Hi all,
Please go to www.syaspen.blogspot.com for our latest blogs.
We changed the name to make it easier to type!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Steve and Maria
Monday, August 23, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
The Land Down Under
S/Y Aspen – August 16, 2010 – Log #48
Position: 20 degrees 36’ S 149 degrees 1.0’ E (UTC +10 Hours)
Australia
Around midnight tonight, with a spectacular meteor shower streaking above our heads, we will arrive in Mackay, Australia after 10 magnificent days out on the great blue sea.
As the story goes, Today the sun is shining, the sea is flat and the winds are gently caressing Aspen's sails. Maria is sitting in the cockpit, sipping champagne and munching on Italian olives, French cheeses and assorted seafood delicacies with a dessert of Belgium chocolates. Captain Steve is sitting at the helm, with his captain's hat on of course, steering Aspen with full sail on a glorious 7 knot downwind sail behind Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Dolphins are leaping across Aspen's wake as whales breech in the distance creating quite a show. Ahhhh, isn't this just grand? But maybe reality is just a little bit different?!?
Or perhaps the story could go something like this: We left Vanuatu with a weather window that said the winds should be just right for sailing. Fortunately we did leave Vanuatu as there was a 7.5 magnitude earthquake the next day that created a small tsunami in the harbor and some minor damage to the boats there. Unfortunately the forecasters forgot to mention that 30-40 knots of winds are really too strong to be comfortable. We could have experienced the strongest winds and highest seas we have encountered so far on our journey. The seas may have been over 20 feet at times, looking like mountains as Aspen surfed down their slopes at over 11 knots. We sailed before the wind with our strong little staysail emblazoned with the Leadville Trail 100 mountain logo propelling us forward.
It could have been that our faithful generator, used to give Aspen electricity, failed after the first day out. The third day out, during the ferocious winds, the engine alternator decided to quit charging our batteries so we would run out of power to run the autopilot, GPS and instruments within 24 hours. The refrigeration was shut down to conserve power and we had to throw quite a bit of our food overboard when it began to smell funny. Oh, it's not over yet!
As the story continues, the dreaded prospect for both Captain Steve or Admiral Maria staying awake for 7 days while hand steering Aspen in the midst of the towering waves and nearly gale force winds was not very appealing. Desperately, Captain Steve spent many many hours with his feet sticking out of the engine compartment as he tried to find a solution to the electricity issue while replacing part after part with little success.
Two days away from the Great Barrier Reef the massive storm relented and the wind dropped, enabling four boats full of our Blue Water Rally friends to find the proverbial needle in a haystack and rendezvous with Aspen in the middle of the ocean. Rafting up in mid-ocean, the sailing vessel Enchantress passed Aspen two of their precious batteries. Drenched in sweat and not being an electrical engineer, Captain Steve managed to find the correct wires and restore power to Aspen within minutes of certain drifting before the rather large, featureless Pacific Ocean toward Antarctica, or at least somewhere as cold and miserable like that in a small sailboat.
With power now restored, hot showers, cold beverages and even a vienna sausage or two were enjoyed by Aspen's crew with our friends sailing close by in case we needed assistance again. Entering the intricate passage through Australia's Great Barrier Reef was a sight to behold as the five sailboats sailed together under sunny skies with dolphins playing in our wake and whales breaching in the distance.
We trust that each of you will know which story is true.
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Position: 20 degrees 36’ S 149 degrees 1.0’ E (UTC +10 Hours)
Australia
Around midnight tonight, with a spectacular meteor shower streaking above our heads, we will arrive in Mackay, Australia after 10 magnificent days out on the great blue sea.
As the story goes, Today the sun is shining, the sea is flat and the winds are gently caressing Aspen's sails. Maria is sitting in the cockpit, sipping champagne and munching on Italian olives, French cheeses and assorted seafood delicacies with a dessert of Belgium chocolates. Captain Steve is sitting at the helm, with his captain's hat on of course, steering Aspen with full sail on a glorious 7 knot downwind sail behind Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Dolphins are leaping across Aspen's wake as whales breech in the distance creating quite a show. Ahhhh, isn't this just grand? But maybe reality is just a little bit different?!?
