New Caledonia August – Oct 2017
New Caledonia is a French
territory comprising dozens of islands in the South Pacific. It’s known for its palm-lined beaches and
marine-life-rich lagoon, which, at 24,000 sq. km, is among the world’s
largest. A massive barrier reef
surrounds the main island, Grand Terre, a major scuba-diving destination. The capital, Noumea, is home to
French-influenced restaurants and luxury boutiques selling Parisian
Fashions. It is also the world capital
for a relatively new sport, Kite-Foiling due to the ever constant 20 – 30 kt
trade winds, and relatively flat calm waters of this large protected lagoon. There is a very active sailing/boating/water
sport related industry which make it a destination location for thrill seekers
the world over.
The Kanak are the indigenous
Melanesian peoples of New Caledonia and make up approx. 39 percent of the
current population. Unfortunately, they are excluded from the French economy
even to this day.
British explorer, Capt.
James Cook, was the first European to sight New Caledonia on September 4, 1744
on his second voyage. He named it New
Caledonia as the northeast of the island reminded him of Scotland.
Our first order of business
was to effect repairs to the boat. It
took a few days to get organized. Our
search for a Raymarine technician turned out to be quite challenging but we finally
managed to locate a local old time Rasta named Jean Luc who turned out be not
only a very efficient Raymarine technician, but a wonderful friend. We happily recommend him to anyone.
Jean Luc
Long before arriving in New
Caledonia we had heard of an abandoned dog named Moose residing on a small
islet called Isle de Casy. As the story
goes, a resort had once thrived on the island, but some years ago, had been badly
damaged during cyclone season and never restored. The resort owners departed, leaving Moose
behind.
As luck would have it, on
our very first day in Noumea we met a man named Guy Kane. He liked the look of our cockpit enclosure
(the Florida room, designed by Kaija which affords us all weather protection) and
asked to take pictures so that he could create something similar for his new
boat.
We had already heard of a Veterinary
name Guy (from our friends Brett and Ana S/c Impi) who had started a GoFund Me
for Moose to help pay for his care.
Well, small world that it is, this man, Guy was the very same vet and so
without further ado, we became friends, after all, any friend of Moose’s was a
friend of ours. Guy would use his small
ultralight plane and fly the 40 miles to visit Moose on his small island and
tend to his medical needs.
Dr. Guy Kane and Lovely Wife Sonja
We spent many wonderful day
visiting with Moose.
It was sailing season, and as such, Moose was
certainly not lonely. In fact, he had
become somewhat famous with cruisers and locals alike, and if anything, being
in his advanced years, some days he would disappear to find some peace and quiet.
But rest assured, if you were first ashore in
the morning, Moose would be there waiting to be your guide for a leisurely
stroll around the island.
Moose was his own
master. He did not answer to anyone in
particular, but made everyone feel welcome on his little island hideaway. Young and old, rich or poor, he treated everyone,
including visiting dogs, the same, warmly.
His was a kind and gentle spirit.
It was with great sadness that on December 20 2017 (shortly after our
departure) we learned that Moose crossed over the Rainbow Bridge to join so many of our gone but never forgotten loved pets.
MOOSE (MOUSS)
Go Rest High on that High on the Mountain
R.I.P. Moose - Dec 2017
We were fortunate and blessed to have met and
spent so many wonderful hours with him. The GoFund Me cause continues in Moose’s
honor. A project for a monument in his memory
is underway and the ongoing funds are being used to assist Dr. Guy in his
spaying and neutering program for cats and dogs throughout New Caledonia.
To date more than 100 of these operations
have been paid for thru the kindness of fellow cruisers and supporters of Moose’s
GoFund Me account. Moose has his own FB
page, Mouss De L’ilot Casy (French spelling.) He is an international dog with
friends all over the world.
Just prior to leaving Fiji,
Gary discovered one day while playing tennis with Svetlana (left) & Jodi, that he had a his legs were not as young as theirs. He also discovered that he had a Hernia!
It was not chronic, but was
a concern, especially when spending extended periods on the high seas, miles from
any help should help be needed. As luck
would have it, Dr Guy introduced Gary to his Kite Foiling buddy, Dr. Gabriel
Fayet whose specialty just happened to be hernias.
