19.00:00S  170.50:00W

We arrived in Nuie on the 8^th June  after a challenging four day sail through the Pacific Convection  Zone; an area of heavy rain, turbulent seas & winds coming from every direction. We dealt with a crash jibe at night which bent one of our stanchions & also had some fun untangling a misfurled  head sail  in rough seas. We were pleased to shelter at Niue where the Yacht Club had just laid  some new, ten ton moorings to replace those swept away by the cyclone in 2004.This must be the only yacht  club in the world without any boats. There is nowhere to land the dingy & it must be hauled out by crane.

Nuie is one of the smallest states in the world with a population of about 1200 people. It survives on aid from New Zealand.&  the E.U. The island has undergone rapid depopulation and there are many vacant houses & empty villages which are a little eerie.  

The island is an elevated atoll with a fringing reef & where there is no reef the ocean pounds against the cliffs creating wonderful chasms & crevices. We had an   adventurous  day exploring  in underground caves and snorkelled in crystal  clear pools full of fish.