12-2019 Diving and Trekking in Espritu Santo

Hi from Clare,           12-2019 Diving and Trekking in Espritu Santo    18^th October 2019

THE ATTRACTION OF LUGANVILLE

Espritu Santo is the biggest island and its capital, Luganville, is the second largest town in Vanuatu. It is less developed than Port Vila but it has some much sort after tourist attractions. There is diving both Million Dollar Point and the wreck of the SS President Coolidge and also trekking to The Millennium Cave.

 Sunset in Luganville

MILLION DOLLAR POINT

Andrew and I, along with Ian and Cindy on ‘Oyster Reach’, dived Million Dollar Point named so because of the amount of equipment dumped there by the Americans at the end of WW2. The American Military offered to sell their surplus equipment to the British and French ruling countries. Thinking that the Americans would be forced to abandon the equipment and they would get it for free, they said “no deal”. Much to their surprise the Americans proceeded to build a long pier out into the channel east of Luganville and dump millions of dollars worth of equipment into the sea.

Million Dollar Point

 Some of the equipment

The dive site is up to 50 metres deep and we swam down 20 metres to see the huge pile of gear. There is said to be large jeeps, six-wheeler trucks, gigantic bulldozers, forklifts, semi-trailers, tractors, ambulances, large bound sheets of corrugated iron, sealed boxes of clothing and of course the crates of Coca-Cola. It was fascinating but quite distressing to see the waste and I couldn’t help but wonder how the military men felt dumping all this valuable equipment. It is said that the locals witnessing the bizarre act by the US military considered it to be an act of madness.

More Equipment

 Clare

SS PRESIDENT COOLIDGE

The next day we dived on the SS President Coolidge. This ship was built as a luxury liner and when WW2 broke out it was pressed into service as a troop carrier. When arriving into Luganville she hit two ‘friendly’ mines and subsequently sank. It took several hours for the vessel to sink and of the 5000 personnel on board only two lives were lost.

To get to the dive site we walked in off the beach. Getting in and out of the water was the hardest part of the dive. The water was very choppy with a large surge which knocked us off balance. It was necessary to wear our sandals walking on the dead coral and then change into our dive fins once in chest deep water. This was difficult with the additional weight of air tank and weight belt. Poor Andrew got the job of putting my fins on for me as I held onto the dive master. Once settled, the dive was easy but the visibility was poor. I’m not keen on wreck dives, I find them boring, I much prefer seeing tropical fish and coral. So although the Coolidge is recognised as one of the premier wreck dives and some enthusiasts do multiple dives on it, I haven’t changed my opinion of wreck dives. While Ian, Cindy and I went shopping, Andrew went for a second dive on the Coolidge with the dive master. They entered the wreck and saw tanks, trucks, aircraft fuel tanks, ammunition and a medical kit.

The Coolidge Interior

Some Medicine

MILLENNIUM CAVES OR NOT

The following day we all considered doing a trek to the Millennium Caves. In the end only Andrew and Cindy went as Ian had a tropical infection to his leg and I decided the all day trek was too strenuous for me. The trip is divided into four parts – trekking, caving, canyoning and swimming. Along with one other tourist and three guides they walked into the bush along narrow tracks, bamboo bridges and ladders before descending to the river and down into the cave. The cave has a high ceiling and is home to many nesting swallows and some bats, which they could see by torchlight. They waded through the river climbing over rocks and once out of the cave they stopped for lunch and a swim in a small water hole near a waterfall at the entrance.

 Ladders going up

Ladders going down

The Millennium Cave

So they then entered the canyoning portion of the trip. They climbed over and under boulders with the help of strategic hand and foot holds and then floated down the Sarakata river taking in the breath-taking scenery with jungle overhanging shear rock faces.

Canyoning

Floating down the river

Once out of the river there is a steep climb up to the ridge and the pathway back to the village. From here they walked another twenty minutes to the village where the car was and a forty five minute drive back to the boat. Andrew arrived home around 6pm after a very long a strenuous day. At times he said his leg muscles where shaking from the exertion and he said I wouldn’t have enjoyed the day – I’m sure he is right:)

SO WHAT'S NEXT

So we all having a quiet day today just relaxing on our boats. We are in a very pretty bay which is very calm. Tonight we are having a sun downer with Ian and Cindy on ‘Oyster Reach’. Ian’s leg wound has improved and so tomorrow we will move a little further north and explore some new territory. We plan to be back in Port Vila around the end of the month. We will then start thinking about packing the boat up and flying home in mid November.

Love Candy xx

11-2019 Heading north to Luganville

Hi from Clare,     11-2019 Heading north to Luganville          12^th October 2019

Today is the thirteenth day of our trip from Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu, to Luganville which is the second largest town in Vanuatu. The distance is only 150 miles but we have stopped at many places along the way to enjoy the village hospitality and learn more about the Vanuatu culture.

We arrived at the island of Epi on 29^th September in company with three other yachts. We have known Mark on ‘Macushla’ for a number of years having sailed with him across two oceans and through the Caribbean. We made new American friends, Ian and Cindy on ‘Oyster Reach’ and together we are travelling up to Luganville. British couple, Steve and Jody on Ena Vigo are also new to us although known through our radio net.

Our anchorage at Epi Island

Lamen Bay, Epi, is a small but industrious community. The village houses and gardens are well maintained. We found the ladies making baskets from palm reeds and we had breakfast at a most attractive hut decorated with shells. The breakfast of eggs, toast, local fruit, pancakes with local jam, tea or coffee was delicious and cost $5.

