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Birgit

Author's details

Name: Birgit
Date registered: September 22, 2010
Jabber / Google Talk: admin

Latest posts

  1. Turtle Islands Marine Reserve — October 29, 2026
  2. Turtle Islands Marine Reserve — October 29, 2026
  3. Angekommen in Malaysien: Sandakan — October 28, 2026
  4. Arrived in Malaysia: Sandakan — October 28, 2026
  5. Keine Piraten mehr in der Sulu See: ein Besuch im freundlichen Pangutaran — October 21, 2026

Most commented posts

  1. The Matuku Marine Reserve and how it came into being — 11 comments
  2. Donations for the Marine Reserve in Matuku — 10 comments
  3. 2 magical, but bouncy weeks on an uninhabited atoll — 9 comments
  4. Überlebt! — 7 comments
  5. Hilfsprojekte für Matuku — 7 comments

Author's posts listings

2023
31
Dec

Pearls pearls pearls!

by Birgit

10 years ago we arrived in the Gambier Islands (French Polynesia), where the shiniest black pearls are grown. Soon after I started playing with those pretty ball bearings and I’m still making creative jewellery aboard SY Pitufa

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2023
24
Dec

Happy holidays to all our readers!!

by Birgit

2023 was a tough year for us with lots of pain and worries since our severe accident in February. Now it looks like we’re finally over that stretch and we’re looking forward to some fun and adventures in 2024! We wish you all a happy holidays and a healthy, joyful and exciting year 2024!!

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2023
13
Dec

Still looking for a Christmas present?

by Birgit

Check out our books on amazon.com! “Sailing towards the Horizon” about our first 5 years as newbie cruisers as paperback and ebook “On Velvet Paws towards the Horizon”: an homage to ship’s cat Leeloo “Cruising Know-How“: a compilation of the best articles we’ve published in 12 years available as ebook, paperback and hardcover in inexpensive black-and-white or in a shiny colour version!

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2023
08
Dec

Colour pics for our German travelbook

by Birgit

The German version of our travelbook is now available on amazon with 177 colour photos “Richtung Horizont” sparkling in all colours between the dark indigo of the ocean, via the sparkling turquoise of lagoons to the dazzling greens of the islands…

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2023
14
Nov

Fortunately only category 2

by Birgit

Fortunately cyclone Mal is remaining only cat 2 and passing without directly hitting islands. Even though it’s a small and rather weak system, the wave forecast on windy looks scary enough (see below). The western side of Viti Levu will get some wind and there’s already flooding from the heavy rain ashore… Here in Suva no strong winds are predicted and the rain has passed,… Continue reading »

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2023
12
Nov

Strong winds warning

by Birgit

The European forecast model (ECMWF) quite often forecasts the opposite of the American model (GFS) for a week or so ahead, but sometimes even until the last day. Comparing we have found that the European model is often more accurate (at least for our area here). Today they agree for a change that something will hit Fiji on Tuesday–just where exactly and how strong remains… Continue reading »

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2023
11
Nov

Fast passage to Suva

by Birgit

There is some nasty weather coming up, so we left Matuku to sail 100 nm to Suva. With winds around 25 knots from the SE the waves were quickly building up–slate grey, white-capped peaks towering over Pitufa’s stern before rushing through with a WHOOSH letting her surf down with up to 9 knots before lifting her yet again. We left Matuku early in the morning… Continue reading »

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2023
05
Nov

The Tabu in Matuku is now official!

by Birgit

Yesterday the big no-fishing zone between the villages of Yaroi and Lomati just north of Matuku’s main pass was officially inaugurated by Chief Ratu Niu and the minister of Yaroi! Hopefully the ban on spearfishing and netfishing in the Tabu area will help the reefs of Matuku to regain a healthy eco-system and to guarantee sustainable fishing in the rest of the lagoon for the… Continue reading »

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2023
22
Oct

Passing ships

by Birgit

Our nomadic life-style means that we meet many other cruisers briefly in one place, before our paths go in different directions again. Meeting up with old friends is therefore more precious to us than to other people I suppose. Revisiting the Lau group again with Soraya and Thomas of SY Garulfo we enjoyed our favourite places even more than before–shared joy is twice the joy!… Continue reading »

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2023
19
Oct

Fijian translation of our brochure

by Birgit

I met Liti on facebook (of all places), we got chatting about Fiji, the beautiful islands of the Lau group, the wonderful underwater world and the need to protect it. Liti volunteered to translate our brochure about sustainable fishing into Itaukei (Fijian) and did a great job! Thanks a lot for all your help–vinaka vaka levu!!

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2023
17
Oct

Our new book: Cruising Know-How

by Birgit

Over the years we have written tons of articles about sailing, DIY, life-style topics, etc. for different magazines. Now I have put 54 of them together in a book, basically a “best of Pitufa” It’s simply called “Cruising Know-How” and it’s available on Amazon as a black-and-white paperback and in colour as an e-book, paperback and even hard-cover! Prices range from 9,90 USD to 40… Continue reading »

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2023
09
Oct

Trip to Fulaga

by Birgit

We still have lots of things to organise and to do in Matuku, but the material for the tabu buoys has not arrived yet, so we have time for a little trip to another, pretty island in the Lau group. We have left in the afternoon with perfect conditions to sail due east and should arrive tomorrow morning in Fulaga. 95 nm to go, southerly… Continue reading »

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2023
05
Oct

Colder than usual

by Birgit

It has been blowing hard for weeks now with only short interruptions with a squash zone on top of a high above New Zealand bringing accelerated trade winds to the area of Fiji. We’re glad about the cold weather and don’t mind wearing socks and hoodies for a while longer, as the cool breeze keeps the temperature of the water down as well. The Eastern… Continue reading »

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2023
01
Oct

Revisiting places

by Birgit

It was great to come back to “our island” Matuku, see familiar faces everywhere and get a wonderfully warm welcome from our hosts Jiko and Penina and their daughters. We have met Ratu Niu, the chief of the main village, as well and had a long, interesting talk about environmental issues with him. Today we were invited for a spectacular Sunday lunch with shrimp and… Continue reading »

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2023
25
Sep

Spreading the word about sustainable fishing

by Birgit

Tiki is originally from Ono-i-Lau in the the Lau group, lives in Suva and gives her best to help her island with fund raisers and organising things for the islanders. When she heard about our project for sustainable fishing, she contacted us, so we met up yesterday for a chat, brought some of our newly made brochures for her to take to Ono-i-Lau and she… Continue reading »

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