We were in American Samoa early in August – this is our log from that time.

Our passage to American Samoa was rough. We had high seas and we had big waves and we had LOTS of rain. And we arrived in the dark so we tried to find a place to anchor or to heave to (set the sails so you move very very slowly). We were very happy to arrive and it was lovely to have friends waiting for us (we were last to arrive in Pago Pago). And as we approached everyone started singing Happy Birthday to our captain and Riikka made us breakfast on Panacea as a treat. And there were homemade cards and small gifts of fresh produce (Sonia from Calle II even wrapped an orange in tissue paper). It was outside office hours and we had to wait to check in to the country. All four boats (Panacea, Calle II, Caramba and Itchy Foot) were rafted up, tied to the tug moored next to the harbor master’s dock. It was still raining but it was cozy to all be tied up there together and being rafted up is quite a novelty. It gave us a lot more freedom to move around without the dinghy and the kids immediately disappeared onto different boats.

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Another bonus of being at the harbor master’s dock is that we saw everything that was going on and had a good view of the comings and goings of all ships. We saw the exploration ship called Nautilus and they even gave us a tour. It was incredible to see their toys and hear of their plans and adventures. You will not be disappointed if you use some time and internet to check out their website at nautiluslive.org in fact they are releasing a NatGeo program that is based on their coverage. And they usually even have a live feed of their deep sea submersible unit, called Hercules, which can dive up to 4000 meters. The whole organization is a non-profit foundation, with funding from NOAA and also the guy who found the Titanic. Now they are off looking for Amelia Earhart’s crashed plane. 

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American Samoa is great for shopping and chores. There are MANY Chinese-run food shops, hardware stores and laundromats to choose from and sometimes that is just what the doctor ordered. In fact, the doctor was on our list too as this is a place with a great hospital and possibility for a dental visit, too. We dove right in and it was perfect timing especially after a month and half in the Cook Islands where it was slim pickings in the case of shopping and the most expensive powdered milk and fresh eggs we have seen so far. Unfortunately, we need some very specific things to solve our problems and to complete the boat jobs on our list and “almost the right thing” just wasn’t good enough so this was just not the place.

As soon as we were checked in (apparently it was not American to make us wait till we had checked in to go to MickyD’s so they allowed that on Sunday night) and were allowed to explore. Our fist priority was ice cream which Teo sorted within the hour of arrival. The kids aka illegal aliens went for double scoops in waffle cones within an hour of arrival. As soon as we were legal, we were headed for CostULess which is the equivalent of CostCo and a promised land for us cruisers. We took the bus and it was such a fun experience I wanted to take the bus more and more. They are basically flat bed with bus sections built on and they are almost as individual as the ones in Panama, in fact I think the interiors were the most creative we have ever seen. And the views from the bus to the food shopping were incredibly beautiful. Another day we grabbed a bus to the cinema to see Lion King, what a treat! We haven’t been to the cinema since Star Wars in Colombia.

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We liked being tied to the dock for a change and all four boats being together was really nice. We would have loved to have a BBQ. But the tug boat was going to have to move as some point so they asked us to leave for the anchorage. We were able to fill water with a super long hose and this was a godsend as the generator is being a diva and demanding attention (and parts) again. This anchorage has a horrible reputation for being dirty, smelly with bad holding and that is all very accurate, in fact every 15 minutes it was gag worthy. It was miserable. The mood onboard smelled as bad as the air. All of a sudden we had a very hard decision to make, like the Clash always say, “Should I STAY or should I GO?!” On the STAY side we’re sharing the anchorage with Panacea, more provisions/chores, doctors visits,  and time to explore the island. And on the GO side was the SMELL, our already limited time in Tonga slipping away, a very nice set of conditions for the sail to Tonga and the forecast showing a long time to the next good weather window.

The decision was a hard one, and we were all too soon saying goodbye to Panacea and we set off on this passage with tears in our eyes and heavy hearts. We have been anchored next to them for nine months solid, long enough for banana tree to bear fruit and long enough to grow a human baby and that is even before you factor the dog years (each year of marriage on a boat counts as seven). We will miss them SO MUCH. This lifestyle requires an open heart to make new friends quickly and intensely and the goodbyes are so much harder.