November 14, 2015
We knew the time would come when it would get uncomfortably hot on the west side, and this year it happened early in November. This was the perfect time to hop the bus and head to Suva (the big city on Viti Levu’s southeast side) for our a few days because cloudy Suva is the coolest place in Fiji. Our dentist is there, and it was time to go in for a visit.
The next coolest place may well be Musket Cove; so as soon as we returned from our trip, we headed out there. Those afternoon winds that can be so annoying earlier in the season are a godsend come November. While people were sweltering in the marinas, we stayed pretty comfortable with those afternoon breezes going through our boat. In some ways, it was a great time to be there with plenty of empty moorings and tables in the cafe.
On the other hand, it felt much less festive. Many of the cruisers were gone, and those of us still here were waiting for a weather window to get to New Zealand. There just comes a point at the end of any given season where it’s time to head north or south. It’s the cruising equivalent to the last day of a vacation getaway.
When planning a real vacation with an afternoon or evening flight home, it always seems like we can make good use of that final vacation day to do one more excursion, but with having pack, check out of the hotel, stash the bags, figure out where to get gas and return the rental car, get to the airport early enough to check in, go through security, and grab a bite to eat, that final day is a bust. Even if the time is there, the vacation feeling is gone, and it’s easier to just get to the airport early and read.
That’s what the tail end of a cruising season feels like: sitting around and waiting, passing time, studying weather obsessively. We could have gone to a couple more places, but our hearts weren’t in it. We had done the mental equivalent of checking out of the hotel. Aside from taking a couple of days to visit departing friends in Denerau (the main marina and tourist hub for this side of Fiji), we sat out this time at Musket Cove.
Below, a few miscellaneous pictures from Musket Cove that never made it into a gallery, including a couple of the yummy pizzas from the cafe. You can click to enlarge and scroll.–Cyndi
