Happy Canada Day - Leaving for Tahiti

Well, we're off. Almost. Waiting for slack tide in the pass, so we can get out of the lagoon, then we're off to Papeete Harbour on the island of Tahiti. Hard to imagine that we're bored in paradise...but we're certainly having to think about how to keep busy. I've even polished and waxed our cockpit!

The picture above is from the church in the small village of Tiputa, on the other side of the pass. We jumped on a landing craft from a large freighter to get to the village, and took a little water taxi back. Wandering around the village was a nice way to spend a few hours.

Tahiti is 200 miles from here, so it will take us a day and a half or two days to get there. The seas will likely still be rolling, after all this crazy weather we've had, so it won't be too comfortable. But, it will be great to tie up to the dock, check out the city, and enjoy birthday celebrations!

To everyone at home...have a great Canada Day!

A New Look!!

Amy tells me that she has updated the blog to include a picture of Renova in the header. I'm sure it looks awesome! Hope you like it. We look forward to being able to log on in Tahiti to check it out. THANKS Amy!!! (Don't forget to blog about your impressions of your trip - I'm sure everyone would love to hear all about it)!

We continue to hang out in Rangiroa. We hitched a ride into the village of Atuona a couple days ago...had a good walk around the town. We watched the surfers on the point, and one of the big cargo ships unload. They brought six forklifts off this boat!! Four aussie guys came off the boat and were searching for the ideal surf spot. Also two Americans unloaded their 12 surf boards for their three month holiday. Yeow. We caught a ride back to the quay with a nice couple from French Guinea.They were also here on their boat, and had been here for two years already! French boats are free to stay much longer than us foreigners, and they are everywhere here.

Sadly...we've continued to have high winds for the last couple of days. We're getting bored, sitting on the boat, waiting for a weather window to leave. Can you believe...bored in paradise!! Well, let me paint you a picture of paradise...the boat is super rolly with all the swell; the town is small, so you can only do so much exploring; snorkeling isn't good with clouds and rain; but...we aren't working. We've been watching movies (we can tell you that the DUDE in the Big Lebowski has the same shoes as John), and reading books (just finished Les Miserables). But...with all the cloud, we can't be on the computer too long, as we don't have a lot of solar power to recharge our batteries!!

By the way...I'm practicing my french. It's coming back...albeit, very slowly. And painfully, at times!

Still in Rangiroa

We're still here in Rangiroa. The wind forecast was increased, so we decided to hang out here for a while. Neither of us have any desire to head out into 30 knot winds at the moment. Who knows...maybe it won't materialize. No worries. We're loving it here, so it doesn't really matter.

Above is a pic of John and I on our dive this week. Thanks to Taku, who gave us a copy of the photo. He did 11 dives while he was here!! WOW.

Our Position: 14°58.1'S and 147°38.2'W

Rangiroa - cheeseburgers and diving

Rangiroa Atoll, Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia

Rangiroa is the largest coral atoll in the world. And the most populated island in the Tuamotus (2500 people). And still, slow internet!! But...we have managed to get email via wifi on the boat, so we can't complain too much. And, if you're willing to connect in odd hours, you might be able to do a bit of surfing. You may also notice that I've managed to figure out how to add an image to the blog posts finally. Hurray!!

Rangiroa has been awesome. On our first day here, after our nap, we met a great crew of sailors, and enjoyed drinks on the quay with them. Since then we've enjoyed drinks, diving, and a few meals with them - it's been a hoot. We're looking forward to running into them again in Tahiti!

The village is spread out among several motus, connected by a roadway, with the airport about 1/2 way between the two ends. We had heard that the local super hotel ($300-800 per night) offered a traditional Polynesian
performance, which we thought would be fun, but the hotel was closed for renos. With a combo of hitch-hiking and bike rentals we explored the 10 km or so to the other end of the road. There were a few stores, one even had veggies - green peppers and limes!! Too bad we couldn't carry more supplies on the bikes. We also stopped at a few trinket stores and pearl boutiques. It was a nice morning of exploring. Back at the quay, we treated ourselves to beer and fanta and cheeseburgers!! Hmmm....pomme frites!!

