Fanning is one of those unique cruising destinations which folks dream about in the winter. As long as the sky is relatively clear, which means most of the year, the lighting is exquisite. Most of the day you can see colors like those shown in the main pass above, somewhere on the lagoon.

You can sit here for months, taking in the visual ambiance, catching or spearing your dinner, while enjoying a little interaction with the friendly locals.

You do need to be self-sufficient. There is only occasional communication with the outside world – unless you have that ability yourself. And supplies are very limited. Fanning is the last stop for a supply ship that visits all the islands in this part of the world every three months (the island has been out of flour for the last month). But if you have your own supplies – and that’s the case with most cruisers – you could hang out here for a long time!

Government house should be studied as an architectural model for more advanced societies. It provides basic shelter. The taxpayer’s money is not wasted on ego-gratifying structure. The bureaucrats residing here provide service with a smile.

There is a jail. In fact, a prisoner was just released. Nice view of the lagoon, if you have to be incarcerated.

There are several stores on the island. They will take Australian or US currency.

What makes a cruising destination for us are the people. Starting with the kids, the Gilbertese on this island are uniformly warm and friendly.

The locals move about the lagoon by sailing canoe, under paddle power, and occasionally via outboard.

It is also meeting cruisers, and learning about where they’ve been and what their future plans are, that makes cruising so much fun. Evan is making his way back to California via French Polynesia, Fanning, and Hawaii. Check out his outboard cowling. He lost the original in the surf at Moorea. His custom built substitute works almost as well.

Housing on the island is a mixture of traditional and modern. There are usually some thatched structures on the grounds.

And often another house made from corrugated steel sheeting or Masonite.

We discovered this strange hooplike structure on our walk. It represents one of the reasons we need to get back. Basketball season starts soon and we want to be on hand to cheer for the University of Arizona Wildcats!

The local Chamber of Commerce doesn’t want visitors to get lost. So, they’ve posted helpful signs with the direction and distance of various way points. We are relieved to know that we only have 3,414 statute miles left to go.