Day 205, Year 5: Something’s Fishy
Date: Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Weather: Sunny; SE Winds 10-12
Location: Ile Fouquet, Salomon Atoll, Chagos

Afternoon fishing is certainly turning out to be more profitable than morning fishing. Ed and Mark went out this afternoon and Mark came back with another beautiful Wahoo and Ed with a nice, big Yellowfin Tuna. In addition, Mark lost two big fish which put up too good of a fight. I wish I had video of Mark’s rendition of what it is like out there, speeding along at about 15 knots in the dinghy, holding on for dear life, bouncing up and down wildly in the waves, and then trying to get a fish in the dinghy. And of course, both Mark and Ed always get a strike at the same time, so it leaves no one in charge of the dinghy. I might ask Mark to re-enact his version of this tomorrow and try to catch that on video for posterity. Mark’s comment tonight was, “Wouldn’t it just be easier to go to the grocery store?” But the answer is no, because we couldn’t possibly afford to buy the amount of fish we get here, especially not the sushi grade tuna. We are having sashimi for dinner tonight. I am also baking bread for tomorrow’s picnic lunch on Ile de Passe and after sashimi, we’ll have hot bread. Dinners in Chagos are always a bit different since there is no grocery store and the supplies are dwindling, so you eat what you have.

Otherwise, the day was uneventful. We worked on our Outlook contacts again and got through the letter Q today. So we are certainly more than half-way there. We are finding that we don’t have sufficient information entered on many of our sailing friends, so we have to stop and find their boat cards to enter the information. This takes longer, but in the end, we might really have an address book that is up-to-date and usable. Tomorrow, weather permitting; we are headed to Ile de Passe, the island out at the pass which is about two miles from here. There is an old camp there that John and Sue on Susan Margaret have been up-grading. The old camp has a good well and sounds like a lovely place to spend an afternoon, so around 11:30 am we’ll head that way along with Constance, Susan Margaret, Ventana, and Aries Tor. It’s pot luck, so I’ll report on that tomorrow night. Tomorrow morning we will also go over and invite Mr. Curley to join us. This is a boat that spends months here almost every year and Rich and Kathy moved up to this anchorage from Boddam a day or so ago. Tomorrow morning Peppe and Bob of Far Niente will be leaving for Madagascar. The first boat that left for Madagascar this year, Nepenthe, is now in Mayotte having alternator problems. They were never planning to stop in Madagascar as their destination is Tanzania, but Far Niente is headed to the anchorages on the northwest side of Madagascar, so we will look forward to reports from them as to the passage and the anchorages. In only fourteen days, we will be headed that way.

100519 Day 205 Salomon, Chagos–Good Fishing Day