One phone call from Guy, and Dr. Gabriel made
a ‘house call’ to the boat, examined Gary and said it needed to be treated
sooner than later…the sooner the better.
This was on a Friday, he arranged for the operation to happen the
following Wednesday. It would take place
at the brand new Hospital which was absolutely first class.
Gary was the first person to occupy the
private room and the nursing staff, despite our language barrier, were not only
competent, but extremely kind and gentle.
The operation was a complete success and Gary did not feel a lick of
discomfort from the moment he entered the hospital.
As hospitals, Dr's and Operations go…it was a very pleasant
experience.
Our sailing lifestyle
affords many an opportunity to meet and make new friends.
While visiting Moose, we met a lovely couple
from New Zealand. Rob and Margie on
their boat Windstar. We felt like
kindred spirits and enjoyed spending time with them.
We all enjoyed hiking and they introduced us
to a fellow cruiser Richard Chesher to was to be our tour guide to a lovely waterfall hidden deep in the forest.
He
is a retired Marine Biologist Expat who has written a terrific cruising guide “The
Rocket Cruising Guide to New Caledonia”.
He provided a great deal of insight of the local flora
and fauna in particular 'Orchids' were his speciality. It was a beautiful day and a lovely hike. A fun day had by all.
The next day we sailed
south to the bottom of the lagoon to Isle de Pins, a wonderful day sail and a
fun destination. We anchored in a protected anchorage and were treated by
visiting Manta Rays.
We spent a few days on this
exotic little island. It was a fun stop
and afforded us a great hike to the highest point on the island (859 meters),
which was a full day event.
We sailed a few short miles
south to Ilot Brosse which afforded us 2 new experiences.
1st,
Kaija discovered the mystery of the Coral snake which till this time, we
thought to be a water snake.
However, we
soon discovered that they are equally comfortable on land, or climbing in your shorts, and they very much enjoy basking in
the afternoon sun shedding their old skin and rejuvenating. They arrive looking old and wrinkled, and
leave looking young and new…kinda like a Spa for snakes :o).
The 2nd new experience
was baking scones on a stick over an open fire.
This was taught to us by Rob and Margie…mmmmm good…
...if your stick is just
the right size, the end product is the perfect wrap for a delicious hot dog…as
the old saying goes…Try It…You’ll LIKE IT! :o)
Pic of scone.
We had a lovely day sail to
the south west corner of the lagoon, to visit Ilot Amedee where one of the few
remaining active lighthouses operates. We
enjoyed the mandatory climb to the top of the lighthouse which is 56 meters,
247 steps making it one of the tallest lighthouses in the world.
It was the first metallic lighthouse constructed
in France then shipped to New Caledonia. It was first lit on November 15 1865, the
Saint Day of the Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III.
Pic of lighthouse
This is a weekend getaway
for the locals and very popular with Kite foilers, wind surfers and visiting
tourists who come for the beautiful white sand beaches, excellent buffet style
feasts and perfect weather almost year round.
We anchored in 10 feet of emerald colour water over a white sandy bottom
and almost immediately were thrilled to see so many turtles swimming lazily by.
This is a snorkeler’s paradise!
It was also the weekend of
the annual BlueScope Regatta. This local
race has categories for sailboats, hobiecats, outrigger canoes, stand-up paddle
boarders, kite foilers and windsurfers.
The course was over 30 miles ending at Noumea, quite a feat considering
the last three categories are all Stand Up events!
BlueScope Regatta Weekend 2017
It seemed we had just
arrived and our three month visa was up.
We enjoyed each stop along the way, the highlites were Moose, Dr’s Guy
and Gabriel, Jean Luc, and almost forgot to mention the incredible delectable
pasties from Petit Choux…words cannot express how tasty the Pain O Chocolat
is!.
It was nearing the end of
October and time for us to ‘Go West’ as part of the Go West Rally heading for Bundaberg
Australia. We reprovisioned, checked out
and on the morning of October 27 departed Isle d’Maitre and made our way out of
the lagoon thru the reef into open water…sailing almost due west for 7 days to
the Land Down Unda.
