Last surf at Kalabay

Monday
Early surf out in the canoe (boat) to get right out the back quickly and easily. Long wait for not many waves. Moved further in but not much there either. Storm approaching and worried about the three hour boat trip.
Decided to go back to Lata today to make sure that I connect with the flight early on Tuesday morning. Pack everything in a way that may best handle getting my bags wet.
Make it to Lata and move in to the Luelta Lodge.

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Next: 2012/03/three-days-of-pain

Patteson family

Sunday
Woke to rain easing after heavy thunderstorm overnight.
Surf was small and frustrating and the various bits of the wave were not connecting.
Church may have stopped anyone else from surfing today. No-one suggested to me that I should not surf and I did not see any signs of a church service.
Yet another small storm blew through at noon.
Afternoon walk to track down the sugar palm board and to photograph it and its builder.

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Next: 2012/02/last-surf-at-kalabay

Sugar palm board

Saturday
Early surf before the wind kicked in. A day off for the school kids so I have company.

Two others out, 8 or 10 year olds. One riding a Rosewood skateboard deck and the other a surfoplane made from fleshy soft pulp wood with wooden pins holding it together.

Wind kicked in like a seabreeze at about 11am.

I take the little fibreglass canoe to the lee of the little island, Temotu Lite. I find bleached coral, some sea urchins and cute little bright blue fish.

Next: 2012/02/patterson-family

No ocean reflection

Friday
Walked to the point, made more sense than going there by boat.
High tide, waves a bit full at take-off for a change. A couple of teenage locals out trying to catch waves with dugout canoes. Saw how to bale a canoe out that was completely swamped. It is quick and easy, a rhythmic shake and make a wave inside the canoe that breaks out of it.
Watching the storm build out to sea and head toward me. No lightning in it so I don't have to run from it.
Eventually the whole of my vision of the sky when facing north east is the deepest black.
Any reflection of the sky on the smooth water completely went away and my full field of vision is straight into the clear water seeing the coral clearly and the occasional little fish swimming very near the surface. An awesome sight!

Next the rain started and I paddled in and walked back in a torrential downpour, past the school (disrupted most of the classes in the process).

Next: 2012/02/sugar-palm-board