Village ladies making multi purpose baskets

At Breakfast Left Cindy, Andrew, Clare, Right Steve, Ian, Jodi

The snorkelling was good, we found large turtles, but no dugong. It always amazes us that when snorkelling we always find something we haven’t seen before. The photo below shows a living creature that looks like a piece of wool spread over the coral, but when disturbed the tentacles retract back to one central point; quite fascinating to watch.

Ocean creature

Our next stop was Port Sandwich. No sooner had we dropped the anchor that a canoe came alongside welcoming us with gifts of papaya, and grapefruit. When walking ashore that afternoon, small children gave us lemons and bananas. The next morning was market day so we set out at 6.30am with Ian and Cindy of ‘Oyster Reach’ and Steve and Jodi of ‘Ena Vigo’ to arrive in time for the early morning 7am market. I think someone forgot to tell the locals the start time as no seller arrived until 9am. We stocked up on fresh vegetables and I bought a dozen eggs. You can imagine how surprised I was that night to discovered that the eggs were hard boiled.

Receiving local fruit upon arrival

The local market at Port Sandwich

The three kilometre walk to market gave us an opportunity to see the small villages along the way. The people came out to talk to us and seemed genuinely interested in where we came from and how long we had been cruising. Even the children would step forward without hesitation to shake hands, it is very cute.

Village houses

Village children on the way to the market

Port Sandwich is a very deep bay and has a number of rivers to explore by dinghy. We packed a picnic lunch and along with Ian and Cindy from ‘Oyster Reach’ we motored our dinghies up the rivers enjoying the explosion of tropical foliage teaming with bird life.

 Our trip up the river

Our next stop was at Banam Bay where we organised a walk to a waterfall and some traditional dancing. The people here live in small communities of extended families. All the huts are in close proximity. The people seemed very happy and contented, they smile a lot. We met a mother carrying a one year old child who shook our hands unprompted, it was very endearing. We couldn’t help but notice that we haven’t heard any small children crying in the village communities. There seems to be endless child minders carrying little ones around.

The Gorgeous Children from Banam Bay

The walk to the waterfall was easy on flat ground and mostly in the shade of fruit trees. The chief from the first village was our guide. The waterfall was owned by the next village so we had to ask permission from that chief to see his waterfall. So the chief from the second village came along with us and showed us the various edible plants along the way. We were given a cacao fruit to suck on. The outside of the bean is white, soft and sweet and only bitter if you bite into the brown bean. It was a good experience as the people are very welcoming. Andrew and Ian from ‘Oyster Reach’ enjoyed a dip in the pool at the base of the waterfall. The girls were content to just wade in up to our knees.

Andrew having a dip in the waterfall

The two chiefs with Andrew, Ian with the local lads

In the afternoon we returned to the first village to see the dance show, Unlike other communities we have experienced, the men danced in one area and the woman in another. Their tradition in this village is that the village women are not allowed to watch the men dancing. We think the men we saw dancing really enjoyed themselves. We then went to another location and watched the woman dance. Their dancing was similar to what we have seen before but there was more participation by small girls who joined in enthusiastically.

The village men dancing

The village women dancing

It was with some regret we left this community and sailed the following morning to Port Stanley. This is a busy location with a wharf, lots of cars, and townships that have been established long ago by the French and English. We hitched a ride in the back of a four wheel drive for $1 to the township of Lakatoro. We were hoping to visit a local handy craft shop which has a good reputation. However it was shut and none of the local people could tell us when it might be opened again. Not to worry, we consoled ourselves with a visit to a chocolate factory instead and bought some rather tasty dark chocolate.

Earlier that morning a local family from Selenamboro village on Uri Island came out to our boat for a chat. The guy, David, asked Andrew if he would help him wire his new house for electric light. So Andrew spent a few hours that afternoon cobbling it together and as he said, probably breaking all the wiring rules. However by the end of the day the job was complete and the local guy was a happy man. Now he needs lights to use with his solar powered battery.

Andrew at work

David with his first light switch

The following morning we sailed to Wala Island. We were instantly met by a local offering a tour of the island for $5 with a basket of local fruit at the end. So we went for a walk around the island but we have to say the guide was very hard to understand. When talking about local customs, it was difficult to determine whether he was talking about now or a custom from the past, so we didn’t learn a lot. The fruit at the end was most generous. We ended up with mangoes, papaya, bananas, grapefruit, ginger and cucumber. The guide asked Andrew to check his house batteries and wanted any spare rope we might have to tie his house roof down in preparation for the next cyclone. He also asked if I could put some movies on his USB stick. I agreed thinking I could just give him what we had, but no, he only wanted action movies and musicals. So I spent quite a few hours during the night sorting through our movies to give him what he wanted. He was pretty happy this morning when he came by at 6.30am to collect the two sticks he gave us yesterday. We have concluded after the last few days that the requests are always larger and more complicated than first anticipated.

Yesterday morning we sailed to Vao Island and had a good walk with a chief who couldn’t speak English. French is the second language for these islanders. However the chief managed quite well explaining that where we were walking was tabu unless we were with the chief. It was an area of traditional ceremonies usually including the killing of a pig. There are six tam tam drums (hollow logs), one for each village on the island. Each tam tam has its own sound and that is how the chief calls the people of that village to assembly. The tam tam can be heard from a great distance.

Ian, Andrew and the chief in front of the tam tam

SO WHAT’S NEXT

This morning we sailed to Espirito-Santo. We caught a very nice tuna on the way so we are sharing dinner with Oyster Reach tonight. We don’t know how long we will stay here but we want to dive on the wreck of the President Coolidge which is a World War 2 troop ship that sank after running into a friendly mine. Also Million Dollar Point where the American government dumped all their equipment at the end of the war. We also want to see Luganville township before sailing back to Port villa.

We have very much enjoyed our trip north and we think Vanuatu is a lovely country.

Love Candy xx