July 25, 2013
Conditions were perfect for our 25-mile motor to Kioa Island, one of two islands just off the southeast coast of Vanua Levu. The wind as down, the water was calm, and the sky had some cloud cover making it comfortably cool on deck.
Our destination was Kioa Island, which is actually populated by former residents of Vaitupu in the Tuvalu islands. Because of a shortage of good soil and space, they bought uninhabited Kioa island and relocated here after WWII. Only recently, in 2005, did they become Fijian citizens, but they still keep their Tuvaluan culture and don’t really consider themselves Fijians. Many of them are also Seventh-day Adventists.
Had we been following the most popular cruising route, our next stop would have been the village of Salia, where nearly all the people on Kioa live. (The map above shows our route from Dakuniba Bay to Kennedy Bay on Kioa Island; Salia is the spot marked at the southwest area of Kioa.)
Everyone else had been stopping there, and we’d initially planned to do the same. Then we came to realize that neither one of us was very excited about the prospect. This wasn’t a place to come for its beauty, nor was it a well-protected anchorage. It was all about interacting with the villagers, and the antisocial party poopers on Legacy just aren’t that into it.
We’re certainly in the minority here as most other cruisers seem to thrive on visiting villages and participating in traditional village life. (Participating generally includes visiting a home for a meal, going to church, learning skills like net fishing/wood carving/basket weaving, entertaining locals on your boat (often for hours), lending any useful skills you may have to the village, and perhaps a kava ceremony).
We’ll go to a village if it’s required to visit a worthwhile place. Some of the traditional Fijian villages require boaters to come ashore and do a sevusevu if you wish to anchor in their bay. A sevusevu is a ritual where you’re brought to the hut of the chief, make a presentation of kava, then sit through a small ceremony after which you are welcomed as part of the village. You’ll generally be given a tour of the village and perhaps some fruit, and you’ll meet some of the villagers.
How much further it goes is generally up to you. You might spend every day hanging out and participating at the village, or you might rather return to your boat and go about your own business from there on out. We’re in the latter category. Either way is generally fine with the villagers; it’s actually some of the other cruisers who get their panties in wad about anything they perceive as a lack of sufficient participation.
We did motor by Salia, thinking if it looked especially nice we’d change our minds. Then we saw how open it was to southerly conditions! Nope, definitely not going!
The next anchorage, locally known as Kennedy Bay, was on the far side of the island. To get there we motored between Vanua Levu and Kioa islands. With the mountains of Vanua Levu on one side and the mountains of Kioa on the other, plus the mountains of Taveuni Island in the distance, it was a very pretty ride.
We arrived at Kennedy Bay. Very few cruisers come here; so we didn’t know much about it. We motored in and soon found that anchoring would not be easy. It was really deep, yet the area near shore was riddled with shallow reefs. When we did find possible spots, the bottom was all coral and our anchor wouldn’t hold. Motoring around, watching for suddenly-appearing reefs, and having no success in setting our anchor was disheartening. It was getting late, and we decided if our next attempt at anchoring didn’t work; we’d have to head to the next island.
I spotted a sea turtle as we motored around, which was encouraging because I think if them as a good omen. We dropped our anchor and after dragging initially, it caught and held at last. Thank you little turtle for bringing us some good luck!
It had gotten hot so we retreated below for awhile to reward ourselves with a cold beer. Later in the afternoon we were able to take our showers in the cockpit (one of the advantages to being in a remote bay); then sit and survey our surroundings. We hadn’t initially been impressed with this difficult bay, but when the golden evening light shone on the jungle and mangrove shoreline, it looked like paradise. We were suddenly very happy to be here. –Cyndi
Below is a gallery of Kennedy Bay, including a picture of our lucky turtle. Click to enlarge and scroll.
