July 29, 2012
Marina Taina, Tahiti
On Sunday, the Papeete market overflows with shoppers and the vendors fill the surrounding streets with makeshift stalls. Fruits, produce, fresh doughnuts, live chickens, this is the place early on Sunday mornings. Since buses don't run on Sundays we early morning trip downtown via our 10.5 AB aluminum bottom inflatable dinghy powered with a Yamaha Enduro 15 horse power outboard. It's 5.2 nautical miles from Marina Taina to the downtown Quay where we tied to the floating finger piers. Loaded with fruits, vegetables and a beautiful bouquet of flowers we headed back to the boat. Along the way we stopped to check out a wrecked sailboat that had gone on the reef a few months ago and salvaged a few window screens we'd been wanting.
Laundry was next on the list so we headed in to do a load a the marina Taina facility which is pretty sketchy with only 2 of the 4 washers working properly. Each wash was 800XPF or $8.25USD per load. Yeah, that stings and needless to say we opted to line dry our clothes on the boat.
More later.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Tahiti
July 28, 2012
Tahiti
Tied up to a mooring buoy off Marina Taina... rumor has it the moorings are free. The cupboards were getting bare so we're happy to be back to the land of plenty.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Tahiti
Tied up to a mooring buoy off Marina Taina... rumor has it the moorings are free. The cupboards were getting bare so we're happy to be back to the land of plenty.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Friday, July 27, 2012
Inbound Tahiti
July 27, 2012
Underway position at 7AM local: 16°41.6563 S 148°34.1149 W
We're on pace to arrive in Tahiti later today. Planning on dropping the hook at Point Venus for the night.
More later.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Underway position at 7AM local: 16°41.6563 S 148°34.1149 W
We're on pace to arrive in Tahiti later today. Planning on dropping the hook at Point Venus for the night.
More later.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Underway Toau atoll to Papeete, Tahiti.
July 26, 2012
Underway position at 5PM local: 16°07.8471 S 147°15.5352 W
Spectacular fast sailing today on our way to Tahiti. So far today our worst hours run is 8.3 nautical miles and our best 9.7 nautical miles with a lots of surf into the teens and a top speed of 15.7 knots. We slipped the mooring at 9:30AM this morning and it looks like we'll still be able to pull off a single overnight run to Tahiti. Our Easterly 25 knots of wind is forecast to drop to 10 knots in the next 24 hours so, we'll likely drop off our current 200+ nautical miles per day pace.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Underway position at 5PM local: 16°07.8471 S 147°15.5352 W
Spectacular fast sailing today on our way to Tahiti. So far today our worst hours run is 8.3 nautical miles and our best 9.7 nautical miles with a lots of surf into the teens and a top speed of 15.7 knots. We slipped the mooring at 9:30AM this morning and it looks like we'll still be able to pull off a single overnight run to Tahiti. Our Easterly 25 knots of wind is forecast to drop to 10 knots in the next 24 hours so, we'll likely drop off our current 200+ nautical miles per day pace.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Toau atoll Anse Amyot anchorage - More great snorkeling
July 25, 2012
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Some great snorkeling at: 15°48.8071'S 146°10.0670'W today. This is about 1.25 nautical miles to the Southwest of Anse Amyot on the seaward side of the atoll, about midway down Opuehu motu. Even with winds in the twenties it's a pretty easy ride in the dinghy in the lee of the atoll. Lots of great grottos, overhangs and small caves to explore with plenty of large and colorful fish in 7-15 meters. The wall drops steeply at 15 meters into the abyss and larger size sharks can be seen cruising along the wall. These aren't your ordinary White tip, Black tip or Grey reef sharks. We're talking big bulky bodied fellows, slowly lumbering along, the sort that remind you that you could become an afternoon snack. At one point I saw a really large shadow emerging from the sun filtered waters and thought "oh boy, now that's a really really big one", luckily the monster evolved into was was just two pretty big sharks swimming close together which from that from a distance looked like one scary size man eater.
Hanging out with s/v Tanquility tonight.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Some great snorkeling at: 15°48.8071'S 146°10.0670'W today. This is about 1.25 nautical miles to the Southwest of Anse Amyot on the seaward side of the atoll, about midway down Opuehu motu. Even with winds in the twenties it's a pretty easy ride in the dinghy in the lee of the atoll. Lots of great grottos, overhangs and small caves to explore with plenty of large and colorful fish in 7-15 meters. The wall drops steeply at 15 meters into the abyss and larger size sharks can be seen cruising along the wall. These aren't your ordinary White tip, Black tip or Grey reef sharks. We're talking big bulky bodied fellows, slowly lumbering along, the sort that remind you that you could become an afternoon snack. At one point I saw a really large shadow emerging from the sun filtered waters and thought "oh boy, now that's a really really big one", luckily the monster evolved into was was just two pretty big sharks swimming close together which from that from a distance looked like one scary size man eater.
Hanging out with s/v Tanquility tonight.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Toau atoll, Anse Amyot anchorage again
July 24, 2012
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Our planned dinner ashore was canceled due to high winds and yes, it was really windy. Even though we're tied to a solid mooring, we dropped the anchor and 30 meters (97.5 feet) of chain 'just in case'. It was a bit windy again today with winds in the low 20's, but we managed a bit of adventure to the next motu. Mostly, we just hung out and chatted with cruising friends while enjoying the antics of a kite boarders who was slicing up the anchorage and throwing some nice tricks.
We're planning on sailing to Tahiti on Thursday as the wind should be shifting more to the East making the voyage more comfortable.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Our planned dinner ashore was canceled due to high winds and yes, it was really windy. Even though we're tied to a solid mooring, we dropped the anchor and 30 meters (97.5 feet) of chain 'just in case'. It was a bit windy again today with winds in the low 20's, but we managed a bit of adventure to the next motu. Mostly, we just hung out and chatted with cruising friends while enjoying the antics of a kite boarders who was slicing up the anchorage and throwing some nice tricks.
We're planning on sailing to Tahiti on Thursday as the wind should be shifting more to the East making the voyage more comfortable.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Monday, July 23, 2012
Toau atoll, Anse Amyot- Dinner ashore tonight
July 23, 2012
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Looks like it's going to be a squally one today. We just turned on the radar to track a big black squall headed out way. It's packing a bit of wind that'll make the rain catchers less effective as the wind blows the rain sideways. Our water tank gauge reads zero this morning so I'm really hoping for a good deluge of ran to put a little water in the tanks. Otherwise, I'll need to break out the Honda EU2000i generator and run the Spectra Catalina 300 watermaker a few hours.
This evening we're dinning ashore a real luxury. More on that tomorrow.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Looks like it's going to be a squally one today. We just turned on the radar to track a big black squall headed out way. It's packing a bit of wind that'll make the rain catchers less effective as the wind blows the rain sideways. Our water tank gauge reads zero this morning so I'm really hoping for a good deluge of ran to put a little water in the tanks. Otherwise, I'll need to break out the Honda EU2000i generator and run the Spectra Catalina 300 watermaker a few hours.
This evening we're dinning ashore a real luxury. More on that tomorrow.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Toau atoll Anse Amyot
July 22, 2012
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Just an easy day today. A few boat projects and that's it. Snorkeling is excellent outside the cul-de-sac on the ocean side of the reef. Grey Sharks, BIG Green bump head Wrase, pelagic Tuna crusing the drop off, a huge aggregation of thousands of small fish and the normal assortment of reef fish and coral make this snorkel rate this snorkel at least 8 on a scale of 10.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Just an easy day today. A few boat projects and that's it. Snorkeling is excellent outside the cul-de-sac on the ocean side of the reef. Grey Sharks, BIG Green bump head Wrase, pelagic Tuna crusing the drop off, a huge aggregation of thousands of small fish and the normal assortment of reef fish and coral make this snorkel rate this snorkel at least 8 on a scale of 10.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Toau- Anse Amyot Anchorage
July 21, 2012
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesai, South Pacific Ocean
We'll be hunkered down here in Amyot for awhile waiting for some good sailing weather to head for Tahiti. Looking at the GRIB (weather file), it could be a week. The snorkeling is reported to be excellent and we'll be getting in the water as soon as the tide turns to flood to push the clear ocean waters into the Anse Amyot cul-de-sac. On our swim to shore yesterday we counted over fifty 'Seven Finger' conch crawling along the bottom. The conch are protected here at Amyot, but according to Valentine we might sample some from another area on the atoll.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesai, South Pacific Ocean
We'll be hunkered down here in Amyot for awhile waiting for some good sailing weather to head for Tahiti. Looking at the GRIB (weather file), it could be a week. The snorkeling is reported to be excellent and we'll be getting in the water as soon as the tide turns to flood to push the clear ocean waters into the Anse Amyot cul-de-sac. On our swim to shore yesterday we counted over fifty 'Seven Finger' conch crawling along the bottom. The conch are protected here at Amyot, but according to Valentine we might sample some from another area on the atoll.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Friday, July 20, 2012
Toau Atoll - Anse Amyot Anchorage
July 20, 2012
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesai, South Pacific Ocean
The quest for fresh vegetables was a bust in Fakarava and we only ended up with one cucumber and three carrots none too fresh. About 9:30AM we hoisted the mainsail intending to sail off the anchor, but the chain was a little tangled on the bottom so we had to use the engines to maneuver to get the chain free. Winds out of the ESE at 20 knot building to 25+ later in the day made for a exhilarating and quick sail to Anse Amyot the cul-de-sac anchorage on the North end of Toau atoll. We averaged well over 8 knots with our best hours run 9.3 nautical miles made good and a top speed of 13.4 knots on a nice powered up surf. As we rounded the Eastern extremity of Toau the seas stacked up and the wind piped up to 26 knots True and the apparent wind came just forward of the beam making for some spirited hand steering and great surf rides.