Yesterday, we went for a dive in Tiputa Pass, a drift dive that is highly recommneded. Although they warned us that it would not be as beautiful as the colourful coral of Fakarava, this is the place where we are more likely to see the large marine wildlife. Although it was fun to drift with the
current - feeling a bit like Peter Pan as we flew through the water effortlessly - we didn't see too much wildlife. We did see sharks and the largest Napolean Wrasse ever...as big as me, I swear. But no manta rays. And no hammerheads. Too bad. Another diver took a video and gave us a copy, so we hope to be able to put a snippet on the blog once we get to Tahiti.

We're getting geared up to leave for Tahiti. Today I fixed our spray cloth that was blown out in last week's storm, and John prepared our sails and filled up our fuel tank. We need to be in Tahiti in order to attempt to renew our visas; we'd like to stay longer than the standard three months that are issued upon arrival. Hopefully that won't be a problem, but we're getting many mixed messages. It will take us a couple days to get there, but we're looking forward to being in a marina with showers and laundry for the first time since Mexico - almost four months ago!

Our Position (Rangiroa): 14°58.1'S and 147°38.2'W

Blown away by Apataki

We were blown away by the atoll of Apataki. Literally. But, I'll start at the beginning...

Our last day on Toau was spent at the northern end of the atoll, close to the pass, so we would have a shorter passage to Apataki - our next destination. We left Toau before slack tide, and had the excitement of dealing with the current opposing the winds as we exited the pass, creating large standing waves. The current was in our favour, so we were traveling quickly, but the large swell made it uncomfortable, even if only for a few minutes. We were soon out of the pass, hoisted our sails, and set our course to Apataki.

Although there is a small village on Apataki, there isn't a suitable anchorage at the village, so we anchored a few miles away, in front of a pearl farm with a few other sailboats. As it turns out, several of these boats had found paradise, and had stayed in the area for a couple of years! For the next four days, we wandered the beach, chatted with the locals, and tackled a few boat jobs. Pauline and Alfred live here with their parents and their children. They have a pearl farm business, and we were able to watch as they went about classifying the pearls into grades for sale and export. They've also started a boat yard, with a huge trailer and ramp. There were three boats in the yard while we were there, and one was pulled out on our last day. Although facilities were limited, it would be a great spot to haul out, if we just needed to paint the bottom! John's scraped foot was still a bit swollen (from one of his lobster 'hunting' expeditions with Strahan), so he chatted with a Doc on another boat and started a course of antibiotics, but is trying to keep it dry. Not easy.

Our friend Chris on SV Namaste had told us that the snorkeling in and near the pass at the north end of the island was fabulous, so after a few days, we moved up there to check it out. Only a couple hours after we dropped the hook, the wind started to pick up. Within only a half hour, the wind was howling. We checked our weather files, and saw a system was supposed to be developing near Tahiti, but wasn't really supposed to be this far north. Clearly the weather files were wrong. Because we were up against a lee shore, we didn't feel it was safe to remain here. So we upped anchor (with some difficulty, in the large waves that had instantly developed), and quickly made our way out of the pass into the safely of the open sea. We were sad to leave here without getting a chance to experience the snorkeling, but we looked forward to the Rangiroa, our next atoll...and the largest coral atoll in the world.

It was about 80 miles to Rangiroa, an overnight sail. Throughout the night, the winds continued to build. We don't have a wind meter on board, but we guessed it to be consistently 30 knots with gusts to 35 or so. It was the most wind that we'd seen while underway on our journey so far. It was definitely the only time that we'd had waves crash over the side of the boat and into the cockpit. We had our full BC rain slickers on! We had only a very, very, tiny bit of our genoa (head sail) out - and we still were going up to 8 knots in the gusts (3-4 knots in the lulls). And although we were worried that the furling system would buckle under the strain, we realized that our storm sails were even bigger than the tiny bit of canvas that we were flying. The boat handled the weather fine. And we made it to Rangiroa in time for the optimum tide. Although the tide was rising, and it should have been an incoming tide, we still had a couple knots of outgoing current.

As a note of interest, during times of heavy wind and waves, the current and tides in the atoll passes can change dramatically. Normally, there is an ingoing and outgoing current in the pass that roughly follows the tide. During heavy weather in some atolls, there is a lot of water pushed over and between the small motus (islets), filling up the lagoon. This can create a continual outgoing current in the passes, even when the tide should be rising!

