Directions

Our latest entry always comes up first...

Click this link if you want to start at the beginning of our trip from
South Carolina (where we bought the boat) to Lake Ontario Click this link:

If you want to see the story of our 2 1/2 year project getting
Blowin' Bubbles ready for our life on board click here:
FIRST "REFIT" BLOG ENTRY - March 2011

If you want to start at the beginning of our trip:
START OF TRIP - July 2014
2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Tonga Tapu - Waiting For a Weather Window....

Welcome to our Blog. Our latest entry always comes up first... 
Click this link if you want to start at the beginning:
FIRST BLOG ENTRY
If you want to start at the beginning of our trip:
START OF TRIP
If you want to see the story of our trip from South Carolina
(where we bought the boat)
 to Lake Ontario Click this link:
  SOUTH CAROLINA
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We have arrived in Tonga Tapu and are anchored in a very protected bay a few miles from the city in front of Big Mama's Yacht Club.  A great place run by Mama and her husband Earl.  This seems to be the spot that many cruising boats ready themselves for the 1100 nautical mile journey to New Zealand in time for Cyclone season...

At the moment there are only a few boats here, but we understand in the coming weeks there will be many more...

Before arriving her from the Ha'Apai Group, we visited a bunch of islands.  some inhabited, some not, but all BEAUTIFUL!.  We delivered a BUNCH of school supplies to some very appreciative people along the way.  you can check out that Blog entry HERE


S/V Enchanter and S/V Swift Sure have gone north so we are now not likely to see them again until next year.  We have had a great time with these folks and will miss them.  That is the reality of cruising.  That said, we have already met some new people who are going in our direction, so were weren't without friends for long...  Before we went our separate ways we had an awesome beach BBQ....

We were all anchored between two uninhabited Islands:  Uonukuhahaki and Unoukuhihifo.  Say that three time fast! 
Shelley found some birds...
Trash burning the night we arrived....
The day of our BBQ we explored the two islands... pretty amazing places...


The "friendly" snakes
The circle of life... a dead eel being eaten by crabs...
Lanny with some found treasures....
We have to see this EVERY day...
Another tough day at the office....
The islands are connected at low tide....

Lanny & Ginger - Siesta!
Time for team Bachi Ball!
BBQ Time!

Someone has to supervise.....

Rijnhard , the chef!

Dinner is ready!

So long to our friends... See you soon....



Making our way south we had numerous whale encounters.  Each one seemed more spectacular than the last.  We even witnessed (at least heard) the birthing of a whale cafe on night at anchor...





 If you remember a post from back in Panama, we found Sea Beans.  Well this week we found one of the sources of these beans that travel the world...  Here on H'Afeva we found the trees that they grow on...  We can only assume based on the ocean currents in this part of the world the make a counterclockwise journey some 20,000 miles to land on a beach in the Caribbean! Amazing!


 To keep the pigs at bay on these islands, they build short fences everywhere.  This is the entry to the local school...  The dogs have figured them out... So far not the pigs....


Keeping the pigs at bay...
Along with whales are our regular visits from dolphins...

Very limited access to some of these islands...

Another reality......
 We have arrived in Tonga Tapu and are enjoying a few luxuries like a coke and some internet...








Just another day in paradise....
More soon!

Friday, September 16, 2016

Tonga 2

Welcome to our Blog. Our latest entry always comes up first... 
Click this link if you want to start at the beginning:
FIRST BLOG ENTRY
If you want to start at the beginning of our trip:
START OF TRIP
If you want to see the story of our trip from South Carolina
(where we bought the boat)
 to Lake Ontario Click this link:
  SOUTH CAROLINA
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After leaving Vava'u We sailed 12 hours to the Ha'Apai Group where we may just have found paradise!  Very few cruisers visit this part of Tonga so the experience here is very different from many of the places we visit.  After checking in, we bought a few supplies (very expensive) and re-connected with our friends from Swift Sure and Enchanter. 

We spent our first week anchored off the shore of the Uoleva Yacht Club, where we met some great people who run a small beach bar and a small whale watching business.  While on the Island we were able to gather our own coconuts and limes...









There are so many whales here!  every day is a new adventure as we watch whale families do whale things...






The other day we headed a few miles south and found our first village with a school.  here is the link for that blog entry:  TONGA

We will stay here a few more weeks delivering school supplies and exploring this pristine oasis...

More soon!
Cheers...