Arriving at the Lau Group

12 Jul Arriving at the Lau Group

Lau Group

We’ve just wrapped up two incredible months cruising the Yasawas. Though the Yasawa Islands stretch only 55 nautical miles end to end, we managed to log 560 nautical miles zigzagging between our favorite anchorages and making a few return trips to Denarau to pick up more of our sailor friends.

Yasawa to Savusavu via Yadua

Passage to Fulaga

Our journey to Fulaga (also known as Fulanga/Vulaga) began with an overnight stop at Yadua Island, followed by a provisioning run to Savusavu.

In Savusavu, we stayed at the new, first-class Nawi Island Marina, tucked away up the canal.
🌐 https://nawiisland.com/

It was a fantastic place to get pampered—a bit of a luxury oasis that felt oddly out of place in a town that’s otherwise a little rough around the edges. We managed to stock up on enough meat, chicken, and pantry staples to last us two months. The larder is packed.

After a few days of marina life, the weather finally lightened up just enough for us to head south into 20-knot headwinds and 1–2 meter seas on a short 5–6 second period. Starr was covered in salt spray—and the ride was a bit rough. So, we made a call to duck into Koro Island for a break.

                                     Savusavu to Koro

Koro Island Stop

The moment we dropped anchor at Koro, a local man motored up in a small boat and invited us ashore to the Koro Island Resort, which was right in front of us. He told us that the new owners had just flown in and purchased the unfinished resort three weeks earlier.

We met the couple—farmers from Idaho—who recently sold their farm and poured their life savings into this new adventure. Over dinner, they shared their grand plans:

• Build 15 overwater bungalows to be within a few months and ready for guests.
• Excavate a marina and construct a large yacht facility
• Build an airstrip
• Develop a gated community they dubbed “Little America”

They were enthusiastic, to say the least. He was particularly excited about the labor costs, saying more than once how great it was to pay Fijian workers $1.60/hour. We couldn’t help but notice some striking similarities between his mindset and that of a certain famous real estate developer from New York.

The next morning, we continued on to Fulaga, an overnight 160nm run.

                                                                Koro to Fulaga

Fulaga (Fulanga/Vulaga), Lau Group

Now that we’re here, we fully understand why our world-cruiser friends rank the Lau Group at the very top of their favorites list.

                                                                                                           Starr at Fulaga

Fulaga has three villages, but the Turaga ni Koro (village headman) resides in one that’s a one-mile walk across the island. The sevusevu ceremony here was more formal than on other, more frequently visited islands.

We’ve learned to always bring our electrical tools, as most villages need help maintaining or fixing their solar systems.

Solar System Challenges

After sevusevu, we headed to the community center to work on their main power system. This center is vital—it houses a large chest freezer used to store clams and fish that are taken to Suva for barter.

Transport costs to Suva:

• Ferry/freighter comes once a month
• $180 FJD per person
• $80–$100 FJD per 50-lb sack of clams
  (1 FJD ≈ $0.44 USD)

Upon entrering the community center we opened the 4’x6’ battery box, which housed their battery bank.

There were 24 x 2-volt, 727 amp-hour German Sonnenschein batteries

                                                              Swollen 2-VDC battery terminal

Unfortunately, most of the battery cases were swollen and cracked, with the positive terminals swelled  out of the their casings. Ventilation to the batteries was minimal, and the batteries were now completely useless.

                                              Community Center Batteries

                                                    Click for a 60 sec video

Ruined batteries seem to be a common theme in these villages. We’re wondering:
👉 Is it feasible for them to afford lithium batteries?

From what we understand, lithium batteries can be drawn down repeatedly without degrading, which would be a huge benefit here.

In the meantime, we’ve ordered 24 digital volt meters from Amazon. The idea is to connect these to each family’s 12V battery and teach them to stop drawing down the batteries when voltage drops to 12.2V, preserving battery life.

                                                                          Fried Solar Controller

                                                                                                                  Dead Inverter

One of the most refreshing things we’ve noticed?

We haven’t seen a single television in any home.
Let’s hope that lasts.

A Glimpse of Paradise

And finally, here’s what these stunning islands look like

                                                                                               Mushroom island garden

                                                                                                                     Not my toes!

                                                                                                                Crystal clear water

                                                                                                                 White Sand Beach

                                                                                                                   Looking for Coconuts

                                                                                                                   Just for fun of it!

Related posts:

1082nm from Los Cabos, 09d 55.00 N, 122d 54.00 W – Friday, 23nd March, 2001 Mainland Coast of Mexico: Puerto Vallerta to Barra de Navidad – December 17, 2000-January 18, 2001 Seattle to Mexico – November, 2000 Seattle, Washington – September, 2000