We picked up a mooring here in Anse Amyot a cul-de-sac in the coral reef which makes a great all weather anchorage on the North end of Toau atoll. The mooring are 500xpf a night or about $6usd or you can trade for goods in lieu of cash payment (i.e. peanut butter or coffee are currently in demand). We swam from the boat about 100 meters to shore to check in with Valentine one of the locals who's known for her hospitality and great meals and mooring rentals. Since we are on the tail end of the South Pacific cruising boat migration, it just us and our friends Dean and Sabrine of s/v Local Talent here in Anse Amyot tonight.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Mooring Position: 15°48.2149 S 146°09.0777 W
Anse Amyot Anchorage, Toau atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesai, South Pacific Ocean
The quest for fresh vegetables was a bust in Fakarava and we only ended up with one cucumber and three carrots none too fresh. About 9:30AM we hoisted the mainsail intending to sail off the anchor, but the chain was a little tangled on the bottom so we had to use the engines to maneuver to get the chain free. Winds out of the ESE at 20 knot building to 25+ later in the day made for a exhilarating and quick sail to Anse Amyot the cul-de-sac anchorage on the North end of Toau atoll. We averaged well over 8 knots with our best hours run 9.3 nautical miles made good and a top speed of 13.4 knots on a nice powered up surf. As we rounded the Eastern extremity of Toau the seas stacked up and the wind piped up to 26 knots True and the apparent wind came just forward of the beam making for some spirited hand steering and great surf rides.
We picked up a mooring here in Anse Amyot a cul-de-sac in the coral reef which makes a great all weather anchorage on the North end of Toau atoll. The mooring are 500xpf a night or about $6usd or you can trade for goods in lieu of cash payment (i.e. peanut butter or coffee are currently in demand). We swam from the boat about 100 meters to shore to check in with Valentine one of the locals who's known for her hospitality and great meals and mooring rentals. Since we are on the tail end of the South Pacific cruising boat migration, it just us and our friends Dean and Sabrine of s/v Local Talent here in Anse Amyot tonight.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Fakarava Fresh
July 19, 2012
Anchorage position: 16°03.6743 S 145°37.1493 W
Fakarava atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
We're hanging here in North Fakarava for another day as rumor has it that the supply ship is on the way with fresh vegetables. We hope the rumors are true and we can score a few fresh items, in the interim we'll continue to enjoy fresh baguette and the company of several other cruising boats.
Got a tour of the 57 foot aluminum sloop s/v Kaila which was interesting and quite an inspiration.
That's it for now.
Anchorage position: 16°03.6743 S 145°37.1493 W
Fakarava atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
We're hanging here in North Fakarava for another day as rumor has it that the supply ship is on the way with fresh vegetables. We hope the rumors are true and we can score a few fresh items, in the interim we'll continue to enjoy fresh baguette and the company of several other cruising boats.
Got a tour of the 57 foot aluminum sloop s/v Kaila which was interesting and quite an inspiration.
That's it for now.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Fakarava- Sailing rehash.
July 18, 2012
Fakarava atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesa, South Pacific.
I have to mention again what a great time I had yesterday racing up the Fakarava lagoon in a well matched race with s/v Kaila a custom 57' custom aluminum sloop. The boat is very industrial looking almost like something out of the movie Waterworld, in a good way. A google search reveals the boat was designed and built by the owner/skipper for the express purpose for world cruising and making a little money along the way chartering. Very cool! I hope to get a tour of the boat today as the design is very appealing as a expedition style boat.
I love our boat LightSpeed, but a more utilitarian design like s/v Kaila would be great for high latitude sailing like the Northwest Passage.
The Post office was closed yesterday afternoon so we're heading in early to right when they open to get out paperwork in the mail for our long stay visa.
That's it for now
Fakarava atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesa, South Pacific.
I have to mention again what a great time I had yesterday racing up the Fakarava lagoon in a well matched race with s/v Kaila a custom 57' custom aluminum sloop. The boat is very industrial looking almost like something out of the movie Waterworld, in a good way. A google search reveals the boat was designed and built by the owner/skipper for the express purpose for world cruising and making a little money along the way chartering. Very cool! I hope to get a tour of the boat today as the design is very appealing as a expedition style boat.
I love our boat LightSpeed, but a more utilitarian design like s/v Kaila would be great for high latitude sailing like the Northwest Passage.
The Post office was closed yesterday afternoon so we're heading in early to right when they open to get out paperwork in the mail for our long stay visa.
That's it for now
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Fakarava- Fantastic!
Anchorage position: 16°03.6743 S 145°37.1493 W
Fakarava atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Fakarava is Fantastic! The last 48 hours have been spectacular! After the amazing sail from Tahanea and dropping the anchor at Fakarava South pass yesterday afternoon we wasted no time getting the dinghy launched and the adventures rolling. To get things started we did a quick meet and greet by swinging by the other two boats in the anchorage. Then we headed toward the motus for some beach combing, shelling and to gather a few coconuts. s/v Local Talent hosted for sun downers which ran until nearly cruiser midnight. Back on the boat we had a break from fish with an excellent dinner of bratwurst, sour kraut and potatoes.
This morning we headed over to the pass to catch a few drift dives on the flood current. As expected the snorkeling was fantastically fabulous. SHARKS, SHARKS and ohh so many SHARKS. Hundreds each drift! Someone said there might be a thousand in the pass, it sure seems possible. The coral was nice and there were zillions of fish of all descriptions, but this one is all about the sharks. After three drifts we went in close to the pier by the dive shop to check out the Wrasse and innumerable fish in large schools and yes, there were sharks here as well.
Sitting in our dinghy 20 feet from shore in two feet of water we'd watch groups of sharks parade by the dinghy and after about 30 had passed we timed our shore landing to avoid the bigger groups cruising the shallows with fins out of the water. A quick walk around 'town' which is just an old cool church, a little dive shop, and a few bungalows for rent, then we headed back to the boat. We needed to mail some stuff for our French Polynesian visas so we planned to sail up to the North end of Fakarava. A few other boats had left maybe 30 minutes to an hour earlier and with the mast still visible up the lagoon we had a nice visual to measure our progress. It's about 29 nautical miles from South anchorage to North anchorage and we got underway at 1PM and dropped anchor at 4:25PM for an average speed of 8.3+ knots. We caught up with a fifty foot plus aluminum sloop and sailed neck and neck with them all the way into the anchorage. A real blast to trim and tweak for several hours with idyllic conditions of flat water and solid breeze. At times we had 11 knots of boat speed with only 21 knots apparent.
We made a quick trip to shore to buy a baguette and some beer and have a look around. It seems the town has grown up a bit since my last visit six years ago.
That's it for now.
Monday, July 16, 2012
Tahanea atoll toward Fakarava South Pass
July 16, 2012
Underway position at 11AM local: 16°38.0029 S 145°07.4347 W
Tahanea atoll toward Fakarava South Pass, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Winds were strong overnight and I was a little doubtful that we'd get underway today so we slept in until 7:30AM. Just before going to bed I decided to throw another anchor over the side as a little extra insurance and a more peaceful sleep. The second anchor rode wrapped on some coral, so this morning Kathy jumped in to untangle the rode. She can be pretty handy. The wind was down to 18 knots out of the east so we decided to sail from Tahanea, we'd just have to brave the pass which was ebbing strongly and creating some pretty nasty standing waves on the outside. We managed to sneak around most of the really nasty stuff by hugging the east side of the pass and heading a little SE once we were outside, effectively skirting the current against wind ugliness. Head to wind we raised a full main and we were off. The first 6 nautical miles were fine, but then we needed to turn more East and with a really deep wind angle we went wing on wing until a big nasty squall started to loom up behind us. It looked scary so we dropped all sail and it worked out just fine to have the tempest blow past us and pelt us with some rain. With nothing ominous on the horizon we decided on a symmetrical spinnaker as our course to Fakarava was just a touch North of East and the wind was steady directly out of the East. With the spinnaker pulling nicely we've made 8.8 nautical miles made good in the hour. Between noon and 1PM we made 9.6nm good. The boat is flat and dry and we are frequently surfing at sustained speeds of 11.5 knots with our best speed of the day 12.7 knots.
