Our departure from Fiji was special. Even though we had only been in the marina a few days, as we made to cast off, around fifteen of the marina staff turned up to send us on our way. A stanchion was dressed with a garland, a guitarist strummed, and the staff all sang a traditional Fijian song designed to keep us safe during our passage to Vanuatu. Lovely.
I think it worked too well. There was zero wind for the first 24 hours. We were safe but we had to burn diesel! It did give me an opportunity to go over the main safety items again with Ru, my new crew.
Before we had finished negotiating the reef system which surrounds the main island, we noticed an official looking rib, approaching at speed. It was the Fijian navy, busy with a random ‘stop and search’. The fourth search which I have experienced on Skyfall. They were very charming even asking, “would you mind if we came on board to ask a few questions?”. To which I replied, “I don’t think I have a choice!”. It was soon over, allowing us to continue on our way over the glassy ocean.
Vanuatu has two official Ports of Entry: Port Vila and Luganville. Yet, one of the star attractions is Tanna island, around 100nm upwind of Port Vila. Fortunately, there is now a system whereby, if you apply for permission in advance, you can be granted permission to clear in at Port Resolution on Tanna Island. Once you arrive, the Port Resolution Yacht Club will arrange for customs and immigration to come over from the only town on the other side of the island to complete formalities.
So why is Port Resolution and Tanna Island so special? Firstly,there is the proximity to Mount Yazur, an easily accessible, very active volcano.
Secondly, each Vanuatu island has been able to choose between modernisation or remaining 'untouched' and maintaining their traditional way of living. Tanna Island chose the latter (there is no supermarket anywhere on the island). Given how decidely 'touched' most of the Pacific has become, that was a big motivation to visit.
Whilst we waited for the officials, we were allowed to wander around the village and explore the surrounding area. The buildings are primitive, no electricity, water sourced from a central well, chickens and piglets roaming everywhere.
Yet it had an unmistakable charm and the people were very friendly. The language is english or french, depending on which school they went to.
Many of the men spend the day paddling around the bay, fishing in their traditional dug out canoes. The catch was very dependent on the conditions (south easterlies are best). Yet they went out for the same number of hours regardless. Perhaps they had nothing better to do.
Interestingly, they did not maintain their own nets. There was one person in the village who did not fish but repaired nets for everyone - together with his children.
I loved the fact that everyone enjoyed interacting with us tourists -and without asking for or expecting anything in return. Actually, we had a jumbo box of different sized fish hooks which we brought to distribute throughout villages in Fiji and Vanuatu. But it was here that they were really appreciated. So much so that it was not long before I was offered the chance to practise paddling one of the dugouts. Despite the outrigger, this is a lot harder than it looks. I asssumed the outrigger would float and support my weight. Big mistake. The piece of hardwood did not have much buoyancy. To my surprise, it actually provided more stability in the opposite direction as it was quite heavy.
Once cleared in, we were free to leave the village and the first priority was obvious. Time to visit the volcano! The trip is, again, organised through the Port Resolution Yacht Club. Now that may sound like a mighty organisation. Unfortunately, after two cyclones and COVID the club is reduced to a sitting area covered with some corrugated metal. Hopefully, with New Caledonia effectively closed for business, Port Resolution (and Vanuatu in general) can benefit from the cruisers who had intended to visit the French colony.
There are no roads on the island, just some heavily potholed dirt tracks. The sort of place dominated by Toyota Land cruiser taxis. And that is indeed what was arranged to get us to the volcano. Mount Yazur is probably the most readily accessible active volcano in the world. Where you can get close to the action. In fact, very, very close. There was a health and safety briefing in the office prior to going up to the volcano proper. It went something like; ' You need safety glasses because of the flying bits of molten rock. Nobody told you? You don't have any, OK, no problem. And if you have brought breathing apparatus that is best. No? How about a mask? No; OK, then just try not to breath in!
