Videos from the Marquesas - Tahuata Island

Closeup of Manta Ray

Sailing along side SV Paje

Dolphins Along the Way

Moorea Island - French Polynesia

Sailing to Moorea

Fire Dancing in Moorea

Sting Rays in Moorea

Break from the rain in Bora Bora -

Washed laundry (again!!) with the rainwater this morning, then gorgeous sunny day, so we made it to the fuel dock, grocery store, then long dinghy ride to swim with sting rays and sharks all by 9 am!! Then the pool, back for lunch, just winding down when our friends on a kid boat Litorina, from Sweden, pulled in! So back to the pool we go!!! I think we're going to sleep well again tonight!!!

Cassidy playing volleyball in Huahine! She uses her tongue as a counterbalance . . .

Good Catch, Shannon!!

Cassidy Internetting at the marina in Bora Bora while the kids swim. We think she likes it here.

Rain

Got some swimming time at the pool today between rain. Lots and lots of rain today!! Filled both bilges and the 33 gallon drum in the cockpit, finally had to turn our hoses out onto the decks, we are full!!!

Back to Bora Bora

We made it to Bora Bora today, lots of boats doing the crossing with us it seemed. We could see 6 boats as we entered the pass. But it worked out great, good winds, sailed the whole way, and we were able to get a mooring ball when we arrived. The kids are in the pool at the MaiKai marina and I get free Wi-Fi time!! Yep, we are still OK.

Learning now how to de-stink pearls. Apparently there's a black oozing decomposing natural organic material from some pearls that you find when you drill them to make jewelry. "Natural" jewels come with their own issues, and they are sensitive to bleach, etc. Baking soda was ineffective for me; I can't wear my favorite necklace I made because of the stench. So after my research today, it appears I'm moving on to hydrogen peroxide attempts. See the things we learn out here??

Rescuing the Outrigger between Huahine and Raiatea

Found a floating outrigger between the islands of Huahine and Raiatea, so Cassidy jumped in, bailed it out, and we retrieved it onto our boat. (Not easy, sort of rough seas). Then we went to Raiatea, but had a rough night with winds of 25 knots blowing us right onto the dock, so we left this morning and are now at the coral gardens of Tahaa planning to snorkel with the tons of fish!! 

Oh, and a bonus, Courage was bit by an eel this morning in Raiatea who took a small chunk out of his finger. He was checking to see if they bite. And they do.

Wolf blending in nicely with our crew.

Courage and Cassidy pulling in the outrigger

Wolf with the outrigger at the ward in Raiatea

Tahaa -

The wind is here!

So after the crossing from Huahine we saw one of our buddy boats, Albion, and decided to tie to the city dock.  When we tied up, there was about 15 knots blowing us onto the dock, but as the evening wore on, the wind increased to 20 to 25 knots, and we were pinned to the dock.  Our fenders were squished flat and it was a sleepless night!

The morning looked no better, and the weather forecast showed no improvement for the next 4 days.  We had to leave.  We first tried pulling the bow of the boat off the dock with the dingy.  But no!  Finally we put the dingy between the hulls and used it like a tug, which worked great.  So with the motor from the boat powering the stern off the dock, and the dingy powering the bow off, we were able to get the boat off the dock and then pointed into the wind. It worked perfect!!!

Now we are over at the coral gardens of Tahaa, enjoying drift dives over the coral. As we were drifting a Moray eel came out to see if we had brought a treat for him.  He was about 6 feet!  I had some bread, and tried to feed him, but the little fishes would just eat it.  Earlier today I had checked if the local 'sacred' fresh water eels would bite, and actually lost a chunk of my ring finger!  Weird!  Oh, and Wolfie, (now called Woofie) said that was the first time he dove with something bigger then himself.  Just wait for the sharks and Mantas of Bora Bora!!!

Until next time!!

Courage

At The Island of Huahine

Hello, we are doing well here in Huahine.  It's been gorgeous with scattered rain showers.

We set up our volleyball net in south Huahine and played many, many games with our friends on Paje as well as more often than not, we were joined by locals.  We had some fun games, and there was a big grassy field for the kids to play.

It was a total surprise, but our friend Paul from the motu on the other side of the island came over in his outrigger.  I don't think he knew we were there; he was just out to visit with boats.  Maybe there were no boats on his side??  And he really seems to enjoy the company of other people.  He brought a book to sign.  We gave him a gift of a headlamp, fed him some lasagna for lunch, and then went to play.  He took our paddleboard out for a run while we took turns on his outrigger for spins.  It was great!  Wolfie got to try it, then Cassidy.  Both did great, I took some pictures, then Cassidy went to the front of our boat for a spin and I saw the bottom of the outrigger, I have no idea what happened there, but of course I went to get pictures as she recovered!!  I went for a spin and flipped just as I was getting into it from the dinghy.  Smooth after that.  Then we all went to shore for a game of volleyball.

This morning, Wolfie and I went for a snorkel after he helped Courage with some tasks replacing the pulley on the top of the main, etc.  We saw a bunch of stuff, and then had a nice time playing onshore while the kids swam.

We came up to the top of Huahine, to the town of Fare during lunchtime.  Kids went to the beach with Courage while I made pearl necklaces, a bracelet and even a pair of earrings, as well as made dinner.  After dinner we went to the dinghy dock, a short walk from there is a store with ice cream!!  So we got ice cream for dessert!!  A rare treat when you don't have a freezer!

We came home, read a story, and then watched an episode of Wipeout.  We enjoy those as a wind down in the evening.

So, we are doing well here.  Going to bed.  In the next day or two, we are going to make our run across to Raiatea where we were docked at the public wharf for a few days last visit.  It's only 20 miles, but there were predicted big winds tomorrow afternoon.  Each prediction thereafter seems to be less and less, so we shall see, but it's a short jump and will be weather dependent.

Loving having our marine radio back in action.  Looking forward to a good night's sleep!

Shannon

Back to Honeymoon Beach

After a pleasant time in Tahiti it was time to start working our way west again.  We left early in the afternoon, with almost no wind. We motor-sailed for a while, and then sailed for a few hours, before the wind died again. Around Midnight we got a nice squall of a little over 20 knots. Our speed increased to around 10 knots and we were enjoying some night sailing when I heard the dreaded sound of a small piece of metal hitting the deck. The biggest fear is that it is one of the tiny pins that attach the shrouds to the mast.  I was unable to find where the piece of metal came from.

Then came the pounding on the cockpit roof! A quick inspection and it became clear that we had lost the pin that holds up half the lazy jack system.  Half the sail-cover and the lazy jack system were flapping in the breeze.  We hooked up a spare halyard to the lazy jack and were able to Mickey-Mouse it back together again.

Now we are back at Honeymoon beach enjoying volleyball with our friends from Paje, and some of the locals.

We are having a great time here!!

Courage