by Judy Handley | Sep 18, 2010 | Madagascar, Sailing Logs Year 5 |
Day 327, Year 5 Pleasantly Relaxed Day
Date: Saturday, September 18, 2010
Weather: Sunny Day; Windy Late Morning Then Moderating
Location: Nosy Sakatia, NW Madagascar
Although we were up and snorkeling by 7:30 this morning to catch the slack low tide, it was a slow paced day. We met John’s Aunt Marianne and Uncle Gerald on the dock at 7:30 am and had a nice snorkel in clear water. Once we had snorkeled to the south of Sakatia Towers, we got in the dinghy and went to the headland just to the north. But by this time the tide was starting to pick up and the water clarity was not as good. It also got very windy very quickly. So we gave up after an hour and half and called it a good morning. Mark and I actually spent some time reading when we returned to Windbird, something we rarely do during the day. In the afternoon, I named today’s underwater photos and we went up to Sakatia Towers to give John, Marianne, and Gerald an underwater photo show of what we have seen snorkeling here in the Sakatia anchorage area. In return, Marianne and Gerald talked to us about the different game parks in on the east coast of South Africa and gave us advice as to what we might see at each one. Philippe and George, two other cruisers in the anchorage, came up to the deck to have a late afternoon beer and we had a great time all talking together. George was born in Argentina but moved to Spain as an adult. Philippe is French. Our South Africans friends tell us we speak American and they speak English, and the mix of accents made lively conversation.
We will snorkel again early tomorrow morning and then Mark is going to make more pirogue sails. I’m determined to get a “Best of Madagascar Underwater” folder put together to upload, so that will be our tomorrow. Our departure date from here was next Saturday, September 25, but we found out last night that John’s birthday is on Sunday the 26th, so we will staying for that celebration and then heading south on Monday, September 27. So eight days and counting.
table style=”width:194px;”>
 |
| 100918 Day 327 Nosy Sakatia, Madagascar–Underwater Sakatia S and Headland |
by Judy Handley | Sep 17, 2010 | Madagascar, Sailing Logs Year 5 |
Day 326, Year 5 So Many Wonderful People
Date: Friday, September 17, 2010
Weather: Sunny Day; Very Windy Afternoon
Location: Nosy Sakatia, NW Madagascar
It seems that everywhere we turn here we meet wonderful people. Today we went to another Rotary meeting and luncheon with John from Sakatia Towers. John’s Aunt Marion and Uncle Gerald visiting from South Africa also came along. Today was the Rotary President’s birthday, so the luncheon was extra special. Edith is the Rotary club’s president. She manages the 5-star resort Hotel Bell Plage across the channel on Nosy Be and that was the site of today’s meeting. Marion, Gerald, and I sat around the oceanside pool and chatted away while Mark and John attended the business meeting. We then joined with everyone for a fantastic luncheon. Before becoming a hotel manager, Edith was a chef and John says he is sure she personally cooked today’s lunch. It was zebu (beef) that had been tenderized and then rolled and cooked in a gravy. The zebu rolls were cooked perfectly, just a bit rare in the middle, and were so tender they melted in your mouth. Isabelle who manages Sakatia Lodge on the Nosy Sakatia side of the channel brought the birthday cake and it was not only a work of art to look at, it was delicious. John told us that baking has always been Isabelle’s passion and that she probably did most of the cake preparation. What a talented group of Rotarians.
The Rotary meeting was a long one so Marion, Gerald, and I had a nice chunk of time to get to know one another. They are farmers (sheep and beef cattle) just north of Port Elizabeth on the east coast of South Africa. They have a son who worked for Continental Tires in North Carolina for a few years and is now back in South Africa with his wife and two children. Like us, they think there is nothing in the world so wonderful as being a grandparent. For about four months of the year, Gerald and Marion travel throughout Africa visiting game parks and looking for birds. While here they have enjoyed snorkeling and tomorrow we are going to meet them at the dock at 7:30 am for a low tide snorkel together. It seems that we have much in common and wish we had gotten to know them better earlier in their stay here. They leave Monday for a visit to Nosy Komba and then on to Goulam’s Lodge at Ankarana up north. So we will snorkel together this weekend and then hopefully we will see them again when we get to Port Elizabeth on our way from Richards Bay to Cape Town.
