No Night Sailing
There are over 150 named islands in the Seychelles and well over 1000 kilometers from one end of the island chain to the other. Amongst the 44 “inner” islands including Mahé, Praslin and La Digue, there are dozens – maybe hundreds – of rocky outcroppings and other hazards, almost none of which are marked by navigational aids of any kind. It would take the GDP of a mid-sized national economy to deploy and maintain that kind of infrastructure.
The charter boat companies don’t allow boating at night, which struck me as overly conservative prior to the trip, but now having gone by a few reefs and rocks lying miles from shore that are only visible from the white water of swells passing over them, the prohibition seems more than prudent. Sailing amongst these islands in the dark without a high likelihood of tragedy would require navigational skills and local knowledge that very few visitors would possess.