Throughout the storm, there was chatter on the radio. Two other boats had decided to leave Apataki when we did, and there were at least three other boats en route to Rangiroa from elsewhere. It was great to know that other boats were nearby. And we also got to hear what their wind indicators were showing - winds of 30 to 35 with gusts up to 39. WOW.

Our Position (Apataki): 15°20.96'S and 146°11.66'W

The Cruisers' Party Line: VHF Radio

While out cruising, our main method of communicating with other cruisers is the VHF radio. It has a range of up to 25 miles, and all boats have one. Most boats have two or more. We have one main unit, with two microphones, and a handheld that we can take to shore.

So, for you landlubbers, the basic process is you call the boat you want to chat with on channel 16, which everyone monitors. Then you arrange to move your conversation to another channel. At this time, any number of boats may also move to that channel to get the scoop on whatever fascinating bit of info you might be chatting about. Most radios even have a 'dual-watch' feature, which enables you to monitor channel 16 and another channel at all times...the ultimate in eavesdropping convenience.

John and I have had our share of fun lurking on the VHF, and any boater who denies having listened in is absolutely fibbing!! But...we've gotten pretty tired of the constant chatter in the busier anchorages, and listening in to others talk about their dinner plans, or their next anchorage, gets a bit tiring, not to mention that you often need to physically drop whatever you are doing to go and change the channel, so we rarely have the energy or interest anymore to do much lurking.

But...for Amy and Strahan, this was a new phenomenon and the source of endless entertainment. As a result of constant listening and channel changing, Amy was in the know. She could tell you which boat was dining where, and with whom. And who was leaving the anchorage, and where they were heading. Who was going snorkeling and at what time. And so on.

Sure is quiet around here these days...

Toau - Lobster for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner!

After Amy and Strahan left us, we grabbed a few more provisions, loaded up at the bakery, and attempted to weigh anchor. Of course it was stuck among several coral heads, and I needed to dive down to investigate, and to direct John in the direction to steer the boat in order to untangle us! We were shocked that we had managed to get so ensnared, as we had only just dropped the hook the night before. Oh well. We managed to get ourselves free within about 45 minutes, we were on our way.

We had a calm day, and motor-sailed about 20 miles to Toau, a small atoll north-west of Fakarava. We headed to the south end, where we anchored with Capaz and IO. Once we arrived I did my usual snorkel to check on our anchor, and changed our zinc while I was there. This zinc only lasted two months...we sure go through them fast in these tropical waters.

After we had a chance to grab a bite to eat, we headed ashore to see if we could find lobster. Mike and Hyo (IO) were there, as well as Brad, Austin and Bryce from Capaz. As we headed in the direction of the reef, John and I chatted with two locals (they and their father are the only ones that live here), and they assured us that it was easy to find lobster on the outer reef. So we trudged off with our flashlights, and started looking through the ankle-deep water for the reflection of the lobster eyes. After trudging and searching with a success rate of nil, we found ourselves more engaged by Mike's awesome marine biology lessons, than the hunt for the invisible lobster. I'm sure we were almost as good as his students in Bamfield!!

We soon saw lights coming towards us, and our two friends, Martin and Jean, had donned their wetsuits, plastic go-anywhere shoes (I should write a separate blog post just about those shoes), Coleman lanterns, and big blue barrels strapped to their backs. When they caught up with us, they already had snagged several lobster and reef fish for the bottom of their barrel. The brothers tried to teach us how to spot the eyes of the lobster, but we were slow learners. I didn't spot one the entire evening. John spotted and caught a couple, but Jean took pity on him, and pointed him in the right direction several times. It would have been a bit of a comedy show to see all of us lurking through the waters of the reef, and then running after and trying to grab these lobster. We weren't nearly as good as the two pros, but at least we won't starve. In addition to lobster, they were also catching reef fish - mostly parrotfish. This was a new fishing technique...fishing with a machete! The guys could kill the fish with one slash of the machete. It was unbelievable. The only sad part about the evening is that my camera was out of batteries, and that Strahan missed out...he would have loved it! We arranged to meet the guys in the morning to go on a coconut crab hunt.

The next day, Mike and John went to the beach to hunt crab with the brothers at a remote motu (islet). After some time on the beach, they came out in the brothers launch to deliver lunch to us ladies who decided to sleep in and let the boys hunt. Fresh barbecued fish and lobster. WOW. Of course Hyo and I both ate ours immediately. We saved the rest to share later in the day.

