April 2024
On the first, Shawn dinghied in to the marina to pick up Daniel and Crystal for this months leg and managed to get permission from the Marina Manager to take Imagination alongside for one last time, just for a few hours whilst we provisioned. And so, after Crystal had settled in a little, we moved back onto the dock before walking into town. We had a local lunch before starting the shopping which this month seemed to be much easier than usual….probably because we found most of what we needed in one store. Once back on board and with everything put away, we moved back out to the anchorage where, although a little rolly, we had a nice breeze. After dinner, Daniel went ashore for a while to have a drink with friends he had made over the last couple of weeks. Tuesday 2nd was a watery day, with everyone snorkelling in the morning trying to find a wreck in choppy and windy conditions. Later, all but Ally did a dive in 2 parts on a couple of other wrecks they managed to locate. That evening, we all went ashore for happy hour drinks before returning to Godfather’s for one last time. Tonight it was “Taco Tuesday”, so we enjoyed eating there but unfortunately The Gigolos weren’t playing ( their only night off!!) and there was a rather dull DJ just sat playing tunes we’d never heard before. Needless to say, we didn’t stay out late which was probably just as well as we had an early start on the 3rd. We had the anchor up by 06.30 and had a very pleasant 4.5 hour sail to Tinian, and rather than going back into the harbour where we anchored last time, we stayed in Lasarino Beach where we relaxed for the afternoon. We had another early departure the next day ( 05.55) and had a good journey, although this time, we did have more of a roll with a following sea. During the 9 hour sail, we hooked into a couple of fish, but lost them before finally reeling in a good sized Mahi Mahi – 3rd time lucky. We anchored outside East Harbour, Sasanhaya Bay, Rota at 15.45, the last of the Northern Mariana Islands we would be visiting, and once again we were the only yacht in the area. We went ashore to have a look around and not long after leaving the Harbour area, a car stopped and a guy got out to talk to us. He was a Police Sergeant who introduced himself as Shaw, before he went on to ask where we had come from, how long we would be staying and what was the purpose of our visit. He was friendly and chatty and when we told him we would be wanting to leave early on Monday ( today was Thursday) he told us we should do the clearance with Port Authority and Customs tomorrow as neither of them work over the weekend. He took our telephone number and told us he would arrange for the authorities to be available and would be in touch. He welcomed us to Rota before he went on his way, and as we made our way around the small village named Songsong, we were greeted by several residents who stopped to chat and many more gave us smiles and what is known as the “Rota wave” – thumb and little finger up. As we walked we noticed many disused and derelict buildings, including a huge basketball hall where inside, there were still trophies lying around beside the water logged court. Sad to see the decline in these beautiful places. The following morning ( Friday 5th) we had a call from Shaw who arranged to pick Ally and Shawn up at 10.00 and take them to do the paperwork for departure on Monday. Passing via the West Harbour and his home to drop something off, he took us on a 15 minute drive up to the airport where the formalities were dealt with swiftly. Shaw was a very interesting guy who filled us in with a ton of information about his various roles as part of law enforcement agencies who work very closely with mainland USA, American Samoa, Guam and occasionally Australia, investigating drugs and human trafficking amongst other things. He drove to a couple of spots of interest so that we could get our bearings for hiring a car for ourselves and was very knowledgeable, informative and articulate….we could have spent hours chatting to him. It was great, whilst in his car, to get a little insight into what kind of jobs he got involved in as he took calls from other team members and he gave us a bit of background to the investigations. Who would have thought a Police Officer on a small island like Rota would be so busy, although there is sure to be a lot of down time too. He told us that in the 1980’s, 5000 people lived here, but now just 1500 remain, hence the empty and run down properties and businesses. Due to the high cost of living, lack of jobs and further education, most young people move to other islands or to mainland US and never return. Such a shame as there used to be a thriving tourist industry here and there could be again if only the investment was there. That afternoon, Shawn, Daniel and Crystal did a dive while Ally prepped food for a BBQ .
