Hugh Robertson Sailing · video

What this video covers

A single-handed sailor completes a seven-day passage from Tonga to Savu Savu, Fiji, aboard the 34-foot sailboat Sea Change. Departing Nukuʻalofa, the vessel encounters strong easterly winds and heavy seas, requiring the use of a staysail and a reefed jib.0:21 A Pacific Wind Pilot wind vane steers the boat for the duration of the trip, including during a dead-downwind run towards the Wailagilala Atoll.15:41 The passage includes stops at Duff Reef, where the sailor discovers a broken wire on the upper shrouds, and Wailagilala Atoll.9:10 The final leg involves a difficult transit through the Somosomo Strait, where the boat struggles against a four-knot adverse tidal current and a failing engine starter.23:04 Upon arrival in Savu Savu, the engine refuses to restart, necessitating repairs.25:04 The sailor notes that reef fish caught near Duff Reef proved inedible, and the boat’s rigging requires further maintenance due to the mid-wire shroud failure.9:10

Boats in this video

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26 differences from most other cruisers, part 2 of 2Apr 202626 differences from most other cruisers, part 1of 2.Apr 202630 stories of sailors less fortunate than me during my ocean-sailing years on Sea ChangeJan 202630 mistakes I made and things that broke on my solo circumnavigation on Sea Change, Part 3 of 3Dec 2025

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