Counting our blessing's

Current Position!!!!

17.04.296 S and 179.06.404 E

What a great day it is!!
We were in Savusavu Fiji waiting for our paperwork to go through to be able to visit the unspoiled area of the Lau Group in Fiji. Few people get to visit this group of islands in Fiji mainly because the islanders do not want Europeans and Westerners to spoil their way of life. You actually need an invitation to be able to sail there.

Early in the morning, Tuesday we were awoke by a thundering crash to the boat. I was up and forward in a flash. What a blessing it was, the hole is above the waterline. There was a gapping 3' x 1' hole ripped in the bow of the main hull! A small fishing boat has ran head on into Elysium. A week later we are repaired and leaving dock.

As we were leaving the dock, the gearbox wouldn't go in forward or reverse..
After a quick pulling of the engine out, We found that the damper plate is damaged and the gearbox is fine.

OK, yes, is was a terrible accident but I feel very strong that in every case even in bad situations, there is a very positive outcome. I am very blessed and Thank God for all of his blessings on my voyage.

We ordered the new part from California via internet and Skipe, and sailed off the dock headed for Namena Island to wait for the part to be shipped in. Namena Island is part of the Lomaiviti Island group which is located between the two main Fijian islands of Viti Levu and Venua Levu. Namena MPA encompasses the entire reef around Namena island. We are now diving in one of the most popular places in Fiji, a world class dive spot to say the least! We also were invited aboard MV NAI'A, a local dive tour operator live a board dive boat for a kava ceremony and drinks. The Captain also gave us many dive site coordinates to find by the GPS. Today the Fiji Aggressor pulled in as well.

We are diving 2 dives per day sometimes 3. SV Seeker is anchored close to us and has been diving with us as well...

The Namena MPA is home to over 1,000 species of interbrates, 400 known corals and 445 documented marine plants. Namena is a migratory pathway for whale species, including bottlenose and spinner dolphins, minke, pilot, sperm and humbacks. Namena also provides nesting beaches for green turtles as well as hawksbills. Fiji has 4 of the worlds 7 marine turtle species, all of which are endangered. Namena also has 3 kinds of sea snakes and the Island is a major seabird nesting site, with approximately 600 pairs of protected red-footed boobies.

Our part for the engine should be in Savusavu in a few days. We plan to head back to Savusavu to pick up our part install and complete repairs and get underway headed for Taveuni and the Lau Group.
After the Lau Group we will start headed towards Vanuatu Islands.

Thx for following the adventures of Elysium and Captain Louis!

Captain Louis

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see:

http://www.sailmail.com

Another GREAT Adventure!!!

Hello to all following the Adventures of Elysium!!! After a great visit back to America, celebrating my birthday and seeing great friends and family, I am back on board and underway to the Lau Group.

Upon arrival in Vuda Point Marina, I started cleaning the boat while awaiting my three crew to join the boat. They will be on board for the next three month's adventure through some of Fiji and then heading on to Vanuatu Islands, doing some great dives in great locations.

As I prepared Elysium for the trip, Dorothy arrived the same day as I did. Dorothy, a Corporate Counselor as well as a dive instructor, is from Singapore/England. Both of us started working towards cleaning and organizing the boat for a total of four people to be on board. We cleaned every nook and cranny of the boat, unloaded and reloaded the boat, took inventory of what was actually aboard, made space available for all of our dive gear and dive compressor, and enough food stores and bottled water for four people for three months.

Patrick showed up from California a week later, after closing the last few days at his job. He is a mechanical engineer and had some time off between jobs. After a few days with Patrick helping out in some very important areas of preparing the boat, we finally saw light at the end of the tunnel. A few days after Patrick's arrival, Roberta, a Cajun from Louisiana, arrives! Roberta, whom I originally met in Honduras four years ago while she was on board NOEL, is a Registered Nurse, a dive instructor and a very seasoned sailor bringing with her many years of sailing experience in the Caribbean and two Pacific crossings. Even with the jet lag, Roberta jumped in and sorted out all of our medical items and organized us, so we have several great medical bags for almost any emergency.

Well, you can imagine, after the boat is finally reloaded with everyone's dive gear, clothing, new dive compressor, extra water and extra fuel, the water line had gone down somewhat. At last, after over a week in the marina, we were ready to depart and begin our journey, initially to Taveuni Island, where the White Wall dive site is, and then on to the Lau Group of Island, where very few people get to see and visit. We left the marina and sailed only six miles to the nearest island for a nice swim, as well as cleaning the bottom of the boat and the propeller. We had a lazy night watching The Good Shepherd. The following day, we headed for Lautoka to check out with customs. The girls spent only a few hours getting some last minute items at the store while Patrick and I returned to the marina by taxi to get a spare shift cable for Elysium. We all met up at the internet cafe and headed to the boat. I visited customs and checked us out for the next major port in Fiji. We were then able to get underway and motor sailed for about five hours, dropped anchor near a point close to Viti Levu and spent the night there. The following day, we were up and underway for Savusavu. With light winds, we motored for a few hours until the winds came up. After a great overnight sail, we are now arriving at Venua Levu on Saturday afternoon. We will check in with customs on Monday to avoid the overtime customs charges for weekends. We plan to make our first dive on the west end of the bay of Savusavu tomorrow.

Thank you for following the Adventures of Elysium. More will be posted during our trip to keep you updated on our journey.

Captain Louis

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see:

http://www.sailmail.com