Eventually, the boys returned with two coconut crabs, and we arranged a big feast aboard Capaz later that evening. What a night! Lobster, crab, and PJ even had fresh veggies!

Our Position: 15°57.8'S and 145°52.2'W

Fakarava North - Pearls, Sharks, and Alternators

After a morning snorkel at the reef beside our anchorage, we weighed anchor and headed north to the village of Rotoava at the North end of Fakarava. This was an excellent way to cap off Amy and Strahan's visit to Renova. We wandered the village and found ourselves giddy at the prospect of filling our cupboards once again. We arranged a visit to a pearl farm, and were able to see how the gorgeous "Tahitian Black Pearls" are made. It is a much more complex process than I expected, and was surprised to learn that only one percent of all pearls produced are "A" quality - round, without blemishes, and with a high luster. We also got to meet Mike and Kyo from IO, from Victoria!

I tried to get online and do a few internet jobs, but found that paying two bills and viewing our account took almost 2 hours. While I banged my head against a wall, Amy and Strahan went for a fabulous dive outside the reef and John worked on replacing our VHF, which has become problematic as it only wishes to work intermittently. Now, everyone in the anchorage knows that it is us calling, as they are now able to recognize the machine gun noise that we broadcast whenever we push the transmit button on our mike. Too bad. We loved that radio, and it was almost new when we left BC. Oh well...the 1980's model works well, even though it is a power pig, and doesn't have some of the common channels, nor the fancy features. At least the rest of the anchorage doesn't feel as though they are in a war zone.

On Amy and Strahan's last day, we three went for a dive through the Garuae Pass. It was fabulous, and well worth the accolades in all the travel guides. We drifted through the pass, pausing several times to hold onto the coral and watch all the sea life around us. We saw hundreds of reef sharks, and more fish that I had thought possible to inhabit such an area. It was absolutely stunning, and I'm glad that I decided to join them at the last minute. And we finally got to meet Mike and Sammi from SV Quartermoon, who we'd shared anchorages with a few times, but hadn't met yet.

We celebrated our last evening by dining out at the Blue Van. This van is parked in someone's front yard, has plastic patio furniture in front, and serves up the standard menu of burgers, steak frites, and chow mein. Kinda eclectic fare, although it seems to be the norm around here. It was a fabulous meal. And we were able to chat with other cruisers who had also come to enjoy the meal - Mike and Hyo from IO (Canada), Jackie and Gary from Inspiration Lady (Canada), and Jack from Anthem (USA).

On departure day, we went ashore for last minute items, had one more swim, and then brought aboard the anchor and headed to the airport. There is a wharf directly in front of the airport, and we were able to tie up less than 100 feet from the airport check in counter. On the way over, the alternator wasn't charging the batteries, and none of the gauges on the engine panel were functioning, so while John and I did some troubleshooting and dug out the spare alternator, Amy prepared a lunch of fresh baguette and cheese in the cockpit. Turns out we had blown a fuse, so it wasn't long before we had replaced the fuse, and we were all enjoying lunch in the cockpit. After they checked in, we were able to return to the boat and enjoy a beer. I jumped in for a quick snorkel, and the fish life was fabulous.

Finally, the plane arrived and it was time to go. We said goodbye to Amy and Strahan and "ALLEZ". It was so great to have them aboard and we'll definitely miss their company. And their help. It was awesome having the extra hands to help with the anchor, the steering, the dinghy, the cooking, etc! And they were so generous with bringing down needed supplies and helping us to re-provision. We look forward to having them aboard again.

We waved to the departing plane as we made our way back to the anchorage.

We spent our last evening here enjoying sangria with Chris, Christine and the kids from Ottawa on their catamaran, SV Stray Kitty. Mike and Sammi from Quartermoon joined us, as did Jamie and Behan from Totem. What a fun night!!

Our Position: 16°03.7'S and 145°37.2'W

Fakarava South - Snorkeling with the Sharks

We left Kauehi atoll early in order to time our exit from the lagoon shortly before slack tide, and to be sure we arrived at the southern passage to Fakarava during the afternoon slack tide. Our passage was a nice day sail, with the exception of a short squall that piped up mid-way giving us a few minutes of excitement.
The hand line hanging behind the boat worked it's magic as we passed by an area of water that seemed to be of great interest to birds. Luckily, it was also of interest to tuna, and we had a nice tuna on the line which the boys brought on board, and then tied behind the boat for the remainder of the passage.

