Beveridge Reef
Chart of
Beveridge Reef
August 19,
2002
We departed Rarotonga in the company of
Mobilse, C’est La Vie, Lil’ Gem, Veritas and North Road. This was the largest
group of boats we had sailed with on the entire trip. We only stayed in sight
of one boat, Mobilse, after the first day. The rest we didn’t see again until
they arrived at the reef or in Niue. Due to bad weather, three boats bypassed
Beveridge Reef altogether. The sail to Beveridge Reef was about 500 miles and
took us exactly three days. On the third day, August 22, we had good wind and
big seas. The sequence of video stills below gives an idea of just how big the
seas were. That’s Mobilse, a 58 foot Perry designed sloop with a highly reefed
main obscured as a big swell passes under us.
Big swells almost hide Mobilse
August 22,
2002
As we got closer to Beveridge Reef, we began
to see large waves breaking just before they came upon the reef. We could only
imagine what ancient mariners thought when they came across this phenomena out
in the middle of nowhere hundreds of years ago.
One big wave off Beveridge Reef
August 24,
2002
The wind continued to blow at 20-30 knots
while we stayed at Beveridge Reef. Finally, on our third day there, it began to
subside. So, we had the opportunity to visit the wreck of a tuna boat out of
Seattle that lays on the reef inside the lagoon. The water was beautiful and
extremely clear down to more than 70 feet. There was an abundance of sea life,
including many sharks. Kevin, on one swim to the wreck, was surrounded by six
of them. They were mostly curious as they probably don’t see humans every day.
But, he came back to the boat shortly thereafter anyway. We heard that the next summer after we were
there another person was swimming in the lagoon and was bit by a shark. He had to be evacuated to Niue and then
flown to New Zealand for surgery. When
we heard this, we were counting our lucky stars!
Final Straw inside the lagoon at Beveridge Reef
August 25,
2002
With good weather finally arriving, we decided
to begin the overnight 22 hour sail to Niue after spending three very
interesting days at one of the world’s most remote spots. We left with Mobisle, C’est la Vie and
Pegasus and decided it would be fun to fly spinnakers. The photo below shows Final Straw (the
closer boat) and Pegasus on their way to our next stop, the island of Niue.
Final Straw under spinnaker a few nautical miles west of
Beveridge Reef
To continue the adventure to Niue, click here!
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