10) Gahi, Uvea, Wallis Islands

August 2008: South Pacific

Gahi, Uvea, Wallis Islands (S 13.20.154 W 176.11.192) 

                               

                The more I get a look at these remote places the more I see how difficult it actually is to reach them by boat.  This entrance is a gap in the fringing reef of the Wallis Island group.  The pass is well marked and wide enough for cargo ships yet still has breaking waves on either side of the ocean-side entrance.  Once inside the fringing reef you get a sense of how safe and calm the water is from the protection.  

 

                We made our way to Gahi Bay and dropped the hook.  It’s always nice to do nothing after a passage and we tried.  We got in the water but the water was green where we anchored and the visibility was zero.  So, sit in the cockpit it is.  We heard lots of hollering and horns and general noise coming from the shore but could not figure out why.  There were 2 other boats in the anchorage and 1 of them stopped by just before sunset.  This turned out to be a great conversation.  They were a French couple that had been here 2 weeks and loved it.  They like to stay longer in fewer places and really get a feel for the people and the place.                                                                                                           

                They shed some light on many things for us about Wallis Islands and this particular area.  After reading a cruising guide we determined that it would be a holiday the next day and the gendarme, for checking in, would be closed.  But, the French couple told us that Wallis adopted New Caledonia calendar and clock time as they were administered by them so the holiday was actually today since NC was over the dateline.  The noise from the shore was spillover of Assumption Day celebrations including a kava induction ceremony for a new king.  We missed this unfortunately.  The French saw it but it rained heavily during the ceremony and they were unable to get up from the grass they were sitting on while watching the event.  From many miles offshore we saw the rain which blotted out much of the islands.  

                These two had so much to talk about related to the island and what they learned and of their other travels.  It was an enjoyable time as they were quite animated and so eager to talk to other cruisers.  We decided that we would stay the night here and pull the anchor and go to the main town the next morning.