to the Tuamotus
The Marquesas islands lie to the north of the cyclone belt. April signals the end of the cyclone season but this being an El Nino year our departure in late March was considered early and…
Category Archives: 31 – French Polynesia
Target Practice
From Tainui’s galley it is a simple matter to toss orange peels, squeezed limes, eggshells and other biodegradables up through the main hatch and out over the side. Our deck is surrounded by two stainless…
Kauehi atoll
Tainui is anchored in the Tuamotus at Kauehi Atoll. 500 yards to starboard, 20 village houses nestle among the palm trees. The lagoon is fringed by dazzling white sand and its crystal waters are absolutely…
Fakarava atoll
Yesterday we were alone at Fakarava atoll, but this morning there are 4 yachts and two big gin palaces here. The ARC rally fleet – a collection of some 30 boats cruising in company from…
Ali Baba and sundowners
At the end of the course, our 6th dive was a fast drift at 28m through Ali Baba Canyon, in the north pass. Sisu, our instructor, had positively spooked us at the pre-dive briefing, but…
Crew
Jochen, an industrial chemist, is a competent and careful sailor. He and Axel hit it off immediately and he provides an excellent foil for my curmudgeonliness and Axel’s youthful and at times chaotic exuberance. The…
Tahiti
Light tail winds allowed us to sail SW from Fakarava in blissful silence. Our little CPT autopilot has performed faultlessly, silent and drawing only 1.5 amps. The Aries servo wind vane cannot manage light following…
Moorea
Tahiti is a very expensive place. At US$1,000 our provisioning bill for 4 weeks was twice as high as it has ever been before. Mind you, Carrefour is as good a supermarket as you could…
Raiatea
The 100 mile trip up to Raiatea started well. A gorgeous full moon and a fast close fetch. Soon however, black mothers loomed to the north and for 8 hours we met with a succession…
Ta’aa
With clear skies and the lightest easterly zephyr we set out for Ta’aa, a forested island 5 miles north of Raiatea inside the lagoon, with a huge bunch of rambutan hanging on the solar panel…
Jewel of French Polynesia?
Bora Bora, so-called jewel of French Polynesia, has been grey and miserable. But warm, at least. And seen through the mist, it is a pretty spectacular island, I must say. After sampling various anchorages and…
Self-indulgence
And then the wind dropped and the skies cleared. We took ourselves ashore for showers, sundowners and an evening meal at Bora Bora Yacht Club. Hang the expense I said. It is one of those…