This information has been contributed by and is intended for use by competent amateur yachtsmen as general guidance solely
to supplement research of their cruising plans.It has not been checked or verified by the OCC. The Information may be inaccurate or out of date and is NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION.
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Jim and Katie Thomsen – S/V Tenaya
http://www.tenayatravels.com/Latest%20Update%202011%20Tenaya%208%20August%202.html
SV Adagio see 2014 and 2015 entriesSV White HawkMlke Bickell = Grandpa 's Maps Baie Ugie 21°08.90'S, 165°32.68'E
Baie Ure 22°24.30'S, 166°48.20'E
Baie de Gomen 20°45.25'S, 164°22.75'E
Baie de Pam 20°14.23'S, 164°18.20'E
Baie de Prony, Bonne Anse Rade de L’Est 22°22.50'S, 166°55.00'E
Baie de St Vincent, Ouano 21°50.50'S, 165°48.68'E
Baie d’Oro 22°34.22'S, 167°31.16'E
Boat Pass 20°04.47'S, 164°00.80'E
Canala 21°29.55'S, 165°58.40'E
Hienghene 20°40.84'S, 164°57.14'E
Ile Balabio 20°03.57'S, 164°09.69'E
Ile Ducos, Baie des Moustiques 21°59.95'S, 166°03.00'E
Ile Nomou 21°40.30'S, 166°22.80'E
Ile Tenle 20°18.80'S, 164°04.33'E
Ile Yenghebane 20°04.96'S, 163°58.00'E
Ilot Mbe Kouen 22°15.75'S, 166°13.24'E
Kouakoue Baie 21°56.46'S, 166°40.19'E
Kouaoua 21°23.73'S, 165°49.96'E
Koumac 20°34.80'S, 164°16.36'E
Kuto, Iles de Pins 22°39.60'S, 167°26.39'E
Noumea 22°16.80'S, 166°26.30'E
Port Boise 22°20.58'S, 166°57.60'E
Port Bouquet 21°41.40'S, 166°25.20'E
Pouebo 20°22.52'S, 164°35.30'E
Poum 20°13.53'S, 164°02.02'E
Touho 20°46.43'S, 165°14.18'E
Yate 22°09.20'S, 166°56.25'E
Baie Ugie 21°08.90'S, 165°32.68'E
A horrid bay. Rolly, gusty but it splits the distance to Touho into easy day hops.I would not wish to be here in strong E winds. It is easy to enter with the reef on the north entrance marked and the loading bouys for nickel ships defining the south entrance. Water is murky so it is not possible to see the shallow patch NW of the broken old wharf. Cmaps were good so we used them to tuck behind it in 5m sand. The shallows extend far into the bay.
Baie Ure 22°24.30'S, 166°48.20'E
Head for the small beach at the head with a small stream anchor off in 10m red mud, excellent holding. Well shletered in canal woodin. Occasional swell from passing vessels otherwise always flat. Dlphins and dugong in the bay. Good stop enroute N or S. Easy to enter or leave in poor light or at night.
Baie de Gomen 20°45.25'S, 164°22.75'E
Handy stop when day sailing south. Anchored 3.5m sand. Lot of mining activity.
Baie de Chasseloupe Lat 20deg 57.9S, long 164deg 38.95S WGS 84
Again handy day sailing S or N. Last or first anchorage inside north lagoon. A new harbour was being built in Anse de Vouavouto when we visited. It looked to be a huge commercial thing. There was a lot of new buoyage heading that way and more buoyage of the Passe de Duroc with 2 greens and a red marking the entrance. The route between Gomen and here is tricky with reefs and shallows but is very well marked and Cmap/Maxsea good.
Baie de Pam 20°14.23'S, 164°18.20'E
Lovely, excellent sheltered bay. Best all round shelter since Touho. Lots of variations depending on wind direction. We anchored in 5m mud in the 2nd bay to port. Don’t try and get to far in, it shallows quickly and there is coral around. It blew 30knts SE and we hardly noticed. The reef of pointe de Nen’diaran sticks out further E than it looks and the red buoy is set back.
Baie de Prony, Bonne Anse Rade de L’Est 22°22.50'S, 166°55.00'E
Nice bay well sheltered but according to the chart we should have been in 5m and we were in 16m mud. Tried a couple of the other bays here and again depths were greater and we were unhappy with coral bottom. Ok for stop ready for early off to Iles de Pins.
