South Fakarava - A Highlight in the Tuamotus?

People told us that in the month of April, the weather in the Tuamotus would improve. People also told us that the south part of Fakarava is very nice and a must-see in this archipelago. People were right on both accounts! The weather has been perfect the last week and a bit: sunny skies, and a constant breeze of about 15 knots out of the east. And south Fakarava? It is a wonderful and beautiful place to be and every morning I wake up and I look outside, a smile as bright as the sunlight appears and I am eager to start the day… Let us be reminded how great it can be to live on a sailboat in the South Pacific!

Some of the motus on our horizon

We left the remote eastern anchorage of the atoll a few days ago and had a fun and fast sail over to the south part. Irie flew on a beam reach in the flat lagoon water and arrived on the southern end around noon, a perfect time to see all the coral heads scattered around the anchorage SW of the pass. With some concentrated conning, we found a place amongst the dark spots, two connected floats keeping the chain above the coral head closest to Irie, our anchor set well in white sand 16 feet underneath. The water is crystal clear, seven black tip reef sharks constantly circle the boat and the view to shore consists of a string of palm fringed motus with sandy beaches – the first ones we have seen in the Tuamotus. Exploring the waters around them by dinghy makes for fun excursions. Jumping in the water for a shower is always an exciting event.

Part of our resident family of sharks

The main reason people visit this part of Fakarava is to dive or snorkel the pass, where hundreds of sharks reside: white tips, black tips and greys. The visibility is reported to reach 100 feet at times and when we floated by, the abyss and groups of divers were spotted at least 70 feet underneath. It is an eerie and thrilling feeling to see the coral wall go down so deep, where fish turn into little specks and where “tiny” sharks rest on the bottom with their fins spread wide. Everything at those depths looks dull and dark from above and the amount and distance of the sharks we encountered was not exciting enough for me, except, when one approached Mark from behind while he was towing the dinghy. His reaction when I pointed out the grey animal near his feet was classic!

Keep a close eye out!

When we approached the shallower area near shore (where a dive shop and resort are located), it became very interesting. The fish were colorful and abundant, the reefs vibrant and the increased shark population moved about at eye level! Mark stayed at a respectable distance, but how cool it is to snorkel alongside these mellow but vicious looking creatures! For the sake of a picture and a movie, or even without those excuses, it is worth the thrill to swim amongst their midst and I didn’t know where to look first. A place to come back again and again. Even when you wade around in the sandy shallows, the sharks keep you company as if you were their best friend. Families with kids – locals and tourists – don their masks and fins and observe these sharks in their beautiful and natural surroundings.  How many North American parents reading this are raising their eyebrows at this very moment? J

Sharks of the deep blue

And of the not so deep blue

Now, we’re talking!

Don’t wiggle your toes, Mark…

Mark and I are very happy to have come to this place and to finally enjoy ourselves a bit. The location and the atmosphere are inducing to do boat projects and the schedule “work in the morning and play in the afternoon” suits us well. To us, cruising really is “living and working on your boat in exotic places” and for now, while being in a comfortable place, we don’t mind it at all!

Church of the small village of Tetamanu

Abandoned house from the time Tetamanu was the capital of the Tuamotus

Idyllic setting for a resort

Bridge to part of the resort

Turtle in Fakarava’s South pass – at least 50 feet down

Back to our area – motu land!

Clearer water than in the San Blas

Paradise found?

Visiting the motus and their sand banks

Time for our honeymoon… Can we pretend to be rich and stay here?

