I lived and worked as a civil engineer in Vanuatu in the mid 1970s when the country was known as the New Hebrides . I visited Tanna on three or four occasions in the course of my work and once took the opportunity to drive across the island to Yasur and climb to the top (on foot of course and without guides). I think the road featured in your video must have been constructed long after I left the country. Do you know if it was built by the Chinese? The roads in my time there were either surfaced with crushed coral if near the coast or just earthen tracks cut through the bush away from the coast. A 4 wheel drive vehicle was essential and even then it was a hairy experience driving from Lenakel across to White Sands particularly at the Loanvialu escarpment where the road around a steep ridge was only supported by local timber baulks driven into the soil with a drop of hundreds of feet at the side. White Grass airport did not exist then of course and flights from Vila in small Britten Norman Islander and Trislander aircraft flew into and out of a rough grass strip at Lenakel.
Some of the nicest coffee I’ve ever tasted came from Tanna. I have a feeling that the majority of the crop was destroyed by a major cyclone a few years back
@Ken Vernon, yes delicious coffee indeed, never tasted better. I was over in Tanna in 2018 & 2019 with a group from my church undertaking remedial work on village infrastructure after cyclone Pam had decimated the land in 2015. This included, water storage, (water tanks), water collection, (new spouting to tanks), repairs to the Tafea College’s dining room which included, storm shuttering, lighting and power restoration. Also solar repairs in some village houses and solar installation in one of the church buildings that had survived the cyclone due to being concrete. We were able to provide some basic first aid in some of the villages we visited as we had qualified St John ambulance officers with us, as well as builders, electricians, teachers and counselling personel. It was my happy place and I would go back in the drop of a hat, but Covid interrupted those plans.
I lived and worked as a civil engineer in Vanuatu in the mid 1970s when the country was known as the New Hebrides . I visited Tanna on three or four occasions in the course of my work and once took the opportunity to drive across the island to Yasur and climb to the top (on foot of course and without guides). I think the road featured in your video must have been constructed long after I left the country. Do you know if it was built by the Chinese? The roads in my time there were either surfaced with crushed coral if near the coast or just earthen tracks cut through the bush away from the coast. A 4 wheel drive vehicle was essential and even then it was a hairy experience driving from Lenakel across to White Sands particularly at the Loanvialu escarpment where the road around a steep ridge was only supported by local timber baulks driven into the soil with a drop of hundreds of feet at the side. White Grass airport did not exist then of course and flights from Vila in small Britten Norman Islander and Trislander aircraft flew into and out of a rough grass strip at Lenakel.
20 year’s ago that road was nuts lol.
Some of the nicest coffee I’ve ever tasted came from Tanna. I have a feeling that the majority of the crop was destroyed by a major cyclone a few years back
@Ken Vernon, yes delicious coffee indeed, never tasted better.
I was over in Tanna in 2018 & 2019 with a group from my church undertaking remedial work on village infrastructure after cyclone Pam had decimated the land in 2015. This included, water storage, (water tanks), water collection, (new spouting to tanks), repairs to the Tafea College’s dining room which included, storm shuttering, lighting and power restoration. Also solar repairs in some village houses and solar installation in one of the church buildings that had survived the cyclone due to being concrete.
We were able to provide some basic first aid in some of the villages we visited as we had qualified St John ambulance officers with us, as well as builders, electricians, teachers and counselling personel.
It was my happy place and I would go back in the drop of a hat, but Covid interrupted those plans.