Fahiti ho!

 Nobody said you can't eat well while sailing. General's Chicken.  Found this recipe online and I had everything except green onions.  The sauce was a bit heavy on the Hoisin, but otherwise very tasty.  A sprinkle of chili peppers really helped spice it up. Ripe papaya with fresh lemon juice for breakfast.  Tasty!

 It's three am. Bang!  WTF?  Something hit my boat at 3 am?  Usain Bolt couldn't have moved faster to the companionway than I did.  Grabbed my headlamp on the way. Took a walk around the deck.  Nothing.  Flat calm water.  Anchor chain straight down.  Went back inside, checked Anchor Sentry.  I was right where I should be.  Turned on depth finder.  35 feet. Went back to bed.  Five minutes later - Bang!  I think the boat shook this time. Ok, now I'm pissed.  Grabbed the headlamp again and went all around the topsides.  Did I miss a coral pinnacle that I somehow floated over?  No sign with the light.  Still dead calm, clear night. Went back to bed.  Four am - Bang!  Less of a bang this time, but enough to wake me up.  This time I didn't get up.  Whatever it is, it will wait until morning. So it's morning.  All systems fine.   Best guess?  A big fish was feeding ...

 Ok.  Got 'ya to read with that title, right?  Yah, deny it if you want.   So the gas line fix worked.  The seal held and I was all happy.  Then I got to thinking...what if this thing fell apart when I'm miles up a creek or worse, out in choppy swells?  If it fell apart there would be no recourse except to row.  I needed to bypass this whole contraption and make it robust.  (The enquiring reader will note that this could have been done in Savusavu.) I had the inspiration to see if I could find a pipe nipple of the right diameter.  And sure enough, after digging around in Joe's endless bin 'o parts I found exactly what I needed - an NPT thread to hose nipple.  The nipple wasn't quite big enough (keep the jokes to yourself - you know who you are) but with two hose clamps it did the trick.  I now have a fuel line locked to the tank, no sealant required. Now just so the motor fitting doesn't go on me...  

 ...we all screen for bug screen! In Viani Bay, near the eastern-most tip of Vanua Levu.  Had to motorsail most of the way, but the winds finally picked up.  Came in through the south pass of Rainbow Reef.  Always sphincter-clenching, the depth read 28 feet at one point.  Once you start in, there's no turning around - you have reef on either side. Got anchored.  Bit of a problem getting a good set; the coral bottom of Viani Bay is not conducive to the anchor digging in.  Didn't float the chain, either, thinking I'll live with chain growl for the extra holding of the chain on the bottom.  Not much wind, though, so Anchor Sentry should not get a workout. Woke up next morning with the intent to look at my battens.  I have two full battens on top.  They have not been behaving, the sail is kind of flopped over at the mast where those two battens terminate.  It turns out (thanks, Google) that those black plastic boxes at the sail luff (ne...

Still at Cousteau, waiting (somewhat impatiently) for a south wind.  I have to travel 45 miles due east along the island.  There's been no wind at all for weeks now.  Tomorrow there is supposed to be 10-15 mph from the SE all day.  We'll see.  I'm going regardless, even if I have to motor. Of course, this brings up the question:  Ok, Dave, once you get east, how do you get back?  Will file that in the 'Cross that bridge when we get to it' file. Did paddleboard all over the Cousteau reef.  It's amazing how much you can see in this water while you're standing up.  Only fell over once and that was talking to another boat.  (Of course I do this in front of an audience.)

 Our favorite sand patch - just an hour outside of Savusavu.  Came out with the intent of testing my mainsail.  Didn't happen.  By the time you get far enough out of Savusavu to turn into the wind you're basically at the Cousteau anchorage.  Oh well. Suffered through two days of rain.  Torrential rain yesterday.  I was supposed to dinghy over to Joka's boat for coffee but one look at the sky and that was scrapped.  The rain really hit about three p.m.  I didn't even see the other boat pull up at five thirty or so.  Talked to them this am; they motored from Viani Bay yesterday through that shit.  Managed to get anchored just before dark. Snorkeled today.  Vis was not great - I've seen much better at Cousteau.  Still, I had to make use of it while I'm here.  No wind forecast until next Tuesday.  I think I'll go back into Savusavu and pick up a mooring again.  At least I can make happy hour.