Anchorage at North Astrolabe Reef, Fiji

We arrived here and the weather was not so good for the first few days. The wind was calm and the water in the lagoon was flat but the sky was grey, overcast and rainy. Regardless we came for the snorkeling and it didn't disappoint one bit. In fact, even in these dreary conditions we all agreed it was the best snorkeling we ever had anywhere else in the world (big statement, we know!).

The anchorage was in sand about 19m deep and if you have a shallower draft you could easily get in closer to the reef. This place is an atoll, like we encountered in Tuamotu, French Polynesia. That is, it is a large lagoon surrounded by a reef. The difference is that unlike in Tuamotu, there is no land just reef. We picked our anchorage and path into the lagoon using our 'OvitalMap Technique'.

The snorkeling was in water that was from 1-2m to 15m and the entire interior of the atoll's reef was a snorkeling paradise. The last day, the sun came out and it was incredible to see all the beautiful colours of fish and hard corals. Luckily, Cyclone Winston didn't come this far south and so everything is as it has been for a very long time.

This location is way off the tourist maps for Fiji so the only way to see this place is from your own yacht. Definitely put this place on your lifetime 'bucket list'.