It looks good to go for Fakarava South pass which we hope to catch just at the end of the flood which we're estimating to be around 2PM based on our observations at Tahanea atoll. Enjoying some big fat Wahoo tacos as I write. We really stocked up on Mexican tortillas and who knows what keeps them fresh this long, but who cares as they really are a treat in the middle of the South Pacific.
Just arrived at Fakarava. Cleared the South pass at 1:35PM with a slight flood tide. Easy even with 18 knots out of the East and 2 meters swell out of the E-ESE. Anchor up to anchor down 54nm in 6.5 hours for an overall average speed of 8.3 knots. Anchored at: 16°31.2985 S 145°28.3375 W 5 meters sand and coral with great holding.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Underway position at 11AM local: 16°38.0029 S 145°07.4347 W
Tahanea atoll toward Fakarava South Pass, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Winds were strong overnight and I was a little doubtful that we'd get underway today so we slept in until 7:30AM. Just before going to bed I decided to throw another anchor over the side as a little extra insurance and a more peaceful sleep. The second anchor rode wrapped on some coral, so this morning Kathy jumped in to untangle the rode. She can be pretty handy. The wind was down to 18 knots out of the east so we decided to sail from Tahanea, we'd just have to brave the pass which was ebbing strongly and creating some pretty nasty standing waves on the outside. We managed to sneak around most of the really nasty stuff by hugging the east side of the pass and heading a little SE once we were outside, effectively skirting the current against wind ugliness. Head to wind we raised a full main and we were off. The first 6 nautical miles were fine, but then we needed to turn more East and with a really deep wind angle we went wing on wing until a big nasty squall started to loom up behind us. It looked scary so we dropped all sail and it worked out just fine to have the tempest blow past us and pelt us with some rain. With nothing ominous on the horizon we decided on a symmetrical spinnaker as our course to Fakarava was just a touch North of East and the wind was steady directly out of the East. With the spinnaker pulling nicely we've made 8.8 nautical miles made good in the hour. Between noon and 1PM we made 9.6nm good. The boat is flat and dry and we are frequently surfing at sustained speeds of 11.5 knots with our best speed of the day 12.7 knots.
It looks good to go for Fakarava South pass which we hope to catch just at the end of the flood which we're estimating to be around 2PM based on our observations at Tahanea atoll. Enjoying some big fat Wahoo tacos as I write. We really stocked up on Mexican tortillas and who knows what keeps them fresh this long, but who cares as they really are a treat in the middle of the South Pacific.
Just arrived at Fakarava. Cleared the South pass at 1:35PM with a slight flood tide. Easy even with 18 knots out of the East and 2 meters swell out of the E-ESE. Anchor up to anchor down 54nm in 6.5 hours for an overall average speed of 8.3 knots. Anchored at: 16°31.2985 S 145°28.3375 W 5 meters sand and coral with great holding.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Tahanea atoll- Back at Passe Teavatapu
July 15, 2012
Anchorage position: 16°51.0846 S 144°41.5322 W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Today we sailed nine miles up Tahanea lagoon to Passe Teavatapu on Tahanea atoll and anchored behind Motu Teuakiri. Despite the strong winds the last several days the current in the pass was flooding when we arrived at 11:25AM and continued to flood until at least 1PM. Winds were steady at 20 knots out of the ENE, but Kathy really wanted to do a drift dive through the pass so we bucked the winds and current to set up outside the pass for a drift. Visibility was great, but the coral was average to below average, especially in the central area of the pass where the bottom was scoured by the strong current. Lots of big groupers and the normal assortment of colorful fish, but only one grey shark.
To keep it interesting, Kathy worked on her free diving and worked upto a personal best of 42 feet!
Tomorrow we may head toward Fakarava, but the winds have picked back up so who knows we may hunker down for another day.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Anchorage position: 16°51.0846 S 144°41.5322 W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Today we sailed nine miles up Tahanea lagoon to Passe Teavatapu on Tahanea atoll and anchored behind Motu Teuakiri. Despite the strong winds the last several days the current in the pass was flooding when we arrived at 11:25AM and continued to flood until at least 1PM. Winds were steady at 20 knots out of the ENE, but Kathy really wanted to do a drift dive through the pass so we bucked the winds and current to set up outside the pass for a drift. Visibility was great, but the coral was average to below average, especially in the central area of the pass where the bottom was scoured by the strong current. Lots of big groupers and the normal assortment of colorful fish, but only one grey shark.
To keep it interesting, Kathy worked on her free diving and worked upto a personal best of 42 feet!
Tomorrow we may head toward Fakarava, but the winds have picked back up so who knows we may hunker down for another day.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Tahanea -High winds
July 14, 2012
Anchorage Position: 16°57.22'S 144°34.80'W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Strong winds continue to buffet us here at Tahanea even though we're only 50 meters from a motu. Wishing I would have set a second anchor last night as the big gusts shudder and surge the boat on a taunt anchor chain. We're planning on setting up our hammocks on the motu today and cooking lunch on a small fire. Should be fun.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Anchorage Position: 16°57.22'S 144°34.80'W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Strong winds continue to buffet us here at Tahanea even though we're only 50 meters from a motu. Wishing I would have set a second anchor last night as the big gusts shudder and surge the boat on a taunt anchor chain. We're planning on setting up our hammocks on the motu today and cooking lunch on a small fire. Should be fun.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Friday, July 13, 2012
Tahanea - South anchorage bliss
July 13, 2012
Anchorage Position: 16°57.22'S 144°34.80'W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
LightSpeed swings at her anchor in 2.5 meters of crystal clear water over a bright white sand with only a ripple of wavelets despite strong winds whipping overhead. A palm studded motu provides a wind break and a tropical verdant green backdrop to the emerald waters. The base air temperature is a little cooler courtesy a huge 1036mb High pressure system to the South that might deliver 30-35 knots of wind tomorrow.
We took advantage of the cooler temperatures yesterday to tackle a backlog of boat projects. I worked on fine tuning the SSB radio install. I've been experimenting with a home built counterpoise consisting of custom lengths of wire (radials) corresponding to frequently used SSB frequencies. For example to calculate an ideal radial length for 8A (8.294Mhz) here's the formula (300/8.294*0.25)= 9.05 meters. So cut the radial to this length. I've been using 22ga wire for the radials and it seems to work great. Cut a radial for each frequencies you wish optimize. However, I've found that the radio performs very well on a range of frequencies between those with optimal radials. I am still struggling with RF interference with my autopilot and I think I'll ultimately need to relocate the SSB tuner to solve the problem.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Anchorage Position: 16°57.22'S 144°34.80'W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
LightSpeed swings at her anchor in 2.5 meters of crystal clear water over a bright white sand with only a ripple of wavelets despite strong winds whipping overhead. A palm studded motu provides a wind break and a tropical verdant green backdrop to the emerald waters. The base air temperature is a little cooler courtesy a huge 1036mb High pressure system to the South that might deliver 30-35 knots of wind tomorrow.
We took advantage of the cooler temperatures yesterday to tackle a backlog of boat projects. I worked on fine tuning the SSB radio install. I've been experimenting with a home built counterpoise consisting of custom lengths of wire (radials) corresponding to frequently used SSB frequencies. For example to calculate an ideal radial length for 8A (8.294Mhz) here's the formula (300/8.294*0.25)= 9.05 meters. So cut the radial to this length. I've been using 22ga wire for the radials and it seems to work great. Cut a radial for each frequencies you wish optimize. However, I've found that the radio performs very well on a range of frequencies between those with optimal radials. I am still struggling with RF interference with my autopilot and I think I'll ultimately need to relocate the SSB tuner to solve the problem.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Tahanea atoll- Big winds on the way
July 10, 2012
Anchorage Position: 16°57.22'S 144°34.80'W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Yesterday we entered Passe Teavatapu on Tahanea atoll at 4PM with current in the pass near slack changing to a slight flood. Even in the low angle evening light we easily found the anchorage just to the NW of the pass at 16°51.0846 S 144°41.5322 W behind Motu Teuakiri in 6 meters sand and coral heads. The C-Map chart was very accurate for the pass and anchorage. The Motu Teuakiri anchorage although protected by to the SE by a dry land and shallow reefs still allowed a wrap around waves into the anchorage. Not bad, but nothing like the perfectly dry flat water and almost pure sand bottom at the Motu about 9nm SE referenced at Taha5 in the Tuamotu compendium. We are happy to have moved this morning before the winds built.
