Suwarrow (Part 2) - Some you win.....

Still a long way to go

Suwarrow atoll really is the remotest place we have visited.  It took us 5 days to get here and our next stop Tonga is 6 days away.  The Cook Islands which it belongs to spreads over 2 million sq km with only a scattering of 15 small islands and atolls.  This atoll is uninhabited except for 6 months of the year when a Ranger – Harry and his wife Vaine – come to stay to do all the immigration formalities for cruisers on their way from Panama to New Zealand/Australia.

Harry doing paperwork in his shelter

It’s pretty inhospitable but devastatingly beautiful.  It is also graced with some pretty temperamental weather.  The passage from French Polynesia to islands further west is renowned for being difficult.  A fact not lost on us as we languished in FP for nearly 15 months.  I took to monitoring some in depth weather.  Starting with El Nino which was advancing each month in likelihood of developing, then taking into account the SPCZ (South Pacific Convergence Zone) which is a vicious convergence front that whips up squalls of up to 70 knots and finally the MJO the Madden Julian Oscillation which circulates around the globe at the equator on a 30-60 day basis and effectively exaggerates any weather it comes in touch with.

Needless to say that in spite of all this monitoring and careful planning as to when to leave, it was the SPCZ and the MJO which got us.  Hey ho.  But here we are thanking our lucky stars.  After all what were the chances of finding a spare head sail in Suwarrow!

What’s more it’s slightly too small which means we can doctor it to use on Zenna.  Too big and we wouldn’t have been able to get it on the furler making it very impractical to use.  So now we have to start making all the necessary adjustments.  The side of the sail that goes up the furler is 23 meters.  Thanks to another cruiser who’s pointed out that if we unpick one of the seams along this side we will be able to remove the old cord and re-stitch the one from Zenna in.  We have a tool on board called a quick stitch – a total misnomer.  But it’s what we used to re-stitch the seam. 

How long did you say this seam was?

Yet another use for the good ole coconut tree

It took about 2 days to unpick and re-stitch, including taking the sail to shore as there wasn’t space on the boat to tension the seam to drag out the old chord and drag in the new.  All accomplished but we still held our breath – would it go up the track.  It does but it’s too short to reach the top and we need a swuaged metal pennant to make up the difference.  Enter the funny metal strap that’s sat in the cockpit locker for the past 5 years.   

Not such a relaxing swim!

Now the major works are out the way, we can have some fun which includes a visit to the manta cleaning station where an unusual black ray pirouettes around his partner.  He even allowed Mark to shadow his movements.  Then to some stunning coral along the northern reef and a brief swim past the stricken yacht to see the damage from underwater.  Relatively little to see, you get more of an insight looking into the hatches of the yacht and seeing the coral poking up through the floor. 

You do this with the blunt side of the machete!

 

Fry 'em up Vaine

I also get a cooking lesson from Vaine who shows me how they make pancakes out of ‘oto’ which is the pulp you get instead of coconut water when a coconut starts to sprout.  They are delicious and are now a staple for our crossings as they can be made in advance. 

We are only allowed 14 days here and we know we have to leave soon, so Mark gets in some fishing.  Rainbow runners seem to just jump into the dinghy.  Another barbeque is planned and he provides the protein whilst another boat shows up with a metre long pumpkin which is delicious on the bbq.  We don’t hang around long tho – we’ve defrosted our last Cote de boeuf from Tahiti and head back to the boat with some pumpkin.

   

 

With oto pancakes in the fridge we prepare to head off rather tentatively with our new headsail.  It’s a challenging sail yet again.  The only good thing that can be said about passage making is that you lose weight.  Not surprising really as you spend 24 hours a day being thrown around and constantly have to keep your balance – even as you sleep.  Not to mention feeling queasy so eating loses its appeal.  Surely there’s a market to be tapped?  So now I’m enjoying jettisoning the Tahiti pounds.  Unfortunately the body that appears is not the one I left behind 20 years ago when I was last this weight.  Sails in Suwarrow - yes. A 40 year olds body - no! 

Back on the road with a new sail, works a dream!