Alofi
The main town and anchorage of Niue was a beautiful sight. The steep cliffs provided a nice backdrop to yet another friendly town. The dinghy dock consists of an extremely tall concrete supply ship dock, that in order to go ashore one must use a crane to lift your dinghy out. The boys also found it great fun to practice their swinging skill on the line.
They know how to take care of cruisers there, right down to the Niue Yacht Club and the weekly calendar of events, aside from all of the natural beauty. |
Matthew the scallywag
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Tavala cave
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Each day we hit a new cave or chasm and were surprised to see just how unique each one was from the next. The first cave was Tavala, full of color and smooth walls. Little pools of red and green rock dotted the bottom. Through the other side was the view of the arch and great tide pools at low tide. |
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We had the opportunity to attend one of their local monthly fairs, this month in the town of Lakepa. Complete with contests for the local growers to show off their biggest root or veggie. Beware of the coconut crabs tied to each tent pole, they are alive. There were marvelous food booths and contests for bacci ball and wooden spear throwing. |
Coconut Crab at Lakepa Town Fair
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Anapala
Not our usual type of swimming hole but what an adventure. After climbing down a series of steep stairs one comes to find this gem hidden in the stone. Narrow, deep and cold this little chasm leads to the ocean on the other side. We each took our turns swimming to the other end and back due to the fact that it is about two people wide. Without the aid of a flashlight or camera flash it was difficult to see much else. |
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Togo
Togo has two faces. One side is the dramatic landscape of these razor sharp jagged black rock spires that tower over you on all sides. Down below is a wooden ladder that leads you to a sandy palm tree dotted getaway that looks as though it accidentally became wedged between some Flintstone Rocks.
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Togo landscape
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Matapa chasm
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Matapa was definitely one of our favorite stops as we returned there a few times to swim and picnic. Only a short distance from the main road you are still miles from everywhere. Matapa has one special feature as well. The top half of the water is toe tingling cold fresh spring water where the bottom half is warm and comfy salt water from the ocean. You can swim to the end and climb over a rock to view the Pacific Ocean on the other side. |
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Limu is decorated with fields of shallow pools that weave in and out of great rock formations such as this. Small foot bridges open whole new worlds to explore and swim in.
Bruce and Tristan took the opportunity to scuba dive through snake alley and enjoy the depths with crystal clear views under water up to 100 meters. |
Limu
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Last but not least the true spirit of sailors and cruising shines through. Fellow sailors on the s/v Sensei departed Niue for Tonga when their forestay broke hours into the passage. Thankfully with the wind in the right direction and not to much tension pulling their mast stayed in place. s/v Moorea traveling nearby came in close to follow them back to the Niue anchorage which was no easy task now beating for hours to weather and pulling in after midnight. The whole fleet rallied together and removed the damaged parts, rebuilt and helped replace it in days. |
