We really enjoyed being in Hilo, we spent almost a month there – it was a great place to relax after the passage across from the Marquesas. In fact it was the first port of call for nine of the ten boats we know that came up from French Polynesia this season so Radio Bay ended up being a very social scene!

The anchorage is protected by a sea wall so very little of the swell gets in, it’s so calm there that it got nick-named the Duck Pond. There is room for five boats to tie up at the quay where there is fresh water available and also a toilet block with hot showers (luxury!). Apart from the noise and dust of the containers being shifted around in the port area next door it was perfect.

At the other end of the bay beside the beach is the canoe club where we had frequent pot-lucks and even a hula dancing lesson. We got to know some of the people at the club and they invited us to go out paddling in the outriggers with them. Usually we went out in a double canoe which held twelve people (six each side). We’d go out for about an hour across Hilo Bay the back to Coconut Island. It was great fun but quite tiring and took a certain amount of concentration to get the timing and the change over just right.   

We also spent our times getting boat jobs done. Neil pottered around on the “blue” jobs: he improved the anchor winch set up, put an air filter on the engine and fixed some leaks on the port side which had been plaguing us for years. I got on with the “pink” jobs which now seem to include sanding and varnishing louvred doors and polishing steel fittings on deck. It also meant spending several hours in the fanciest laundrette I’ve ever been in, very user friendly so made the job much less onerous.

In this part of the island the coastline is very serrated where the coarse lava flows meet the sea. Freshwater springs feed into narrow inlets and pools where the locals like to park up and picnic at weekends. The surf breaks against the rocky fingers but the coves are rarely wide enough to develop a good wave. We walked up there to look at the surf but usually ended up just snorkelling or swimming in the cold water.

Well . . . all good things must come to an end and it was time to move on to another island. Maui was our next destination. So goodbye and thanks to all the lovely people we met in Radio Bay and a bientot to our cruising buddies.

More from Maui soon!

Suzy