The Yassawas

The Yasawa Group of islands, nestled in the lee of the large island of Fiji's Viti Levu, arc north-northeast for 56 miles and are surrounded by one of the greatest, most pristine reef systems in the Pacific. Seldom visited, the group consists of four large islands, each with tall summits, and more than 100 smaller islands, rocks, spits, and sandbars. This area still hosts tourists, but mostly backpackers: young Kiwis, Aussies, and Europeans who ride the Yasawa Flyer power-catamaran from island to island, staying at backpacker resorts which offer small bures or tent sites for the guests. No pools, no tennis courts here. These are resorts where the guests make the fun: exploring, hiking, diving and snorkelling.

Navigation is a nightmare. The anchorages are deep (usually more than 50 feet), exposed, and rolly. Basically, the Yasawas are still uncharted and/or inaccurately charted with huge sections marked "unsurveyed." There are thousands of coral heads in the area either not on the chart or wildly in the wrong place. There are no lighthouses, and only a few haphazardly placed marks, which are often missing.

The wind often shifts without warning, forcing vessels to change anchorages to find a lee. This is easy if the sun is over your shoulder but almost suicidal at night.

There are no airports, hospitals, or marinas-not even a dock. Forget about taking on fuel, water, or provisions. ATMs? Hah!

So what's the attraction?

Emptiness.



Modern civilization hasn't quite reached the Yasawas. The marine environment is the same as in Captain Cook's time. Perfect. Untouched. Pristine.

Our fist stop was on Nanuya Balavu island. We anchored off Manta Ray Resort where we were told we may see large manta rays. We were advised by several cruisers that they were more frequent at high tide. Since we had arrived two hours before high tide, we headed off in the dingy. Sure enough, we were soon joined by the resort boat bringing 20 guests at $40 each for the same experience.

  

The current was swift through a narrow pass and apparently they use the topography to funnel their food and feed. We watched the wingtips of these 12-14 feet mammoths break the water as they moved back and forth. We took the dingy up current, rolled over the side and drifted through the pass and watched these magnificent creatures glide through the water. Some would turn over and over in large backflips with gaping mouths as we snorkelled over them. Others would glide calmly back and forth through the pass. They seemed used to human presence and several passed close enough to touch. Many of them had one, two or even three remora fish attached to them. We stayed for about a half hour and really enjoyed it.

The next morning, we rose early for the high tide and got to the pass before the guest boat and had the experience all to ourselves. Kim and Emily also snorkelled right near the anchorage and reported some of the healthiest reef they have yet seen. The anchorage was rolly there, however, so we all voted to move further north.

Our next stop was at Nanuya Lailai Island, home of the famous Blue Lagoon. This is the area where the Brooks Shield movie "Blue Lagoon" was filmed around 1980. We anchored in a small bay next to where the mini-cruise ships moor every few days to disgorge their passengers on the white sand beach. It was very calm here and we ended up spending the rest of our time in the Yassawas here. There were several resorts here where we could enjoy their restaurants and get dive bottles filled. We did some snorkelling and walked the beaches shelling. After almost a week, we decided it was time to push west and see what experiences Vanuatu had to offer.

 

Tom
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