We timed our arrival perfectly, and entered the pass with a slight flood tide pushing into the lagoon. We had no problems avoiding several dinghies floating in the pass tied to their snorkeling owners. The anchorage inside the lagoon was easy to spot, as almost two dozen boat were nestled into this idyllic spot. We easily found a spot, and dropped our hook, avoiding the coral heads that were scattered throughout.

As we set the hook, Stuart and Shelia from SV Imagine popped by to say hello, and as we chatted, a large splash at the stern of the boat reminded us that we had forgotten to pull our tuna on board. To our dismay, the better half of our fresh sashimi dinner was taken in one bite by a black tipped reef shark. Hmpf. Suddenly, I didn't feel quite up to snorkeling to check on our anchor at the moment! Several other sharks were now circling the boat, in hopes of catching a few more bites. John managed to salvage the remains of the tuna, and we all watched in awe as the sharks fought over the remaining guts and head.

The anchorage faces a white coral beach, complete with palm trees and thatched huts. A small dive shop operates on the pass, and takes divers on drift dives through this area. There are a couple of pensions here, but not much else. A popular activity is to snorkel or dive the pass just before or after slack tide, allowing you to drift through the pass while you watch the incredible array of fish, sharks and coral unfold below you. This pass is reputed to be one of the better dives in the Tuamotus for its "profusion of small and large reef fish...dozens of reef sharks..." (Lonely Planet).

By the way, Fakarava atoll is considered a UNESCO protected area, due to the diversity of wildlife here. It is the second largest atoll in the Tuamotus, and we were surprised to be sailing in the lagoon, and not be able to see across to the other side.

The following morning, Amy and Strahan rowed to the pass and snorkeled through the pass, but found themselves rowing against a very strong current on the way back to the boat. The snorkel was incredible, as they were surrounded by black tip reef sharks, and amazing coral and reef fish. They were followed by a "huge, friendly-looking" fish, which may have been a Napoleon??

John and I snorkeled briefly in the pass later that morning, and were shocked by the fish. We had been spoiled by amazing snorkeling in Mexico, but we finally felt that we had found comparable or maybe even better snorkeling! It was stunning. Our trip back to the boat was just as challenging as Amy and Strahan's, as our little outboard couldn't keep up to the power of the tide. We were making forward progress, but barely. Eventually the motor just gave up, and we were forced to row. Thankfully, SV Dignity came along and offered us a tow!!

One more snorkel in the afternoon was just as incredible, and we saw many sharks, three moray eels, two lion fish, and schooling tuna, among tons of other reef fish and stunning coral formations.

During the night, the wind shifted, causing an uncomfortable swell in the anchorage, and we had a less than restful sleep. In the morning we chose to move, as more of this Northerly wind was in the forecast. By early afternoon, we were settled into a new anchorage with several other boats, and found ourselves snorkeling and spear fishing in the turquoise waters. Although there was no success with spear fishing or dragging the lines, the boys went to explore the reef, in hopes of finding lobster terrain for a hunt after dark. Instead, they managed to chase a green parrotfish up onto the beach, and wrestled it into submission. We enjoyed fish curry for dinner, which was a welcome treat, given that our fresh food supplies are seriously diminished these days.

After dinner, we enjoyed drinks and nibblies aboard SV Dignity, with Steve, Helen and John, who we first met in the Galapagos, but keep passing as we go in and out of anchorages. It was a lovely evening, and was a real treat for Amy and Strahan, who had not been on a catamaran. They were astonished with the amount of space that was available on board. Dignity is one of the first sailboats with hybrid electric engines, so it was interested to chat with them about their experience with the new technology.

This morning, we moved again and started towards the north end of Fakarava, where Amy and Strahan will fly out of at the end of this week. We stopped mid way up the atoll, where we are anchored next to SV IO, from Alberta, Canada! The boys are now out looking for dinner with Mike, who had just talked with the locals about which fish are safe from the ciguatera.

Tomorrow, we plan to head to the north end of the atoll, where we can't wait to do a bit of shopping and refill our cupboards. Maybe even enjoy a meal the local snack. Lately, we've been rationing everything from eggs and flour, to beer and cheese. Well, to be honest, we ran out of beer weeks ago. Life is tough.

Our Position: 16°17.1'S and 145°31.4'W