Category: Yasawa Group

Sunrise, Sunset and Manta Ray.

Drawaqa Island for me, had one of the best coastlines of all the islands in the Yasawas. The elongated island is lined by two beaches facing east and west, respectively named Sunrise and Sunset Beach, which are approximately 1 minutes walking distance apart. On the evening, after swimming with the Manta Ray, we wandered around the headland from Sunset Beach where we found Slippery Rock, a large smooth bit of volcanic rock which was extremely slippery after the tide exposed it. We continued round to the third beach, Manta Ray beach. From here we looked over the channel where we had earlier been swimming and once again we spotted a large ray passing up and down on the surface of the water, with it’s large thin fins occasionally slicing through the waves. Unlike Sunrise and Sunset, Manta Ray beach was a coral beach made up of broken dead coral. These beaches are akin to those found on the coral coast, aesthetic, yet sore on the feet! We wandered back to Slippery Rock and Sunset Beach to watch the dusk go by whilst sipping on a Fiji Bitter.

Our dorm was awesome. We had a small four bed beach hut which we shared with a german girl. The hut was basically a concrete box with lots of slotted wooden slats built into the walls which you could angle to suit the time of day. As we were right on Sunrise Beach it was awesome opening the slats in the morning and looking out as the day began. Once the sun was up and we had breakfast we had a small hike up the islands small hill to a viewpoint that overlooked the body of water between Drawaqa and Mantaray Island. Later, we wondered down onto Sunrise Beach to try some reading in the sun which turned out to be a mission as it was one of the hottest days I’ve ever experienced!

Barefoot Manta

After missing the Manta Rays at Mantaray Island, we decided to make Barefoot Manta Island (or more traditionally know as Drawaqa Island) our final stop. This resort is on a neighbouring island and offers the same experience of sighting the rays. Again, we boarded the Flyer and headed south before jumping on our Water Taxi out to the island. As we were taking part in a group check in, we couldn’t believe it, the drum started beating, a ray had been spotted. We made an abrupt end to the check in process, left our bags where they were and charged for the boat. Before we knew it, we were swimming with a 4/5m wide, unworldly creature in a channel just off the island.

The channel is ideal for rays as it is narrow and has a strong flow of water passing through it. Effortlessly, the rays glide along in the water drifting with the currents before turning on a wide bearing and gradually working back up against the current. The ray looked elegant and calm at all times, yet for us humans it was a slightly different scenario… When our group attempted to swim against the current we realised why there was safety talks. Fighting the current on the surface took a lot of effort. We were battling against the tide, yet not realising how much as we were fixed on the ray.

[photograph by Jarkko Lainee]

Blue Lagoon

Our next stop was Blue Lagoon, one of the more up-market places we stayed in the Yasawa group. We stayed there at additional costs to our deal however, the food was worth it at FJ$99 each. A la carte menu and Lovo (traditional fijian pit oven) buffet. The food was awesome.

We knew this was one of the best parts of fiji for reef life so we wolfed down our lunch after arriving and jumped on a snorkelling trip that was just heading out. When we got there, we were dropped off on a sand bank just off the Blue Lagoon. A couple of snorkels poked out the water giving away peoples locations. We threw our masks on and plunged into the ocean and swam out to the coral which was bursting with life. Groups of Triggerfish, Damselfish and Butterflyfish dotted around the reef, it was good fun to swim through the schools of fish as they swim in the opposite direction. Clown Fish were hidden among the soft coral which was full of colour, far too much Finding Nemo jokes were brought to the table.

After Snorkelling we went back to the beach in front of the resort which was beautiful. A narrow white sandy beach with a steep drop into inviting blue water. We had a few beers and chilled out, reading on the beach and taking the odd dip to cool off until there was an epic sunset to cap off the day. As night fell, we got ready for the Lovo Buffet and were entertained by the staff of the resort who put on music and dancing which everyone could get involved in. After a mouthwatering dinner we went back down to the beach for a bonfire and a few cocktails. The fire was amazing under a perfectly clear night, a few powerful cocktails in the hammock meant it was game over for us; great end to an amazing day.

Raiding Caves

Today we went on a trip to two caves on a neighbouring island. We took a water taxi from Safe Landing and met up with other people from other resorts before heading to the location. I had expectations of mooring up next to the caves and swimming in but to my surprise we pulled up on a beach and hiked up some steps then climbed down into the cave which was burrowed into the island’s cliffs.

Steps descended down into the cave, at the bottom there was a platform with ladders that allowed you to climb into the water… everyone jumped straight from the platform. It was a weird feeling because the water was luke warm, rather than the freezing cold you expected. The caves had had high, staggered walls, almost set up for climbing and jumping off. The water was clear and deep but you could easily see the bottom. It was awesome swimming, jumping and diving down in the water.

On the far side of the cave, you could pass through into the next chamber (Cave 2). Like the jeopardy of some Indiana Jones film, you couldn’t simply swim through to the next cave, you had to swim underwater into the pitch black, scared of smashing your skull on the rocks, or running out of air. When you came up on the other side, you could still hear everyone else in both caves talking and splashing but you couldn’t see anything, it was complete darkness, all you could see was the images your eyes played tricks on you with. I felt like my eyes were open twice as wide as usual trying to pick up some light. After a moment, a torch flickered round the corner as one of the guides came round with the group he had just taken on a tour of ‘Cave 2’, “BULA”…. “BUUULAAAAA”.

We left the caves and jumped back in the water taxi to head back to Safe Landing… you would have thought our driver had been sinking the Fiji Bitter! A hairy boat ride back to say the least, only one severely close capsize though, nothing too much to worry about.