January 4, 2017
Cruising has changed over the years and part of the new cruising reality isn’t all that pleasant: Crowds. Here’s Waiheke Island in New Zealand over silly season…
“Silly Season” is the term commonly used in New Zealand and Australia to describe the vacation time just after Christmas and lasting up to six weeks. In New Zealand, it lasts until just after Waitangi day in early February. It’s a little shorter in Australia. During this time, everyone who owns a boat uses it (and it seems everyone owns a boat down here). And it’s not just silly season we have to worry about. Here’s Noumea in New Caledonia at the end of the winter cruising season…
Have fun anchoring in that mess! (The clear areas are all a no-anchoring zones enforced by the police and military.)
Somewhat more moderate, but still difficult crowds were our reality all the way across the Pacific. Our first landing at Hiva Oa Island in the Marquesas was packed. So packed that the only way to anchor was to use a bow and stern anchor, and even then it was a challenge. Getting out of the bay, with the anchors of others draped over ours was very hard.
Planning our itinerary almost always involves trying to outguess the pack and arrive before or after the crowds. It’s just the way it is now. It’s a trade off. Abundant information and advanced, affordable technology make cruising easier but because more people are able to cruise now, we deal with crowds.
Don’t worry. There are still places where you can have a cove, beach or even an entire island to yourself. Here we are in the Yasawa Islands (Fiji) in the height of cruising season with a beautiful bay all to ourselves. -Rich
