We left the mangrove unharmed and in one piece after cyclone Donna passed us just a couple of miles East of our position. We were extremely lucky that “Donna” decided to alter her course hours before she was supposed to hit us.
Even if we would have got a direct hit I think we would have been fine up in the mangroves. Bay Dreamer was literally squeezed in between the tough mangrove trees and I have a hard time imagining her being able to move anywhere regardless of the windspeed.
To get to our next destination, Vanuatu, and to the highly active volcano island, Tanna, we had to sail 280 miles in a north-easterly direction. We had an amazing sail and we dropped the anchor in a beautiful bay named Port Resolution, landing just 48 hours after our departure from the mangroves.
Unfortunately we arrived on a weekend and the customs asked us NOT to set foot on land until we could sort out our paperwork on the following working day. However, they didn’t tell us we couldn’t spend time in the water and that is just what we did for 2 days.
Just next to Port Resolution the active volcano, Mount Yasur, was having her regular eruptions and you could see the smoke rising up in the air forming a black cloud over the jungle. All around the bay we could see hot water pouring out from the mountain and we even found ourselves in a hot jacuzzi- “natural style” where the cliffs met the ocean.
Tanna was a great experience for us all and it was a long time ago I had the feeling I was actually travelling. Vanuatu is truly different from the other countries in the Pacific. More life, more colours and more culture, it just feels different. Everyone seems to be extremely friendly over here, even the customs authorities are smiling.
The Volcano
The highlight of our short stay at Tanna was definitely our trip up to the Volcano. Even though we didn’t have ideal weather and visibility, I will never forget the feeling of standing on the crater`s edge feeling the true power of Mother Nature when Yasur erupted. You could see the red lava shooting hundreds of metres up into the clouds and the awesome rumble and thunderclaps which made the ground shake was like several artillery canons doing their job. Baby Olivia is also Volcano proof now.
Port Vila is where we are at this present moment. Vanuatu´s capital and the center of this amazing country. None of the pacific countries have much to offer when if comes to city-life. Port Vila is definitely the best town so far in the Pacific region.
Yesterday the whole crew went together to a nearby waterfall. I have seen a couple of waterfalls in my life and what we saw yesterday was more than impressive. The whole area was amazing. Small natural swimming pools filled with fresh mountain water were all over the place.
Late Monday or early Tuesday Bay Dreamer with the Cyclone Volcano Crew, will start to travel in a northerly direction. Lets see what we find on our way.
//Daniel with crew