Baie de St Vincent, Ouano 21°50.50'S, 165°48.68'E
Bit intricate getting in but very well buoyed with 3m in channel. Cmap/Maxsea good but we were on the reef in the actual passage. Once through a lovely anchorage with some permanent moorings. We dropped in 3m sand/mud excellent holding. There is water and rubbish bins at the wharf but it is a long way to the nearest town. No swell, all round shelter. Popular weekend spot with a busy launching ramp. Nice walks. Good diving off the outer reef. This anchorage is not mentioned in the pilot, Cruisng Guide to NC.
Baie d’Oro 22°34.22'S, 167°31.16'E See attached file for pictures
Baie d’Oro . Outer anchorage 22deg34.22’S 167.31.16E in sand Room for several yachts to anchor protected by the reefs. A spectacular approach between breaking reefs. A pretty walk ashore from the Meridian Resourt to the Piscine Naturell and back to the Baie’Oro via a dried up creek (about an hour for the roung trip). The Piscine Naturelle abounds in coral and
fish, tame enouth to nibble your fingers. Well worth taking a mask and flippers on the walk. The Meridian resourt looks expensive. The other two restauruants, one on the beach of the Bay and one on the way to the Piscine Naturelle, are reasonably priced. There is a second anchorage suitable for shola draft at Approx 22deg 34.40N 167 31.00 S . The approach to this at high tide is leaving the mushrtoom rock (actually two mushrooms close together) to Starboard and crossing a depth marked on the Rocket Guise as .9 metres between the mushrooms and the shore. Adagio has used an approach to the mushroom rocks leaving the reef in the center of the bay to Starboard; this looks easier than the route shown on the
Rocket Guide which snakes between bommies from the main anchorage to pass the mushrooms to Starboard. Look carefully at the Cruising Guides before attempting this in good light.
Boat Pass 20°04.47'S, 164°00.80'E
We anchored in the bay to the south of the entrance tucked up into the second bight in the fringing reef in 6m sand, good holding. The water was clear and the reefs easy to see. Nice snorkelling on the fringing reefs. There is a restaurant ashore. We took the dingy through the Boat Pass. It would not be possible to get a yacht through as there is now a sand bar that we hit in the dingy at the exit on the far side. The pilot gives an anchorage just inside Boat Pass but we couldnt see how he got there. Too much coral and shallows for our liking.
Canala 21°29.55'S, 165°58.40'E See attached file for pictures
A long fiord like bay with good anchoring at the head in 3-8m mud off Pic des Morts by the abandoned buildings to then visit Canala by dingy. A trip of approx 15-20 mins. There is an old wharf to tie upto near the town then its a 2 min walk. There are 3 shops, PO, telephone, school and church. Friendly people and worth the trip. The wind picked up in the pm so we shifted across to the anchorage above in Port D’Urville. Excellent holding in thick, gooey mud. There was a small village ashore and we were visited by some friendly locals who invitied us ashore. Easy entry and exit. Excellent shelter. Not gussty. We did try Port Mackau given in the pilot as a possible “cyclone hole”. We found the bottom very uneven 8-25m, with coral patches, very gusty wind bullets from varying directions, and after 4 tries could not get the anchor to hold. I
would not recommend it.
Hienghene 20°40.84'S, 164°57.14'E See attached file for pictures
A pretty place to visit. One of NC’s main tourist areas. The rock formations and beaches are the main attractions. We anchored to the south of the red buoy off Les Tours in 3m sand, good holding. Open to the north. The wind along this coast tended to NE in the afternoon sea breeze then overnight round to the S/SW and we were fine here in flat water. There were 2 boats anchored by the cave on the opposite shore and they looked comfortable. The river is well buoyed but has only 1.5-2m of water at LW and there is a small marina with finger berths, electricity and water on the north bank. It has a small shopping complex across the road with bank, PO, shops and Tourist office. The best shop was across the bridge on the south bank. It had frozen meat, fruit and veg and good tinned supplies open daily 6am- 7pm(??sunday). Some nice walks around the
area. Diving setup on a nearby beach.
Ile Balabio 20°03.57'S, 164°09.69'E
A pretty, clear water anchorage better sheltered than it at first looks. The southern reefs are huge. We nchored in 5m sand. Coral close in and occasional patches to miss. Lovely snorkelling along the reef to the north and north island edge. No near village but some passing villagers. Good walking ashore. To get here from Baie de Pam we took the Canal Napais. It is not buoyed but the reef edges were very easy to see in the clear water and the canal is over 20m deep. Cmap/Maxsea was very accurate and helped. It was enjoyable with Dolphin and Turtles accompanying us. We had sunshine and 10kts S wind.