We hired a car on the Saturday 6th and we were out from around 10.15 until 7pm ish! Another one of those days where we thought we wouldn’t be out too long as it is so small! It is very pretty here with several WWII points of interested that we enjoyed finding and exploring including Japanese cannons, one of which still rotates on it’s axis. But, if you move it and don’t put it back, you will cause an accident as it protrudes across the road. Just behind the cannon, Ally noticed a small cave and she and Crystal went in as far as they dared ( which wasn’t too far!) before deciding that it probably ran all the way along to the previous cannon spot we had seen. It was definitely not a tunnel built for Caucasians! There were various look outs over stunning views, caves that were used as an infirmary during the war and a gorgeous Bird Sanctuary area where we spotted several Kingfishers and many seabirds nesting on the cliffside. We stopped at a natural Swimming Hole mid afternoon, so that we could have a BBQ. There was a family and friends group of local ( Chamorro) people there who had camped out for the weekend – they were very welcoming and invited us to try some of their local delicacies as they chatted to us about local life and customs. Once we had eaten and had a dip, we moved on and found a Latte Stone Quarry ( mentioned in last months blog) and a sadly disused waterpark where we watched the sun set before returning to Imagination. Another superb day. Late morning on Sunday ( 7th), we moved across the bay a little to facilitate more diving and diving.
The anchor was up at 04.27 on Monday 8th and we were departing CNMI for Guam. We have thoroughly enjoyed everything that this area has to offer – it has been thought provoking and emotional as well as being bright and beautiful and lots of fun. A little sad to leave, but we feel we have done it justice. Guam is just a day sail away and we dropped the anchor at 14.47 in Apra Harbour after a gentle sail down. Until very recently, we weren’t sure if we were going to visit here as when planning the trip, we knew it was a US Island Territory (USIT) and entry requirements for Brits arriving on private yachts mean an embassy visit for a visa. However, as we were checked into CNMI which we discovered rather late is also a USIT, and as explained in last months Blog we were granted discretionary visas having been misinformed pre-arrival, Guam became a possibility. Two friendly Customs officers were ready and waiting to be picked up and brought on board for clearance ( even though were still technically cleared into the US, Customs still have to do their thing) and it didn’t take them long to do what they needed to do and after answering some of our queries, they were taken back ashore again. Much of Guam is home to US military bases with those areas being out of bounds and so not many cruising sailors come here – we continue to be a novelty. We had anchored very close to a dive spot where 2 wrecks sit together on the ocean floor, one from WWI and the other from WWII and both can be touched at the same time and so the next day ( 9th) Shawn, Daniel and Crystal did 2 dives to explore them. Ally remained onboard researching entry requirements for upcoming legs – an ongoing process!
Wednesday the 10th was another car hire day ( which was delivered an hour late without any notification or real apology) and we had a great time. We visited the landing grounds where 1000’s of US marines came ashore on 21st July 1944 and fought a fierce fight against the Japanese to take control of the area – the death toll for the US, Japan and Guam was massive. It was eerie to stand looking at the serene flat grassland and impossible to imagine the horrors of that day. We moved on and visited the tourist office where we were given helpful information and maps before we decided it was time for lunch. We found a Wendy’s which was a first for Ally and Shawn. We had our fill of burgers, fries and fizzy drinks before moving on to find other places of interest. As we drove towards a wildlife sanctuary ( where we didn’t see any wildlife other than butterflies) a Monitor Lizard ambled across the road in front of us without a care in the world! We visited an old Spanish Fort with very pretty views and as we started to head back to town we drove past the most amazing Christmas Tree. It was located on the opposite side of the road to a church and was constructed entirely of painted coconut husks. It was the most artistic, colourful, creative, ingenious creation that had us all looking at it for more than 10 minutes and taking many photos! By now the sun was getting low and we drove back to Hagatna to visit the night market. It was heaving with locals and tourists with massive queues for local food at the many stalls. We split up for a while to look at things at our own pace. Earlier on our travels we had seen some Carabao grazing at the road side and there was one at the market. These beasts of burden where introduced here from the Phillipines by the Spanish during their occupation between 1668 and 1898. It’s clear to see how they could be useful for working the land etc, but it was sad to see this particular creature being led around with a ring through it’s nose as child after child and adult after adult paid $3 for a 2 minute ride….he looked so sad 🙁
After just a few days here, it was time to leave and so on the morning of 11th, Ally and Shawn went ashore to find Customs and clear out. Once again, it was a fairly quick procedure and they were back onboard again within an hour. Guam is a little taste of mainland USA – 180000 people live here. It has very built up areas with 3 lane busy highways and in contrast, other areas of lush, tropical and green vegetation with rugged mountains as a backdrop. We definitely knew we were in a US territory as each evening we had a bugle playing the Retreat at sunset and every morning the Reveille before the US national anthem played through loud speakers across the harbour.
