Kava on Espirito Santo in Vanuatu - Blog

Vanuatu is an island nation in the southwest Pacific Ocean, north of New Zealand and east of Australia. Vanuatu's main boat ports are Port Vila on the island of Efate and Luganville on the island of Espiritu Santo, meaning 'Holy Spirit'. Espiritu Santo with a surface area of 3955.5 km, is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, which includes over 83 islands. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu, and belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia.

On western-central Espiritu Santo lies Vanuatu's highest peak, 1879 metre Mount Tabwemasana.

Volcano in Vanuatu
The blue lagoon in Vanuatu

Last night on the island of Espirito Santo

Last night on the island of Espirito Santo the fleet gathered at the Beachfront Resort for a supper of pizza and pasta. The weather having been glorious for a few days turned wet and blustery making for interesting dinghy landings on the beach, more than one crewmember showed up having had an involuntary dip in the choppy but warm sea. The holding is good however in the anchorage and conditions are forecast to improve by start time on Tuesday.

The resort supplied some Kava for those who have developed a taste for it, or at least a tolerance of the taste. Drinking Kava produces a chilled mellow feeling and no hangover but tastes like someone has mashed up a particularly bitter tree root and mixed it with water, which indeed they have. Many have been sampling it in Tonga, Fiji, and Vanuatu but last nights session was to be the last as the South Pacific part of the journey is almost over.

The yachts will leave here on Tuesday for Australia, the halfway point of the rally. Most of the World ARC yachts that are leaving us have already peeled off to start their own cruising but Harmonie, Storyteller and Southern Princess have come up to Espirito Santo to say last goodbyes to the friends they have made on the way.

Hugh and Val of Blueflyer the last of our halfwayers are still with us for the next leg. Despite setbacks they are now almost in Australia where they plan to start a new life in Melbourne. Hugh had to fly home from Bora Bora for surgery on his back but amazed us all by returning to the boat in Fiji to continue with the rally. Now battling battery problems on the boat they, along with crewmember Darryn are determined to stay with us until Cairns. Last night was exactly one year since they left Dublin on the boat, provoking jokes that the Irish weather seemed to have followed them.

Doublehanders Oscar and Maura of Calli Due are also back sailing having repaired their rudderstock in Port Vila, they are now heading directly to Australia. All the crews were very relived and glad to see them safely in Port Vila when the fleet got there from Tanna.

Now a busy day is planned with clearing out of Vanuatu and the skippers briefing. Many participants who have not yet done so are also planning to dive on the SS President Coolidge that sank in the Segond channel in 1942. Another must do is to dive or snorkel off Million Dollar Point where tonnes of military equipment was dumped at the end of the war. This island where James Michener was inspired to write Tales of the South Pacific has got many sailors vowing to return sometime.