Or perhaps the story could go something like this: We left Vanuatu with a weather window that said the winds should be just right for sailing. Fortunately we did leave Vanuatu as there was a 7.5 magnitude earthquake the next day that created a small tsunami in the harbor and some minor damage to the boats there. Unfortunately the forecasters forgot to mention that 30-40 knots of winds are really too strong to be comfortable. We could have experienced the strongest winds and highest seas we have encountered so far on our journey. The seas may have been over 20 feet at times, looking like mountains as Aspen surfed down their slopes at over 11 knots. We sailed before the wind with our strong little staysail emblazoned with the Leadville Trail 100 mountain logo propelling us forward.
It could have been that our faithful generator, used to give Aspen electricity, failed after the first day out. The third day out, during the ferocious winds, the engine alternator decided to quit charging our batteries so we would run out of power to run the autopilot, GPS and instruments within 24 hours. The refrigeration was shut down to conserve power and we had to throw quite a bit of our food overboard when it began to smell funny. Oh, it's not over yet!
As the story continues, the dreaded prospect for both Captain Steve or Admiral Maria staying awake for 7 days while hand steering Aspen in the midst of the towering waves and nearly gale force winds was not very appealing. Desperately, Captain Steve spent many many hours with his feet sticking out of the engine compartment as he tried to find a solution to the electricity issue while replacing part after part with little success.
Two days away from the Great Barrier Reef the massive storm relented and the wind dropped, enabling four boats full of our Blue Water Rally friends to find the proverbial needle in a haystack and rendezvous with Aspen in the middle of the ocean. Rafting up in mid-ocean, the sailing vessel Enchantress passed Aspen two of their precious batteries. Drenched in sweat and not being an electrical engineer, Captain Steve managed to find the correct wires and restore power to Aspen within minutes of certain drifting before the rather large, featureless Pacific Ocean toward Antarctica, or at least somewhere as cold and miserable like that in a small sailboat.
With power now restored, hot showers, cold beverages and even a vienna sausage or two were enjoyed by Aspen's crew with our friends sailing close by in case we needed assistance again. Entering the intricate passage through Australia's Great Barrier Reef was a sight to behold as the five sailboats sailed together under sunny skies with dolphins playing in our wake and whales breaching in the distance.
We trust that each of you will know which story is true.
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Vanuatu
S/Y Aspen – August 8, 2010 – Log #47
Position: 17 degrees 44’ S 168 degrees 18.0’ E (UTC +11 Hours)
Enroute to Australia
We had a nice stay in the country of Vanuatu. We made landfall in 38 knots of sustained wind at Port Vila, Vanuatu on their independence day. Fireworks streaked into the air and covered the sky in front of us as we sailed in. We thought they were just happy to see us!
There were bands playing in the harbor as we gained shelter from the beating we had taken getting here. The sheltered harbor a very enjoyable place to be at 12:30 in the morning.
One of the many highlights of Vanuatu is to visit the live volcano on Tanna, a neighboring island. We went with a group of our British friends from the Rally. Vehicles can drive within about 300 yards of the summit of the active volcano Mt. Yasur so all you have to do is hike up the loose ash to the crater's rim. From there you can look down into the bowls of the simmering beast. Well, it really isn't simmering, it is shooting lava, boulders and steam higher than the rim we were standing on. The volcano is in a constant state of erupting!
We stared, mesmerized, at the fury beneath us as we stood on the crater's rim. Then darkness settled in around us, leaving only the brilliant red hot lava spurting into the air. Each eruption occurred less than a minute apart with some eruptions much larger than others. The bigger eruptions created an air blast that pushed us backward, away from the crater, followed by a roar that was deafening. The ground shook under our feet and the volcano tried to build the crater rim higher and higher. Luckily none of the flying lava came in our direction but we were constantly aware of where the projectiles were in relation to us.
We were the last ones to leave the rim of the volcano that memorable night after witnessing the ultimate power of nature. We would not have been able to get within 20 miles of a volcano like this in the US, that's for sure!
Once back on Aspen we had the usual preparations to make before our next passage - onward to Australia. There were welcoming parties to attend, trips to the grocery store, repairs to complete on Aspen from the bashing she took to get to Vanuatu and Steve even had time to run a half marathon that was staged on the island.