We didn’t get back from the Rotary meeting and luncheon until almost 5 pm and by 6 pm we were on the Sakatia Towers deck. There was another full house tonight–Gerald and Marion; a young couple from Cape Town, George from Argentina; Philippe of Armel T; Ed and Lynne of Constance; and Bruce, Nadine, and Tristen of Pioneer. Bruce, Nadine and tristen leave at 5:30 in the morning, so we said our farewells tonight. We have just so enjoyed meeting them and sharing experiences together. I found it incredibly hard to say our good-byes, but we will definitely see them when we reach Cape Town. We are delivering their bag of snorkeling gear and two big bags of shells and books, so hopefully we will reach Cape Town before Christmas and see them again then.
We once again find ourselves in a country where we could stay forever, but those beautiful blonde-headed grandsons back in the United States beckon us to move on. So one more week here and then off we go, but the memories of the wonderful people we have met here will live with us forever.
by Judy Handley | Sep 15, 2010 | Madagascar, Sailing Logs Year 5 |
Day 324, Year 5 Making Pirogue Sails
Date: Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Weather: Sunny Day with Variable Winds
Location: Nosy Sakatia, NW Madagascar
Mark was off early this morning to the southern end of Nosy Sakatia to cut pirogue sails from a giant spinnaker donated to the local Rotary Club. When completed, the Rotary club will donate the sails to local fishermen. John from Sakatia Towers picked up Bruce on Pioneer and then Mark and off they went. A woman named Lisa who is a South African who lives in Russian Bay was also with John. When she lived in South Africa she was a sailmaker. She flew in from South Africa yesterday and is staying at Sakatia Towers until tomorrow when another yachties will take her back to Russian Bay. We had read about her place in Russian Bay but couldn’t find it when we were there. Now we know where to find her and might return there before leaving this area. Between Mark, Bruce, John, and Lisa there was a bit of sail knowledge to aid in the cutting of the sails. While Mark and gang were off cutting sails, I took Lynne and Ed of Constance to Far Niente for coffee cake and conversation. Peppe and Bob called early this morning to invite us and we gladly accepted. Far Niente is a US boat that has just returned from Mayotte. We had a great time sharing information about anchorages we have visited in Madagascar and hearing all about Mayotte. Time passed quickly and it was noon when I noticed that Mark was being dropped off on Windbird. I took Ed and Lynne back to Constance and when I returned to Windbird, Mark reported that they cut thirty-six pirogue sails out of the donated spinnaker and left one huge triangular dhow sail. Mark came back with six pieces of sail material and got three of them sewn this afternoon. Lisa from Russian Bay will sew a few more. It takes about an hour to do one sail, so I’m not sure how many we can get done before we leave here. Mark stopped at three today because he ran out of the line that John’s visiting Aunt and Uncle brought earlier this week. Fellow Rotary member Wendy is returning from South Africa this weekend and she will be bringing more of the line, so more sails can be sewn Obviously this project will continue until we leave and beyond.
The deck at Sakatia Towers was alive tonight. We went up for sundowners and there was a full house between guests and cruisers. We met John’s aunt and uncle from South Africa and the full crew from the South African catamaran CQ that came in yesterday. This forty-seven foot catamaran used to belong to Bruce and Nadine who are here on the delivery boat Pioneer. They sold it in May just before leaving for their Madagascar explore and now CQ has made it here. Kim and Paul are the owners and they have a beautiful little two and a half year-old son named Joshua. Joshua was running around in his normal Madagascar attire this evening (no clothing) and was such a well behaved little one. Kim and Paul have a crew member named James and another couple that has been traveling with them. A sailor named George was on the deck and I have no idea what boat he is from and Bruce and Birget of Irene were also there. Then there was another South African couple staying at the Towers until the weekend, so it was a full-house. As always the conversation was lively and informative. I heard that the politics in my country have gone haywire, so I need to find out what this means. John’s deck is certainly never boring!
by Judy Handley | Sep 14, 2010 | Madagascar, Sailing Logs Year 5 |
Day 323, Year 5 Ninety-nine Years of Birthday Wishes
Date: Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Weather: Sunny Day with NW Winds 10-15
Location: Nosy Sakatia, NW Madagascar
Our son Justin is thirty-three years old today and Mark’s brother Steve is exactly double that. 33 + 66 = 99 years. That’s a lot of living. And tomorrow Mark’s sister Jeanie will be sixteen. Well, sixteen plus a few decades. So . . . .
