Category: Sailing

Venomous Sea Snakes of South Pacific

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

Warning! The below video is not for the squeamish at heart. This was a very spooky dive experience with the sea snakes of Niue. Not only cool snakes here, but our dive included some of the healthiest coral we’ve seen in the South Pacific, and the clearest water.

We had up to 300 foot visibility in places. After drifting over a coral garden we swam through an underwater narrow (dark) tunnel about 100 feet long, then up into a pitch black limestone cavern. This tunnel and cavern had a mix of salt and fresh salt water which changed the visibility and temperature. When the sea water yields to fresh water, it blurs your vision and makes you think you have Vaseline on your mask. (I’ve never been diving in the dark, never in a tunnel nor a cave, with poor visibility and NEVER with snakes!) Luckily the snakes were not aggressive.

You’ll see the snakes as we ascend at the end of the tunnel. What you don’t see is that when it was time to leave, Scott’s ears wouldn’t equalize. While everyone else was descending back in the tunnel to return to the open ocean, Scott was stuck in the cavern by himself (I was waiting below), yes with the snakes, unable to continue back with the group. (Could be some people’s worst nightmare). Fortunately with time and patience, Scott was able to clear the equalization issues and exit the cavern. It might have only been 5 minutes, but Scott felt like it was an hour!!

We can’t express enough the beauty of the coral in Niue. So healthy, so extensive and so fortunate for us to see it. Truely blessed.
Scott will be doing a second post about the island and the people, soon.

Maupiti, our Last French Polynesian Island

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in adventure, Sailing, Travel

Maupiti…! You have to see the video below.

What’s in a Polynesian Island? THIS is what we envisioned from the beginning and sums up the amazing beauty of French Polynesia.

This Society island is definitely on the fringe of this “French” nation but represents the epitome of the bedroom culture in this Society archipelago. The locals share the French language and a bit of French culture but definitely have much more of a welcoming spirit than what we’ve seen in the other Society Islands. We could be here for weeks longer.
When you watch the video, you will see happy local people and beautiful scenery. All the locals have boats, bikes and big smiles. If you need a ride on land they will happily loan you their bike. If you need bananas, they will take you all over the village until they find what you need.
One of our friends boats “Captain Musick” has been recruited to take supplies to Maupiti’s sister island Maupihaa, which is 100 miles away and hasn’t seen a supply ship in six months. 🫨 It has 20 people on the island and have very little! OMG this boat is packed with stuff. lol

So onward we go. Sea Bella is jumping Tuesday to Beveridge Reef (a sunk island) 900 miles westward to a reef that doesn’t even break the water. Google it! This should be interesting and the sharks are supposed to be super interested in all comers. Ha
We have a reservation in Niue (smallest Island Country in the World, also a raised coral island) on the 13th, weather dependent, but that seems so far away. Sheesh. Lots of sailing to do….
We’ll check in next week.

Thanks to all the Friends that are sailing with us. Deguello, Captain Musick, Hooligan, Scout and Side Two.

Sailing Season #3; West from Marquesas to Fiji.

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in adventure, Sailing, Travel

Friends and family ask us,
”What’s next?”


While we waited out the summer storm season (Nov- Mar) in our safe haven, beautiful home of the Marquesan Islands, we researched, planned, discussed, read, yes played and put a plan loosely together for the next sailing season. Weather is the primary factor while we research. Our cruising buddies’ plans are also a factor. It’s important for Scott and I to have a friend group to sail nearby. If this doesn’t happen, we meet new cruisers within a day or two, as like minded people are easy to meet. We also experience these remote islands and the unique flora and fauna of land, sea and air. We also participate and explore the local culture, traditions and cuisine.

As you may recall, we are on a slow westward path, enjoying as much LIFE as possible. A Sailing Adventure continues to be our theme, so we headed to the Southern islands of Marquesas. April we visited the Society Islands (Huahine, Bora Bora and Maupiti) and then left French Polynesia by our visa expiration date. We may stop at Niue Island, adventure around the islands of Tonga, sail toward Fiji, first stopping at the amazing dive spot called Beveridge, and end up in September in Fiji.


