On July 6th, we set off for Samoa taking advantage of a window of moderate wind. For most of the crossing we managed to use the wind vane steering, with the obvious aim of preserving the main rudder. Even so, in some situations we were forced to rely on the repairs we’d made, which, to our great relief, held up excellently. Besides, some friends who’d been at Penrhyn had left the day after us and could have come to our aid if needed. Samoa was an intermediate stop on our route to Fiji, the “closest” landfall where we could haul out the boat and find skilled labor to repair the rudder.
After 7 days and 850 miles of sailing, we arrived around midnight in Apia, the capital of Western Samoa, where Pat and Gary, who had arrived two days earlier, were waiting for us. Together with them and Alex, who arrived the day after us, we celebrated the success of the repairs made at Penrhyn with a toast of excellent sparkling wine at Paddles, an Italian restaurant run by a gentleman from the Veneto region and his family.
Interior of Apia Cathedral
The following day, together with our friends, we rented a car to visit the island of Upolu, where the capital Apia is located. The highlight for us was the villa-museum of Robert Louis Stevenson, surrounded by a magnificent park. The writer spent the last years of his life in Samoa, taking advantage of the favorable climate for his serious bronchial problems. He died there of a heart attack at age 44.
Park of R. L. Stevenson’s villaR. L. Stevenson’s tombAround the island of Upolu (Western Samoa Islands)
On July 18th we set off again for Fiji, crossing our fingers once more and hoping that the rudder would hold up for this crossing too.
On July 6th, we set off for Samoa taking advantage of a window of moderate wind. For most of the crossing we managed to use the wind vane steering, with the obvious aim of preserving the main rudder. Even so, in some situations we were forced to rely on the repairs we’d made, which, to our great relief, held up excellently. Besides, some friends who’d been at Penrhyn had left the day after us and could have come to our aid if needed. Samoa was an intermediate stop on our route to Fiji, the “closest” landfall where we could haul out the boat and find skilled labor to repair the rudder.
After 7 days and 850 miles of sailing, we arrived around midnight in Apia, the capital of Western Samoa, where Pat and Gary, who had arrived two days earlier, were waiting for us. Together with them and Alex, who arrived the day after us, we celebrated the success of the repairs made at Penrhyn with a toast of excellent sparkling wine at Paddles, an Italian restaurant run by a gentleman from the Veneto region and his family.
The following day, together with our friends, we rented a car to visit the island of Upolu, where the capital Apia is located. The highlight for us was the villa-museum of Robert Louis Stevenson, surrounded by a magnificent park. The writer spent the last years of his life in Samoa, taking advantage of the favorable climate for his serious bronchial problems. He died there of a heart attack at age 44.
On July 18th we set off again for Fiji, crossing our fingers once more and hoping that the rudder would hold up for this crossing too.