Savu Savu to Yasawa Island Group
by Andrew and Clare Payne 23 Jun 2019 19:49 BST
Coral at Yadua Island © Andrew and Clare Payne / Freedom and Adventure
We left Savu Savu to sail west between the two main islands of Fiji, that is Vanua Levu to the north and Viti Levu to the south. This is a well known wind funnel and so best to transit in calm weather.
We went through a very narrow pass at the bottom of the north island and anchored in Bua Bay. We caught up with English couple John and Stella on Exocet Strike for morning tea. We spent about three hours chatting non stop.... who said sailing was a solitary life?
A good experience
Our next stop was Yadua Island which is one of two small island in the middle of the pass. By this time the wind was building and so we stayed there four days enjoying some good snorkelling and walks on the beach. Because of the strong wind two small fishing boats came in with six fishermen from the mainland. They waved madly and called greetings of "Bula Bula". After they anchored we dingied over to meet them. They were very glad of some company as they had been out fishing for two weeks and were running out of conversation. They gave us some lovely Wahoo and said they had been eating fish every day and were sick of it. So I cooked them pasta for dinner, two loaves of bread and gave them 500g of Flora. We all had dinner together on one of the fishing boats. They were nice guys and this was a good experience that we will remember fondly.
A not so good experience
The next morning we left and had a very sporty sail to Yasawa Island with a 20-25knot wind behind us and up to a two metre swell. We made good time averaging seven knots for the 55 mile trip. We anchored mid afternoon at Yasawa Island in the very clear sparkling blue and aqua water, alongside a beautiful sandy beach. We planned to go into the village the following day to meet the Chief and do the Sevusevu ceremony. However before we got there a motor boat came out from the village and did Sevusevu behind our boat and after receiving our Kava told us we could now walk on their beach and go snorkelling. I was a bit upset by their attitude because it felt like a commercial transaction and Kava was the payment. Our previous experiences have been that we offer Kava to the Chief as a goodwill gesture and then the Chief welcomes us as temporary members of the village community. In doing so we are then welcome and free to enjoy the village and surrounding waters. However for us, doing Sevusevu in a dinghy behind our boat took away from the tradition and it was disappointing.
Village life
We went into the village the following day and were welcomed by the people. We firstly met Sarah who is the Kindergarten teacher for the village. She offered to show us the school but she needed to drop something off at her mother's house first. We met Sarah's mother who is the sister of the Chief. She was skinning bananas in preparation for the evening meal. The village was hosting a teacher's cluster meeting that night and the teachers from the other five villages on the island would be attending. Sarah offered us a bowl of sweet bananas boiled in coconut milk, a local dish which was very delicious.
We then went to the school which has two classrooms. There are ten children in the Kindergarten classroom and ten students in the other classroom which is a composite class for grade one and grade two. The school is very nicely done with brightly coloured teaching aids and the children's work proudly displayed. Classrooms for the higher primary grades are located in the other villages.
We ventured on, meeting as many village people as we could. Without exception they were welcoming and called us into their homes and the community hall. We were given papaya and bananas to take back to the boat and invited to come back for lunch on Sunday.
An interesting character
We met Nelson an elder of the village who used to be the captain on the ferry going between the islands and the mainland. He told us of his experience during Cyclone Winston. There was no suitable protection from the strong winds, so after speaking with his employer who said "it's up to you", he decided to beach the ship at full speed. He stayed on the vessel and then re-floated the ferry after the storm passed over. We have heard some amazing stories around Winston, but we thought this one was way up there.
Cruising friends
We were with two other boats here, 'Muskoka' from Canada and 'Tres Bien' from New Zealand. We all had a very enjoyable evening on 'Muskoka' a few nights ago and we also did some snorkelling together. Yesterday we all left the anchorage and went in separate directions. We are only a few miles further south, but we couldn't sail pass this beautiful beach. We are anchored in sand with no outcrops of coral to worry about. The beach has thick soft sand with a backdrop of tropical growth and coconut palms. The water is warm and clear with gentle waves lapping the shore. We have seen many beaches in our travels and this beach is one of the best. We enjoy late afternoon walks along the beach, a swim in warm water and then a little relaxation in setting sun, in total peace and isolation.
So what next
We will continue down the chain of islands which make up the Yasawa Group. We have some water caves to stop at and then the Blue Lagoon which is a very popular stop for Cruisers with shops and restaurants. But, that's for next time.
This article has been provided by the courtesy of freedomandadventure.blogspot.com