22:39.451S 167:26.389E

 

We left Vanuatu last weekend and had a wet and bumpy trip across to New Caledonia sailing all of the 320 miles hard on the wind (something we try very hard not to do if we can help it!).  Our first stop, to clear in, was at Lifou in the Loyalty Islands and then after a few days we pushed on south to the beautiful Isle des Pins which is where we are currently anchored in the stunning turquoise waters of Kuto Bay.  We are now quite a bit further south right on the Tropic of Capricorn and it is cool enough to need a blanket at night which is pleasant after 4 months of the sticky tropics.  The vegetation has also changed a little and as the name suggests this island is covered in huge columnaris pine trees so the whole place looks and smells very different from the jungle and palm clad places we have spent most of this year.  In the 1870s the island became a prison for 3000 deportees, rebels from the Paris Commune (sentenced to transportation, if my sketchy understanding of French history is correct, for the crime of not surrendering to the Germans!). 

 

From here we will head up to the capital Noumea which is apparently a modern and cosmopolitan French city.  Not only should this mean croissants for breakfast and decent cheese in the shops but also, with a bit of luck, I will find a TV in time for the Rugby World Cup semi-final (something I did not anticipate having to do!).