Torries

S

GREENGREEN

Facebook Q&A:

What boat

project will

you tackle this

winter?

Re-bedding bow pulpit,

another 2 coats of varnish

on toerail, washing and

hand-waxing hull. Why?

Because I love my 1979

Tartan 37c. — L.G.H.

Try to fi nish my

Shpountz schooner

when the weather is

not too cold — R.V.

Volvo MD7a overhaul,

rewire, LED conversion

above and below, head

repair or possibly replace

... ugh. I’m exhausted

already. — G.D.

New bottom and

plumbing on our

1962 Ralph H. Wiley

48-foot motorsailer.

— B.G.

I’m deciding whether to

buy or build a sailboat.

Here’s my checklist:

• Research which/why/
  what/where/when (done)


• Secure building site if I
  want to build or project-
  manage it myself (done)


• Finances (70 percent done
  and OK’d it with the clan)


• Change in work and
  lifestyle (work in process)


• Sailing ability (much
  room for improvement)


• Eager & willing (point of
  no return has been reached;
  patient has escaped and is
  irretrievable) — P.M.

UNDERWAY

january/february 2017

cruisingworld.com

W

hen we sailed into

Savusavu, Fiji, on our

41-foot Tartan, Hotspur, I had

no idea we’d soon be lending

our hands (and fi ngers) to help

replenish one of Earth’s most

impressive ecosystems. But

when our 15-year-old daughter,

Carolyne, and I received an invi-

tation to join some local middle

school students in learning about

the importance of mangroves and

even planting some seedlings, I

added the two-day function to

her home-school lesson plan.

On the fi rst day, we arrived at

a small public school and took a

seat in the dark classroom. The

speaker, Cassie Gann, of Nawi

Island’s Mangrove Rehabilitation

Program, fl ipped a switch and

the slide projector glowed. Gann

explained how mangroves not

only serve as living sea walls, act-

ing as a barrier against wave

action, but how they also remove

large amounts of carbon dioxide

from the air. “Coastal mangrove

forests can store fi ve times more

carbon than tropical rainforests,”

she told the class.

I was surprised to learn that

mangrove wood is resistant to

rot and insects, thereby provid-

ing excellent building material in

tropical climates. I also learned

that many cultures extract dyes

and medicines from the bark

and leaves.

The day following the lecture,

buses rolled into Savusavu from

surrounding villages, carrying

250 excited 13-year-old school-

children. With their bright

yellow PFDs snugged tight, they

took a boat ride across Nakama

Creek to Nawi Island. Carolyne

and I joined the group, which

gave us a warm welcome ashore

in a bure, a cabin built of dogo, or

black mangrove wood.

At low tide, the mass of giddy

teens trekked to the backside of

the island. Out of the tree line,

a sandy shelf emerged as barren

as the moon’s surface. Seawater

fl anked one side of the spit, and

bushy mangrove shrubs the other.

The salt breeze carried the boys

and girls’ excited chatter as they

scattered across the soggy sand.

The morning sun sparkled

on the moist turf, and the chil-

dren formed long lines across

the spit of land. Down each row,

volunteers passed green woven

palm-leaf baskets containing red

and black mangrove propagules

(seedlings). The children plucked

handfuls of daku, or mangrove

pods, and pressed them upright

in holes they poked in the silt

with their fi ngers. When the stu-

dents fi nished planting, 4,500

mangrove propagules emerged

from the once-desolate sand.

T

his is the second year that

local young-

sters have gathered

to help plant man-

grove seedlings

while learning about the tree’s

signifi cance in protecting bays,

creating minerals and nutrients

for marine life, and harboring

homes for native species, like

the megabat (Fiji’s large fruit

bat). Having cruised for the past

eight years, we’ve learned a lot

about reducing our carbon foot-

print. And on Nawi Island, we

helped to plant the seed.

— Meri Faulkner

ONE SMALL STEP

FOR MANGROVES

Carolyne Faulkner (center, with tall boots) helps to plant mangrove seedlings while cruising in Fiji.

22

COURTESY OF RICCO VELDKAMP/FACEBOOK.COM (TOP LEFT); MERI FAULKNER

G R E E N

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