more.

Over the next month we to and frowed between our main base in Musket Cove  and Port Denarau. We caught up with our Swedish, Ulla and Pelle and Italian friends, Max and Alex who all piled onto GWTW and  we took a Sunday trip out to the Cloud 9 floating bar. 

With GWTW in the background, it was pizza Sunday at cloud 9 with our friends

Perfect landing

Max takes flight

Looking good

Splashdown

Pelle goes foot first

Mid drop

Other waterborne activities included snorkeling in the gin clear waters off Musket Cove.

Wonderfully clear waters

We also chilled out most arvo's by the pool at Musket  Cove Resort and watched some spectacular sunsets. The water was clear, the sun was shinning, the temperature was in the high 20’s and the wine was cold. What more could we want while waiting for a decent weather window to hit the blue highway once again.

It doesn't get much better

The month flew by and soon it was time to visit with customs, check out of  Fiji and head to off to New Caledonia. 

A final catchup with Dave and Charmane from Rewa and Jeff the Port Denarau Marina Manager

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