Wednesday 21 August – back on the manta hunt

It was a rolly night so we thought we might as well go back up north and anchor near the manta ray pass and see if we have better luck. We had a very gentle sail back and as the wind died resorted to the motors. The anchorage had 5 boats in already so we landed anchoring in just over 20ms. We think that is quite deep enough and always hope for something a little more shallow. We put nearly 70m of chain out and happily the anchor sank into good sand and we had a nice firm holding. We headed over to the Manta Bay resort , it was an extremely low tide, we were lucky to get in, loads of coral out of the water, must be to do with the super moon as it doesn’t look normal. Rowan went and had an excellent snorkel all in front of the resort which he said was excellent. I signed us in and hoped that the staff had not spotted Rowan as there were signs everywhere saying no snorkelling or water sports at low tide. The current obviously rips through but Rowan was fine and enjoyed it hugely, he saw loads of soft coral.

We had a good lunch at the resort restaurant which is at the top of the hill with great views across to the other island. We headed back to PolePole and on the way spotted that Catherine and Patrick was anchored, we went to say hello and they invited us for sunset drinks. It really has heated up and with the lack of wind it is so much hotter. We pulled down all the blinds and had a cool rest. The anchorage filled up, a boat called Naked Lunch anchored very close to us, which was a bit surprising but space is tight. We had drinks and snacks on board Patrick’s boat, it really is small, around 32 feet, and he sailed it all the way from France, Catherine does not do long passages. It is a racing boat so goes fast, pretty basic inside, but surprisingly spacious. Catherine is adding a few feminine touches which I’m not sure that Patrick totally approves of!

Passing amazing islands

This part of the island covered in acacia trees

The natural bush next door untouched by the acacia

Our anchorage gets very busy – the inter island ferry arrives and loads of long boats come and pick up guests for the various resorts

The view of the anchorage from Manta Island resort

Exceptionally low tide with the coral sticking out the water

Drinks on board Orion – Patrick has coached some of the Ukrainian navy

Another gorgeous sunset

I just included this photo as we are gob smacked by the sinking of Mike Lynch’s super yacht off Sicily, supposedly it sunk in minutes after being hit by a water spout tornado. We spotted this incredible waterspout in Panama, and had no idea of it’s ferocity. All such a tragedy and so bizarre after his recent release from America.