With a 1036mb High pressure on the way it's going to get windy so we're happy to be tucked in safely for the next many days.
That's it for now.
Anchorage Position: 16°57.22'S 144°34.80'W
Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Yesterday we entered Passe Teavatapu on Tahanea atoll at 4PM with current in the pass near slack changing to a slight flood. Even in the low angle evening light we easily found the anchorage just to the NW of the pass at 16°51.0846 S 144°41.5322 W behind Motu Teuakiri in 6 meters sand and coral heads. The C-Map chart was very accurate for the pass and anchorage. The Motu Teuakiri anchorage although protected by to the SE by a dry land and shallow reefs still allowed a wrap around waves into the anchorage. Not bad, but nothing like the perfectly dry flat water and almost pure sand bottom at the Motu about 9nm SE referenced at Taha5 in the Tuamotu compendium. We are happy to have moved this morning before the winds built.
With a 1036mb High pressure on the way it's going to get windy so we're happy to be tucked in safely for the next many days.
That's it for now.
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Day 2509 Makemo to Tahanea atoll and a few other places we've been
July 10, 2012
Sailing from Makemo atoll to Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Today marks the two thousand five hundred and ninth day(2509) of Dave's sailing adventure, logging 44,465 nautical miles at sea and Kathy since April 2007 has logged 32,965 nautical miles.
Where have we been?
2005
Washington State, USA
Oregon
California
Baja, Mexico
Mainland Mexico
2006
Mexico
Marquesas, French Polynesia (FP)
Tuamotu, FP
Societies, FP
Cooks Islands
American Samoa
Western Samoa
Tonga
New Zealand
2007
New Zealand
Fiji
Vanuatu
Queensland, Australia
2008
Queensland, Australia
Sold s/v La Vie our mono-hull
Flew from Australia to Florida, USA
Bought s/v Pacifica in New York, New York
East coast, USA
2009
Caribbean Mexico
Belize
Guatemala
Florida (Sold s/vPacifica)
Honduras (Bought s/v LightSpeed)
Guatemala
Honduras
Passport full- added extra visa stamp pages.
Columbian Islands
Panama
Columbia mainland
Panama
2010
Columbian Islands
Honduras
Belize
Honduras
Columbian Islands
Panama (Transit canal)
Costa Rica
Nicaragua
Mexico
West Coast, USA
Vancouver Island, Canada
Washington State
2011
Oregon
Washington State
Vancouver Island
British Columbia
SE Alaska
British Columbia
Oregon
California
2012
Mexico
Marquesas, FP
Tuamotu, FP
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Sailing from Makemo atoll to Tahanea atoll Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Today marks the two thousand five hundred and ninth day(2509) of Dave's sailing adventure, logging 44,465 nautical miles at sea and Kathy since April 2007 has logged 32,965 nautical miles.
Where have we been?
2005
Washington State, USA
Oregon
California
Baja, Mexico
Mainland Mexico
2006
Mexico
Marquesas, French Polynesia (FP)
Tuamotu, FP
Societies, FP
Cooks Islands
American Samoa
Western Samoa
Tonga
New Zealand
2007
New Zealand
Fiji
Vanuatu
Queensland, Australia
2008
Queensland, Australia
Sold s/v La Vie our mono-hull
Flew from Australia to Florida, USA
Bought s/v Pacifica in New York, New York
East coast, USA
2009
Caribbean Mexico
Belize
Guatemala
Florida (Sold s/vPacifica)
Honduras (Bought s/v LightSpeed)
Guatemala
Honduras
Passport full- added extra visa stamp pages.
Columbian Islands
Panama
Columbia mainland
Panama
2010
Columbian Islands
Honduras
Belize
Honduras
Columbian Islands
Panama (Transit canal)
Costa Rica
Nicaragua
Mexico
West Coast, USA
Vancouver Island, Canada
Washington State
2011
Oregon
Washington State
Vancouver Island
British Columbia
SE Alaska
British Columbia
Oregon
California
2012
Mexico
Marquesas, FP
Tuamotu, FP
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Monday, July 09, 2012
Sublime Snorkeling Passe Tapuhiria, Makemo
July 9, 2012
Day 2498
Makemo Atoll, D'Ohava
Anchored: 16°27.11'S 143°58.07' W
Moved up to Passe Tapuhiria on the Northwest side of Makemo atoll. Google Earth imagery showed a nice looking anchorage off the seasonal village of D'Ohava. D'Ohava is just a few ramshackle huts and a copra shed and no one was around when we anchored in 9 meters sand and huge coral heads. The heads almost guarantee to foul the anchor so we're running just a 2:1 scope to minimize the tangle and despite the short scope it seems it would be impossible to drag anchor very far. Anchorage position is as above 16°27.11'S 143°58.07' W and would seem to afford good wave protection from all quadrants due to shallow reefs. During our visit the wind has been very light.
We took a walk around the island and found a large cistern at the copra shed which was full of many hundreds of gallons of water.... maybe a good spot to do some laundry? We also took a peek into most of the buildings and found empty barrels, empty tins of corned beef and butter and a few old copra bags. One shed had an ancient looking generator, but it was infested with hornets so we gave it just a quick glance. Near the pass was a newer shack with nice window screens which would be a good defense against the flies, hornets and mosquitoes that plagued us on our walk.
Walking the edge of the pass was spectacular. In certain places you could walk out on a shelf where the water dropped off into the deep cut of the pass. With a vantage point looking down into the clear waters we could watch schools of Trevaly, bright blue green Parrot fish, black and blue spotted Grouper, yellow Angel fish and several nice sized sharks while only standing in shin deep water. Walking the shallows we spotted crabs, giant clams, three types of Parrot fish, Black tip reef sharks, Octopus in two different locations!, bright pink, white, green, and yellow corals and too many small fish to count. This wading and reef walking adventure was super cool and with so many diverse fish and in such quantities it definitely ranks as the best yet. We were super excited to drift the pass, but with the flood tide coming later by nearly an hour each day, it wasn't until 4PM that the flood began. Four o'clock is nearly shark thirty and we did see plenty of sharks, Grey, Black tip and White tip during our swim. The shear number of fish and the tameness was remarkable. You could swim right up to almost any fish and the fish would check you out just as much as you checked him out. There must be very little spear fishing as these fish had no fear of man. Fish almost seemed to come and check us out, especially the Trevaly who always seemed to school under the dinghy.
Kathy baked another loaf of bread in the pressure cooker. This time Rye bread and it turned out great and seems to save quite a bit of fuel as the cooking time is greatly reduced. The loaf size is also really nice for sandwiches.
Tomorrow we plan to sail for Tahanea about 50 nautical miles distant.
Wading along Passe Tapuhiria on the Northwest side of Makemo
Parrot fish in the shallows
Edge of Passe Tapuhiria looking into the deep clear waters we could see many fish and even sharks swim past.
Another look to seaward along Passe Tapuhiria, Makemo atoll.
Picaso fish
Hermit crab.
Eel
Giant clams in various colors
Octopus
Day 2498
Makemo Atoll, D'Ohava
Anchored: 16°27.11'S 143°58.07' W
Moved up to Passe Tapuhiria on the Northwest side of Makemo atoll. Google Earth imagery showed a nice looking anchorage off the seasonal village of D'Ohava. D'Ohava is just a few ramshackle huts and a copra shed and no one was around when we anchored in 9 meters sand and huge coral heads. The heads almost guarantee to foul the anchor so we're running just a 2:1 scope to minimize the tangle and despite the short scope it seems it would be impossible to drag anchor very far. Anchorage position is as above 16°27.11'S 143°58.07' W and would seem to afford good wave protection from all quadrants due to shallow reefs. During our visit the wind has been very light.
We took a walk around the island and found a large cistern at the copra shed which was full of many hundreds of gallons of water.... maybe a good spot to do some laundry? We also took a peek into most of the buildings and found empty barrels, empty tins of corned beef and butter and a few old copra bags. One shed had an ancient looking generator, but it was infested with hornets so we gave it just a quick glance. Near the pass was a newer shack with nice window screens which would be a good defense against the flies, hornets and mosquitoes that plagued us on our walk.