“Then what??”
The Pacific Ocean is too large for Sea Bella to cross in one season (unless we don’t stop much) So she needs to stay in and around Fiji for the next cyclone season Nov-Mar. Fiji has safe harbor marinas, if needed, and 500ish, pristine islands to cruise around. Looking forward to it all! Stay tuned…

Passage West From Bora Bora

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

You might wonder what sailors do all day on their long ocean passages? It depends on the comfort factor of the sea state and your boat. We just completed a 900 mile passage, which took us 7 days. 💨 We had wind mostly behind us, at the stern, so Sea Bella was thankfully rather flat the first few days.

However, Mariners call this section of the Pacific the “dangerous middle” as the seas get confused. Stay with me on this. We saw swell of 10 feet for 2 days, which is the primary South swell. But, this area also has a small swell coming from both the North and the West. It’s also called the convergence zone. Primarily the swell was our port flank, slapping us along and lifting us up and down. Sea Bella does great, gliding, cutting and surfing down the big wave fronts. Making 11 knots of boat speed on some rides. 🌊

But, this makes for a lot of movement on the boat, which means no cooking, and not much walking about. Imagine brushing your teeth or using the restroom! Hold on! The last day King Neptune must have been grumpy. A huge 5 mile squall presented in front of us, on my watch! Reduce sail, put another reef in, furl the Genoa, take out the staysail, grab two rain jackets, Stow everything! It was a long night. As for watch schedules; Scott and I typically split up (1 in the comfy cockpit on watch and 1 in the salon with table made into a king bed). Over a premade meal and watching sunrise or sunset we discuss weather, sail configuration, and other happenings. ☀️ Either watch, we read, write, watch a movie, listen to audible, play online puzzles, stargaze, fish… or when weather gets crazy, it’s sail management.

As for watch schedules, it’s pretty loose for us. Scott does roughly sunset to midnight, I do midnight to dawn (ish) (this doesn’t guarantee the other is sleeping like a baby in the choppy conditions) 😴 Daylight hours its mostly Scott’s watch, with a few naps breaks. If you recall, Sea Bella has a partially enclosed, center cockpit. I made comfy cushions and pillows, but, you may know that the South Pacific has random but short bursts of rain, cause for an urgent rain drill and stowing 😂 We have noticed that passages always take a few days to get into this rhythm, but overall they are not too bad.

Laundry on a Boat?

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

Let’s talk laundry! We all have it. It’s a chore for all of us, like it or not. 😝 Whether you’re lucky and use a laundry service or your washer/dryer does most of the work, laundry is still a chore.


😅 Well, let me tell you…it’s quite an ordeal when living on a boat, and in the rainy or windy tropics. 😎 Here is the run down. First, I wait for a sunny morning and hope it stays that way all day, without huge winds. (I may have waited a week or 2 for this weather window, btw) Next, I make sure we’ve made water, and the tanks are full. If I am lucky we have hot water from yesterday’s motorsailing. In our small galley sink, I hand wash our clothes, being careful not to use too much soap or too much water, 😂! Next, (if rain suddenly appears) I string up my cockpit laundry lines. If it’s still sunny, I wipe the dust off all the boat handrails. I wring out the sheets and towels using the handrail. I then hang up all the laundry with very strong stainless steel clips. I stay home for 4 hours to keep a good watch out for sudden squalls or any change of weather. I take them down, fold and put away (The only typical part of laundry. Phew, done!! 🥰 It’s much easier to just wear a bathing suit and shower in it after my swim. Or the wind blows a towel overboard, thank goodness for the boat hook.

Atoll vs. Island

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

Headed to our 19th (new) Island here in French Polynesia of Taha’a. So cool, 😎 but wait, is it kind of part of Raiatea island. We haven’t gone out into deep waters so it should be just one island. If it’s part of Raiatea then maybe still our 18th island to explore. 😣 Good conversation here since many of us have been living in atolls and/or islands for a year now, and I thought I knew the difference! Ha, humble pie for sure. Here is the difference according to Wikipedia: 😜 But what do you think?

An atoll is a kind of island. It is made, volcanically, then a coral reef forms around an island that sinks over many years.

Chat GBT doesn’t know if Raiatea is sinking. Hmmm. We just left Raiatea and crossed a large bay of water about 100 feet in spots and we will drop anchor in about an hour at the north island of Taha’a. GPS picture above shows us as the blue dot. More research is needed. Or just watch this fun video.

Friends come for a week of Sailing!