Happy Birthday, Justin!
Happy Birthday, Steve!
Happy Birthday, Jeanie!
We talked to Justin on the phone last night and he, Jo, and Ziggy are back home in New Mexico after an extended stay in England with Jo’s family. So welcome home, JJ&Z. The US government has allowed Jo to return while they decide whether or not to approve a ten-year unconditional Visa for her. So at least for now, all is well. Ziggy talked to us on the phone by making various animal sounds on cue. We’re anxiously awaiting a new batch of photos on their Picasa website so we can see just how much he has grown this summer.
It was another low key day making granola, doing laundry, and all of the same old, same old. We did try to snorkel in the same area as yesterday but the water was much higher today. The same beauty was there, it was just far below us. Tomorrow Mark and Bruce and Tristen of Pioneer are going with John from Sakatia Towers back down to the village on the south end of the island to cut up the donated spinnaker to make pirogue sails. The one prototype that Mark made has been trialed and got a thumbs up from the locals, so now they can safely cut the rest of the sails and Mark can get them sewn before we leave here next week. I’ll stay on Windbird and try to name the remainder of the underwater photos and come up with a “Best of.” Madagascar folder to post.
Ed and Lynne of Constance and Carla and Pieter of Odulphus came over for sundowners tonight. Carla called it the Captains’ Meeting as the purpose was to make plans for our trip south and west to South Africa. Odulphus is leaving tomorrow and will check out the end of the month in Majunga. We plan to check out sometime before the end of next week and start our trek south. I think Constance will be leaving at about the same time, so the three boats will keep in touch via a radio net at 5:45 pm each evening. Hopefully we will all reach a point in southern Madagascar at about the same time and head across to Richards Bay in South Africa at the same time.
by Judy Handley | Sep 13, 2010 | Madagascar, Sailing Logs Year 5 |
Day 322, Year 5 The Land of Giants
Date: Monday, September 13, 2010
Weather: Cloudy & Rainy Early, Then Mostly Sunny
Location: Nosy Sakatia, NW Madagascar
The weather this morning was unusually dreary. A dark cloud hung around for a bit and then dumped some rain. Usually the sun would come out after a little downpour, but today it just stayed dreary. So our plans for a mid-morning snorkel were cancelled. There was just not enough sun for underwater photos. So I continued working on naming fish pictures while Mark was on the computer linking photos to the website. We were able to access the Goldstone Picasa website and see summer photos of Jonah and Sam I know I’m prejudiced, but they are really beautiful little guys. We haven’t heard from Justin and Jo yet but we certainly hope they are home. They have promised to put up new photos of Ziggy and we can’t wait to see those.
Around noon, we saw that Nadine, Bruce, and Tristen of Pioneer were in the channel between Nosy Sakatia and Nosy Be just south of the Sakatia Towers anchoring area snorkeling. Yesterday when we returned from our way too shallow snorkel we noticed for the first time that the shallow area just south of us is full of coral. Previously we thought it was just a shallow sand bank. Mark got in the dinghy and went down to find out what Nadine and Bruce were seeing underwater, and he immediately returned and told me to get my suit on. In two minutes we were in the dinghy and two minutes later we were in the water. What a delightful surprise. This shallow area is full of various types of coral, sea fans, sponges, and small fish that are way bigger than we have ever seen. Bluegreen chromis which are usually no more than two inches long are more than double that here. These normally benign little fish were all of a sudden absolutely beautiful when mixed with bright orange and raspberry pink Anthias. The last time we saw Anthias was in Vanuatu, but here they are bigger, more numerous, and just beautiful. All of this was mixed with giant pink fan corals, white star fish with bright, bright red trimmings, the biggest clams we have ever seen, and a few fish varieties that just aren’t in the identification books. Conditions today were just perfect. We’ll give it another try tomorrow as there are just so many things to see. And we finally saw a nudibranch. Yeah! And Nadine saw a lionfish that was as big as a bushel basket. We’ll definitely look for that tomorrow. I don’t know what makes the fish so big here, but we do feel like we are in the land of giants.
