After clearing in and getting our cruising permit in Savusavu we made our way to Namena Island, a small island in the middle of the Namena Reef system. The oblong shaped reef holds x sq km of reef to explore. It is a marine reserve so the fish and coral are protected. The island’s only development is a small resort that is being rebuilt after it was destroyed by a cyclone a few years ago. We checked in with the people at the resort when we arrived. They told us we were permitted to go on the island and told us of a trail leading from the beach near our anchorage to another beach on the far side of the island. It took us a little while to find the trail but we’re glad we did. The beach was untouched and had beautiful soft sand.
The island is a nesting area for red-footed boobies. From the boat we could hear them squawking and watch their comings and goings.
The reef is a diver’s paradise. We didn’t dive but we heard from some avid divers that the diving at Namena rivals any diving they’ve done on their trip across the South Pacific. We snorkelled several coral areas that were close to the anchorage. We were impressed by the variety of corals. The visibility wasn’t great but we were told that it’s not the best time of year for visibility.
It would have been nice to spend another night or two at Namena but it is a fair-weather anchorage and stronger winds were in the forecast. We left after only a couple of nights.
From Namena we took two days to navigate our way through the reefs and make our way along Vanua Levu’s south coast to Yadua Island. Yadua lies off the southwest corner of Vanua Levu. We anchored in Cukuvou Bay on the island’s west coast. We stayed on board the day we arrived because it was windy and rainy. The next day we explored the small beach, snorkelled on the entrance reef and spoke with some fisherman that stopped for a chat. They had come to the bay to net small fish to use as bait when fishing further off the island’s coast.
When setting off for Yadua we had planned to spend three or four days there. Unfortunately, the forecast was for a week of high winds so we only ended up with the one full day at Yadua before we headed to the more protected waters of Vanua Levu’s north coast.
Cormacks On Cambria 