Walking the edge of the pass was spectacular. In certain places you could walk out on a shelf where the water dropped off into the deep cut of the pass. With a vantage point looking down into the clear waters we could watch schools of Trevaly, bright blue green Parrot fish, black and blue spotted Grouper, yellow Angel fish and several nice sized sharks while only standing in shin deep water. Walking the shallows we spotted crabs, giant clams, three types of Parrot fish, Black tip reef sharks, Octopus in two different locations!, bright pink, white, green, and yellow corals and too many small fish to count. This wading and reef walking adventure was super cool and with so many diverse fish and in such quantities it definitely ranks as the best yet. We were super excited to drift the pass, but with the flood tide coming later by nearly an hour each day, it wasn't until 4PM that the flood began. Four o'clock is nearly shark thirty and we did see plenty of sharks, Grey, Black tip and White tip during our swim. The shear number of fish and the tameness was remarkable. You could swim right up to almost any fish and the fish would check you out just as much as you checked him out. There must be very little spear fishing as these fish had no fear of man. Fish almost seemed to come and check us out, especially the Trevaly who always seemed to school under the dinghy.
Kathy baked another loaf of bread in the pressure cooker. This time Rye bread and it turned out great and seems to save quite a bit of fuel as the cooking time is greatly reduced. The loaf size is also really nice for sandwiches.
Tomorrow we plan to sail for Tahanea about 50 nautical miles distant.
Sunday, July 08, 2012
(no subject)
July 8, 2012
Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchored: 16°36.8943 S 143°37.4893 W
Yesterday, we moved from the town anchorage a few miles up the reef. We were headed for a reportedly good anchorage at 16°31.1'S 143°49.3' W when low clouds and squalls moved over the atoll making further progress too dangerous with the poor visibility. So in pouring rain we moved intoward the reef and dropped the anchor in 10 meters sand and coral.
Kathy baked a loaf of bread in the pressure cooker and it turned out really good. I changed the oil in the port engine and also the fuel filters and otherwise it was a low key evening.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchored: 16°36.8943 S 143°37.4893 W
Yesterday, we moved from the town anchorage a few miles up the reef. We were headed for a reportedly good anchorage at 16°31.1'S 143°49.3' W when low clouds and squalls moved over the atoll making further progress too dangerous with the poor visibility. So in pouring rain we moved intoward the reef and dropped the anchor in 10 meters sand and coral.
Kathy baked a loaf of bread in the pressure cooker and it turned out really good. I changed the oil in the port engine and also the fuel filters and otherwise it was a low key evening.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Saturday, July 07, 2012
Makemo Atoll - Dock lines cut in the middle of the night.
July 7, 2012
Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchored: 16°37.6288 S 143°34.2174 W
Friday night, med moored to the Pouheva Wharf here at Makemo, was a bit noisy. As in much of French Polynesia, the town Wharf seems to be a popular late night hangout for locals. Several groups of revelers definitely brought the party with boom boxes thumping out everything from techno to 80's glam rock. Early in the evening a small rock skittered along the deck of LightSpeed, which I was not happy about, but just decided to ignore and go back to sleep. Around 12:30AM the party showing increasing vigor and volume woke me up, so I blocked out the noise with some ear plugs and got back to sleep. Around 3:30 AM, Kathy who was up for a bathroom break and gave an urgent shout that "the bow lines had been cut" (the ones securing LightSpeed to the Wharf) and that we were in grave danger of grounding on a reef.
Adrenaline pumping and with no time to even put on a few clothes, Kathy and I quickly surveyed the surrounding shoals and I got the engines running. Luckily, we weren't aground and had fetched up on the stern anchor. We were nearly surround by shallow coral patches, many of which were awash and extremely dangerous. I was afraid to maneuver under power as it was certain that we'd strike coral with the propellers and likely damage the keels and rudders in the process. In water this shallow, we could have jumped in and pushed the boat and I was pretty sure we'd need to before we got out of this jam. Kathy suggested we begin by pulling the boat upwind to deeper water by hauling in on the stern anchor. It was not easy to hand over hand the line pulling the boat backward into the wind and several times we'd stop and hold our breath as the boat swung dangerously close to the shoal coral heads. Literally, at the end of our rope and over the top of the stern anchor we hauled the anchor aboard and I jumped to the controls and gingerly engaged the engines swinging the boat for deeper water. Expecting at any moment to hear a disastrous crunching noise, we somehow escaped the shallows.
After the anger subsided, I was feeling really disappointed. My fundamental faith in the goodness of my fellow man and specifically the exalted status in which I held South Pacific islanders was forever tarnished. I sure didn't like the disconcerting implications this might have. My subconscious mind would surely hold on to this treasonous act and might it subtly effect my faith in humanity? What thoughts might pass through my head the next time I lay down to sleep tied to the many wharfs in my future?
We headed to town to do a little shopping and I kept looking in to the kind eyes of the locals we pass and silently wondered is this the guy? I knew we'd need to sail from Makemo and put this experience in our wake as soon as possible.
Manaspot internet service is down and internet access is not available at the Post Office computer terminals nor via WIFI into the anchorage. Pre-paid access cards were available at the Post Office. Internet access IS available in town at the restaurant and pizza place next to the big grocery store. We found the large grocery store to be extremely well stocked and nearly equal in selection to those grocery stores found in the Marquesas. Gasoline and Diesel are available with diesel running 168xpf per liter. OUCH!(~$7USD/Gallon) A free ride was offered to get our jugs back to the wharf.
On a more positive note, we made three drift dives through Passe Arikitamiro with our friend Henrick from s/v Misty. We found the eastern side of the pass more diverse and interesting.
We need to get underway, so that's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchored: 16°37.6288 S 143°34.2174 W
Friday night, med moored to the Pouheva Wharf here at Makemo, was a bit noisy. As in much of French Polynesia, the town Wharf seems to be a popular late night hangout for locals. Several groups of revelers definitely brought the party with boom boxes thumping out everything from techno to 80's glam rock. Early in the evening a small rock skittered along the deck of LightSpeed, which I was not happy about, but just decided to ignore and go back to sleep. Around 12:30AM the party showing increasing vigor and volume woke me up, so I blocked out the noise with some ear plugs and got back to sleep. Around 3:30 AM, Kathy who was up for a bathroom break and gave an urgent shout that "the bow lines had been cut" (the ones securing LightSpeed to the Wharf) and that we were in grave danger of grounding on a reef.
Adrenaline pumping and with no time to even put on a few clothes, Kathy and I quickly surveyed the surrounding shoals and I got the engines running. Luckily, we weren't aground and had fetched up on the stern anchor. We were nearly surround by shallow coral patches, many of which were awash and extremely dangerous. I was afraid to maneuver under power as it was certain that we'd strike coral with the propellers and likely damage the keels and rudders in the process. In water this shallow, we could have jumped in and pushed the boat and I was pretty sure we'd need to before we got out of this jam. Kathy suggested we begin by pulling the boat upwind to deeper water by hauling in on the stern anchor. It was not easy to hand over hand the line pulling the boat backward into the wind and several times we'd stop and hold our breath as the boat swung dangerously close to the shoal coral heads. Literally, at the end of our rope and over the top of the stern anchor we hauled the anchor aboard and I jumped to the controls and gingerly engaged the engines swinging the boat for deeper water. Expecting at any moment to hear a disastrous crunching noise, we somehow escaped the shallows.
After the anger subsided, I was feeling really disappointed. My fundamental faith in the goodness of my fellow man and specifically the exalted status in which I held South Pacific islanders was forever tarnished. I sure didn't like the disconcerting implications this might have. My subconscious mind would surely hold on to this treasonous act and might it subtly effect my faith in humanity? What thoughts might pass through my head the next time I lay down to sleep tied to the many wharfs in my future?
We headed to town to do a little shopping and I kept looking in to the kind eyes of the locals we pass and silently wondered is this the guy? I knew we'd need to sail from Makemo and put this experience in our wake as soon as possible.
Manaspot internet service is down and internet access is not available at the Post Office computer terminals nor via WIFI into the anchorage. Pre-paid access cards were available at the Post Office. Internet access IS available in town at the restaurant and pizza place next to the big grocery store. We found the large grocery store to be extremely well stocked and nearly equal in selection to those grocery stores found in the Marquesas. Gasoline and Diesel are available with diesel running 168xpf per liter. OUCH!(~$7USD/Gallon) A free ride was offered to get our jugs back to the wharf.
On a more positive note, we made three drift dives through Passe Arikitamiro with our friend Henrick from s/v Misty. We found the eastern side of the pass more diverse and interesting.
We need to get underway, so that's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Friday, July 06, 2012
Raroia to Makemo med moor
July 6, 2012
Makemo Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Med moored to Pouheva Wharf: 16°37.5696 S 143°34.1518 W
We had a great sail yesterday from Raroia to Makemo. The first half was mostly a spinnaker run and the second half a very comfortable beam reach with speeds hitting 9 knots in only 16 knots of true wind. We arrived at Passe Arkitamiro a little before three, with the sun behind us it was easy to line up on the range markers and ride the 3 knot flood tide into the lagoon. Good thing as our chart for this area has zero detail. Once inside we found our friend Henrick aboard s/v Misty, sailed by to say hi, and then med moored to the huge new pier at the village of Pouheva. The pier extends from shore to the South and provides pretty good protection from wind chop from the North to East to South. LightSpeed is med moored head to the pier with the stern anchor well set in the bright white sand. Within minutes of getting the boat secured a large contingent of kids gathered on the pier keeping us entertained with all sorts of antics, dives and flips into the water, the boys imitating TV wrestler moves, kids fishing and kids paddling an old wind surf board like it's an outrigger canoe. Lots of locals have also been walking, riding bikes and some even driving their trucks by to check out the new arrivals.