Runners came from Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Samoa, Marshall Islands and the other islands of Vanuatu to compete in this international race. Maria came along as Steve's cheering section and watched the field of 45 runners sprint out of the only stadium in Vanuatu, toward the countryside. Steve ran with a pack of runners who were barefoot or in socks, no shoes. It seems that the locals are not accustomed to wearing shoes and do not wear them when they are running either. This is a poor country by most standards and shoes are pretty far down the list of essential items. Steve even saw one runner who must have been given shoes by the race sponsor, take the shoes off at the 2nd mile and hide them in the bushes so he could pick them up after the race.
Luckily for Steve there were rain showers throughout the race, cooling things off a bit but also increasing the humidity. It was hot! The course was an out and back route where you simply run far away to the turnaround place and then head back to the finish. The turnaround place seemed a little short to Steve. Running back toward the stadium and with the stadium in sight captain Steve was directed to turn around and do the out and back again! Geeze!!
Normally this would not have been a long distance to run but since captain Steve had not run for the past 7 days while sailing, the distance was taking it's toll. There were aid stations every 3 miles with local water and coconuts. Drinking the water in Vanuatu is not the best thing to do so Steve just got dehydrated instead.
After the 2nd out and back part of the race the stadium was now welcoming the runners home. Watching Steve cross the finish line admiral Maria, with our friend Donald who is also in the Blue Water Rally, stood there with many of the local population cheering and clapping. Captain Steve may not walk properly for some time now he thinks.
The sail to Australia should take us about 10 days and we hope the weather is nice to us this time!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Position: 17 degrees 44’ S 168 degrees 18.0’ E (UTC +11 Hours)
Enroute to Australia
We had a nice stay in the country of Vanuatu. We made landfall in 38 knots of sustained wind at Port Vila, Vanuatu on their independence day. Fireworks streaked into the air and covered the sky in front of us as we sailed in. We thought they were just happy to see us!
There were bands playing in the harbor as we gained shelter from the beating we had taken getting here. The sheltered harbor a very enjoyable place to be at 12:30 in the morning.
One of the many highlights of Vanuatu is to visit the live volcano on Tanna, a neighboring island. We went with a group of our British friends from the Rally. Vehicles can drive within about 300 yards of the summit of the active volcano Mt. Yasur so all you have to do is hike up the loose ash to the crater's rim. From there you can look down into the bowls of the simmering beast. Well, it really isn't simmering, it is shooting lava, boulders and steam higher than the rim we were standing on. The volcano is in a constant state of erupting!
We stared, mesmerized, at the fury beneath us as we stood on the crater's rim. Then darkness settled in around us, leaving only the brilliant red hot lava spurting into the air. Each eruption occurred less than a minute apart with some eruptions much larger than others. The bigger eruptions created an air blast that pushed us backward, away from the crater, followed by a roar that was deafening. The ground shook under our feet and the volcano tried to build the crater rim higher and higher. Luckily none of the flying lava came in our direction but we were constantly aware of where the projectiles were in relation to us.
We were the last ones to leave the rim of the volcano that memorable night after witnessing the ultimate power of nature. We would not have been able to get within 20 miles of a volcano like this in the US, that's for sure!
Once back on Aspen we had the usual preparations to make before our next passage - onward to Australia. There were welcoming parties to attend, trips to the grocery store, repairs to complete on Aspen from the bashing she took to get to Vanuatu and Steve even had time to run a half marathon that was staged on the island.
Runners came from Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia, Samoa, Marshall Islands and the other islands of Vanuatu to compete in this international race. Maria came along as Steve's cheering section and watched the field of 45 runners sprint out of the only stadium in Vanuatu, toward the countryside. Steve ran with a pack of runners who were barefoot or in socks, no shoes. It seems that the locals are not accustomed to wearing shoes and do not wear them when they are running either. This is a poor country by most standards and shoes are pretty far down the list of essential items. Steve even saw one runner who must have been given shoes by the race sponsor, take the shoes off at the 2nd mile and hide them in the bushes so he could pick them up after the race.
