Fabulous Fakarava ….. June 2016

28 May–06 Jun: Rotoava to Hirifa, Fakarava, Tuamotus – 16 26S 145 21W 

3 Yachts Underway – Race On!

Exiting the pass at Kauehi early morning went smoothly and for the first time in months we were off on a 40 mile day sail.  Conditions were perfect – a steady light breeze, flat seas, sunny skies – should be a relaxing day on the water in French Polynesia.  But we were not alone, kiwi yacht Blue Raven and American catamaran Starry Horizons left right behind us, we were all going to the north pass of Fakarava, all skippers were in their element, RACE ON! 

It was a fun sail in such glorious conditions and we all arrived in the order we had left Kauehi, Balvenie didn’t give an inch and we all entered Fakarava’s North Pass within a few minutes. 

Fresh Food Finally?

One of the big attractions in going to the north of Fakarava is that there is a village with a weekly supply ship delivery from Tahiti.  The promise of fresh produce was too good to miss, it had been 45 days since we had left the Marquesas and a bag of bokchoy had been our only fresh produce purchase since.  Scurvy was about to set in!

However just because there is a weekly supply ship we learnt quickly that this does not necessarily mean there are supplies to be found.  We turned up two days after the ships arrival and it seems that this is two days too late.  But lets be fair, we did manage to buy 2 cabbages, the last 4 little aubergines, 3 teeny capsicum and a wilted bunch of spring onions.  The freezers too were void of vegetables, plenty of hamburger patties and french fries to be had but little of anything with nutritional value! Sadly it was time to top up on canned vegetables, oh well.

Moving South to the Good Stuff

We left in company with Blue Raven mid afternoon with our meagre haul of groceries and stopped the first night at Tekoko  just 8 miles south, and anchored off what we thought may have been an abandoned resort.  After a snorkel on the fringing reef we swam ashore and explored.  This was all private property, although we were welcome to enjoy the beach front, and we were told it is a holiday residence for the President of French Polynesia.  The over water structures sure had that “seen better days” feel to them, but the beach made a great spot for an evening bar-b-que with kiwi family on Blue Raven. 

Wow – Free WiFi onboard

Next day we nurdled at few more miles down the lagoon and found another protected headland to tuck in behind.  The white sandy beach welcomed us, wood was found for a fire and a consecutive beach bar-b-que dinner was enjoyed. 

There was a small low key resort ashore that offered yacht services and a free wifi signal, what a bonus, first free wifi on board for about 18 months.  We dinghied in to give the resort some business and to watch the late afternoon sun dip from the waters edge – but alas, they don’t have a bar, oh well we tried!

Heaven Found at Hirifa

Next stop was one that came very highly recommended by several friends so our expectations were high, we were not to be disappointed, heaven was found.

A gaggle of us tucked ourselves away in this corner of heaven.  While strong winds blew all around the Tuamotus we barely had a ripple across the anchorage, magic times were had.  Spots were found on the white sand beach for happy hours and more bar-b-ques and an exceptional evening was enjoyed at lively and lovely Lizas Snack Shack, (normally we would call this a shacky beach bar but sometimes they run out of beer and they don’t sell any other alcohol!) 

A pig had been sacrifced for us, we had heard the squelling as it had been chased around the yard that morning but tried to forget those memories as we dined on marinated pork ribs from the fire, pork chow mein and a fine secret recipe of it tender chunks of tasty meat cooked in its own blood with a blend of herbs and spices,  (tasted way better than it sounds!). 

Fresh fish had been caught for poisson cru and salad ingredients (and beer supplies!) arrived just before dinner having been flown in from Papeete that afternoon then transferred nearly 2 hours by boat.  The meal, company and setting were exceptional, one of those great nights to tuck away in the memory bank for later years! 

  Magical Memories of Heavenly Hirifa

Kaleidoscope of Colours in Kauehi ….. May 2016

12-18 May:  Tearavero Village, Kauehi, Tuamotus – 15 49S 145 07W

Sailing on Friday the 13th

We left Raroia in company with Judy and Bob on Kinabalu, we timed the tide and thankfully had a much less stressful departure than our arrival had been.  Despite having nearly 20 knots of wind at anchor in the lagoon as soon as we cleared the pass the wind just dropped right off, now this was not in the forecast but what can you do.  Engine on, westwards we went.

By noon the breeze had filled enough to sail, skipper had both headsail and staysail out on poles and off we floated downwind in pleasant conditions.  But Thursday the 12th ticked over to Friday the 13th, and as the clock struck midnight the first of the squalls arrived.  The skies opened and the wind gusted up and down keeping us on our toes, rolling sails in and out at regular intervals.  Kinabalu were right there the whole time, we would lose each other in the squalls then they would reappear through the haze.   As we closed on Kauehi mid afternoon winds peaked briefly at a rather brisk 38 knots, definitely not in the forecast! 