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

Good friends from Atascadero come for a visit on Sea Bella. Penny and Steve Crawford do a write up about their time here in Huahine:

“A huge thank you to Kathy and Scott Erwin aka SeaBella. Experiencing a tad-bit of the sailing lifestyle with you both was beyond what we could have imagined. So many laughs, so much snorkeling, eating, drinking, and did I mention a few boat lumps and bumps lol. We are forever grateful for this once in a lifetime experience. Who knows… maybe another adventure down the “road” in our future.The French Polynesian island of Huahine did not disappoint! Getting to experience 6 days on the Erwins sailboat was nothing less than spectacular. The friendship, laughter, snorkeling, island adventures, local peoples traditions, a few boat boo boos, and the whole lifestyle is hard to express in words. We are forever grateful for this incredible experience!”

Is it just Fishing or Catching?

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

We have hand fishing lines (yoyos) we pull be hind the boat when we are sailing. They are 250lb tuna cord lines with long surgical tubing that stretches to fight the fish. Fishing rods just don’t work well when sailing down wind and you hook a big fish. You can easily spool a reel before you can get the boat turned and your crew to the helm before you start fighting the fish.

Well, the other day we hooked a big something! Before we could get back to grab the line something bigger took the fish. Probably a shark or the fish was a massive tuna or something. (It’s not unusual to pull up a half a fish).
The swivel on the left is a 80lbs swivel and the one on the right is the same swivel that failed us with that fish. Pretty impressive. I’ve lost a a ton of tackle in the last four months. Cheaper to just buy the fish I think. lol

Note: I can up size all my gear and prepare to land a bigger fish……but what the hell would I do with a fish over 100lbs. lol
You can only eat so much tuna……🤢

“A Sailors Life”, by Jutta Birfelder

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in adventure, Sailing, Travel

You never know who you will meet out at quiet and remote anchorages. When in Nuka Hiva, Marquesas, one hot and humid day, I got a floaty and a beer and I drifted awhile around the small bay.

I hear a voice with a strong German accent “Kathy Erwin, hello there”. I drift over to a beautiful lady on a beautiful Amel Sailboat. She says you are Kathy on Sea Bella. I did a double take, confused how she knew me.

Jutta Birfelder

She introduced herself as Jutta, on SV Alila. She mentioned the cruising app called Noforeignland, and found Sea Bella and Scott and I. We chatted and instantly became friends. For the next 3 months we chatted, shared meals together with Scott and her fun partner Mike, went on hikes, enjoyed the cultural events of Mataava and yes, of course she came to my beach yoga sessions. What gems you meet out here! Plus the other fun people in the video, great new friends!

Making earrings

Turns out, Jutta is a YouTuber, conducting interviews of fellow cruisers all over the world. Next thing I know Scott and I are being interviewed. Take a look, enjoy a different side of our lives… maybe even like her channel.

By the way, I highly recommend the sailing app that I mentioned above to any sailor or future sailor wanting to connect with others, plus many other perks like hikes, locations of great snorkel spots, good shopping, gas and dingy docks… see below.

https://www.noforeignland.com/boat/4847252013056000

That’s a Wrap, 1 Year in French Polynesia, 2023-2024.

by Scott and Kathy Erwin, Sail the World, posted in Sailing

Two highlights of the Tahiti airport anchorage were watching the sealife under the boat and enjoying Moorea sunsets! We stayed a week then moved on to Huahine. A very favorite society island.

Our one year visa in French Polynesia is quickly coming to an end, bittersweet but we are ready. Our time here has been amazing, as most of you have seen and heard. The 3 Archepeligo’s have been unique in their own way, so it’s quite hard to pick a favorite. The Marquesas were all about the people and the rich jungles. The Tuomotus were all about the water clarity, diving, and coconut sandy beaches. The Societies have a French vibe, with many cruisers, beautiful lagoons but high fees in Bora Bora. I did hold a yoga class at a neighborhood park for a few interested cruisers and locals.

There were 8 islands overall that we visited twice, so that kind of says something about how special they are.

In Tahiti, we wrapped up some boat projects, stocked up on essentials, planned ahead, and the best part was partnering up with cruiser friends again! In about 3 weeks, we will clear out of immigration (heading West). Tomorrow we head to Huahine, then pit stops in Tahaa, maybe Bora Bora and Maupiti.

Tahanea, Tuamotu

What a difference 500 miles can make from the towering mountains of the Marquesas (Fatu Hiva) to the cool blue waters of the Tuomotus (Tahanea). The 3.5 day passage brings huge changes and we loved to get snorkeling again.
We are learning more about flying this drone all the time. Take a look at our YouTube sailing, diving and yoga videos.