Technically we anchored 5 times but the first 2 we couldn’t set anchor properly…..but we did move to 3 separate anchorages during our stay here in Addu atoll.
We arrived mid-morning on May 28th and were told we should anchor in the harbor near the Airport (Gan Island/town). On approach, it was clear to us we were not going to fit as there were 4-5 other cruisers inside the harbor with an additional 4 anchored just outside. Additionally, the entrance to the harbor at that time had waves lapping over the reef….to shallow we thought so we tried to anchor outside along with the other sailboats. However after 2 attempts, in 100 feet of water of what was left for room, we weren’t able to get a good “grab” on the bottom so we left to try to find another spot.
Harbor full…. 
Tried twice to set anchor in 100+ feet of water….it was a no go for us.
Anchorage # 1: Waypoint – 00 40.2408 S, 073 07.7220 E
In between Maradhoo harbor (to the NW) and Feydhoo harbor (to SE), we dropped anchor by SV Ostrica (we met briefly in Sri Lanka)…that makes us the 11th boat here! We were sad to learn that a crew member on SV Ostrica was in the hospital being treated for Dengue fever. Thankfully, she was ok after 24-48 hours of care. They headed off as soon as she was well…we hope to see everyone aboard SV Ostrica well and healthy in Chagos in a few weeks!
After a few days of reconnaissance on land to find out details of fuel, food, and internet…we were ALL invited to a lunch hosted by Real Seahawks, our agent company, the Addu atoll team. Ithi and Mathi picked us up from various locations to a wonderful restaurant for a local lunch. It was great to meet most of the cruisers who are crossing the Indian Ocean. Lots of us were headed to Chagos…some headed to the Seychelles, and one headed straight for Madagascar.
And of course Kimi had to find the nearest PIZZA joint!…but with company: SV Serafina, Fred and Maria!
SV Serafina: Fred and Maria 
Yummy….I could be addicted to Pizza! 
Nice atmosphere and lots of locals!
Soon we had a new neighbor…. SV Ruby and on board is Keith and Beatrix and…..Esquina the hedgehog!!!!! SV Ruby kindly invited us to dinner aboard SV Ruby and we just fell in love with ALL the crew members.
Bernadette and adorable Esquina… 
OMG…I want one!!!! Trevor is thinking about it (LOL) 
Esquina is Spanish for “corner” since she like to hide in corners…but her nick name is ‘Esky’…
Well, we are definitely in “Squall Land” and just about every night we experienced a squall…however, one night our anchor alarm went off and a huge squall passed over us…25+ knots of wind coming from the N-NW and the fetch was building across the atoll which made for choppy and rough seas…INSIDE the atoll! We dragged anchor about 40-50 feet, according to Trevor, and with a lee shore (if we broke anchor, we would of drifted towards land) we stayed up until the squall passed and felt we were ok for the rest of the night. BUT…in the morning, another squall in the distance threatened us and at this point we were much closer to SV Ruby so we decided to “re-anchor” but we were too late and the squall was on top of us now. So we just motored into the wind and waves until the squall passed. We found ourselves north by the larger town of Hithadhoo….SV Ruby followed suit as they said they thought they had drug anchor as well.
Anchorage # 2: Waypoint – 00 37.4140 S, 073 06.9022 E
We ended up near the town of Hithadhoo and we felt this was the most protected for wind waves,
the original culprit (our opinion) to our anchor dragging. The squalls produced winds from the N-NW here we are directly behind a large inner reef to “cut” the fetch down. However, if we did drag here…we were surrounded by very shallow coral reefs… at least we would have our track out and we could set for deeper water if need be.
Well, this was the place where we could find a bottom less than 115 feet beneath us….charts aren’t too off from Google Images …. 
In the morning we saw we were swinging right over a large bommie…thankfully we had 12 feet under us at low tide. Here is a photo to show how calm it was in the morning and how close we are to the bommie…we could even see all the fishes!
We stayed here only 1 night and woke up to a flat calm sea. We had organized a Cinco de Mayo (Ahhh…I miss Mexico!) party aboard Slow Flight so we needed to head back towards the Airport.
Anchorage # 3: Waypoint – 00 41.0583 S, 073 08.7763 E
Near where we first attempted to try to anchor when we originally arrived to Addu atoll, we dropped anchor in 60+feet of water in sand and 220 feet of chain out…we easily were in 90+ feet of water after backing down on the anchor. There was a mass exit of boats a few days ago and there were only about 4 boats in the harbor and just 1 boat outside…. add us and SV Ruby that makes 6 boats. As we settled, we watched another 3 boats leave that afternoon….then there were 4 boats left.