Then as we made our final approaches to the pass the clouds parted, the sun came out and the winds eased to manageable levels.  We were right on mid tide, so took at look at conditions to decide whether to wait around 3 hours for slack water.  It all looked quite calm, Kinabalu took the plunge and entered, we slipped in right behind them!  Atoll number two successfully entered, yippee.

Another Stunning Sleepy Spot

There’s just nothing we like more than a spacious, flat, calm, protected, shallow, beautiful anchorage, this one ticked all the boxes.  Sure there were a few coral bommies around to avoid with Balvenie and Dougie the dinghy but they provided great snorkelling, another paradise found.

There was a small community ashore, people called out from their homes to welcome us as we walked by, everyone we saw said bonjour and most stopped to chat.  The centre piece of the community was the Church, workmen were inside renovating this well worn beauty to restore her to her former glory.   The 4 photos below are of the shell and Mother of Pearl chandelier light fittings hanging inside the church, they were huge and really beautiful.

 

Provisions ashore at the two stores were running low, an Air Tahiti strike meant there were flights operating only to the “touristy” islands (and this isn’t one).  One freighter came while we were there, all they delivered was petrol and timber, a huge disappointment for us cruisers desperate for fresh produce.  The locals have a more laid back approach – planes and coastal freighters will arrive if and when they arrive, c’est la vie!

 

Just to give an idea of the remoteness of these atolls the flights when operating are weekly, the freighter sometimes comes weekly or fortnightly, sometimes not at all, there are no hotels or backpackers accommodation to rent rooms, no where to eat or drink out.  There is a small primary school (under 12 year olds), an infirmary, post office (should have wifi but not working while we were there) and mayors office, all open just a couple of hours a day. 

The houses are basic but extremely well cared for, nearly all had lovely gardens adorned with fragrant tropical flowers.  A couple of gardens had bananas and papaya trees (not ripe unfortunately) and one grew bok choy (but not enough) that we were able to buy which was fantastic.  So the soil can’t be too bad, we just can’t understand why they are not all growing their own fruit and vegetables.

Take a Peek at the Reef 

The nearby reef in the anchorage and the surrounding bommies provided hours of entertainment, great to be able to jump off Balvenie and just swim over.  The reef was only covered by a couple of feet of water, just deep enough to glide over and discover all the hidden nooks and crannies.  The coral was mainly yellow, pale green, white and various shades of light brown, most of the fish were well camouflaged but there’s always someone who just wants to stand out from the crowd. 

All the activity wasn’t below the water though, our Austrian neighbours on L’avenir were kind enough to spend some time with Mark as he tried to hone his windsurfing skills on their windsurfer.  The winds were possibly just a little too light, making it harder to balance (or so I am told!), but maybe that was just an excuse for how much time was spent off, rather than on the board!  All up though practice almost made perfect and skipper had a couple of good runs across the anchorage, but he hasn’t quite worked out how to turn around yet.

Our days and evenings were very sociable, more and more boats were arriving from Panama, the Galapagos and Mexico, our cruising community was changing daily.  We met up with kiwi boats Meridian Passage and Blue Raven, Australians on Storm Bay,  Americans on Nauti Nauti amongst others, and we finally met the new owners of beautiful Moonshadow who we have known for years with their previous owners George and Merima.

With so many boats sundowners ashore was a popular option, no better way to end the day and to mix with everyone than dipping your toes in the tropical waters, sipping on a cool drink, chatting with like minded people and watching the sun slip over the horizon.

Confession Time – The Sun Doesn’t always Shine in Paradise 

Snorkelling With The Sharks in South Kauehi ….. May 2016

19 – 27 May 2016:  Sth East Kauehi, Tuamotus – 15 57S  145 04W

Time for Underwater Adventures

Skipper had enjoyed snorkelling with the sharks in Raroia, (personally I am quite happy with all the colourful little tropical fish with much smaller mouths) so we went in search of sharks.  We moved Balvenie from the village anchorage in Kauehi down the lagoon to the southeast corner and anchored in yet another superb spot.

Preliminary underwater investigations in the neighbourhood found some excellent live coral bommies with a huge array of fish but no sharks.  So we went on a long dinghy excursion right along the southern motus west to the last teeny one where we found one palm tree and a small wrecked sailboat ashore and several small black tip sharks in the shallows. Now we just had to find their mums and dads - and we did!  We left the dinghy on the beach off the adjacent motu, donned masks and flippers and off we went.

