Peava

is a tiny lagoon inside a coral reef that sits on the edge of Nggatokae Island very near the Marovo Lagoon.

Wilderness Lodge

is a semi-pretentious place that told us they'd prefer if we anchored someplace else. All that being said, their staff was very gracious and we politely told them we'd stay where we were since the chief - and owner of the bay - had already told us we were fine where we were.

Cottage

nestled in the woods overlooking the sea, the trees above filled with exotic birds, this seemed like a perfect little place to settle.

Finding Lisa

an American running a SCUBA school, involved walking a well worn path along the sea .

Lisa's

place was marked by this original lovely carving....we knew we'd found a special spot and anticipated meeting a unique person.

Pint-Sized Dugouts

padded by pint-sized beauties were frequent visitors at Carina.

Mbili

is the gateway to the magnificent Marovo Lagoon.

Marovo Laggoon

water was a brilliant turquoise but sometimes a wee bit opague. Our hosts suggested that we not engage in swimming inside the lagoon but instead just outside the entrance. Seems they don't want yacht visitors to be preyed upon by the occasional hungry croc.

Just around the

island from our anchorage we found shallows with a coral garden and water so clear you could count the brilliant little fish living on the coral.

Sealife

is abundant in the lagoon and - if Philip liked calamari - we couldn've eaten well. These silly guys just hung out under Carina enjoying her shadow.

Marovo Lagoon is known

for its master carvers and their work is extraordinary.

Milton

brought by this bust which we admired but found impractical aboard a boat.

This is Lee

who is showing us his magnificent scene of sea life, known generically as the "spirit of the Solomons".

This mask

was made of kerosene wood by Paul, son of the chief. We eventually obtained this in trade.

Ebony

is not as common as other wood but is highly prized. Inlay is of nautilus shell.

Nguzu Nguzu

is a powerful god in the Solomons. Some hold a dove and symbolize peace and others hold a skull symbolizing the kastom practice of head hunting

In ebony

a nguzu nguzu is usually magnficent. Historically, these would adorn the prow of a war canoe.

Nguzu nguzu

carvings reflect the artist's interpretation of the god's likeness.

Attention to detail

characterises the carvings of the masters.

This motif

is a common one...a shell bowl inlaid with nautilus.

Rustic accommodations

await guests at the eco-lodge on Nggatokae Island's northern tip.

Luten Watts

is the proprietor of the eco-lodge. A tiny gnome-like man of 70, he has borne 8 children and has 25 grandchildren.

This B-24

crash site from WWII was a tour offered by Luten. It sits just ashore in the bay south of Mbili pass.

Luten

gives the propeller a bit of perspective - this was a big plane!

Identifying

marks are still evident 70 years later

Four engines

propelled the B-24. We found all four of them including this one that was home to a camouflaged gecko.

Deep inside

the Marovo Lagoon, we anchored in a bay called Kalivera Bay. Rain and wind found us here, snug and warm. We filled our water tanks.

from the Marovo

Lagoon, we passed into the Nono Lagoon and then out, up the Blanche Channel and in the narrow entrance to Egholo, also known as Butterfly Bay.

Ngana Bozi

was the village organizer and clan chief. His family were SDA but a good half of the village were United Church. This might not seem significant in the USA, but in the Solomons religion and clan divide peoples.

Egholo

was about 7 ocean miles from the nearest supply town, Munda. Villagers in the western province travel by sea in small dugout canoes or in these larger engine driven cousins.

Egholo's

pass provides good fishing. This young woman caught this needlefish from the shore.

A carver named Songa

arrived at Carina after many other traders had come and gone. He knew - because word had gotten around - that we only wanted a round bowl of rosewood with inlay. This is the bowl he offered. After a long negotiation and a package of trading items plus Solomon dollars and US dollars, we acquired this beauty.

Egholo

was a peaceful place...here a moon just past full rises slowly over the vibrant jungle.

Catching Up with Tribute

Shane, Larry and John join Philip at the Agnes Lodge bar.

Bungalow in Paradise

during an afternoon squall in the Munda lagoon.

Zipolo Habu

resort occupies tiny Lola Island in the Vonavona Lagoon.

Joe & Lisa

own Zipolo Habu and warmly welcome yachties. Its anchorage is fine and the scenery pleasant.

Lola Island

looks out over the south end of the Vonavona lagoon and one day we followed the bush path to the opposite shore.

Lola Island

looking towards Rendova Island to the SE.

Spiders

The first encouter with these monsters was when Leslie walked into one of their webs....she shrieked. Philip took the lead and swung a long stick ahead as we hiked the bush trail.

In Gizo

we caught up with Tenacious with Brett and Susie aboard. This two day old beauty had been named for Susie.

Gizo was

devastated by a tsunami in 2007. Afterwards volunteers from a church in Italy came and rebuilt St. Peter the Apostle Cathedral and its stained glass represents Biblical scenes with an island accent.

The Garden of Eden

here is tropical and Adam and Eve wear kastom designs.

Eden

may have easily looked like this...

Liapari

from Gizo we traveled just over 14 miles to Liapari Island, a tiny appendage off Vella LaVella Island. Here we would use the slipway to haul Carina for an out of water survey and to change our shaft seal.

The "small" slipway

was well oversized for tiny Carina and she slowly ascended out of the sea, cradled from falling, as the careful Liapari team secured and blocked her.

Hauling Out

is never fun and it's always filled with a wee bit of anxiety. Leslie remained aboard to help as she could.

For Two Days

Carina sat high and dry as we worked from sun-up to sun-down applying a fresh coat of anti-fouling and installing a new shaft seal. Early the following morning Carina's hull would once again lay softly in the sea.