Catamaran 'Sanctuary' in the Pacific Region

A 'wake' at dawn © Guy Chester

Given the tumultuous times of the COVID pandemic, this report is somewhat more of the journey of negotiating borders and border closures than passage making.

I am writing this on passage from Tahiti to Bundaberg, this is a passage I have always imagined taking a full season, taking in the Cooks, Tonga and Fiji before a passage south to New Zealand for the summer.

Not to be. As an Australian, I knew I had the option of returning to Australia. But this journey was about trying to help others have options.

In late February, we were getting ready for the Panama Canal crossing, not really looking at global news. Once through the canal, Sanctuary needed a quick haul out and sweat, fibreglass dust and antifouling on hot days left us exhausted. Back in the water and ready to head west by mid-March, the COVID situation suddenly came into close focus, borders closing, the canal closing, our agent telling us to clear out now, the office will close. Kind-of ready to go we cleared out on the last day before the Panama port office closed to normal business. By this time Tahiti had made two declarations or border closures, the second acknowledging the World ARC and Puddle Jump fleets, but drawing a line for those boats who left before 21 March.

Having cleared out at Panama we headed for the Perlas Islands and like about 30 others hung out at Contadora. The afternoon of our arrival at Contadora an Aeronaval boat came by, with a local lady (Adrienne Reeve, the local administrator) advising on the situation, Panama was in lockdown, we were not allowed on the beach, rubbish pick up would be once per week and two local providers could bring supplies to the beach. Armed Aeronaval on the beach added gravitas to the situation. As cruisers do, a local radio net was established the next morning led by Eve on "Aunty". The reaction amongst the cruisers was varied, some like Eve decided to move quickly and left in those first few days, Americans could swing by French Polynesia, but if no go could carry on to Hawaii. Others being French or EU citizens took the gamble of being allowed into French Polynesia. Galapagos closed within days, leaving few options.

On Sanctuary, my crew with South African and USA passports, did not have the "Australia" option I had; she elected to fly out on a US Embassy repatriation flight. Sanctuary now had a solo skipper (not the first time, but not planned for the Pacific!). Sanctuary had a difficult time "clearing" back into Panama and signing off crew. Thus, we became one of only a few "cleared in" and able to visit Panama City, most yachts had cleared out of Panama but were hanging around in the Perlas.

The weeks slipped by, some folk cruising around the Perlas Islands others hanging near the security and good internet of Contadora. Very quickly after the Panama Canal closed, cruisers on the Atlantic side wanting to transit formed a group and worked with Shelter Bay Marina Manager and OCC Port Officer Juan Jose Boschetti. The Australian Honorary Consul, Liz Back, started advocating and helping with logistics. The Canal started to allow yachts, with tight quarantine procedures aboard. One benefit was boats rafted into three only needed a skipper each and four line handlers between all three boats (it's usually skipper plus four for each boat).

The OCC Pacific Crossing Facebook Group became a focus for current information, real-time situations of folks as well as links to official notices (including interpretation of Spanish and French decrees). Liz Back's list of yachts wanting to transit the canal was morphed into yachts needing passage to French Polynesia, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand and Australia. Outreaches via email to OCC members and Facebook quickly expanded the list.

Liz commenced advocating to both Australian and New Zealand embassies for potential cyclone season refuge. OCC's Indo Pacific coordinator, Fiona Jones, was being contacted by some OCC members and this grew into a coordinated advocacy. I started to reach out to contacts in Fiji, Australia and New Zealand and make new contacts in Tonga. Probably for my sins as a past yacht rally organiser and having worked in government policy (in public service and as a consultant) I was drafted into the OCC initiative, being appointed a Roving Rear Commodore.

April and May became a blur of going into Panama for supplies and boat parts and sitting on the laptop seeking border solutions across the Pacific. One memory is during lockdown, on a Tuesday (a men's day in Panama) and having from 1230-3pm only to move around (time based on passport number, mine ending in 1). My friendly "gofer" taxi driver had a lead on a hard to find radiator cap for the genset, he drove like a mad thing well out of Panama City towards Columbia whilst I was skyping with Fiona Jones about the OCC policy on engaging with Rally organisers.

By early June I was getting anxious that if I was to get to Oz this year, I needed to start moving. Panama was letting boats clear out, only if they had somewhere to go (Tahitcrew provided info on the "DPAM" exemption approval process, by no means guaranteed but none had been refused, and I provided my Australian Border Force advance notice of arrival receipt).

Sanctuary made a 23-day passage from Panama to Nuku Hiva, getting out of the Gulf of Panama took some doing, Sanctuary broke her record of lowest days run at 29 miles distance made good, we sailed about 110 miles but were tacking against a light wind and strong current. Nearer to the Galapagos the trades settled in and the biggest issue was to stay north of the Equator, more current but perhaps less wind, or south with less current, perhaps more wind. Over many days, I downloaded weather and current models, ignored Predictwind's suggested routing, went south too early and successfully added a few days to the passage.

Upon arrival in Nuku Hiva, OCC members and Aussies I had never met but were on the "OCC list for the Pacific crossing", raced over and delivered a care package, never has a banquette tasted so good (butter and vegemite of course!). Strict quarantine aboard in Nuku Hiva for a few days, acceptance of sea time and then "released" into Polynesia, wow!

Sanctuary spent the next three months in French Polynesia. Over a month in Nuku Hiva, a brief stop in the Tuomotus and then too long in Papeete. During this time we really tried to ramp up the OCC lobbying. We engaged with two Rally organisers, John Hembrow of the Down Under rally (Oz) and John Martin of the Destination New Zealand rally. Through them we developed good liaison with industry and marina folk in Oz and NZ. We developed comprehensive quarantine on passage and aboard upon arrival protocols. By this time the goal of the OCC initiative was focussed on gaining cyclone refuge for yachts in COVID limbo across the Pacific.

Tonga had early on advised no go (the Cabinet secretary did put up a submission for us), to this day Tonga remains closed, even to returning citizens.

Fiji was always encouraging, and whilst it was thirteen years since I had worked with the Ministry of Tourism, we made contacts with the right folk and had the Ministry liaising with the Health Department. We sent OCC letters to the PM and relevant Ministers and received considered responses. Concurrently yacht agents in Fiji and Cynthia Rasch, CEO of Denarau Marina were lobbying hard and presenting detailed potential policies and quarantine protocols. The Blue Lane was announced, largely conceived and negotiated by Cynthia. To date at least 70 yachts have entered Fiji, been subject to the COVID testing regime and quarantine aboard, but then allowed to cruise. We hoped this success would be a stopover enroute to cyclone refuge in Oz or NZ.

Australia was always going to be strict...

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This article has been provided by the courtesy of Ocean Cruising Club.