Checking out of Tonga

Oct 1, 2014 Tonga

Time to check out of Tonga and head for Fiji.  Our month is up and while it would be easy to get an extension on our visas, we are ready to go.  The checking out process is a little complicated.

1. Call the fuel truck 24 hours in advance and arrange for delivery of duty free fuel
2. Sail  over and tie up to the customs wharf, a solid and very rough cement structure with the landing area about 6 feet above the deck at low tide.  We have to use the rat lines to get on and off
3. Walk up to the immigration office on the third floor in town and check out with them
4. Walk back to the harbor master yard and check out with them and get your duty free fuel certificate
5. Walk to the customs office and check out with them
6. Fill up with fuel and give the driver the duty free certificate
7. Report back to customs with an updated crew list to finally be checked out.


Besides watching the weather and the date our visa was going to expire, we need to plan our arrival time in Fiji.  We get a 6 month visa there and want to be sure that it covers the end of hurricane season in March.  Also, Fiji customs do not work on the weekends.  If you accidentally show up on a weekend or a holiday there is an extra $600 charge.  And besides all that we want a full moon because of all the small islands and atolls in Fijian waters. 

We finally settled on Thurs, Oct 2 as our check out date.  Now to arrange for the fuel truck.  Since we can only hold about 150 liters as measured by the not terribly accurate “stick in the tank” method we need to find some one to share with.  Luckily another boat was also getting ready to leave and just needed to fill up 5 jerry cans.  Should come out perfect.  Now to get ahold of Pacific Fuels.  Repeated calls on the radio failed to get an answer.  Someone said that while they have a radio, they really do not know how to use it and most of the time it does not get turned on.  After a couple of days of calling with no response. one of the locals took pity on us and called them on the phone.  Delivery was arranged fro Thurs after lunch, about 2:00.  The other boat dropped off the jerry cans and also the money to pay for it.  Cash only of course.  We are trying to spend all of our Tonga cash without having to get more before we leave. 

Wednesday night we went out for a last dinner at one of Ne’afu’s wonderful restaurants, Bella Vista, this time for lobster ravioli.  Thursday morning we cast off and headed for custom dock at 7am.  Alan wanted to be sure to get a spot, since sometimes boats are stacked 3 or 4 deep waiting to clear in or out.  About 9:00 he set out for immigration and customs with all of our paperwork.  I stayed on the boat to adjust the dock lines and fenders as the tide came in.  He was back in about an hour with everything done, so I took off for a final shopping with the last of the cash.  Just as we were finishing lunch the radio crackled and Pacific Fuels called, not to tell us they were on the way but to tell us that the truck had broken down and they did not know when it would be fixed, maybe by 4.  Not looking good.  Of course the truck was not fixed by 4, so we untied and headed back to get a mooring.  Now we need to pay for at least one more night.  Tomorrow is Friday and if the truck is not fixed by then it will probably be Monday before we can get fuel.  We considered giving up on the duty free and just getting fuel from the fishing boat dock, except they were out too.  In fact the whole town was out of gas. 

What the heck, back to the ATM and then out for pizza and beer.  Friday morning just a definite maybe and a promise to call by 2:00.  One of the interesting things about using VHF radio for communicating is that everyone knows your business, much like the old party line telephone.  By afternoon the truck still was not fixed so we were pretty sure it would be some time next week before we got our fuel.   After dinner on board we headed out for the open mike night at the Bounty Bar where we were treated to a song written in our honor called “Tonga Time” and featuring several verses about the difficulties of getting fuel and checking out of Tonga.  And there we learned that several people had seen the fuel truck pass about 4:00 so it must be fixed.  Still, almost no one works on the weekend in Tonga so chances were that it would still be Monday when our turn came.

Saturday morning we were lounging around having a lazy morning when the radio came to life and Pacific Fuel said that the truck was fixed and we should be at the customs dock at 10: 00.  Hoist and fold the dingy and tie it down, drop the mooring line and off we go again.   Tied up at the wharf and waiting.  Finally someone showed up.  Not the fuel truck but a messenger to tell us that the fuel  truck would be coming.  About noon the fuel truck finally arrived and we finally started pumping gas.  Luckily that we still had the jerry cans because by filling everything to the brim we managed 202 liters.

Now we have one last complication.  We are supposed to turn in the crew list to immigration after we get the fuel.  Alan tried to give it to them earlier and they would not take it and of course they are closed on Saturday.  We finally decided to leave it with one of the locals to turn in for us on Monday so that we can get going.  Since it is now well past noon, we will spend one more night on the mooring and take off early tomorrow, finally

The paperwork was turned in for us on Monday but there was one final piece of paper that we should have had stamped at that time.  When we got to Fiji the customs officers were sort of confused as to why we did not have it.  Luckily they stamped us into Fiji anyway.