Pitufa.at

After the success we had in Matuku persuading the chiefs and headmen to install protected areas (Tabu) around the island to protect the reefs from overfishing and to ensure a sustainable use of the resources, we tackled the same issue here in Fulanga.
The problem’s the same like everywhere in Fiji (and the rest of the Pacific islands and probably elsewhere): the islands were able to sustain the population for a long time, but now with modern technology (spear guns since the 1990s, torches to go nightfishing, outboard engines to go longer distances and of course freezers to store and export fish) the numbers of fish are rapidly shrinking.
Just like in Matuku the people here are noticing the change themselves and are concerned–they are just now starting a Tabu committee and thinking of strategies to control the overexploitation. We volunteered to share info about our experiences in the Pacific, the different Tabu types in comparison (short term Rahui in Tahiti that doesn’t work at all, permanent Rahui in Rapa Iti that works very well), etc.

We got a projector from the school, a white sheet from a house, the guy from the Tabu committee brought kava (the only way to get the villagers to a gathering is the sound of pounding kava he said with a wink) and it worked–the assembly hall quickly filled up for our presentation. We try to present the main points quite simplified as many villagers don’t speak English well. The importance to keep the eco-system in balance, the role herbivores play in keeping the reef clean and the necessity to install protected zone and to limit the export. No reef no fish, no fish no reef…
The villagers were interested and the following discussion quite lively. They already have short-term tabu system: spearfishing is only allowed 6 months of the year inside the lagoon and the pass (always outside). We explained that such a system is not efficient as the fish don’t have enough time to grow and reproduce when they just leave them for 6 months. It would be much better and more sustainable for the future to have an area that is always protected, so fish can really mature in there to have a much higher reproduction rate and just fish off the “overflow” around the borders of the Tabu. It turns out that they are willing to install taboo areas, but worried that not everybody will respect them and especially that people from neighbouring islands will sneak into the pass at night to go fishing anyway… We hope it’ll work out somehow as the pass area here is really worth protecting. It’s among the top 3 reefs we’ve seen in the Pacific!

No worries, this is not a blog about Covid19. We haven’t seen another cruising boat in almost 2 months, so we’re as isolated as it gets and the daily lockdown is all about the vicious mosquitos here. Now that the weather is hot and calm they swarm out all over the lagoon–no place is safe.
The first evening we simply retreated to the aft cabin after sunset, thinking we’d be safe behind mosquito screens and shut doors. We killed about 10 in the evening and settled down for the night, but somehow the bloodsuckers made it in anyway–we had to turn on the lights twice to smash another dozen and when I went to the loo afterwards another dozen followed me back in… The next day we thought we were extra clever and closed the bathroom doors as well–using the light, little room as a decontamination chamber we slipped in there first (laptop for the evening entertainment, bottle of water and bar of chocolate in hand), smashed all those that wanted to come along and proceded to the aft cabin. By 2 in the morning the room was buzzing again–incredible.

We kept improving the method and expanded the counter measures to a three-phase lockdown. We close off the aft cabin and the bathroom at 5, but we can still sit in the cockpit and have dinner. At sunset we go (flee) inside, close the companionway and all hatches in the saloon, proceed through the decontamination chamber into the aft cabin and tape off the doors (they leave a tiny gap at the bottom). With the new system we can finally enjoy restful, undisturbed nights again

Fulanga is one of the few atolls (or rather island-cluster with an outer reef–there are hardly any classic atolls here in Fiji) with a proper pass, meaning a narrow outlet of the lagoon with steep coral-clad walls like we know them from the Tuamotus. Most other “passes” are very open, wide and don’t have walls up to the surface so you hardly notice you’re in a pass when sailing into one of these open “lagoons” that feel more like open ocean.
It’s also one of the most beautiful passes we’ve ever snorkeled with a great variety of stunning, healthy corals. Today we took the dinghy all the way out to the outer reef and drop-off and were amazed to find huge groups of different kinds of big snappers, jacks, barracudas, surgeons and even three napoleons hovering in the light current–really impressive! We were glad to see half a dozen white-tip reef sharks among them–in most places we’ve snorkeled in Fiji so far they were hunted to extinction…
Further inside the pass the coral is even more beautiful and the biomass of little swarm fishies is mindboggling, a really dense fishsoup.