Luckily for Steve there were rain showers throughout the race, cooling things off a bit but also increasing the humidity. It was hot! The course was an out and back route where you simply run far away to the turnaround place and then head back to the finish. The turnaround place seemed a little short to Steve. Running back toward the stadium and with the stadium in sight captain Steve was directed to turn around and do the out and back again! Geeze!!
Normally this would not have been a long distance to run but since captain Steve had not run for the past 7 days while sailing, the distance was taking it's toll. There were aid stations every 3 miles with local water and coconuts. Drinking the water in Vanuatu is not the best thing to do so Steve just got dehydrated instead.
After the 2nd out and back part of the race the stadium was now welcoming the runners home. Watching Steve cross the finish line admiral Maria, with our friend Donald who is also in the Blue Water Rally, stood there with many of the local population cheering and clapping. Captain Steve may not walk properly for some time now he thinks.
The sail to Australia should take us about 10 days and we hope the weather is nice to us this time!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Thursday, July 29, 2010
One Gale & One Knockdown
S/Y Aspen – July 30, 2010 – Log #46
Position: 17 degrees 44’ S 168 degrees 18.0’ E (UTC +11 Hours)
Port Vila, Vanuatu
The forecast was not the best but it promised to be a tolerable sail to our next stop, Vanuatu, as we departed Fiji. We stocked up on some great Fiji drinking water and sailed out of Musket Cove and our protected marina located behind the reef that encircles Fiji.
The wind was blowing 20 knots and it helped push us merrily on our way westward. This leg is a 520 mile passage and we expected it to take 4 nights and 5 days. Nearly the entire Rally fleet was with us so it was fun keeping in contact as we sailed near one another.
On our third day at sea Fiji issued a Gale warning for our area. A Gale means we should expect winds in excessive of 30 knots. Unfortunately Fiji was a day late with their warning since we had the gale on our second night! Geeze!!
At night we always reduce our sails for safety, just in case something like this happens. In this case we had reduced them even further because the winds were very strong, gusting up to 48 knots now and the seas uncomfortable, to say the least. Yet we felt secure with our nighttime preparations as we sailed into the night.
At about 7:00 pm one of the larger waves came hissing alongside Aspen and it decided to see what the other side of Aspen looked like. Instead of just peeking around our stern this rather enormous wave made a path right over the top of Aspen, dumping it contents of sea water right on top of us! Water poured in through our companionway and even through the dorade vents that are designed NOT to let water into the boat. That was not nice!
Maria has some choice words to say about this, as you might imagine!!
We then closed the companion way top and even put a board in place, something we have never had to do before.
It was so rough and uncomfortable that we decided not to go out into the cockpit for our watches but to stay below, popping our heads outside every 20 minutes to look for other ships. Again, safety first for the crew.
Our trusty autopilot had control of Aspen as we sailed through the blackness, steering us far better than either of us could in these foul conditions. The wind began shrieking through the rigging with a high pitched scream, as huge seas hurtled themselves against the side and stern of Aspen, trying to throw Aspen off her course but to no avail, luckily. We were now setting records with our speed, topping out at nearly 10 knots with very little sail up!
At the darkest hour of 11:20 pm, on Maria's watch of course, Aspen sailed beside the trough of a large wave and leaned normally toward her left side to take the force of the wave that would come at us. This wave must have been a monster because it immediately threw Aspen violently in the opposite direction causing Aspen's right side to became parallel with the sea as we lost all forward motion and control and stopped instantly. Water poured in through the little opening in our companionway as things became abnormally quiet inside of Aspen where we were huddled. That is called a knockdown!
It seemed like an eternity that we laid on our side but it was in fact no more than 5 seconds before Aspen proudly rose up from the sea, shook herself off as she seemed to sneer at the cascading waves all around before continuing strongly on her way westward carrying her precious crew with her.
We arrived safely and without any damage to Aspen in Port Vila, Vanuatu early this morning.
Oh yes, Maria and Steve are fine too!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Position: 17 degrees 44’ S 168 degrees 18.0’ E (UTC +11 Hours)
Port Vila, Vanuatu
The forecast was not the best but it promised to be a tolerable sail to our next stop, Vanuatu, as we departed Fiji. We stocked up on some great Fiji drinking water and sailed out of Musket Cove and our protected marina located behind the reef that encircles Fiji.
