Catching Tanna in a good weather mood is a mix of
luck and foresight.
The foresight part comes from understanding the weather
patterns in this part of the tropical southwest Pacific
Ocean. The luck part comes from the fact that the weather
can be as unpredictable here as it is anywhere these
days.
So here is the foresight part. The "dry" season
goes from about May to October with July to September
being decidedly chilly in the evenings and at night on
the island of Tanna. The winds are normally from the
southeast round to the east. Every week to ten days a
front passes through bringing cloudy weather and perhaps
a few showers.
Normally, during the dry season, the mornings are clear
and free of clouds. As Tanna heats up with the sun, island
clouds build up over the mountains, trailing away to
the west and northwest, blackened a bit with Yasur's
exhalations.
The east side of Tanna, where Friendly is, is the nicest,
coolest, sunny side of Tanna. The west side tends to
be hotter, cloudier, with less wind. |
Then, in November, spring
arrives and the weather is as much luck as foresight.
In December, Tanna warms up, although never as hot as the more northern islands. The maritime climate keeps temperatures around 30C.
The summer winds slack from the
15 to 20 knot trades and gigantic billowing clouds tower
over the blue Pacific Ocean. These bring heavy tropical
showers.
The rain wets the lush forests creating an unbelievably
delicious green fragrance. When the summer sun emerges
from the clouds, the air heats, lifts, and the wet leaves
sigh moisture, building a cloud that goes straight up
into the stratosphere.
From December until March the people of Vanuatu are
alert for rising surf, still days and a complex, busy
sky full of dark clouds. These often preceed tropical
cyclones, Hurricanes, that breed just to the north of
Vanuatu. When these storms head south they move just
as they wish, and go where they will, confounding the
weather experts, and terrifying those who are in its
way. Once every 60 years the same place in Vanuatu will
be hammered.
These days, with advanced weather prediction models,
there is usually enough advance warning to allow you
to fly back to Port Vila to take shelter in a strong
hotel.
During the summer,
Tanna is one of the nicest places in Vanuatu. It is more
temperate, with stronger, cooling winds, than further
north.
Foresight & luck. Pick a time and click
here. |
