Highs & Lows

In one week we have managed more drama than I have had on this entire trip. I'm exhausted & looking forward to a peaceful nights sleep. The transmission was fixed & the fridge stocked with fresh foods. We headed out to the Florida Islands to give the transmission a trial run & then planned to head west to Gizo. There we met our buddy boat s/v Emelia & friends on s/v Katoska. It was a rough day sail over there but we celebrated being out of Honiara with an open fire on the beach. Katoska put together some amazing fish dishes (these guys can catch fish unlike ourselves!) whilst Emelia & I brought the salad dishes. It was a perfect evening. A huge high at the beginning of a week, that would see us pull together as a team over & over again.
We were “canoed” non stop – local guys paddling out to the boat in their dugouts, (canoes carved by hand from a one tree trunk) wanting to trade fruits & shells or just hang out at the boat. It’s hard to get rid of these guys. Unfortunately for us they can see directly in through our water line hatches meaning that hiding below deck didn't work plus we had no privacy.

John Ruka was totally different in his approach. He paddled over with his children, did not approach the boat until he invited, then just gave fruits & vegetables from his garden without wanting anything in return. He won us all over with his generosity & friendship. We all picked up anchor& moved over to his village. They put on an amazing show of local dancing & music to celebrate our arrival. This is the first time his village had done it & with less than 24 hours notice put on a spectacular evening. They made “leis” of fresh flowers for each of us, had an arch from palms & flowers for us to walk through. Put sand over the dirt where we were sat & presented us with a fresh coconut decorated in tropical flowers complete with a bamboo straw. We sat in a semi circle whilst the girls & boys put on traditional dances with the band on instruments made from plastic tubes that they hit with flip flops, & others on pan pipes of varying sizes made from bamboo. Tears pricked at my eyes as these generous Solomon Island people welcomed us into their village. There was no charge for the evening, it seemed they enjoyed putting it together as much as we enjoyed watching it. What did they want it return?? It was as simple as expertise & friendship. After the treat they had given us we were happy to help in any way we could.

As we headed for bed on a high from the evenings entertainment we had no idea what we were in for. Bobby & I were awoken by a noise on deck, upon hearing another we were straight out of bed. ****ing thieves. You never totally shut off when sleeping on the boat. Your brain automatically listens out for rain & wind although I’ll admit to pretending I’m still asleep so Bobby gets up & closes the hatches….don’t tell him! Now its thieves we have to beware of. I immediately alerted the other boats via VHF whilst handing Bobby the search light& a pair of shorts! At that point we only saw one guy in a dugout canoe paddling for his life, we learnt later than there were two of them. I was busy lowering the dinghy & shouting that we should go after the thief. I was later told me that normal people don't chase thieves & that my cop side came out. Bobby, Eric (from s/v Katoska), plus one big knife went after the guy. He made it to the mangroes & legged it. Bobby returned to Barraveigh toeing the dugout plus our flip flops & clothes pegs. We claimed victory, they got away with nothing plus we had their canoe which we hoisted on deck, no simple task those dugouts weigh a tonne. The next morning we realised the camera was missing, someone (no names mentioned but lets just say it wasn't me!) left it in the cockpit & to top it off we discovered the canoe belonged to our host’s brother & had been stolen by the thieves. From victory to despair in matter of minutes.

During the next few days we witnessed some amazing local politics. The chiefs of the villages got together & the villagers identified the thieves. After being found hiding in the bush, they were placed under house arrest. The priest was summoned. According to our host John, a man will lie to a man, but a man will not lie to a priest. He was right the thieves were so scared of the priest they admitted everything. Finally after two days we got the camera back, complete with photo from the thieves! Thankfully its a waterproof camera & was still working after its trip overboard. We won. We got everything back & were part of an experience we would never have witnessed otherwise. The priest declared all the boats taboo. Anyone touching them would freeze & would be found there the next morning. Yes you are prob thinking exactly what I thought when I was told this but the locals here still believe in black magic. John & his family became security guards & took turns in paddling around the boats at nights just to be sure.

The next few days were blissful, putting in mooring balls for future visiting yachts, putting together ideas for John on how to attract yachts. We played with the kids, teaching them to hula & skip whilst they showed us how they hunted animals with bows & arrows, & wove baskets from palm prongs.

To show their gratitude, John & his family put on another show. To be honest I think they all just loved having people to entertain! Again it was outstanding but cut short as a storm blew in covering us in torrential rain & high winds. We sheltered under a leaf hut until the sickening shout of “a boat is on the reef”. We all ran to the dinghy’s, set off into the water with rain hitting us & waves crashing into the dinghy. Rounding the corner I saw Barraveigh was safe where we left her but Katoska was on the reef near shore. From there on it was a huge team effort. I clambered onto Barraveigh to ensure she wasn't dragging whilst Bobby assisted Katoska. They got her free after a few tense hours. Damage – none, they were lucky! Celebratory drink – rum!
Could there be any more drama in this tiny bay! Answer: Yes & typically it had to be us again! Ready to leave for a 2 day sail to Gizo, said our goodbyes & were pulling up the anchor. All of a sudden I hear Bobby swearing at the bow, concerned he had trapped a foot in the windlass I rushed forward to see the windlass totally ripped off its footing & inches from being dragged overboard, saved only by Bobby attaching a rope seconds before the incident. On come all the boys to help haul up the chain & anchor while I drive us round in circles away from the reef .

Guess where we are heading? Yep back to Honiara!