The wind was blowing 20 knots and it helped push us merrily on our way westward. This leg is a 520 mile passage and we expected it to take 4 nights and 5 days. Nearly the entire Rally fleet was with us so it was fun keeping in contact as we sailed near one another.
On our third day at sea Fiji issued a Gale warning for our area. A Gale means we should expect winds in excessive of 30 knots. Unfortunately Fiji was a day late with their warning since we had the gale on our second night! Geeze!!
At night we always reduce our sails for safety, just in case something like this happens. In this case we had reduced them even further because the winds were very strong, gusting up to 48 knots now and the seas uncomfortable, to say the least. Yet we felt secure with our nighttime preparations as we sailed into the night.
At about 7:00 pm one of the larger waves came hissing alongside Aspen and it decided to see what the other side of Aspen looked like. Instead of just peeking around our stern this rather enormous wave made a path right over the top of Aspen, dumping it contents of sea water right on top of us! Water poured in through our companionway and even through the dorade vents that are designed NOT to let water into the boat. That was not nice!
Maria has some choice words to say about this, as you might imagine!!
We then closed the companion way top and even put a board in place, something we have never had to do before.
It was so rough and uncomfortable that we decided not to go out into the cockpit for our watches but to stay below, popping our heads outside every 20 minutes to look for other ships. Again, safety first for the crew.
Our trusty autopilot had control of Aspen as we sailed through the blackness, steering us far better than either of us could in these foul conditions. The wind began shrieking through the rigging with a high pitched scream, as huge seas hurtled themselves against the side and stern of Aspen, trying to throw Aspen off her course but to no avail, luckily. We were now setting records with our speed, topping out at nearly 10 knots with very little sail up!
At the darkest hour of 11:20 pm, on Maria's watch of course, Aspen sailed beside the trough of a large wave and leaned normally toward her left side to take the force of the wave that would come at us. This wave must have been a monster because it immediately threw Aspen violently in the opposite direction causing Aspen's right side to became parallel with the sea as we lost all forward motion and control and stopped instantly. Water poured in through the little opening in our companionway as things became abnormally quiet inside of Aspen where we were huddled. That is called a knockdown!
It seemed like an eternity that we laid on our side but it was in fact no more than 5 seconds before Aspen proudly rose up from the sea, shook herself off as she seemed to sneer at the cascading waves all around before continuing strongly on her way westward carrying her precious crew with her.
We arrived safely and without any damage to Aspen in Port Vila, Vanuatu early this morning.
Oh yes, Maria and Steve are fine too!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Fiji Fun
Happy Birthday Maria in Fiji!
Captain Steve drinking Kava.
Paul, a sailor on Jackamy didn't care for the Kava.
Dinghy Races in TongaTuesday, July 20, 2010
More of Fiji
Wild captain sailing between the reefs!
The village is above water at low tide but at high tide it can get a little wet!
The Copra Shed Marina at Savusavu, Fiji
Aspen didn't go to the marina but took a mooring ball. It seemed safer (see the picture above).Saturday, July 17, 2010
Kava, Birthdays and Reefs
S/Y Aspen – July 20, 2010 – Log #45
Position: 17 degrees 46’ S 177 degrees 11.0’ E (UTC +12 Hours)
Fiji
Kava, Birthdays and Reefs
The sail from the Cook Islands to Fiji took us 4 days with tolerable winds and seas and we passed the international dateline. Passing the date line means that we are now in the eastern hemisphere and we are a day ahead of the rest of you. So if you want to know the future just ask us!
With about 70 miles to go before we entered Fiji, in the dark of course, Captain Steve noticed a blip on the chart plotter that indicated a ship coming directly at Aspen's bow. As he analyzed the approaching target he activated the radar and again plotted the position of the ship - on a collision course with Aspen and moving fast. Our electronics enables us to positively identify an approaching ship and in this case our target was called EOS. It was a 305 foot sailing ship and making 17 knots right toward our bow.