We were away by 13.30 and an hour later had dolphins with us for a short while. Our 4 night sail was a very comfortable one with light aft winds and we were able to fly our spinnaker for a prolonged period for the first time in what seems a very long time. Conditions were so settled, we left it flying over night which is not something we would normally do, but everyone was on standby and knew what to do in the event of conditions changing and we needed to get in down swiftly. Unfortunately, after our 3rd night, at 06.20, the halyard holding the spinnaker up snapped which resulted in the sail collapsing and falling into the sea and underneath Imagination. Thankfully all other lines were still attached so we weren’t going to lose it, but it was a group effort to retrieve it from the water and get it flying again. We noticed a few snags and tiny tears that will need to be sorted out for next time, but we are very lucky that we got away with only minor damage. During this crossing, we also had a couple of stowaways – a beautiful green 10cm Praying Mantis and a young Red-Footed Booby. The Mantis was resting on one of the reefing lines by the mast, but had moved, never to be seen again by the following morning. The Booby rested on the back solar panels for the night and had a good sleep before flying off to feed at sunrise, leaving behind a stinking mess!
We arrived in Colonia, Yap at 09.10 on 15th April. Yap is part of the Federated States of Micronesia and so it was a return to this country for us. Due to the location of the islands and wind direction, in order to visit The Northern Marianas, we had to depart and the return on our journey Eastwards. Shawn went ashore and was gone for some time while he cleared in with the officials and paid the fees. We all then went for a walk and look around to try and arrange some diving. Yap is known as the “land of The Stone Money” as many, many years ago, stone coins of various sizes were used as currency. I am not talking about money you can hold in your hand, I am talking coins measuring anything from 30cm to 1.5m, each with a hole in the centre to allow for transportation. Even the smaller ones were very heavy. Stone money that has survived is displayed outside of homes and official buildings and can be seen very readily. Due to Covid, only two out of 4 or 5 dive operators are still working – one of them is located in a resort and is super expensive ($220 for a 2 tank dive!) and the other was booked up by visiting scientists, so we put feelers out to try and find a “man and a boat” who would be willing to take divers out to a couple of spots. On Tuesday 16th, we all went for a hike on the Tamilyog Trail after lunch. It wasn’t a hard hike, but it was a very hot day with minimal breeze so we all took it at our own pace, taking in the views and pretty scenery as we went. We came across the wreckage of a WWII plane that was only discovered, along with the remains of the pilot, in 2006. Hard to believe that the poor chap had been laying there all that time and his family had no closure, but at the same time it’s not surprising as this island is covered in thick, green, tropical forest. It is another island that saw lots of battle action during WWII as the Japanese had an airbase here and I suspect there are many more undiscovered wrecks and crew hidden in the vast undergrowth. Having finished the trail from one end to the other, it was a long walk back to the bar we had decided to visit afterwards. The road just seemed to go on and on and unlike many other places we have been, no one stopped to offer a lift! In the end, we had walked 10 miles so we all deserved that well earned libation by the time we got to the bar where we also enjoyed a fabulous dinner too.
Another car was hired on the 17th and again, we were out exploring all day. Before we set off, we went to the fishery area where we were hoping to be updated about the possibility of diving. We were in luck, and arrangements were made for the 18th. As well us enjoying the scenery and areas of interest, we drove along an old Japanese airstrip where there were several plane wrecks in the vegetation and we found other wrecks along the way, too. Compared to the wrecks that we explored in the Marshall Islands, these all seem to be pretty well preserved – maybe because they don’t have children climbing all over them? We also visited an old Stone Money Bank where coin of all sizes had been deposited. The larger coins were obviously worth more than the smaller ones, but how they managed their money or worked out change, I don’t know. Shawn, Daniel and Crystal were off diving the following day. Mailing ( pronounced My-ling) picked them up in his very nice boat and took them off to dive with Manta Rays which they all thoroughly enjoyed. They returned to the boat for lunch and went out again mid afternoon. On the morning of the 19th, we went souvenir shopping and picked up a few other bits and pieces and then Shawn met the officials to clear out again as it was time for us to depart. We were away by 15.50 and had another great, downwind 3 night sail. The third night bought rain and lots of lightning but even though the wind gusted to 23kts, it was still very comfortable, if a little moist.
