Cruising_World_2016-06-07

cruisingworld.com

82

INDIAN OCEAN

june/july 2016

across the seafl oor, each one a more

extraordinary shade than the last.

Green Mountains, Shopping Malls

After almost four months of sailing in the

low-lying atolls of the Maldives and the

Chagos Archipelago, when we fi rst spot-

ted the 2,969 -foot Morne Seychellois, it

seemed so gargantuan and unreal, it was

almost as though we’d forgotten what ele-

vation looked like.

We didn’t know much about the

Seychelles when we added the country

of 90,000 to our Indian Ocean cruising

itinerary, other than that it had famed

beaches and is the endemic home to

a sensuously shaped coconut called

the coco de mer. But, like the rest of

our journey, the country of 115 islands

turned out to be a wonderful surprise. A

gorgeous combination of mountainous

terrain, white beaches, coral reefs and

cozy anchorages, the Seychelles seems

like it was created with sailors in mind.

The Seychelles also had dentists,

which, after three months of a tooth-

ache, Evan was happy to see. I was

excited about a hairdresser, and Maia was

thrilled with the clothing stores.

Where we were moored in Port

Victoria, our closest neighbors were a

number of newly hatched chicks in a

heron rookery. Each day we’d admire the

awkward young birds, but the speed with

which the chicks grew made us realize

the days were fl ying by.

Eventually, it was a hike up one of

Mahé’s gorgeous trails that convinced us

it was time to go sailing again. As well as

BETWEEN THE CHALLENGES OF GETTING THERE AND CHECKING IN, COMOROS ISN’T

AN EASY DESTINATION, BUT IT’S EXACTLY THE KIND WE HAD SET OFF TO FIND.

june/july 2016

cruisingworld.com

82

INDIAN OCEAN