New Caledonia

NOUMEA:

Chris flew into Noumea a couple of days after we arrived and M&M had flown back to their work in Auckland. The repairs were done, but I am not sure the mechanic did all the job well with the steering.

We had two new Running Back Stays manufactured and an old friend Jean-Louis helped us to install them. 

I had hired a car for ten days to pick up Chris at the airport (47 kn north of Noumea) and we drove many hundred of km.

The island is loaded with metal and Nickel  and many other metals are mined there, which is a big  base for the NC economy.

Following are a few photos from the Noumea market and hills with Nickel.

On our way to Isle Des Pins we stopped at Islot Maitre which is mainly a holiday resort and a few villas.

After some days enjoying the place, although there is not much to do except walking and enjoying the scenery, we sailed to Isle Des Pins. A tough 35 NM trip tacking against the Trade Wind and slalomed through the many reefs and Corals. We anchored in a roll Bay and went for a walk in the small town. Visited the ruins of the well know French prison. About 30.000 prisoners were send from France to NC.

After a few days we sailed back to the main island Grande Terre and anchored in the Port Broisé. This is an open anchorage, but the two reefs gives good protection from the waves and we had a nice night sleep.

Early the next morning we set sail for Ouvea Atoll. It became a rough trip and Chris was not happy. We had strong wind and 3.5 m waves all the way. It is about 105 NM and again I slowed down the boat so as to arrive at the narrow pass at the first light, at 06:22. We anchored just inside the Pass and I went straight to bed, as I had been up for well over 24 hours.

During the afternoon, we had a walk in the “Tribu” (town) Mouli and then moved further up to the main Tribu Fayaoué. The day after we had a big walk and did some shopping for Baguettes and Bordeaux red wine.

Some great sunsets.

Sunday 31 May we sailed back to the Passage as we had booked for a lunch at a beach restaurant for the Feté De Mama, which they take very seriously here in NC. We had a very pleasant afternoon with these kind and friendly people.

The Ouvea Atoll is absolutely wonderful. Imagine a 25 km slightly curved white sand beach, protected from the waves and has a wonderful blue lagoon stretching 35 km along the main island and 25 km across to the outer reef. The water depth along the beach is 4-10 m and one can anchor almost everywhere and one can sail fast with the Trade Wind, but without any waves to slow down the speed. Sounds like Paradise found? Yes this is Ouvea. The people are very friendly and helpful The population is about 3.400.

The Atoll is well known by a bird “The Ouvea Parakeet” (Eunymphicus cornutus uveaensi) which is endemic to Ouvea and found mainly in the north part of the island. It is about 30 cm long and feeds off seed, with a preference for the Papaya. This bird was a favourite catch for collectors and was on the verge of extinction. It is now totally protected under the Washington convention and it seems that it is back in force in the northern part of the island.