Health and Safety? There was no Health and Safety. It was going to be a a question of Darwin's process of natural selection. The stupid do not survive (last year two Japanese tourists got too close to the edge, one fell in, the other went to help, also slipped and died).
The half hour hike started just before dusk from a car park quite high up, leaving only a half hour walk to the viewpoint. As we came to the rim we could peer across at the smoking crater and watch the sun set over the other side of the rim.
You could hear the rumblings going on in the molten lava inside the crater. But it was difficult to see much through the steam. Until it got dark. As the light faded the view became more and more spectacular. There was a constant stench of sulphur dioxide, a fiery red glow, with loud bangs followed by fireworks and showers of debris (see top picture). Words and pictures do not do the place justice. It was an incredible experience. Of course, we were aware of the disaster on White Island, NZ a few years ago. But our party included four mormon preachers so we felt quite safe.
After three very enjoyable days on Tanna (there is a nice beach, opportunities to eat traditional food in people's homes and, according to two Aussie surfers, an excellent break at the entrance to the bay), we sailed north to Luganville on Santo island. We could clear out from there, but only after visiting some of the attractions.
The east coast has some beautiful, almost deserted beaches. There are many to choose from but our guide chose Champagne beach and Port Olry. We enjoyed a swim, bit of relaxation and a drink at the bar. The place was empty, having been heavily influenced by the collapse of the national airline which has made it virtually impossible for tourists to fly in and out.
Santo also has seven 'blue holes'. These are freshwater pools where the water is so clear and the pool so deep that it takes on a deep blue colour. Set against the lush green vegetation, they are a bit special. The one where we chose to swim was also equipped with a waterslide and a rope attached to an overhanging tree where you could swing out, let go and try to make the biggest splash. A good time was had by all.
Luganville was a US base during WW2, a logistics centre and an airfield from where US bombers could attack the Japanese in the Solomon Islands and the Philippines. Two incidents turned this into a diving mecca. The SS President Coolidge was a luxury liner pressed into service as a troop and equipment carrier during WW2. It's last voyage was to deliver men and equipment to Luganville. Unfortunately the captain was given incorrect instructions about the protecting minefields and struck two mines close to the anchorage. He ran the ship aground, close to shore and managed to offload almost five thousand men in only half an hour, before the ship slid backwards off the reef and sank, the bow in about 15m, the stern in around 40m. It is the largest, easily accessible wreck anywhere in the world.
Diving inside confined spaces in non-trivial and accounts for the majority of diving accidents. Firstly, divers need excellent control of buoyancy to be able to turn, go up and down and to enter/exit through narrow entrances. Secondly, there is the danger of getting disorientated and forgetting the way out. Finally, there is the risk of panic, leading to enhanced use of oxygen and running out of air. For all these reasons, I had taken the PADI advanced diving course in Taveuni as preparation for this dive site. The (Australian) dive company was also very professional. They set up a paper trail of spare tanks along our route and the guide had a spare 'pony' tank for emergencies.
Ru, on the other hand, was a little rusty having not dived in twenty years. To his credit, he knuckled down, went with the flow and got through it. I am not sure how much he enjoyed it but it is an experience he will never forget!
The second incident can be put down to European complacency. At the end of the war, the Americans did not want to transport all their construction equipment, jeeps and most supplies back to the USA. They were offered to the local (British and French) administrations in a cut price deal. The locals refused the deal, believing they would then get everything for free. To their consternation, the US forces then built a pier out into the sea and proceeded to drive all the equipment off the end of it so nobody could benefit. This place is now known as 'Million Dollar Point'. Unfortunately, we did not have time to explore there.
It was a shame we had so little time in Vanuatu. We could easily have spent an extra month exploring other islands before heading north to Luganville. But the deadline for the Sail2Indonesia was drawing ever closer. So it was time to provision and prepare for the 2300nm to Indonesia (via Port Moresby, PNG).
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