We departed Blue Lagoon early in the morning, before 7 am. There are two routes around island and out of the reef heading east, and Tim had expressed his desire to take the northern route because it was most direct. However, on the satellite imagery it was clear that the southern route was wider and didn’t have any concerning shallow spots, while the northern route had one spot that looked a little sketchy. So, me being who I am, the day before we left, I paddled out to the shallow spot to take depth soundings. It was a narrow, shallow patch, but it was both wide and deep enough for Exodus, so upon departure, it was the north route we took.
The day passage was a pleasant one except for the drone of an engine. There were a lot of reefs to avoid, but they were easily visible and avoidable. The fishing was great. The boys caught two yellow fin tuna (our first ones in Fiji!) and they also caught and released a skipjack tuna, a barracuda, and a sierra.
We pulled into Cucuvou Bay on Yadua in the late afternoon and visibility was quite poor. We tried to survey the bay but ended up having a much too close encounter with a bombie and so decided to just drop anchor somewhere deep and safe for the night.
Gresham Family Exodus 