Yesterday we checked out a few inlets through the reef on the eastern side, expecting to find similar biodiversity, but the coral’s all dead and there are hardly any fishies–hopelessly overfished with even the tiniest fish scattering in panic and hiding underneath rocks at the sight of a human diver. Inside the lagoon there aren’t many bommies and the few only have some small growth of coral and hardly any fish. The lively pass area is a wonderful contrast to these lifeless areas.

Like everywhere on the islands of Fiji it’s obligatory here in Fulanga to visit the village to introduce yourself and to bring a sevusevu (kava bundle as a gift), so we wandered across the island to the main village (that sounds serious, but it’s just a twenty minute walk on a well-cleared path) to ask for the Turanga ni Koro (headman) who then introduced us to the chief. We gave him our present and were welcomed to the village, had to pay a fee of 50 FJD (flat rate for every small boat) and given a host family. Fulanga’s a very popular place and the chief showed us the entries of the other yachts in his visitor’s book–120 were here this year!
They are also more interested in paperwork than other islands, so we showed them our clearance and cruising permit. Apparently another yachtie who arrived in May had neither of those and was picked up by a Navy boat and his yacht is still tied up in the lagoon–weird story, we’ll try to find out more. Pebbles, a German registered boat apparently with a Bulgarian singlehander on board…
Despite the many visitors the people in the village are really friendly and we bought some nicely done carvings from the three carvers here we were casually introduced to
We had lunch with our host family, Christian promised to look into a cable issue at another house -the dwellings are very basic here, just corrugated iron, but the little houses still look neat and the gardens are lovingly decorated. There are some solar panels, but usually just for a few LEDs, not many have a fridge or TV. Apparently some sort of internet will be installed this week (maybe a wifi router, we’ll find out), so maybe smartphones, facebook and Co. will soon arrive…

Fulanga is a strange geological phenomenon. Imagine an atoll with a line of outer motu, numerous coralheads and reefs which was then lifted 20 m or so by tectonic movements. That’s what happened here.
The lagoon is now shallow and gleams in light turquoise and scattered all across are mushroom-shaped limestone islets–former coralheads that were eroded by the high tides here in Fiji. Thanks to their overhangs and spiky rocks they are completely unaccessible which makes them perfect nesting places for seabirds (we see raucous groups of bridled terns and white-tailed tropic birds) and great destinations for kayers!
We’ll post pics as soon as we have internet again…

Our article about the regatta is now online on Cruising World:

https://www.cruisingworld.com/people/2022-musket-cove-fiji-regatta-week/

Yesterday we took the kayak to a beach, found a camp fisherman had recently left (Yagasa is uninhabited, but people from neighbouring islands come here) and followed a horrible stench to the carcass of a turtle. We collected a bag of plastic rubbish around the camp site and burned it on one of the many fire sites the raiders had left.
It’s really sad to see how ruthlessly the islanders exploit Yagasa. We had high hopes finding lots of wildlife on an uninhabited island group, but we see just a few birds, hardly any fish and the reefs are mainly dead. Everything is overgrown with algae…
This lifeless desert may have some natural reason, but it seems more likely that overfishing (maybe with poison or even dynamite–both still used around here we heard) are to be blamed.

We brought a new kayak back to Pitufa from the US, but until now we didn’t have the opportunity to use it. Now, among the mushroom-shaped limestone islets of Yagasa we unpacked it, inflated it for the first time (quickly done), admired the bright-yellow, sleek vessel and took it out for a first round. The ancient kayak we used to have, had its own mind, always tried to turn its bow into wind and waves and regularly made us go in circles. Cursing the damn thing (and occasionally each other) we’d have to constantly correct course, go for miles paddling on one side–we thought that was part of kayaking.
The new Advanced Elements Island Voyage kayak holds its course, is wonderfully easy to handle and we effortlessly took it around the bay and to some adjacent beaches. Who knew kayaking could be so easy!!