Cinco de Mayo!!!! – What a blast. We had SV Ruby and SV Serafina over. They graciously ate Trevor’s “made from scratch” chicken enchiladas, cabbage/cilantro and lime salad, and rice accompanied with tortilla chips with homemade salsa, guacamole (frozen), and sour cream! The only thing that was missing were the margaritas….but nobody had tequila on board. We did just fine anyways : )
Our first resort experience in the Maldives was interesting….there is the Equator Village resort right by our anchoarge. SV Ruby had been there previously and recommended it…they had a BAR!!!! We all signed up to share a last meal together on the 6th of May.
We tied up our dinghies near the police and coast guard building in the harbor…..I wouldn’t suggest it…they didn’t like it. 
No fee to enter the resort but we had to all sign in at the gate with passport numbers. Dinner was $18 usd each, beer $4 and glasses of wine for $5….it was a nice treat…with great friends! 
The grounds…. 
the pool area… 
the view…with Slow Flight and Serafina in the background….
So there is a bar here…limited selection but who really cares at this point…..we couldn’t get over that we were in a BAR in the Maldives!!!!!
Plus they had Singapore imported beer?! How did we miss this beer when we were in Singapore 6 months ago?
ALL you could eat buffet…local cuisine made for tourists…. dinner started at 7:30 pm….we all ate too much! 
It must be the hat….. 
…. LOL…
Preparations for being self-sufficent for 6 weeks : Insurance, fuel, and food!
One of the tasks we had to accomplish before we left the Maldives, was to re-new our boat insurance. Our current policy was to end June 6th and we didn’t want to lapse our policy while we were out in the middle of the Indian Ocean. We have an AWESOME insurance broker from The Marina Shop in Opua, NZ, Peter White. He has been working with us to ensure: 1) We are able to obtain an insurance policy and 2) payment while we are “disconnected” with the rest of the world for 6 weeks.
We had heard of boats/crews that have had a really hard time getting insured due to a massive change in the industry’s “strategy”. Peter writes to us this: ” These are certainly challenging times in the marine insurance industry – it is on shifting sand. Over recent years the marine insurance industry, specifically the pleasure craft segment, has lost billions (GBP 2 billion plus) and the hurricanes in the Caribbean a couple of years ago. One of the biggest marine underwriters, Lloyd’s of London, has introduced measures to return the marine business to profitability and some of the syndicates that underwrite marine risks have decided to exit the market. “
We are currently insured with Lloyds of London and a few months back heard they are not insuring US flagged vessels any longer. We were concerned that we would have to change insurance companies, which most of the time, requires us to have a survey of the boat (rigging and out of the water survey). Peter had suggested to us to possibly look into re-flagging our vessel to the Cook Islands…however…this also required us to obtain a survey of the vessel. In the end, Peter worked his MAGIC and found us comparable insurance terms with a new German company. The premiums are extremely high but were lowers than what we have heard others pay for their insurance. All in all…we want it…need it….and therefore will pay what it takes!
Fuel: So far this has been the easiest part….there is a fuel (diesel and petrol) station right at Feydhoo harbor. We had already filled up in Himmafushi so we just needed to top up with jerry cans…easy peasy. We have heard that a diesel truck can fill right into the tanks if you come into the harbor…but best to arrange it with your agent as the harbor pier can be full of ferries, fishing boats, and tide is always a factor. There is another dock that can be arranged for a truck to deliver fuel if the harbor is too busy.
SV Ruby fueling up at the dock near the harbor by the airport…a few hundred meters away from the anchorage…easy peasy!
Provisioning and errands: There are a few shops in Feydhoo which is the closest town to the anchorage where we are now. We were told fresh produce comes in on Thursday but when we went ashore on a Thursday, nothing had come. However, we did shop again on a Tuesday and they had plenty of good and fresh fruits and vegetables. Not sure if Razaman (30 days fasting) had delayed or sped up delivery dates/times….but it was all good…we got what we needed.
There is a fishing boat that comes in almost every day and sells fish…this Tuna cost us $4 usd….pretty cheap for fresh fish!
We were told there is a fresh market in the town of Hithadhoo…we didn’t go but here is a screen shot from the guy who told us about it. Trevor did go with a guy on his scooter to Hithadhoo one day…the ride itself cost “nothing” but after a short story about trying to pay for his daughter in the hospital, Trevor ended up giving him the equivalent of $35 usd for “the ride” round trip….
Food, diesel, all “business’ taken care of…we are just waiting to check out…Agents have our passports and as soon as we collect our papers back, we will shove off and head to Chagos….all we need now is some WIND!!!!
Up next….Unplugged…Going to Chagos!