Terrific Times in Tanna

We ended up being on anchor in Port Vila for 8 weeks and 8 days and it was absolutely fantastic. As well as meeting some lovely locals we also had a fabulous group of cruisers around us who were instrumental in alot of the fun get togethers and social occasions we ended up having. As happens when you meet like minded fun people this particular group became really good friends and going forward we will forever be known as members of the Vanuatu Royal Coconuti Swashbucklers!

The gearbox took longer than expected to repair as we had to wait for parts to be flown in from New Zealand however we finally got it back and installed and we were good to go. Our plan was to wait for a suitable wind and head up the side of Efate to Havannah Harbour, sail over the top and then down to Tanna. What actually happened was we headed up towards Havannah, ended up with a slight engine overheating problem and back tracked to a safe anchorage where Craig was able to fix the problem. To ensure it was all fixed we decided to motor for a couple of hours to a little island called Eketor. Once we dropped anchor we would check the engine and then head once again towards Havannah. What actually happened was we motored and dropped just off Eketor and while waiting for the engine to cool down so Craig could check everything was okay we went for a snorkel and was blown away by the water clarity, the variety and healthiness of the coral and the fish life.

Once again our plans changed and even though the engine was all good we decided that we would stay here (wind permitting) and enjoy the underwater life. We ended up having an amazing 3 days of some of the best snorkeling we have exprienced so far on REAO, we truly felt like we were in paradise.

On the third day during our daily check on the wind predict sites that we use, we saw that a suitable wind was predicted for the following day which would be suitable for us to head to Tanna and then a few days later there looked to be a good wind window that would work for us to sail towards Fiji. With that as our final goal we decided to once again change our plans and sail back past Port Vila and down towards Tanna. What actually happened was the wind that had been predicted never turned up and what should have been an overnight sail to Tanna ended up being a very long 3 day slow sail. While it was a frustrating trip (due to the lack of wind and lack of sleep) it did have moments of wonder with some spectacular nature shows and an evening visit by 3 whales that spent half an hour swimming around REAO.

We sailed into Port Resolution on Tanna at daylight on the 4th day where we set anchor in the bay which we had all to ourselves. After we had rested I was able to check the internet to find that the wind we thought we could use to head to Fiji was no longer predicted which meant we had no idea how long we would have to stay here for. Luckily we had left ourselves enough time on our “cruising permit” and had three weeks until we had to check out. While waiting for a suitable wind we were very privilaged to be able to spend time with some of the nearby villagers and see up close how they live. Because they have so little their main focus is on relationships, both within a family group as well as the wider village community. This particular village had one well which people would have to carry containers to for their water. Within the huts all we could see was mats on the floor which people would sleep on. I watched some kids playing for ages with a long piece of string that had a piece of wood tied to the end of it, they used their imagination and kept coming up with different ways to play with it. Communial kitchen, hand washing for their laundry. Absolutely no government assistance and no infrastructure. Word soon got out that Craig was quite handy and he was kept busy repairing things from torches, solar lights, (school) lawnmower and even helping hook up a couple of huts to solar power.

One thing we were very excited to do while in Tanna was visit Mt Yasur which is one of the few accessible ACTIVE volcanos in the world. The day before we had a huge rainfall so the trip on the back of a ute was a mini adventure in itself as the 4 wheel drive definately earned its keep.
We had to walk the last few hundred metres up to the top of the crater and the entire way all you could hear was massive booming and then seeing plumes of smoke rising into the sky, it made me feel like we were trekking across Mordor. Once we got to the top we were literally staring down into the crater which was a very surreal experience. One thing we were totally unprepared for was feeling the shock wave after one massive explosion. The noise and then the heat of the wind engulfing you as it blew away from the crater, I think everyone took a few steps back after that. As night fell the red glow of the lava got brighter which was spectacular. Every so often the wind would blow towards us which meant we got to experience the ash and the sulpher smell. It was an amazing night and an experience we was always remember – mother nature is awesome.

Tomorrow we have a good weather window to sail to Fiji so we will be leaving early in the morning. Today we went in to say goodbye to the lovely people we have met who wholeheartedly welcomed us into their village and it was a chance for Craig to do a couple of final repairs.

This 3 months in Vanuatu has been absolutely amazing and this beautiful island country has quickly climbed up our charts to become our favorite place, we look forward to returning.

For those who are interested, below is our spending breakdown of the last three months here in Vanuatu. Once again we have spent more than we had budgeted for – oops.

	Sept	Oct	Nov	Total
Supermarket	941	998	944	2883
Alcohol	142	332	279	753
Internet	54	12	110	176
Fuel			402	402
Marina/Cust			155	155
Entertain	314	946	403	1663
Boat	543	513	24	1080
Laundry	93		30	123
TOTAL	2087	2801	2347	7235