Tonight Bruce, Nadine, and their daughter Tristen came over for a make-your-own pizza dinner. I had the pizza shells pre-cooked and Tristen had a great time building a pizza for herself and one for her mom and dad. We did a little slide show from today’s snorkel and just generally had a wonderful evening together. Bruce, Nadine, and Tristen will be flying back to South Africa on Saturday. Their trip here on Pioneer was a boat delivery and now they must get back to life on land in Cape Town, but I think they are already planning their next family sailing adventure.
by Judy Handley | Sep 12, 2010 | Madagascar, Sailing Logs Year 5 |
Day 321, Year 5 Quiet Sunday
Date: Sunday, September 12, 2010
Weather: Mostly Sunny Day
Location: Nosy Sakatia, NW Madagascar
Today was one of those days where you find yourself constantly busy but accomplishing nothing major-just one little job after another. Mark got both of our bilge pumps working properly once again and put new stuffing in the stuffing box around the prop shaft. So the constant trickle of water that was coming in has stopped. I did some gardening. I pulled up all the basil, cut the tops off, put them in water to root, and then took a fork and turned the soil in the pots. I have six little pots, now four with arugula and two with basil. We use the arugula like lettuce on sandwiches and that is why we need more of it. I went through all the onions and garlic and learned that I have about two pounds of red onions from India that are still good and about six pounds of Madagascar red onions. The size of an onion has shrunk quite dramatically since Thailand. There you could buy onions the size of most you buy at the store in the US. In India, we would sort through bags and bags of onions at the market to come up with the biggest they had which were always smaller than a tennis ball. Here in Madagascar we are down to red onions the size of a golf ball! Surely onions will get bigger again once we are in South Africa.
Mark also spent a good deal of the morning trying to get photos uploaded to Picasa on the web and then linked to our website. The process is excruciatingly slow and very expensive. By tomorrow he hopes to have the “Best of.” folders from Moramba Bay up, so if you want to see those go to Days 293 to 299. We’ll try to get a “Best of Madagascar Underwater” folder uploaded, but then I think we will stop trying and just wait until we get to South Africa to do the rest. The whole episode of trying to get photos uploaded has just been so frustrating. After the photo frustrations, we had yet another frustrating experience. At 11 am we took time to go for a snorkel and it was a total bust. Low tide should have been at 12:30 pm, but there was already a south setting flood which caused the water to be cloudy and the current hard to fight. Ed and Lynne went snorkeling at the same time and Lynne did see a large cowry with its mantle out. Mark found an octopus in a hole in the coral, but it didn’t come out to play. And I just fought with the dinghy trying to keep it off the shallow coral. We have had so many wonderful snorkeling days that I guess we were due for a bad one. Mark went up to talk to John at Sakatia Towers this after and he showed Mark a particular mangrove tree. When the water is just at the base, it is time to go snorkeling. I guess local knowledge goes a long way. So tomorrow morning we’ll use the mangrove indicator and see if things are any better.
When Mark went up to Sakatia Towers in the afternoon to talk with John about a few things and I stayed on the boat and named more underwater photos and called our daughter Heather and family. We needed to find out if our new boat documentation has arrived and it has. So now Heather can send this to South Africa so it will be there when we arrive. It was so wonderful to hear Sam playing a harmonica concert and to hear Jonah talking. He says “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” (the name of an Eric Carle book), momma, daddy, and football. He loves balls of all kinds and once he said football, he just said it over and over. He is also quite good at making kissing sounds over the phone. We will wait and call Justin, Jo, and Ziggy tomorrow as they might still be traveling. I’m hoping we’ll get an email telling us that all went well when they went to get on the plane in London this time. I know they will be happy to be home.