Kathy went for a swim and encountered a big bulky Grey shark in the shallow waters.
It was reported that internet from a MANA hotspot was available on the pier, but we were not able to pick up the signal even with our mast mounted 15dbi omni directional WIFI antenna. We hope we can find a connection ashore to upload a few photos from the latest adventures.
Thursday, July 05, 2012
Raroia, Tuamotu - Kon-Tiki island - Pass drift - 4th of July party
July 5, 2012
Raroia Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
Giant Clam... this is a small one.
Motu where Kon-Tiki raft crashed shucking Giant clams with locals Tatiana adn Regis.
Kathy paddling a outrigger canoe.
We've been sharing lots of new adventures with our friends aboard s/v AUD hailing from Oslo, Norway (Previously, I called this boat s/v Peace, Love and Happiness erroneously as that slogan is prominently displayed on the hull, but on the stern it says s/v AUD. Anyway, the three Norwegian crew (Lasse, Mario and Chris) were keen to check out the Kon-Tiki crash site and our friends Regis and Tatiana offered to take us over to the motu in their panga. After checking out the monument we walked 200 yards in ankle deep water toward the seaward edge of the reef and since it was a really low tide we could nearly walk to the literal edge where the surf pounded with great furry. Kivahei the nine year old daughter of Regis and Tatiana walked the shallow reef with Kathy and I while we did a little shelling and found some beautiful cowries and some interesting sea urchin spines. Back on the motu from our walk we did some snorkeling and then Tatiana, armed with a huge screw driver, swam around and pried a half dozen of the beautiful Giant clams out of the reef. I would have preferred to enjoy their beauty amongst the coral, but Tatiana really enjoys eating these, so she shucked a few clams and we all got a taste. The abductor muscle was crisp and crunchy like a lightly salted fresh vegetable with a sweet flavor. The taste and texture was similar to Caribbean conch, but much more delicate and tender.
Next on the agenda was a few drift snorkels through the pass on the flood tide then the Norwegian guys did a scuba dive on the reef on the North side of the pass. Kathy, Kivahei and I joined the guys in the water and could easily see them at their maximum depth of 31 meters. I did a few free dives closer to shore where I found the bottom at 19 meters (62 feet). Then we wrapped up the swimming with another drift through the pass. Lots of grey reef sharks, grouper, parrot fish and absolutely huge Cubera snapper (very likely to be ciguatoxic). The current was running around 4 knots making for an amazing ride where you'd zip past the fish before they had time to notice your approach and take cover. One grey reef shark got a little annoyed when I dove down 12 meters (40 feet) and then the current pushed both me and shark along the bottom for quite a distance in very close proximity. Grey reef sharks are known to be territorial and when I surfaced the shark bolted from the bottom and zipped within about 2 meters (6 feet). Yikes!
We organized yet another party at Regis and Tatianas' home to BBQ some chicken and fish, this one under the pretext of 4th of July. Regis and Tatiana are great hosts and their friendship added a tremendous dimension to our stay at Raroia. We were sad to go, but the clock is starting to tick, tick and tock towards the impending cyclone season. We've still a long way to go this season and many new adventures ahead of us and not enough time.
The alarm sounded at 2:50AM this morning (July 5) and we reluctantly crawled out of bed to get the boat underway for Makemo, an 80 nautical mile sail. We had much debate about either going overnight (i.e leaving in the evening and sailing all night) or getting up at 3AM to sail a few hours in dark and then arrive just before dark. Since we were very familiar with the pass at Raroia we opted to use the full moon and take the little extra risk of leaving in the dark. Even with local knowledge a bright moon light and most of the navigational aids with working lights, it was still a little nerve racking moving around the lagoon in the dark. Several of the red channel lights were out and not a single green light was showing as we motored through the coral heads and pushed into the incoming current. Once into the deep water we decided to be lazy and motor-sail with just the jib until day light when we'd hoist the spinnaker. At the moment we are rounding the northern end of Taenga atoll and will soon douse the spinnaker as we turn to port bringing the apparent wind abreast of the beam for the remaining 32 nautical miles to Makemo. Looking toward the reef on Taenga I can see the hull of a wrecked sailboat high on the reef near 16°17.6' S 143°10.2' W which would be fun to check out, but Taenga only has a small boat pass (not navigable by a sailboat per Regis) and given our tight sailing schedule for today I can't drop sail to take a closer look. The wreck must be quite old given it's location far up on the reef ledge, indicating to me that it's been driven further ashore by several subsequent storms.
That's it for now.
Raroia Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
Next on the agenda was a few drift snorkels through the pass on the flood tide then the Norwegian guys did a scuba dive on the reef on the North side of the pass. Kathy, Kivahei and I joined the guys in the water and could easily see them at their maximum depth of 31 meters. I did a few free dives closer to shore where I found the bottom at 19 meters (62 feet). Then we wrapped up the swimming with another drift through the pass. Lots of grey reef sharks, grouper, parrot fish and absolutely huge Cubera snapper (very likely to be ciguatoxic). The current was running around 4 knots making for an amazing ride where you'd zip past the fish before they had time to notice your approach and take cover. One grey reef shark got a little annoyed when I dove down 12 meters (40 feet) and then the current pushed both me and shark along the bottom for quite a distance in very close proximity. Grey reef sharks are known to be territorial and when I surfaced the shark bolted from the bottom and zipped within about 2 meters (6 feet). Yikes!
We organized yet another party at Regis and Tatianas' home to BBQ some chicken and fish, this one under the pretext of 4th of July. Regis and Tatiana are great hosts and their friendship added a tremendous dimension to our stay at Raroia. We were sad to go, but the clock is starting to tick, tick and tock towards the impending cyclone season. We've still a long way to go this season and many new adventures ahead of us and not enough time.
The alarm sounded at 2:50AM this morning (July 5) and we reluctantly crawled out of bed to get the boat underway for Makemo, an 80 nautical mile sail. We had much debate about either going overnight (i.e leaving in the evening and sailing all night) or getting up at 3AM to sail a few hours in dark and then arrive just before dark. Since we were very familiar with the pass at Raroia we opted to use the full moon and take the little extra risk of leaving in the dark. Even with local knowledge a bright moon light and most of the navigational aids with working lights, it was still a little nerve racking moving around the lagoon in the dark. Several of the red channel lights were out and not a single green light was showing as we motored through the coral heads and pushed into the incoming current. Once into the deep water we decided to be lazy and motor-sail with just the jib until day light when we'd hoist the spinnaker. At the moment we are rounding the northern end of Taenga atoll and will soon douse the spinnaker as we turn to port bringing the apparent wind abreast of the beam for the remaining 32 nautical miles to Makemo. Looking toward the reef on Taenga I can see the hull of a wrecked sailboat high on the reef near 16°17.6' S 143°10.2' W which would be fun to check out, but Taenga only has a small boat pass (not navigable by a sailboat per Regis) and given our tight sailing schedule for today I can't drop sail to take a closer look. The wreck must be quite old given it's location far up on the reef ledge, indicating to me that it's been driven further ashore by several subsequent storms.
That's it for now.
Wednesday, July 04, 2012
Raroia, Tuamotu - Kon-Tiki and more Snorkeling
July 4, 2012
Raroia Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
Yesterday was a lazy day of reading, reading and then more reading. I polished off the 600 page 'Matterhorn - A novel of the Vietnam war by Karl Marlantes' definitely the best war novel I've ever read. I also recently read '1491 - New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus by Charels C. Mann' and 'The Wave by Susan Casey both of which would get two thumbs up as well.
Today we're headed to the motu where Thor Heyerdahl's craft, Kon-Tiki ended it's voyage when it crashed onto Raroia atolls Eastern reef. Regis will be taking us in his panga as well as the three young Norwegian guys aboard s/v Peace, Love and Happiness. After the Kon-Tiki we'll head over to the pass for some more drift diving and snorkeling on the outside wall.
That's it for now.
Raroia Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
Yesterday was a lazy day of reading, reading and then more reading. I polished off the 600 page 'Matterhorn - A novel of the Vietnam war by Karl Marlantes' definitely the best war novel I've ever read. I also recently read '1491 - New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus by Charels C. Mann' and 'The Wave by Susan Casey both of which would get two thumbs up as well.