Captain Steve used his not-so-friendly voice as he called EOS on the radio. EOS answered quickly and after several minutes of discussion EOS was persuaded to look at their radar to identify Aspen directly ahead of them. EOS thanked Aspen for contacting them and asked for passing information. Captain Steve said we will pass port to port, knowing that EOS would be forced closer to the reefs than Aspen. EOS agreed, without looking at their chart, and the game was on! Eventually as EOS passed Aspen port-to-port they again called Aspen and announced that they would have to change course in order to miss the extensive reefs directly in their path. Duh, they finally decided to look at their chart!!! EOS now became very interested in Aspen's travels and we talked for quite some time as we eventually bid each other a pleasant voyage.
After some research on the internet we discovered that EOS is the 2nd largest private sailing vessel in the world and is owned by Diane Von Furstenburg, the famous fashion designer. Maria was disappointed that she didn't throw us a care package of clothes as she passed.
Arriving in Savusavu, Fiji we were warmly greeted by the village elders. A Kava ceremony was organized for the Blue Water Rally and representatives from all of the countries in the Rally were requested to share in a toast with the head of the village. Captain Steve represented the USA. The other countries present were the UK, Sweden, Holland and Canada. However, there are sailors in the Rally from Ireland, Scotland, and Iceland but they are females and a Kava ceremony is restricted to men it seems.
In time honored tradition the visiting sailors sat alongside the head of the village and were offered a cup of Kava, one representative at a time. Kava is a non-narcotic, non-alcoholic drink made from the Kava plant. It is made from the root of the Kava plant and mixed with water in a large wooden ceremonial bowl. A half coconut is dipped into the ceremonial bowl for each representative. The first cup should make your mouth numb and after many cups of Kava your body is supposed to become numb. You must drink the entire half coconut full of Kava in one drink and clap your hands together three times afterward. Captain Steve's turn came all too soon and as he drank the pale brown liquid he could only think of dirty dish water, that is how it tasted to him. As Captain Steve successfully drank the entire amount everyone clapped three times signifying their pleasure. Captain Steve's mouth did not turn numb nor did any other part of his body!
After the ceremony everyone had a chance to try Kava. Admiral Maria thought it was disgusting and agreed it tasted like dishwater.
Both Maria's birthday and Steve's birthday were celebrated this month. Steve's was first with a nice party that Maria arranged on Tonga at a local restaurant. Steve's birthday fell on Sunday, July 4th and everything in Tonga is supposed to be closed on Sundays by order of the King since it is a religious day. However, rules can be broken and a very friendly local restaurant called the Giggling Whale opened for the Blue Water Rally celebration. Maria had a nice cake ready for Steve and the party was well attended. Some of the British in the Rally conveniently had trouble remembering the significance of July the 4th in the USA :) The party lasted into the night until the local police came by and had a talk with the owner of the restaurant complaining about the excessive noise. It was a nice end to a great day!
Maria's birthday was celebrated at the Copra Shed Marina in Savusavu, Fiji. Once again the Rally sailors showed up in time for happy hour and were treated to a fantastic chocolate cake that a local lady baked for Maria. The birthday song was appreciated by Maria and included an extra verse that the British use when they sing the song. Maria also enjoyed a 1.5 hour massage as her present and the massage was rated excellent by Maria. The local price for a massage is $15 US and no tips can be accepted because it is rude to tip in Fiji! Happy Birthday Maria!
There are reefs everywhere in Fiji hidden amongst the 322 sun-drenched tropical islands. The guidebooks that we have are 20-30 years old but our electronic charts are accurate. Even so, one of the Rally boats managed to collide with a reef going 5 knots. Luckily they are a steel boat so they worked themselves off the reef after about 5 minutes and continued on their way. They have now joined the Reefers Club!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
Position: 17 degrees 46’ S 177 degrees 11.0’ E (UTC +12 Hours)
Fiji
Kava, Birthdays and Reefs
The sail from the Cook Islands to Fiji took us 4 days with tolerable winds and seas and we passed the international dateline. Passing the date line means that we are now in the eastern hemisphere and we are a day ahead of the rest of you. So if you want to know the future just ask us!