Ile Ducos, Baie des Moustiques 21°59.95'S, 166°03.00'E
Nice sheltered anchorage only open to the north. Sand/mud 5m. Water not clear. Walks ashore. No mossies! We sailed here via the Canal de Lepredour. Plenty of water min 3.7m. Nice anchorage at approx 21deg 57.7S, 165deg 58.9E in 5m mud in the bay north of the canal on the iland side. Deer ashore but the island is a naure reserve, no landing.
Ile Nomou 21°40.30'S, 166°22.80'E
Lovely bay less sheltered than previous one E,SE,S,SW but no houses ashore. Less roll due to larger outer reef. Again sand coral bottom but clearer water so easier to find sand patches. Good snorkelling/diving. There are other anchorages further in this large sheltered bay so you could find shelter from all wind directions and the outer reefs mean flat water.
Ile Tenle 20°18.80'S, 164°04.33'E
We tried anchoring to the Nw of the island first but found we were quite a way offshore to miss the coral and the gusty wind had us doing 360deg. We were not happy so moved to the above anchorage in 4m sand where the wind was a constant SE25kts, flat water. Nice walks ashore, good snorkelling.
Ile Yenghebane 20°04.96'S, 163°58.00'E
A pretty bay to the NW of the west entrance of Boat pass NW side of Ile Yenghebane. Tuck well in to get out of the swell in 4m sand. Nicely sheltered , very pretty and secluded. Awkward to get ashore, best to go to the north bay on the island.
Ilot Mbe Kouen 22°15.75'S, 166°13.24'E
A beautiful lagoon anchorage not much wind shelter but flat as well sheltered by reefs. Small white sand ilet popular with locals at the weekend but otherwise quiet. Anchor in 5m sand. The water is clear, easy to get ashore beautiful reefs with excellent snorkelling and good diving. Only 12 miles from Noumea.
Kouakoue Baie 21°56.46'S, 166°40.19'E
Good stop enroute east coast. Good protection E,SE,S,SW,W but we were there with S/SE 25+ knts and had very gusty bullets down the valleys. Ok but make shore the anchor is well in. Flat water. Sand/mud 18m. There was a lot of coral around and we had to creep well in to find good holding and shallow water. There is a small beach with a stream that has a shallow bank but its edge was good to anchor. Water was not clear. Cmaps quite good.
Kouaoua 21°23.73'S, 165°49.96'E
Not very attractive working mining town. Does have an interesting long curved nickel conveyor. We tucked into the bay between the loader and town in 4m sand, good holding , exposed NE,N,NW. We visited because we could get water from the beach easily and there is a well stocked supermarket. PO, telephone and bank. The supermarket had very good tinned
supplies and frozen meat but little fresh friut or veg. The water taps are just off the beach at the head of the bay to the right as you look into the bay near some picnic tables, also rubbish bins. Easy to land the dingy here, cross the river by footbridge and the bank is right there but it is not open everyday. The supermarket is up the road.
Koumac 20°34.80'S, 164°16.36'E See attached file for pictures
A delightful marina. The route from the north has some buoys missing, the reefs were not easy to spot but cmap/Maxsea was reasonably accurate. Call on vhf16 or 67 on approach for mooring instructions. Only enter in calm weather. If it is blowing do not attempt to enter, anchor in the bay either side of the peninsular and enter in the early morning calm. Jean
Paul the harbourmaster speaks no english but is helpful friendly and very welcoming. He will run you into town for shopping. Rates 1700cfp for 11m in 2009. The entrance is narrow and shallow 1.9m CD, 3m once inside. There is a fuel dock immediately to starboard of the inner entrance where you can tie while sorting out a berth. The visitors alongside pontoon is to port along the inner western breakwater with water and electricity. The office has internet (250cfp/15mins) but we could access it (wifi) from the boat. There are showers and a laundry (500cfp/wash and dry). There is a restaurant onsite. Koumac is a pleasant 30min walk or 10mins by bike. The shopping is the best outside Noumea with 5 good supermarkets, butcher, weekly market, banks, PO, garages, pharmacy, hospital, hairdressers, 3 boulangerie, etc. Good local trips , walks and buses to Noumea. This is a Port of Entry and Jean Paul will happily sort it all out for you. The annual Bundaberg Port to Port Rally now has a set off point from here.