Today we're headed to the motu where Thor Heyerdahl's craft, Kon-Tiki ended it's voyage when it crashed onto Raroia atolls Eastern reef. Regis will be taking us in his panga as well as the three young Norwegian guys aboard s/v Peace, Love and Happiness. After the Kon-Tiki we'll head over to the pass for some more drift diving and snorkeling on the outside wall.
That's it for now.
Tuesday, July 03, 2012
Raroia, Tuamotu - Snorkeling drift through pass
July 3, 2012
Raroia Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
In the morning Kathy took our stand up paddle board (SUP) for a paddle around the lagoon and then to Regis and Tatianas house. Tatiana revealed the secret of a delicious sauce that goes great on fish, rice or vegetables.
Tatiana's secret sauce
4T Goldun brand brown mustard
1T sugar
1t Splash of Vinegar
2T Magie sauce
Diced Garlic to taste (2 cloves)
~2 cups Vegetable oil
Mix all ingredients then slowly power whisk or blend in oil with a mixer.
The local kids were enamored with the SUP board and before the day was over I think nearly everyone took it for a spin in the lagoon. Regis and Tatiana picked us up around noon for a snorkel trip to the pass where we dropped in outside and was carried by the current through the pass. With a strong flood tide running it was really an exhilarating trip to whip past the coral and fish at 4 knots. Water clarity was superb on the flooding tide. We made two drifts and then headed back for an afternoon of hanging in the lagoon on various boats. We hailed a local boy who was out paddling a pirogue outrigger canoe and Kathy took a few spins and only flipped over four times! It's evidently a lot harder than it looks. Later we had a fish beach BBQ at Regis and Tatianas wrapping up a great day.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Raroia Atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
In the morning Kathy took our stand up paddle board (SUP) for a paddle around the lagoon and then to Regis and Tatianas house. Tatiana revealed the secret of a delicious sauce that goes great on fish, rice or vegetables.
Tatiana's secret sauce
4T Goldun brand brown mustard
1T sugar
1t Splash of Vinegar
2T Magie sauce
Diced Garlic to taste (2 cloves)
~2 cups Vegetable oil
Mix all ingredients then slowly power whisk or blend in oil with a mixer.
The local kids were enamored with the SUP board and before the day was over I think nearly everyone took it for a spin in the lagoon. Regis and Tatiana picked us up around noon for a snorkel trip to the pass where we dropped in outside and was carried by the current through the pass. With a strong flood tide running it was really an exhilarating trip to whip past the coral and fish at 4 knots. Water clarity was superb on the flooding tide. We made two drifts and then headed back for an afternoon of hanging in the lagoon on various boats. We hailed a local boy who was out paddling a pirogue outrigger canoe and Kathy took a few spins and only flipped over four times! It's evidently a lot harder than it looks. Later we had a fish beach BBQ at Regis and Tatianas wrapping up a great day.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Monday, July 02, 2012
Raroia, Tuamotu - The trouble with anchoring at Atolls. Varo lobster.
July 2, 2012
Raroia atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
Weather information indicated that the wind might shift from SE to E to NE and maybe even N, so we'd need to move to the other side of the lagoon. More than anything I was just eager to explore more of the lagoons uncharted waters and remote motus.
In the 'Google' age, few things are unknown, taking an element of fun out of exploring off the beaten path. However, sailing where there are no nautical charts provides adventure, heightening the senses to avoid perils and mishaps. There are no guarantees that after you get tire of playing Captain Cook that a nice anchorage will be waiting to drop the hook for lunch. This is the problem with the uncharted interiors of many of the atoll lagoons, unless you stick to the guide book, you always have to search around for a place to anchor.
Anchoring is doubly difficult if you're expecting a major wind shift from SE to N. The problem is the innumerable coral heads on the bottom of the lagoon and shifting winds will surely drag the chain around damaging the coral and likely permanently fouling the chain. When I say fouling the chain I mean it will get so tangled and jammed in the coral as to be irretrievably lost requiring it to be cut off. The short term result of being fouled is a reduction in scope (ratio of depth of water to length of chain deployed) and resulting reduction in 'cantenary' (curve in the chain) that absorbs much of the shock loads from waves and wind. In the worst case scenario the chain could break suddenly and the boat ground, being lost on a shoal. So, clearly finding a good place to anchor is critical, especially when you are far from a helping hand.
The central lagoon is about 60 meters deep and near the edges 25 meters from which point there is usually a steep sand slope that quickly reduces the depth to 3 meters and then there might be a substantial sand flat with 1 to 3 meter depths, but this area is studded with coral outcrops reducing the effective depth to near zero. If you anchor in 25 meters and foul your chain, there is no way to free dive down and have enough bottom time to get any work done. If you need to cut the chain at this depth you lose lots of chain. So, anchoring in 25 meters is definitely out. So we try to anchor on top of the sand slope so the anchor is in shallow water and the chain and boat hangs out over deep water where the chain can't get fouled. This technique requires steady predictable winds as a big wind shift will have the boat in the 1-3 meter shoals with damaging coral heads. So, our approach is to try to find an anomaly that allows us to anchor in 15 meters or less, have swing room and avoid tangling coral heads. This is very hard to find. We did find two such areas on the SE side of the lagoon (GPS locations indicated in previous posts). In each case there was a secondary shoal reef that angled away from the primary reef edge. The intervening space between the shoals had a gradual slope and more moderate water depths in the sub 15 meter range. The added benefit of the secondary reef is that in a major wind shifts this reef would provide protection from wind driven chop for an entire quadrant of the compass. Finding these anomalies is not easy and after more than an hour scouring the reef edge on the North side of the lagoon pass without success we headed back to the main village anchorage.
Regis and Tatiana and their daughter Kivahei saw us sailing by and launched their panga to pay us a visit and invite us to dinner. So, we headed in for dinner around 5PM and enjoyed a beautiful evening sitting on their beachfront. Regis showed me how to properly split a coconut with an ax and we lit a few dried coconut husks with some kerosene to provide some fragrant smoke to deter mosquitos. The trick with the coconuts is to start a small fire with the dry husks then burn a ripe coconut with a thick layer of oily coconut meat for the nice aroma.
We discussed fishing at length with an emphasis on wading for lobster on the reef edge at night. The most productive times being during a new moon when the tide is just beginning to flood and the same evening as the tide begins to ebb. Lobsters come up from the deeper waters on the edge of the reef to forage on the flats. By wading with a bright light (preferably a Coleman gas lantern) the lobsters can be visually located and picked up by hand. Regis said on a good night he could harvest 50 kilos on a remote edge of the reef (for export to Tahiti). He noted that the reefs close to the village were fished out. We also discussed fishing for Varo, a lobster like creature that burrows into soft sand. Once a prospective lair is located visually be seeing a hole in the sand, the test is to touch the hole and if it collapses revealing a larger hole you have a Varo lair. Dangling a baited hook, squid jib type hooks or up to seven small conventional hooks, over the hole while splashing the water above, the Varo will emerge to the baited hook and grasp it tightly allowing capture. The tail of the creature is highly prized table fare. We look forward to finding a suitable atoll to try for a Varo. Apparently, Raroia is not so ideal as the sand is too consolidated and the Varo prefer softer sand.
Today we've planned an outing with Regis, Tatiana and Kivahei aboard their boat to swim at the pass, visit their motu across the lagoon and do some free boarding which is riding a surf board while being towed by the boat.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Raroia atoll, Tuamotu, French Polynesia, South Pacific Ocean
Anchorage Position near Village: 16°02.4156'S 142°28.2738'W
Weather information indicated that the wind might shift from SE to E to NE and maybe even N, so we'd need to move to the other side of the lagoon. More than anything I was just eager to explore more of the lagoons uncharted waters and remote motus.
In the 'Google' age, few things are unknown, taking an element of fun out of exploring off the beaten path. However, sailing where there are no nautical charts provides adventure, heightening the senses to avoid perils and mishaps. There are no guarantees that after you get tire of playing Captain Cook that a nice anchorage will be waiting to drop the hook for lunch. This is the problem with the uncharted interiors of many of the atoll lagoons, unless you stick to the guide book, you always have to search around for a place to anchor.
Anchoring is doubly difficult if you're expecting a major wind shift from SE to N. The problem is the innumerable coral heads on the bottom of the lagoon and shifting winds will surely drag the chain around damaging the coral and likely permanently fouling the chain. When I say fouling the chain I mean it will get so tangled and jammed in the coral as to be irretrievably lost requiring it to be cut off. The short term result of being fouled is a reduction in scope (ratio of depth of water to length of chain deployed) and resulting reduction in 'cantenary' (curve in the chain) that absorbs much of the shock loads from waves and wind. In the worst case scenario the chain could break suddenly and the boat ground, being lost on a shoal. So, clearly finding a good place to anchor is critical, especially when you are far from a helping hand.
