Beez Neez now Chy Whella - Sandspit Attempt

Sandspit Attempt

Beez Neez now Chy Whella

Big Bear and Pepe Millard

Sat 25 Jul 2015 22:57

Sandspit Attempt in Baby Beez

I woke this morning with less of a headache, although still bunged and wheezy I felt somewhat better but not ready to throw off my Park Bench Pepe title. After snorkelling my way through my mix of Ricicles and Cocopops we settled to finish the Yasawa Islands At-Venture folder by working out our kava needs, if we visit each anchorage in this group of islands that has a village rather than a tourist resort – we will need twelve bundles. Mmmm. May have to shave that down as we go along. Next was a game of backgammon which at four all and a critical throw, I needed a double six to get my last two men home, currently stuck in Bears nest. He threw a double one and trapped me, what did I throw next........... a double six, just one throw too late. Still, after four months of continuously being behind, I was two games up and four hundred and sixteen dollars, very big growls indeed.

Bear said he needed to pop a memory stick over to Steve on Scott-Free, we radioed to see if it was convenient and asked if I was allowed to go too. I was told to wear my mossie hat with the built in face cover but wrapped my head in a sarong instead. My first outing since Monday............ As I climbed aboard I was welcomed to an unclean and tinkling of a bell. Laughing is not on my list yet so a hearty choking took hold. A lovely cuppa and two dipped ginger nuts I felt better. Amazing how an hour out in their cockpit cheered me no end.

Back home we started a game of Mexican Train and half way through it was lunch time, what did I fancy, Spam fingers dipped in salad cream. Spam is not Bears favourite but he added a tomato and some cheese biscuits, I added the double nought for good measure. Growling again...........

AT two o’clock and flushed with this mornings outing I asked if we could spuddle in Baby Beez over to the Sandspit Anchorage. I would be disappointed to leave this beautiful lagoon without at least trying to get the planned half an hour journey in Beez at least attempted. Well in this wind you will have to wrap up completely. I jumped at the chance, well verbally if not physically. I pulled on my waterproof dungarees, anorak, flip flops, camera and optimism, struggled back into Baby Beez and off we went.

Bear thought we could go most of the way by wiggling through many rocks avoiding crossing the choppy lagoon. Everywhere we looked saw new beaches at the end of cul-de-sacs, such a vast area. The wind was still in the twenties but the sun was out giving the shallow water a lovely hue.

We picked big chaps to navigate our way back through the labyrinth.

An easy rock to keep straight past and a turn left.

The ‘turn left’ rock opened up yet another huge area but Bears internal compass knew another left would have us facing the correct way. I was beginning to enjoy this very much, new ground to explore. The locals incredibly know every nook and cranny, we saw one chap snorkelling for fish or clams and we saw a couple on an outrigger coming back from their allotment.

Bear was right, after our next left we could see our destination – beyond the gap on our horizon.

A slight right and more rocks, the water was now so shallow Bear had to tilt the outboard to keep going.

Lots of algae growing on the bottom, hang on, I could just see masts. Several boats had felt dug in enough to stay through the stormy weather.

The masts were getting closer. The deep blue water meant a bit of lagoon to cross...............

Out in the lagoon the waves were big enough to send one over my head and a cupful of water made its way down my neck and trickled inside my suit. Bear was soaked and we both looked at each other. Time to head back. So this was as near as we got, I would have loved a picture of me in my outfit Sir Edmund would have been proud to own, standing in the sun on a gorgeous beach. Oh well, at least we tried.

Overhead a tropicbird laughed at us.

Back they way we came.

We got back to our bay and found that Domino had moved in. We met this beast of a lady in Trinidad, believe it or not she carries sufficient fuel to do ten thousand miles at seven knots, incredible. Back home, a little damp........ Bear set to the task of lifting Baby Beez and I did a bit of ‘putting away’, taping Bee Jars lid on and all the other little things that need to be done before we set off on the morrow for two days at sea. Hair and beard trim for the skipper, showers, mahi-mahi supper and a film to end our last day here in Fulanga with its awesome topography.