Kuto, Iles de Pins 22°39.60'S, 167°26.39'E See attached file for pictures 3.5m sand, clear, flat water. There is now a clearly marked no anchoring area. Watch 2 shallow coral patches inshore from this position. Less than 05.m over them. A beautiful white sand bordered bay. If the swell is SW a it can creep in. Sheltered S, SE, E NE. Water on the wharf with rubbish bins. Alimentation/boulangerie up the road towards the airport. An excellent market at Vao on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 7am until noon but get there early as the best produce is quickly sold. Hotel Kou-Bugny can arrange trips including native piroques (outriger canoes) in the Baie d’Upi. I-net internet available from the hotel but a weak and sporadic service. Taxis and hire cars can be booked from the hotel. Good walking, cycling, excellent diving and snorkelling. The jewle of New Caledonia but if westerlies come in get out quick. A good days sail from Prony through reefs. Airport with connections to Noumea. Fast ferry from Noumea 3x a week. Get the crew to call a taxi on arrival at Numea. Tony Klotz, BP 18, Vao Ile Des Pins, NEW CALEDONIA, mobile: 687/78 14 51, email: tony.marine@isle-of-pines.com is a specialist in outboard repairs, speaks excellent English and would I am sure be of assistance to OCC Members on other matters. His repair shop is next to the Boutique, clearly marked from the road junction near the dinghy dock.
Noumea 22°16.80'S, 166°26.30'E See attached file for pictures
Beth Bushnell and George Curtis August 2009
Noumea is the Port of Entry for New Caledonia Clear into Port Moselle marina, Marina du Sud or anchorage outside marina or in Baie de l’Orphelinat Anchor outside Port Moselle, call Capitainerie on VHF 67 they will allocate a berth, go ashore, fill in masses of forms, then await Quarantine and Immigration both will visit the boat. If customs do not turn up in 2 hrs, give the forms to the marina office and you’re in.
The days of first night free are over, 10-11m 2290cfp in 2009. We were told that in buisy times you may be asked to leave the marina and anchor after the first three days.Dinghy tie up area is available in Port Moselle but you have to pay for it.On exit Immigration must be visited first then Customs. This should be done 48hrs before expected departure date. Duty
Free fuel is available.
Noumea Yacht Services (687) 79 56 01 nys22s@hotmail.com located near the Charter boats at the East end of Port Moselle can give advice on local regulations, clearance out, duty free, importing spares etc and have access to a variety of nautical repair and maintenence people, but they do charge a percentage for making intirductions.
There is also a large marine maintenance complex in Port Plaisnace where most things can be found. This is said to be the best such facility in the Pacific islands.. Details of this are on a noticeboard outside Port Moselle.
We needed some machine shop support and used ATS who provided a prompt and good service. Patrique, arranged thorugh Noumea Yacht Services is a very competent electrician and genset engineer.www.opt.nc gives access to a Noumea telephpone directory, yellow and white pages.
The Club Nautical in Noumea very welcoming.
Water: Port Moselle, Club Nautical. All tap water is drinkable in towns.
Fuel: Port Moselle,
Gas: In town.
Chandlery: Shipshop in Nouville Port Plaisance or Coral Marine on Rue de General-Mangin.
Banks with ATMs nearest to marina is at the market. There is an excellent daily market for fish, fruit, vegetable and general merchandice next door to the Port Moselle marina. There is a reasonable Casino Johnson on Rules Jules Ferry ten minutes walk beyound this. The best supermarket, Champion Giant, is in the Valee de Colon ten minutes drive away. There is a Boulongerie/Patisserie a Chacouterie and a small general store in the street behind Macdonalds, Rue de Sebastopol.
PO across the square. Mobile is very expensive 7000francs for a Sim card but I understand coverage is good.
Internet facilites within Port Moselle and elsewhere are advertised by i-net. Wifi prepaid cards are available at a Tabac shop just beyond Macdonalds, but expensive and very limited availability. The signal on the visitors pontoon is very weak. We obtained access most of the time via a high gain antenna but those using laptops had poor or no reception. Internet cafes are expensive. The best deal is to buy a coffee at Macdonalds who will gice a password to their wifi. Internet café Nearest to marina is behind the Museum on rue de Sebastopol, Le Cyber Point. It has 2 dedicated, English keyboard PC’s or take your laptop. Expensive 1000francs/hr, cheaper if you buy package in advance.
