stringy
Since 23 Jun 2006
1734 Posts
vancouver
XTreme Poster
|
 Wed Dec 17, 08 8:03 pm |
 |
|
hein,
you're right, tough to beat those other spots you mentioned. being on the boat was different than what the odyssey typically does. we were "working", meaning we helped deliver the vessel 2000 miles up to the Marshall Islands. If an island was conveniently located within our course heading, we would stop in and visit. If it was an inhabited and established island, that meant going through customs and spending alot of time at a port, waiting for things to happen before going ashore.
we had about two weeks to get to the Marshalls, and that meant we couldn't spend too much time checking out these islands.
the wave shots were out in an atoll which is part of The Republic of Marshall Islands. it wasn't inhabited, but still plenty of garbage washed ashore. sometimes taking away from the beauty of the island.
the nice barrels were located quite a bit offshore, while many waves would closeout right on the shore. the terrain kind of reminded me of Lanes, having to walk out on razor sharp reef to get out.
the process we took to get to these islands was very thought out and we played it very safe. we guide the vessel into the inner area of the atolls by way of the recommended shipping lane, usually the deepest part of the reef, sometimes dynamite was used to blast a shipping lane.
once inside the reef barrier, the water became deep again and then we would find a good location close to an island and drop anchor.
we used a zodiac style dingy to tender back and forth to an island. kite rigging was always performed on the cat. this prevented sand, coral, and insects from being welcomed on the vessel. we always kited from the boat.
what was nice was we could kite in offshore conditions because we had the dingy. problem was someone had to man it while we were kiting.
I'm sure kiting on these waves were doable, however the risk was extremely high and the reef was extremely dangerous. not a good spot in the world to get pitted. the boat had a first aid medical center, but getting hurt would have meant living in pain for the remainder of the trip. Not a risk any of us wanted to take. We stuck to the flat water kiting in the shallow lagoon areas.
We didn't see too many shipwrecks, except for some rusted out vessels along the shoreline. The Marshalls is actually where the wrecks are. I just didn't spend that much time there.
We only caught tuna, different types though. some tasted better than others for sashimi.
we got picky after a while throwing the fish out after three days in the fridge!
here's another shot for you.
_________________
www.jimstringfellow.com |
|
