Oisi Village and Aliisa. I could get used to this.
Aliisa in Leu Island, between Misima and Bagaman.
Bagaman Bay. The anchorage is actually not that good.
Booby. The first run of bird shit on the solar panel. By morning the panel was white. This went on every night.
Darts turned out to be the big game in Misima. Each village had their team and the atmosphere was very competitive.
Fucking outboard!! It was fixed in Cairns, supposedly. And finally destroyed by me in PNG.
Homeward bound. The old guitar kept my spirits up, even though I'm still playing the same song from 10 years ago.
The yacht for me is a home, but in PNG islands it is the main transport too. Passengers are always welcome.
Phil posing next to our new wind instrument, tied to the back stay. We're on our way back home after being cleaned in PNG.
Phil needs to have some tuition on photography. The only shot of me paddling a PNG canoe is not quite the shot I hoped for...
The little island of Leu. Today is not a good day for sailing.
A close up of the whole village, and the canoes parked on the beach. Bagaman, Oisi, PNG, 2001
Bagaman Island, Aliisa and Oisi Village reduced to a speck in the centre.
Rowing came naturally to these boys, Waiaki and Moses. They became the only two regular visitors after we ran out of things to give away.
The days are quiet. Men are in the gardens, kids are in the village school and some old men sit in their canoes catching fish for dinner.
A close shot at Oisi Village, a home for 30-odd people. Visiting yachts are not rare and the first item we were asked for was AA-batteries for the walkman...
Not enough problems. Phil is repairing a velcro strap that holds the oars in place. A week laterthe whole inflatable fell apart.
Marcia is hiding her teeth which are red from chewing betelnut. Nathan (right) prefers South Pacific Lager. Misima Guest House, 2001
Food for 3 days but no fridge! We were told that we will not catch anything in open waters. This Mahi Mahi came up hundreds of miles off shore. (It is called a pelagic fish, you know...)
The Mahi Mahi has just copped a huge hammering in the head with our largest winch handle. Six months later I could still find blood stains in the boat...
Phil is sitting down to draw plans of the yacht that he is going to build for himself. We're still waiting...
Phil tastes his first piece of meat in eight years. The old vegetarian wasn't going to be fussy about his diet during the trip.
The happy moment. I have just cleared my first customs on my first overseas sailing trip. Customs officer (right) tells us not to worry about locking the boat up here...
Misima Guest House had all the luxuries. Darts and pool were popular. 'Aliisa' is being ransacked around the time this photo was taken. October 2001
While in shallow water, long poles are used to push the canoe out of the shelter and into the breeze.
The boys of Bagaman Island are proud of their sailing skills. These canoes move along with the slightest breeze. 2001