With about 70 miles to go before we entered Fiji, in the dark of course, Captain Steve noticed a blip on the chart plotter that indicated a ship coming directly at Aspen's bow. As he analyzed the approaching target he activated the radar and again plotted the position of the ship - on a collision course with Aspen and moving fast. Our electronics enables us to positively identify an approaching ship and in this case our target was called EOS. It was a 305 foot sailing ship and making 17 knots right toward our bow.
Captain Steve used his not-so-friendly voice as he called EOS on the radio. EOS answered quickly and after several minutes of discussion EOS was persuaded to look at their radar to identify Aspen directly ahead of them. EOS thanked Aspen for contacting them and asked for passing information. Captain Steve said we will pass port to port, knowing that EOS would be forced closer to the reefs than Aspen. EOS agreed, without looking at their chart, and the game was on! Eventually as EOS passed Aspen port-to-port they again called Aspen and announced that they would have to change course in order to miss the extensive reefs directly in their path. Duh, they finally decided to look at their chart!!! EOS now became very interested in Aspen's travels and we talked for quite some time as we eventually bid each other a pleasant voyage.
After some research on the internet we discovered that EOS is the 2nd largest private sailing vessel in the world and is owned by Diane Von Furstenburg, the famous fashion designer. Maria was disappointed that she didn't throw us a care package of clothes as she passed.
Arriving in Savusavu, Fiji we were warmly greeted by the village elders. A Kava ceremony was organized for the Blue Water Rally and representatives from all of the countries in the Rally were requested to share in a toast with the head of the village. Captain Steve represented the USA. The other countries present were the UK, Sweden, Holland and Canada. However, there are sailors in the Rally from Ireland, Scotland, and Iceland but they are females and a Kava ceremony is restricted to men it seems.
In time honored tradition the visiting sailors sat alongside the head of the village and were offered a cup of Kava, one representative at a time. Kava is a non-narcotic, non-alcoholic drink made from the Kava plant. It is made from the root of the Kava plant and mixed with water in a large wooden ceremonial bowl. A half coconut is dipped into the ceremonial bowl for each representative. The first cup should make your mouth numb and after many cups of Kava your body is supposed to become numb. You must drink the entire half coconut full of Kava in one drink and clap your hands together three times afterward. Captain Steve's turn came all too soon and as he drank the pale brown liquid he could only think of dirty dish water, that is how it tasted to him. As Captain Steve successfully drank the entire amount everyone clapped three times signifying their pleasure. Captain Steve's mouth did not turn numb nor did any other part of his body!
After the ceremony everyone had a chance to try Kava. Admiral Maria thought it was disgusting and agreed it tasted like dishwater.
Both Maria's birthday and Steve's birthday were celebrated this month. Steve's was first with a nice party that Maria arranged on Tonga at a local restaurant. Steve's birthday fell on Sunday, July 4th and everything in Tonga is supposed to be closed on Sundays by order of the King since it is a religious day. However, rules can be broken and a very friendly local restaurant called the Giggling Whale opened for the Blue Water Rally celebration. Maria had a nice cake ready for Steve and the party was well attended. Some of the British in the Rally conveniently had trouble remembering the significance of July the 4th in the USA :) The party lasted into the night until the local police came by and had a talk with the owner of the restaurant complaining about the excessive noise. It was a nice end to a great day!
Maria's birthday was celebrated at the Copra Shed Marina in Savusavu, Fiji. Once again the Rally sailors showed up in time for happy hour and were treated to a fantastic chocolate cake that a local lady baked for Maria. The birthday song was appreciated by Maria and included an extra verse that the British use when they sing the song. Maria also enjoyed a 1.5 hour massage as her present and the massage was rated excellent by Maria. The local price for a massage is $15 US and no tips can be accepted because it is rude to tip in Fiji! Happy Birthday Maria!
There are reefs everywhere in Fiji hidden amongst the 322 sun-drenched tropical islands. The guidebooks that we have are 20-30 years old but our electronic charts are accurate. Even so, one of the Rally boats managed to collide with a reef going 5 knots. Luckily they are a steel boat so they worked themselves off the reef after about 5 minutes and continued on their way. They have now joined the Reefers Club!
Sail on sail on Aspen...
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