13th July - Pulau Birie to Pulau Friwin - Attenborough moments

Monday 13^th July 2015

00 degrees 28.407S

130 degrees 41.289E

Pulau Friwin

Sandy beach, reef

16m depth

Papua Paradise (Birie Island)

We left beautiful Birie Island yesterday mid-morning and found ourselves back at Pulau Friwin in the early afternoon. 

We are at a slightly different anchorage, off a lovely little white beach, but we will probably move in a while – around the corner it is also very lovely and we can be in line-of-sight of the internet towers, always a plus.

There is a village nearby, and cheery children come to the beach with their mothers, and their dogs, to fish and to frolic.  They were VERY pleased with their Tasmanian frisbee!

I do always try to be positive, in this blog, wherever possible.  Lalalala yes everything is lovely.  But…sometimes it isn’t, and sometimes things are a bit boring, or bumpy. 

But…not here!  This part of the world is just paradise.  So very beautiful, and, for the most part, so accessible, on a catamaran.  We had been told that we would find it very difficult to get any good anchorages at all, that it is all just much too deep and steep.  In fact, in  lot of places, it is necessary to tie the boat to ropes off steep sharp limestone rocks.  NOT fun, I imagine.  But…so far so good, we have had beautiful anchorages.  And when they are not comfortable…we move!

Last night was total David Attenborough.  We sat on the deck and watched great schools of small fish making their way up through the current. 

A gorgeous Brahminy kite sat and watched us from a nearby tree, 

and frigate birds wheeled high overhead.

Every now and then a mysterious bird, unknown to us, would dart out from the trees and then vanish before we could get a good look or a photo.  Eventually…out it came, with its mate - photo pop!

As the sun was setting we could see a large creature on the surface of the water, not far from the boat.  A very big manta ray!  No it never became totally visible; it stayed in its watery world, but we were very pleased to have it as a neighbour.