June update

A little news from us at S/Y Close Encounters:

Since we left New Zealand we've been sailing to Cook Islands – a 10,5 days trip that started out with some rough sea and 6 meters waves. But we arrived safely and happy at Rarotonga, where we were welcomed by nice people and the sweet smell of tropic flowers.

After Rarotonga we sailed to the atoll Aitutaki. On the way in the narrow pass we hid the sand ground and got stuck – but a local fisher boat pulled us free, and we had a week in paradise there. The lagoon was turquoise and the beaches were of beautiful white sand.

From Aitutaki we sailed to Palmerston atoll – and were invited to stay by the friendly locals. We slept ashore in their house for to nights – enjoying their hospitality, kindness and lovely food. There is only 50 people living on the island, and there are no shops. The island gets its supplies from a cargo boat only 3-4 times a year.

After experiencing fishing parrotfish with the locals – catching lots of fish and escaping from a 1,5 meter moray – we were accompanied back to our boat by a father and his to young sons – singing songs about visitors and how they were hoping to be remembered.

Yesterday we arrived at Niue – the smallest self-governing republic in the world, with 1200 people. Niue is an island full of rocks and cliffs with caves both over and under the waterline. Humpback whales visit the islands this time of year. We hope to se some of them before we leave for Tonga next week.

Best regards from the captain and crew on S/Y Close Encounters; Jesper, Camille, Linn and Torben from Denmark.