We were alongside the commercial dock in Malakal, Koror State, Palau at 10.40 on Monday 22nd, and were dealt with by officials quickly, although it was rather confusing as several came at once. There were fees to pay and so the Customs officer took Shawn in his car to pay some of them and we all then had to walk into town to get our passports back from Immigration who had taken them to stamp and issue our entry permit. Palau is exceptionally expensive for cruising yachts to visit with some fees only recently being massively inflated. We had to pay – 1) Foreign Water Vessel Tax $500 2) Vessel Entry fee $50 3) Dockage/line handler fee $38.50 3) Koror State Cruising Permit $40 4) Rock Islands and Jellyfish Lake Permit $100pp for 10 days. Good job we’re only here once! If yachts want to extend their stay, rather than reducing, the fees just keep going up. We know Palau is working very hard to preserve it’s natural beauty, reefs and sealife etc as well as promoting it as a vacation destination particularly for divers, but they do seem to be actively trying to discourage visiting yachts. The walk to Immigration was not a short one…in fact, it took us around an hour to get there ( 3.5 – 4 km). We then had to find the Treasury Office to pay the fee (2) before returning to collect our passports. We had walked that far into town, so we took the opportunity for a wander around some of the shops. After a flip flop blow out, Shawn bought the most expensive flip flops he has ever bought at $26, before we walked all the way back to the dock via the Rangers Office to pay for our permits (4). We got back to Imagination at around 5pm and moved off the dock immediately to anchor in the nearby anchorage for the night. Although Palau is not American, it has a free association with the States and as such uses the US$ and many of their supplies come from the US, too.
Tuesday morning, we motor sailed down to “The Rocks”, arriving by lunchtime. This area is reminiscent and a combo of Tonga and Thailand, but on a smaller scale. Many limestone undercut islands make up this area, all uninhabited and covered in greenery, it is tranquil and stunningly beautiful. After lunch, we found Jellyfish Lake which is around 400m by 150m and 30m deep. As you have guessed, it’s called Jellyfish Lake because it has millions of jellyfish living in it. The population actually fluctuates depending on climate/temperature with global warming creating more frequent depletions/growths. The two species living here are the Moon jellyfish and Golden jellyfish. It was a weird feeling dropping in to the warm, brackish, murky water looking for these animals – it goes against everything you’re told about jellyfish. It wasn’t long before we spotted them and it wasn’t long before we forgot about any apprehension – we were too intrigued by these beings. When you actually just float and watch, you realise how delightful they really are as they manoeuvre themselves around, stopping to rest every now and then. We were lucky enough to get the lake to ourselves between 1 group leaving and another arriving and it was a lovely spot to just sit and ponder and watch the flying foxes above.
We moved around 3 times within The Rocks on the 24th in order to facilitate diving and after the final dive on the morning of the 25th, we headed back up to Malakal, but not before the remaining 80ft of chain (of almost 300ft) had to be pulled up manually when the windlass failed. The Rocks truly are a magical place. This time, we went to the other side of Malakal island and took up a mooring outside of a Dive Operator called Sam’s Tours. The first 3 nights were complimentary, and then there was a small daily fee ($3) for every subsequent night and a yearly subscription fee ( $50) for garbage disposal, use of the dock and showers etc. which seemed very reasonable for reducing the concern about where/how to get ashore and finding bins etc. The rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning inside and out in preparation for the departure of Daniel and Crystal, and it was a hot and sticky time with minimal breeze within the protected bay. Once we were all done late afternoon, we sat on noodles in the water enjoying a beer ( G&T for Crystal) to cool down before heading out to a nearby restaurant for dinner, drinks and some great music by a local band. We all returned to Imagination so that Daniel and Crystal could pick up their luggage before leaving us for their hotel. It was amazing how the 25th was suddenly upon us, and it was hard to believe that the time had come for Daniel to leave us after his 3 legs onboard…we’ve had a good time together. Having said that, they both returned mid morning on the 26th to do another dive with Shawn from the dinghy at a spot around the corner. However, Shawn had somehow forgotten his mask, so he sat in the dinghy while Daniel and Crystal enjoyed a final dive together. We all had lunch together in a small cafe before saying our sad last farewells as they move on to their next adventures and Ally and Shawn returned to Imagination for a lazy afternoon.
The 27th was a day of laundry, odd jobs and another long walk into town to shop for various items and this time we were very happy to accept a lift back to Sam’s Tours by a very nice chap who had earlier given us directions to store we were looking for. Sadly, on the morning of the 28th, we discovered one of our oncoming returning crew members was unable to join us next month due to ill health, which will leave 4 of us for next months adventures. More making, mending and odd jobbing was done onboard on what turned out to be a very wet day, which is always good for our water tank! Monday the 29th started off as a lovely sunny day, but by mid afternoon we had persistent rain again. Shawn managed to get various jobs done, including getting the windlass working again, and Ally also managed to get a load of laundry done and dry ( mostly) before the rain. Much of the day was spent writing this blog as once again, she hadn’t done the daily notes she knows she should do. The end of the month was upon us and on Sunday 30th we cleaned up all the DIY stuff after making repairs to tears in the spinnaker. It’s a shame we never seem to get the opportunity to do any exploring etc during the days between leg, but it’s also nice to be able to sit and do not very much between jobs.