Shark Alert!

A colourful bommie here, another there, hundreds of fish over there, just like being in an aquarium, magical.  Then a big black tip spotted, another there, gosh more over there – think we just entered the aquariums shark tank!  They started just swimming by, minding their own business, then the numbers increased and they got curious and came back for another look.  When we had 7 circling us we were starting to feel like we were being eyed up as “catch of the day” and made a speedy retreat back to land – just in case!

We made several stops in the dinghy on our return to Balvenie, the bommies were colourful and the fish life plentiful, we only spotted one other shark, so maybe we had entered their territory and they hadn’t liked the intrusion!  We found one bommie covered in Christmas Tree Worms, they are multi-coloured and if you get your fingers close they close entirely up and just disappear, fun to do.

At the bottom of one bommie tucked away in recess was a chunky eel, he poked his head out for a quick look at us then quickly squirmed backwards into his hiding place.

In between our busy schedule of snorkelling there was time for games of boules ashore – made somewhat challenging due to the extremely uneven foreshore.  The nearby sandy spit became the perfect spot for sundowners or pot luck dinners around an open fire, a great way for us all to get together at the end of the day.  We had a great bunch of cruisers, a stunning anchorage and a superb spell of weather, just magic.

    

Time to Head for the Tuamotus Most Famous Atoll - Fakarava

A Pearl In the Pacific – May 2016

08 – 12 May:  Ngarumaoa Village, Raroia, Tuamotus – 16 02S  142 28W

Off Shark Spotting

More calm winds were forecast so we picked our way through the coral gardens in bright sunshine and returned to Ngarumaoa Village anchorage from Northern Raroia.

We were keen to snorkel the pass but honestly just didn’t think it would be do-able after our first hand rather lively experience of coming through on Balvenie.   Reassured by Chris and Jessica on Silent Sun who are keen divers and photographers and dive the pass almost daily, we kitted ourselves out and along with the crews from Mezzaluna and L’avenir we headed for the pass about 30 minutes before slack low water.

The pass was still quite choppy and the waters turbulent when we arrived but safe enough to take the dinghies through.  We headed to the outside (ocean side) of the pass, by the time we had put flippers and masks on the current settled and the pass lay down to a glassy pond.In we jumped, dinghy in tow behind us.  First time through was rather leisurely, almost slow motion as we took in the splendour of the underwater world below us. Within minutes we were through into the lagoon so we jumped back in the dinghy and zoomed back out.

Second time there was more tide flooding in and we flew through on the surface.  It was so much fun that when it ended we quickly got back into the dinghy and did one more run outside before the pass became too lively.

This time we felt like torpedoes being shot through the water, it was a real blast and we were back into the lagoon in record time.  We then headed for the first red channel marker which sits atop a wonderful coral garden.  The sharks were cruising around down in the depths but just below the surface thousands of colourful reef fish went about their daily business.Where do Black Pearls Come From?

Taking time out from snorkelling the pass on 3 consecutive days we took a tour to the local Pearl Farm.  Pearl Farming is huge business in French Polynesia and although the number of farms has dramatically reduced in recent years it is still a big industry.

A snapshot overview of how it all works isn’t so easy as it is a much more lengthy and complicated process than I would have ever thought and it has given me quite an appreciation of why they cost so much.

Here’s what I understand – first they grow the oysters, it seems that these are generally out sourced.  At a certain age (maybe 18 months) they are harvested, brought ashore, cleaned and then opened just a small amount and a man made round ball of natural shell (imported from Mississippi) is placed inside the mantle pocket.

Then the oysters are strung up and placed inside a protective netting so they won’t be eaten, loaded back into a boat and returned to the water for another 18 months.  After this time they are harvested again, cleaned, reopened and checked to see how progress is going, any defective ones get taken out and a new white shell ball put in.  Same thing happens after another 18 months, the pearls are growing all the time and some grow faster than others.

On the final harvest the shells are cleaned (these are sold for Mother of Pearl jewellery and ornaments), the pearls are removed and the muscle meat sold, the actual oyster meat is fed to the awaiting fish, I was told it is too gritty for eating.

 

So that's the life of a cultured pearl in the Tuamotus, I’m sure the odd detail is wrong cos I wasn’t taking notes!!  One question I haven’t had answered is why the pearls here change colour to silvers, greys, greens and almost black.

And what are they worth?  In this photo the small are USD50 each, the large USD500 each, the others anywhere in between.  They are flown to a wholesaler in Tahiti then exported worldwide.  The photo at the top with all the pearls was one days harvest, so the returns are huge but the outgoings and time spent before reaping the rewards are large.

Weather is Settling – Time to Nurdle West