Cruising the South Pacific with Tackless II
Tackless II, along with her two captains, Don and Gwen, cruise from Fiji to Australia
Sunday, May 25, 2008
25 May 2008 - The 2Cs Play Hookey!
We are playing hookey! Our Vuda friend Jim on the Hallberg Rassey 49' FLIGHT invited us kind of at the last minute on Saturday to hop aboard for a weekend out at Musket Cove. Jim has been trying to get out of Vuda Marina for weeks! Always something kept him yet another day, the last of which was the 'desertion" of one of his volunteer crew, the attractive young Ruth, who flew back to New Zealand upon the death of her uncle. Both Ruth and Bob arrived in Fiji (about the same time we did) expecting to hop aboard and take off. The inevitable boatyard delays have been very frustrating for all of them. So, having the two captains along to help troubleshoot some lingering system issues (not to mention do the cooking!) has been a nice thing for them. I am fairly sure they would be thrilled to have us come along for the trip to Vanuatu,( since they are down to the two of them), on which they need to soon leave, but I think we will restrain ourselves.

Both of us, however, really needed the break. We've been at this yard work effort for a month now! Believe it or not Willie, the painter, was aiming to shoot the first coat of primer Saturday afternoon. I think perhaps Willie PAID Jim to seduce us away. Almost surprisingly, Don came!

It was a beautiful trip over to Musket (although the wind was on the nose, of course), and we had a nice reunion with several friends here, a reprise of our morning walk around the island this morning, and we will be on hand for the first Sunday night barbecue at Musket's Ratu Nemani Island tonight! Last night in FLIGHT's unfamiliar galley I cooked up a nice dnner that seemed to please the guys (I was thrilled with a head of romaine that I turned into a right passable Caesar salad) and we had croissants from the Musket bakery for breakfast! Our palates and bellies are happy, plus Don had the best night's sleep he's had since we've been back to Fiji, even if it was in separate bunks in the V-berth. There's nothing like a rocking boat and a fresh sea breeze!

FLIGHT will head back to Vuda Tuesday morning and we will be back at work soon enough. When we get there Willie will be at work on the hard top and sanding and fairing the first rounde of primer, and with luck we will see the rest of the primer and maybe even final paint the next week, weather permitting.

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Written at 11:28 PM by Gwen and Don.
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