2019 PLANNED PACIFIC ITINERARY 
“I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky, And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by, And the wheel’s kick and the wind’s song and the white sail’s shaking, And a gray mist on the sea’s face, and a gray dawn breaking.”
― John Masefield
Thanks for your interest in joining us on a part or all of our 2021 expedition to the Pacific Islands . It seems that need to postpone this voyage again, this time to 2021 ,because of the pandemic.
Here is the draft itinerary with estimated times and flight options.
We are open to suggestions, but would like to visit Tanna and our special secret island destination in any case, as we have already some arrangement with the locals regarding our next visit.
Of course all sailing departure dates, destinations, and arrival dates are subject to weather, and may have to be adjusted accordingly .
Please pass the following information on to your friends , as the upkeep of Dona Catharina depends on funding via networking.
15/08
depart Opua bound for Aneythom in Vanuatu. This will be an open ocean voyage of about 10 days, and will suit people who’s dream it is to cross an ocean under sail.
25/08
Port Resolution in Tanna. We are good friends with the paramount chief of the Island.And are expected to deliver some donated goods from NZ to his people. We will be therefore honoured with privileges the average tourist, visiting the island, may not enjoy. But in any case, the highlight of visiting Tanna will be a climb up th very active volcano Mt. Yasur.
01/09
Arrive in Port Vila, the capital of Vanuatu, and proably the most interesting capital “City” of all the pacific Islands.. There are direct fights from Port Vila to NZ.
All the populated islands of Vanuatu have small airstrips, and there are regular fligh from Port Vila or Santo.
05/09
Port Vila to Epi island. Again an Island where we have made friends with some of the locals, so we will like have to offload some cargo for them. There is a very good chance
to snorkel or dive among sea turtles in Leman Bay.
09/09
short sail to the Maskelyne island on Malekula. This, and the next island of the Vanuatu chain, as we continue our way nort, are new to us, and we have so far only sailed
past them, wishing to stop there , on earlier voyages.
11/09
Maskelyne to Ambrym the island that consists of a large active Volcanoe
13/09
Ambrym to Pentecost . It is on this island where the famous land divers live, that Have inspired the idea of bungy jumping.
15/09
Pentecost to St Maria .Latest by now we will be of ‘the beaten track’, and St Maria Is unlikely being visited by many other yachts while we are there.
17/09
We may leave St Maria to our very special destination, and I am deliberately not spelling out its name, as we have an interest its to keep it existence out any lime light. All I will say, that we have been there before, and that the island itself, and it’s people are very special.
25/09
we hope to arrive in Luganville . The second largest city in Vanuatu, with good
flight or shipping service to Port Vila. Famous amongst divers for million dollar Point , the place where the Americans sunk a large amount of their ships, tanks and aircraft, no longer needed after WWII.
27/09
From Luganville , depending on crew wishes, we will either revisit some of the
northern island of Vanuatu, and then make our way south towards Port Vila.
Or we may go for plan B, and clear customs and leave for Noumea .
We expect this to be a upwind trip, that may be not so easy, but the reward will be a relaxing few days in the stunningly beautiful lagoon of New Caledonia , with its ………
…many uninhabited Islands and sand cays and fantastic diving opportunities
And of course there are regularly flight from and to NZ out of Noumea
15/10
weather window dependent, we hope to be on our way to New Zealand, and
This may be the more interesting passage fore those, who’s dream it is to
experience the adventure of crossing an ocean under sail. There is also a chance that we may be able to stop on Norfolk Is. but this is very weather dependent, as Norfolk has no save anchorage, and one has to be on high alert for any shit in wind direction.
instead of Plan B we may also be back in Port Vila after visiting Aoba Is, Ambrym, and Epi Is
04/10
we should then be in Port Vila again, were we can refuel, and prepare Dona
Catharina for the crossing to NZ. But we would like to clear customs on the
15/10
on Tanna Is to say goodby to our friend , the chiefs family of Tanna, and to chec on the progress of the large canoe, that they hope to build with the help of the donated goods from our earlier visit.
25/10
ETD NZ. but bear in mind, and that includes all dates around the island cruises, that Dona Catharina can not be run to a exact schedule as her speed and headings are dictated by wind and sea.
As the header suggests, this is only a draft itinerary . We are always open to change of plans, and if you or your friends wish to see a special place in the Pacific, carry out some research or plan a documentary about a particular subject and you need an affordable platform to operate from, please contact us via our contact page. We are happy to help you make to your dream a reality