The season is fast approaching the end and we needed to make some miles towards Vuda Point. Before coffee, we raised the anchor and found ourselves underway by 5:10am. Then came coffee. It was another day with nearly zero wind, so we would be motoring. On the plus side we could make water to be used in a few days after arriving in Musket Cove to begin the decommissioning process. The scenery was interesting with taller mountains on the islands we passed along with dramatic sharp peaks. That along with a complicated route to avoid the plethora of reefs kept our eyes outside and a close watch on the autopilot. Soon enough we were pulling into a unique anchorage made up of multiple islands with more reefs surrounding the entrance.
This anchorage can be rolly, due to its shape, but dropping the hook it wasn’t bad today. We were hopeful that it wouldn’t change throughout the day. The most excitement was a group of black tip reef sharks that decided to circle the boat while we anchored. My apprehension about this afternoon’s snorkel/dive went up a few notches. It was still overcast, and there were sharks around, so the plan was to wait for the afternoon in hopes of clearing skies.
Just before 2:00pm Carl called it time to go, I was leery about swimming 350 meters from the boat with the sharks we had seen earlier, so we took the paddle boards as at least some sort of defense mechanism. We didn’t know exactly where the reef was but headed in its general direction and luckily found it right away. Slipping, not diving, into the water we began our exploration. The depth was around 30 feet and with not much wind or current it worked well to leave the boards and free dive down for a closer look. We made our way along the reef, thankfully not seeing any sharks and with incredible visibility. Probably the best of the trip, but Ongea was right there too (where we had our first shark encounter). The sun was intermittent but we still enjoy looking at the coral and a few fish. Nothing like Namena but still enjoyable.
Back on the boards we paddled to shore to check out the beach/island. We followed the shoreline and went across a sand spit that is submerged at high tide. So not sure if you’d consider them two islands or one but either way, we explored both. With incoming tide and a swell developing it did make us pay a bit more attention reentering the water with the paddleboards. Back aboard it was time for a beer and some reading.
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