Kenutu Island

After spending a few blissful, sunny days in the protected anchorages near the race’s end, and saying goodbye to our buddy boats that are headed on to Fiji this season, Dominic and I made our way to Kenutu, the eastern most island in Vava’u.

This island boasts some of the more dramatic and varied scenery we’ve seen in the group thus far. Careful conning was required to navigate the shallow lagoon in the lee of the island. The lagoon stretches for miles, and the western side of the island has a long, lazy beach. We hiked to the eastern edge of Kenutu, which faces the full brunt of the tradewinds, and found scenery reminiscent of Big Sur—cliffs and water that was white with washing machine swirls amid the moderate swell and twenty knot winds. There were tropic birds and boobies circling, and one brave sea turtle riding the waves.

These are our last few days of respite in Vava’u before we start thinking of heading south to Haapi, so we’re laying low, treating ourselves to multiple rounds of coffee, and hoping the overcast skies allow some sunshine through so we can enjoy some of the excellent snorkeling the area has to offer.