Well the weather is a bit changeable down here. The famous four seasons in one day. Our first couple of weeks here felt a very long way from Fiji. It was wet and windy and we were just glad not to be at sea. We left Escapade in the marina at Opua, moved ashore […]
Author / escapadesailing
Fiji to New Zealand. Eventually.
It’s been a while since we took Escapade for a proper sail out in the ocean swell. That was back in April when we left Polynesia on our way to Fiji. Long enough to forget just how much fun it is to feel this boat eating up the miles. We finally committed to a promising […]
Fiji to New Zealand. But when?
18th November 2022 This is a well trodden path.Yachts travel up and down this stretch of the South Pacific every season. We have met lots of Kiwi boats who sail up to the tropics each year to avoid the New Zealand winter, then back home for their summer. The classic time to sail south is […]
On a forecast
Brice and I have been talking about windsurfing at Cloudbreak for years. Probably 20 years. Brice achieved his ambition in 2019, and is very hungry for another visit. When Escapade arrived in Fiji, Brice started scanning the swell forecasts. He can be here in 12 hours from his home in California. We tried to […]
Sega Na Leqa (No Worries)
Mud crabs We were just waking up this morning when two fishermen arrived in a longboat with some crabs in a sack. “Fresh mudcrab!” “Are they alive?” “Oh yes! Just boil them till they are red.” “Ok we’ll take two.” The drone of their Yamaha Enduro outboard fades into the distance and we return to […]
Full boat in Fiji
Waves. Our anchor is hooked in to a narrow strip of sand just inside the outer reef. A four minute ride in the dinghy gets us to Namotu. Today we tied up to a mooring in the pass and paddled across to the Namotu Left. A storied surf break mainly enjoyed by guests on Namotu […]
Next stop Fiji
So finally we are on our way. We have been planning and preparing for this moment since 5th February. That was when we saw the email from Tahiti customs office giving us the deadline to leave by end March. Well we did it. Escapade is ready for sea, fully crewed and provisioned. As we pass […]
On A Mission
The new crew arrived. I had told them to travel light, space on the boat is very limited. I tried to stay calm as the baggage was dragged out of the little Raiatea airport. Giant triple boardbags. Surf boards, windsurf board, sails, foil boards, kite boards, hydrofoils, a quantity of wings, plus camera gear, housings, […]
Two Years later…
Mid February 2020 was a moment in history when everything was about to change forever, but we didn’t know it yet. Or at least I didn’t. I had been sailing with Bryan and Auriane, chasing swells and fish round the remote atolls of the Tuamotus, while Dawn was away in Europe. Dawn returned to the […]
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