November 17, 2007

A visit to Abaing Atoll
Although Tarawa can offer interesting history, convenient shopping, and the bustling activity of a seaport town, it has its down sides as well. The available goods tempt us to spend, cutting into the cruising fund for things that are not always strictly necessary. If it was bustle and activity we were after, there was no need to come to the Pacific Islands to find it, there are better examples. And the anchorage in Tarawa is simply not good for small vessels. Although the anchor holding is quite good, the fetch of the lagoon relative to the prevailing wind is pretty long, so there is almost always a fairly big, steep wave action in play. Being anchored there has very much the same feel as being at sea in moderately choppy conditions. The deciding factor for us to make a move was that there is little of the traditional Polynesian lifestyle left unaltered in Tarawa, while a short daysail would take us to the nearest of the “out islands”. So yesterday morning we secured the boat, picked up the anchors, and by 08:30 were raising sail in a brisk easterly breeze.
We used the motor for a few minutes to get clear of the cluster of yachts, cargo ships, fishing vessels, and even a small military patrol ship near the wharf, but once well into the long, curving channel that leads to the open sea, we settled on a double reefed mainsail and the staysail for motive power, and concentrated on locating the marker buoys until, five miles west of the wharf area, we were clear of the lagoon and free to sail north. The stiff breeze on the beam kicked up a lot of whitecaps, and made for a moderately lively motion on the boat, but still it was easier to live with than the irregular lurching of the anchorage. There was enough power in the breeze that we left the sail area as it was, small and low, and still were making better than six knots, with little pounding and almost no spray on the deck. That lasted for the 10 miles from the channel out to the corner of the atoll, where the full fetch of the ocean funnelled into a 5 mile wide pass between Tarawa Atoll and our destination, Abaiang Atoll. In that opening the big ocean rollers and the fast west setting current combined to kick up some pretty steep seas, and we got a bit of water on deck. In order to keep from drifting west with the current we set some jib, and picked up boat speed to near 8 knots, which accentuated the rougher sea, but shortened the exposure. In 40 minutes we were in the lee of Abaiang, looking for the pass through the western reef. When we found the pass, it was about a quarter mile south of the waypoints we'd been given to locate it. This isn't the first time we've seen this, and the final weight of navigation around reefs is the eyeball, reading the color and surface turbulence of the water to decide where it's safe to sail. We started the motor to give more maneuvering options in case we got in a tight place, but in the end the pass and the crossing of the lagoon were simply a matter of steering around a few shoals, obvious in the clear water. The deep water is a dark, inky blue-black, fading to greenish as the depth rises to about fifty feet. From there up to about six feet depth the green just becomes more pronounced, lighter and almost luminescent, until it's as improbably brilliant as a neon sign. When the green starts to show a hint of yellow, it's not advisable to take an ocean going boat there. Even if the average depth might be barely enough to float her, the surge over a shallow spot like that can get you in trouble. So we stayed to the blue and the dark green, across the lagoon to a lighter green strip west of the beach where the village sits. We're anchored about 400 yards off the beach, fairly far out because there is a small inner reef fringing the western shore. Even so, the lay of the island leaves the water nearly flat here, with a white sand bottom. From across the narrow atoll island we can hear the surf booming on the windward reef. The trade winds rustle the coconut palms and breadfuit trees, and carry out to the lagoon to cool the decks and cabin of Sequester as she bobs almost imperceptibly in the ripples. The stars sparkle through the soft light of a half moon. Life is good. Ted