The central lagoon is about 60 meters deep and near the edges 25 meters from which point there is usually a steep sand slope that quickly reduces the depth to 3 meters and then there might be a substantial sand flat with 1 to 3 meter depths, but this area is studded with coral outcrops reducing the effective depth to near zero. If you anchor in 25 meters and foul your chain, there is no way to free dive down and have enough bottom time to get any work done. If you need to cut the chain at this depth you lose lots of chain. So, anchoring in 25 meters is definitely out. So we try to anchor on top of the sand slope so the anchor is in shallow water and the chain and boat hangs out over deep water where the chain can't get fouled. This technique requires steady predictable winds as a big wind shift will have the boat in the 1-3 meter shoals with damaging coral heads. So, our approach is to try to find an anomaly that allows us to anchor in 15 meters or less, have swing room and avoid tangling coral heads. This is very hard to find. We did find two such areas on the SE side of the lagoon (GPS locations indicated in previous posts). In each case there was a secondary shoal reef that angled away from the primary reef edge. The intervening space between the shoals had a gradual slope and more moderate water depths in the sub 15 meter range. The added benefit of the secondary reef is that in a major wind shifts this reef would provide protection from wind driven chop for an entire quadrant of the compass. Finding these anomalies is not easy and after more than an hour scouring the reef edge on the North side of the lagoon pass without success we headed back to the main village anchorage.
Regis and Tatiana and their daughter Kivahei saw us sailing by and launched their panga to pay us a visit and invite us to dinner. So, we headed in for dinner around 5PM and enjoyed a beautiful evening sitting on their beachfront. Regis showed me how to properly split a coconut with an ax and we lit a few dried coconut husks with some kerosene to provide some fragrant smoke to deter mosquitos. The trick with the coconuts is to start a small fire with the dry husks then burn a ripe coconut with a thick layer of oily coconut meat for the nice aroma.
We discussed fishing at length with an emphasis on wading for lobster on the reef edge at night. The most productive times being during a new moon when the tide is just beginning to flood and the same evening as the tide begins to ebb. Lobsters come up from the deeper waters on the edge of the reef to forage on the flats. By wading with a bright light (preferably a Coleman gas lantern) the lobsters can be visually located and picked up by hand. Regis said on a good night he could harvest 50 kilos on a remote edge of the reef (for export to Tahiti). He noted that the reefs close to the village were fished out. We also discussed fishing for Varo, a lobster like creature that burrows into soft sand. Once a prospective lair is located visually be seeing a hole in the sand, the test is to touch the hole and if it collapses revealing a larger hole you have a Varo lair. Dangling a baited hook, squid jib type hooks or up to seven small conventional hooks, over the hole while splashing the water above, the Varo will emerge to the baited hook and grasp it tightly allowing capture. The tail of the creature is highly prized table fare. We look forward to finding a suitable atoll to try for a Varo. Apparently, Raroia is not so ideal as the sand is too consolidated and the Varo prefer softer sand.
Today we've planned an outing with Regis, Tatiana and Kivahei aboard their boat to swim at the pass, visit their motu across the lagoon and do some free boarding which is riding a surf board while being towed by the boat.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Sunday, July 01, 2012
Raroia, Tuamotu - Giant clams
July 1, 2012
Raroia, Tuamotu
Anchorage position: 16°13.8546 S 142°27.4837 W
With twenty Blacktip reef sharks circling the boat yesterday morning, we weren't going swimming even to the nearby reef. So we loaded the dinghy with all of our gear and set out to explore a more distant location to the southeast. The snorkeling was really nice. The standout creature on the reef had to be the giant clams in the genus Tridacna. These colorful clams are usually found embedded or burrowed into the coral and are extremely abundant. Exhibiting brightly colored lips in electric blue, cannery yellow, taupe browns, ruby reds and psychedelic purples, they add a dimension not commonly found. These slow growing creatures have been heavily exploited worldwide as the abductor muscle garners considerable sums in Asia as an aphrodisiac. Snorkeling in an unexploited area you gain a real appreciation of the beauty of these amazing creatures which might number half a dozen in just one small coral head the size of a coffee table.
On virgin reefs big groupers and other large tasty fish, unaccustomed to spear fishing, curiously followed us around. One big fat black grouper was tempting me a bit when he swam directly under the dinghy with me in chase with the video camera. I almost stopped filming and speared him as it would have been so easy and with very little risk of sharks getting too interested. I could have quickly transfered the bleeding fish to the dingy without a long swim with a struggling fish and bloody scent trail. As the thought was crossing my mind and as if sensing my intention to let the spear find it's mark, several sharks showed up on the scene and started circling. With the hunter now becoming the hunted, my interest in the kill was subdued and I was happy to keep my eyes on the sleek silent circling hunters. I kept filming and when a most curious shark closed within six feet I waved my spear in his face of which he took no notice. A few minutes later I gave Kathy the shark sign, you know when you put your hand on top of your head like a shark fin, and we met up to discuss our comfort level with the steadily increasing number of sharks. About this time an individual darted by at high speed prompting us to make a quick decision to exit the water for a new location with less sharks.
After our snorkel we explored a nearby motu and when pushing the dinghy back in the water, the bottom grated on the beach and sharks came out of nowhere darting close to the dinghy. We did a few experiments to see what attracted the sharks. Splashing a foot in the water at a very fast cadence attracted attention, something to keep in mind next time you go swimming with out fins and are kicking hard! The sharks seemed most interested in the grating sound made by the aluminum dinghy bottom, so now we'll take more care in watching our feet when launching the dinghy in shallow water. These sharks can shoot in at an alarming speed.
The weather has been delightfully cool with overnight temperatures dipping into the high seventies which is super comfortable compared to the sweaty mid eighties found in the Marquess. We even broke out a light fleece blanket, but that ends up being too much and ends up kicked to the bottom of the bed before long.
Today we'll move about twelve nautical miles to the Northwest toward the lagoon pass for some snorkeling on the outside of the reef.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Raroia, Tuamotu
Anchorage position: 16°13.8546 S 142°27.4837 W
With twenty Blacktip reef sharks circling the boat yesterday morning, we weren't going swimming even to the nearby reef. So we loaded the dinghy with all of our gear and set out to explore a more distant location to the southeast. The snorkeling was really nice. The standout creature on the reef had to be the giant clams in the genus Tridacna. These colorful clams are usually found embedded or burrowed into the coral and are extremely abundant. Exhibiting brightly colored lips in electric blue, cannery yellow, taupe browns, ruby reds and psychedelic purples, they add a dimension not commonly found. These slow growing creatures have been heavily exploited worldwide as the abductor muscle garners considerable sums in Asia as an aphrodisiac. Snorkeling in an unexploited area you gain a real appreciation of the beauty of these amazing creatures which might number half a dozen in just one small coral head the size of a coffee table.
On virgin reefs big groupers and other large tasty fish, unaccustomed to spear fishing, curiously followed us around. One big fat black grouper was tempting me a bit when he swam directly under the dinghy with me in chase with the video camera. I almost stopped filming and speared him as it would have been so easy and with very little risk of sharks getting too interested. I could have quickly transfered the bleeding fish to the dingy without a long swim with a struggling fish and bloody scent trail. As the thought was crossing my mind and as if sensing my intention to let the spear find it's mark, several sharks showed up on the scene and started circling. With the hunter now becoming the hunted, my interest in the kill was subdued and I was happy to keep my eyes on the sleek silent circling hunters. I kept filming and when a most curious shark closed within six feet I waved my spear in his face of which he took no notice. A few minutes later I gave Kathy the shark sign, you know when you put your hand on top of your head like a shark fin, and we met up to discuss our comfort level with the steadily increasing number of sharks. About this time an individual darted by at high speed prompting us to make a quick decision to exit the water for a new location with less sharks.
After our snorkel we explored a nearby motu and when pushing the dinghy back in the water, the bottom grated on the beach and sharks came out of nowhere darting close to the dinghy. We did a few experiments to see what attracted the sharks. Splashing a foot in the water at a very fast cadence attracted attention, something to keep in mind next time you go swimming with out fins and are kicking hard! The sharks seemed most interested in the grating sound made by the aluminum dinghy bottom, so now we'll take more care in watching our feet when launching the dinghy in shallow water. These sharks can shoot in at an alarming speed.
The weather has been delightfully cool with overnight temperatures dipping into the high seventies which is super comfortable compared to the sweaty mid eighties found in the Marquess. We even broke out a light fleece blanket, but that ends up being too much and ends up kicked to the bottom of the bed before long.
Today we'll move about twelve nautical miles to the Northwest toward the lagoon pass for some snorkeling on the outside of the reef.
That's it for now.
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)