Times up, itching for Chagos!

Well we have got pretty bloody lazy since staying at Fahala island. We left there after almost a month of good times hanging on the beach but it was time to go. Jim and Helen on Gaia arrived a couple of days before we left and we sailed in company south. Also a couple of American yachts called in just before we left but we didn't get to meet them properly but Hopefully we will see them in Gan.

We called in at a couple of different anchorages but they are few and far between as most places seem too deep or have no shelter or both, the snorkelling is a lot better south though with the coral just amazing with loads of reef sharks, turtles, rays and tropical fish. We are in Gaafu atol now and anchored in a dredged out lagoon next to a town Called Villigilli that is only 45nm north of the equator. Nice anchorage with good shelter from anything east but the wind has just gone NW so we are leaving this afternoon for Gan which is 90nm away and the last atol south in the Maldives. We had a call from Customs the other day saying we had to leave here as it is not on the permit but they soon changed their tune with a bit of sweet talking which was great! It's the only time we have seen any officials in over 2 months and it just happened to be that our cruising permit expired the day before! Anyway with a few calls to our agent he sorted it out very quickly and all was well.

We have still been still trying to get Satphone working for data... Finally got a new sim and that worked for data but then it turned out the Satstaion we bought for it didn't! Anyway we are over the isatphone and Satstation and they are sending out an Iridium which is in Malè now getting cleared by customs and hopefully will get to Addu very soon so we can leave for Chagos. Our Agent Muzhid from Real Seahawks is on the case. So hopefully after all this stuffing around we will be able to download a grib file!

The weather started to change a couple of weeks back with Westerlies and rain squalls. Still nice 90% of the time though although the flies seem to have all hatched and are a pain in the ass! 

We are all stocked up with fuel and water and just need a load of good vegetables to last us the next maybe 2 months until we arrive in Mauritius.

Fahala Island

Well we did an overnight sail to do the 120nm here to Fahala and what a place. We have been here nearly 2 weeks now so that sums it up. Was great to get out of Malè and just hang by ourselves again. It didn't take long for the locals to come and suss us out and welcome us in. It is an un inhabited island except for 4 fellas that have cleared a space to build a resort but apparently it has been in the making for 10 years now and doesn't look they will start anything soon. The closest inhabited island is only 2nm from where we are anchored and that has 800 people living on it. We went there a week ago with a drawing for a BBQ to get made up and we met a nice fella named Huisain who showed us about the town and introduced us to Mohammed who is a bit of a welder from his back yard. We managed to get some 10mm stainless round bar from the next island for the frame and he had some other materials for the rest and did a great job! They were all great people we got to meet, his wife busy making fish soup with a couple of her friends and so on.

We also have been busy fitting a salt water pressure pump in the galley which works a treat and is saving us a lot of fresh water. Julie has been a star trying to get this Xgate program to work with the Satphone. It is a program that compresses everything so you don't use to much data on the Satphone to get weather ect but has just turned into a balls up so far! We are getting there but after much frustration and emails back and fourth to the States we got a reply saing they have a bug in the App??! We will get there but it's definitely not been easy.

I also put in a mast step in the dingy to fit the optimist sail and had a trial with an oar for a tiller. Looked great, I new I wouldn't be able to go to windward but thought I could hold at least 90degree course, no such luck! Just went side ways as fast as I was going ahead! Was pretty funny but a bit disappointing. Need a few fittings and try and make some Lee-boards up to use instead of a centreboard.

There has been a couple of days of rain which was a first and we caught a bit 

of water which is needed. The fish are another story.... We haven't had too much luck. It is too far in dingy to get to the back of the reef to get coral trout so we have been trolling in the deeper water here. Lost a few lures to what are probably giant trevally that just take off seriously quick and then find a rock or something and cut the braided line. We got a small one that was nice on the new BBQ and some other skippy of the boat at night and a barracuda and that's about it. The squid are thick though and we have been eating loads so can't complain.

We are planning to leave the Maldives about the 25th of this month but don't really want to leave here yet! We have about 150miles south to Addu where we have to check out from and do the last load of stocking up and get some water before we head to Chagos