Basically once you leave Nomea no internet.
CompuSystems is an authorized Apple dealer and repair facility in Noumea. CompuSystems, 14 Route du Port Despointes -
Faubourg Blanchot, BP 12 578 - 98802 Noumea Cedex, New Caledonia email: compu@canl.nc, Technical Department: sav@compusystems.nc, telephone: (687) 27 77 78
We hired a car fron VISA, in one fo the streets beside Macdonalds. This cost 1500 PFR plus 24 per km, or 3300 FRP with 150 free km and they allowed me to chose which when the car was returned.
Mailing address C/o Capitainerie de Port Moselle, 6 rue Fregate Nivose, B.P.2960-98846 Noumea Cedex, Nouvelle Caledonie. Tel +687 27 71 97, fax +687 27 71 29, Email: contact@sodemo.nc, port.moselle@sodemonc
Showers at Port Moselle. Water in Port Moselle or on breakwater near fuel dock , very expensive.
Full intenational flights from Numea International Airport.
Good medical services and dentists but not all speak English
Think north European prices and you’ll be about right. It is an expensive place but there are no fees to pay, harbour dues etc. Don’t expect Kanuk culture this place is French, go north or east for that. Little English is spoken in many places.
Port Boise 22°20.58'S, 166°57.60'E
Good stop before or after Havannah Canal. Don 't stop if not checked in as the pilot boats are based here and boats have been fined in the past. 12m mud, good holding.
Port Bouquet 21°41.40'S, 166°25.20'E
A lovely secluded anchorage, very pretty. Sand and coral 12m. Sheltered NE,E,SE,S,SW. There was a little roll at HW and I think in strong NE it might be a little uncomfortable unless tucked well into the SE corner. The anchorage is deepish 20m+ till close in but there is a lot of coral around inshore which can be hard to see. Holding seemed good once in sand. Again gusty in 25kts SE but water flat. There are now some houses ashore but no one around when we visited. Beautiful diving and snorkelling especially on outer reef.
Pouebo 20°22.52'S, 164°35.30'E
Good stop enroute. Well sheltered by large reef but opposite gap in reef so slight roll possible. Open to NE,E. Reef on north of entrance seems to stick out further, beware. S reef is marked. Cmaps/maxsea not accurate here, we were anchored on the reef. Tuck as far down as you can. We anchored in 5m sand just NW of the red buoy. The shallows came up very quickly. Interesting twisty, narrow passages inside the reefs from Hienghene to here but well marked and easy to see reefs.
Poum 20°13.53'S, 164°02.02'E
This was much nicer than we thought it would be. Some old mine scarring on the hill but the village is tidy, well cared for with a good shop/garage, fresh bread, water on the wharf and when cruise ships are in entertainment and craft stalls.
Nice walks ashore, friendly people, rubbish bins. We anchored to the east of the spit in 5m even though the wind was SE 20 as there was no roll and the yacht on the other side was rolling.
Touho 20°46.43'S, 165°14.18'E
A really lovely anchorage, safe, in all directions from wind and sea. Pretty with no evidence of mining. There is a marina with 3m water and one pontoon with short finger berths with electricity and water. We could never find out who ran it and
it was full when we visited so we anchored outside SW of the outer breakwater in 5m sand, good holding and clear water.
There was somewhere to anchor in any wind direction as the reef is huge and gives excellent shelter. The entrances are
both well marked and some buoys are lit but not all and I would not advise a night entry. There is a dingy dock to port inside the marina with a water tap at its head or water from the pontoon. Rubbish bins ashore. Walk into town where there is a garage, Po, Bank, 3 shops and buses to Noumea, not exctly frequent. We found the best supermarket up the hill to the left as you reach the main road. Some veg and fruit, frozen meat, good tinned supplies and bread. The snorkelling and
diving are excellent especially if you can get on the outer side of the reef. It might well be possible to leave the boat here or arrange to pick up/drop off crew.
Yate 22°09.20'S, 166°56.25'E
Yate, New Caledonia Good stop after leaving Havannah canal going up east coast or before it. Anchor in 2-7m mud, good holding. Flow is always outgoing due to hydroelectric scheme upriver. Good shelter in all but E/NE winds. Slight scend. no water no fuel Small shop in village Getting to the old wharf recommended in the pilot: we couldn’t find the channel. The water was too cloudy to see banks clearly. Cmaps were accurate however Dingy trip up the river to the dam.