First Mate’s Journal June 19, 2006
Tuamotus Islands
The four day passage from Ua Pou, a northern Marquesan
Island to Makemo in the Tuamotus Island group, had a difficult start since
beating into the wind for the first two days made for an uncomfortable ride;
i.e. getting thrashed about causing bruises or waves constantly spraying
saltwater in the face while sitting in the cockpit thus resulting in prolific
salty sailor swearing. But as the wind
shifted and the boat settled into long smooth waves the ride was more
graceful and we looked forward to our new destination.
The landscape in the Tuamotus compared to the Marquesas is like
comparing a rainforest to a dessert, the two island groups couldn’t be more
different. Leaving behind high peaks
and valleys with abundant rain and vegetation for islands with strips of
coral soil dotted with clusters of coconut trees barely peaking up from the
sea. According to my Lonely Planet
French Polynesia guide, there are 77 atolls in this group with 30 islands
containing a pass into the lagoon.
These islands with passes are where you can find us cruisers enjoying
the clear water, coral reefs and cooling sea breezes.
The passes into the lagoons are well marked with green and red posts
that indicate coral reefs; however making our way through the lagoon is
another story. Coral heads are not
very well marked and to avoid them we keep a diligent watch on the bow and
sailed single file with our two buddy boats, Capaz
and Ohana Kai.
A clear sky with no waves in the water is the perfect condition for
locating the coral and finding a safe path.
Spotting the coral is easy since the water is clear. On Makemo Island
we could see our anchor at 40 feet of depth.
Although the coral can be a boat killing threat, snorkeling
these reefs is where you will find the true beauty of the islands. Those colorful fish you see in the movie,
“Finding Nemo” live here along with the company of
a few harmless black and white tipped sharks.
I never thought I could say I swam with sharks and live to tell the
tale. Yet I don’t make a practice to
swim alone with them either, I usually wait and take a dip with other
cruisers that happen to be slower swimmers.
Not much fresh water on these islands, the locals catch rain using
the roof’s rain gutters that lead the water into huge black tanks which live
next to the home. Due to the lack of
rain and fertile soil, fruit and vegetables are shipped in and very
expensive. Our diet consists of baguettes,
a few citrus fruits left from the Marquesas, canned food we stocked up on in Mexico
and sometimes fish. Fishing is a
source of fresh meat although Ciguatera (fish poisoning) with reef fish is
common here and we have been advised to consult locals if eating reef fish.
Our second day on Makemo
Island, we had a local
visitor come to Moorea with a boat full of Mahi Mahi. His name is Victor and he offered us a fish
which fed 11 cruisers. He spear fishes
the Mahi Mahi from his boat and locates the fish by
looking at the birds in the sky. The
type of bird indicates the type of large fish hunting down the small
fish. El Kelly along with Todd, Ryan
& Bruce (our buddy boat friends) went fishing with him for tuna and
described Victor’s technique to fishing.
The main industry on the islands is black pearl farming and on the
same island we met a pearl carver, Becko (who
happened to be Victor’s brother). He
carves black pearls and bone with intricate designs of Sting Rays, Dolphins,
Mahi Mahi and Tikis. He was willing to trade liquor for the
items or take cash. We traded 4
bottles of liquor (my cost $40) for a carved Tiki and one carved pearl, which
was the value of $350. Since alcohol
is very expensive here, it is a good trading tool on the outer islands.
The islands are grouped close together which allow for short day
sails, but timing the tides with the narrow passes can be tricky. The current in the passes can range up to 9
knots which our boat would not be able to motor through. At times we had to wait a few hours for
slack tide near the entrance.
When entering the passes, the motor is running and someone is keeping
a watch on the bow. The Fakarava
Island pass had a
strong current which we motored through and headed to the anchorage when I
noticed that the engine started making a low sounding hum. El Kelly was on the bow getting the anchor
ready when I told him the problem, but he didn’t think is was an issue. Then I noticed the temperature gauge rising
and I checked to see if water was coming out of our exhaust. It wasn’t and he turned off the motor so it
would not overheat.
With no motor and a strong wind on the nose, we rolled out the jib
and tacked into the anchorage. One of
our buddy boats, Ohana Kai said we made it look so
easy. Luckily we responded quickly to
the situation. After further
investigation, the pulley on the raw water pump was spinning freely. El Kelly worked his magic and jimmy rigged
the pulley until we can replace the part.
Now that the Tuamotus are behind us and newly arrived in Tahiti where
more than 100 boats from all over the world are anchored, we are tour the
hustle and bustle of their largest city, Papeete. The fast movement of the cars and crowds of
people is overwhelming, but there are grocery stores here and the Island of Moorea is in view. Which we plan to visit until our tourist
visa expires on July 18th.
Until then…
Naa Naa (Goodbye)
La Kelly