White tip reef shark

Snorkeling in south Fakarava is gorgeous

Another shark encounter…

(Our excuses for the granular pictures. Blogs are posted via email over crappy 2G connections)

Totegegie, One of the Gambier’s Barrier Islands

Mark and I left our “home base” of Rikitea in the Gambier Islands again for a ten day stint. A lot has happened since then and I will have to spread the stories and the pictures out over a few blogs…

After a last evening on shore in the buzzing metropolis of Rikitea (population 1400 or so), having a BYO cocktail on the beach to watch … moonrise (the sun had disappeared behind the mountain at 4pm), heading back to Irie to grab warmer clothes and having our first FP (French Polynesian) dinner out at a pizzeria, we left for the island of Totegegie, also called “Airport Island”. Guess why? J Before lifting anchor the following morning, however, we had to deal with a couple of local dogs, who kept swimming out to our boat. Were we too friendly to them and did they get a tad attached? And, the eleven baguettes we had ordered (and paid) between SV Pitufa and us were reduced to two, the last ones left at the bakery, when we picked them up… It was time to make and bake our own bread again!

The motor trip to Totegegie was a straightforward one, through a “channel”, only needing to avoid a few coral heads at the end. The anchoring basin was very deep and covered on the bottom with chunks of coral we couldn’t see. Setting the anchor took another 1.5 hours and five tries. For all we know, we might have been hooked to a big rock again and not in sand at the end. Luckily, the wind was pretty steady and from the same direction. In case we would leave the next day, we set out exploring by dinghy immediately, once we were settled and fed.

I just can’t get enough of taking pictures of all the hues of blue and the surrounding islands and reefs. This area is so pretty, and I realize it every sunny day. Mark and I gazed at the coral and the fish from the dinghy, walked one of the beaches and collected coconuts for their water. It mixes well with rum. Once away from the main island of Mangareva, pamplemousse (grapefruit) is harder to obtain and drinking straight rum is not our thing…

We decided to stay a few days and combined chores and food making with some fun. We walked the “road” to the airport, checked out the windward, ocean side of the island, forming the outer reef. It was not very impressive. All we saw was one foot waves crashing over the dead coral. This east side of the archipelago must be the calm side of the Pacific! One day at noon, on the nicest and hottest day since we have been here, we both braved the cold seawater again to go for a snorkel with Birgit and Christian. It was Mark’s first real swim in the Gambier islands. The coral was not very spectacular, but the fish were colorful, big and picturesque. It is always worth diving in with the shorty (wetsuit), but we never last longer than 25 minutes or so.

When the wind was predicted (and actually started) to shift, we decided to move on to Aukena, one of the other islands in the group. That trip didn’t prove to be as easy or quick as expected, even though the shortest distance between starting point and destination was only a couple of miles…

One of the two stray dogs that swam out to us. Now we have to lower the dinghy again and bring him back...

Coconut trees and pine trees along the beach. Time to harvest some nuts!

The windward side of Totegegie and the pounding waves of the Pacific Ocean! On a calm day...

The airport and the airstrip of the Gambier islands (behind the path)

Green papaya salad

Scrumptious coffee cake

Full moon over Totegegie

"Snorkeling" while being in the dinghy! 

On the hottest and calmest day, the water looked like a swimming pool

Some kind of angel fish (these pictures are taken under the water... :-))

Some kind of butterfly fish

Akamaru and Aukena, two of the islands in the Gambier lagoon. I can't get enough of taking pictures of the views while the sky is blue.

Taravai in Pictures

Taravai, one of the islands in the Gambier archipelago, lays a few miles southeast of the main island Mangareva and is about 1/3 of its size. There used to be a tiny village in the past, but now only a handful of people live on the island permanently and they are spread out. The cute, historic church still stands and the grounds are maintained well by the residents. Five reef strewn bays, in which it is possible to anchor, surround the island. To navigate the area, good sunlight and good charts are mandatory. On top of that, you want to find a sandy, coral free spot on the bottom to drop your anchor, and you want to be protected from the existing wind, which changes direction often here.

Other than visiting two local families and braving the cold water for two snorkel sessions (just me), Mark and I bush wacked our way to the top of a hill one day, collecting scratches on every exposed body part. We also baked a lot of things in the oven to stay warm and observed the pretty scenery from Irie’s cockpit, when the sun was shining upon us.

About once a week, a cold front passes over the Gambier Islands. This means that the wind clocks around, sometimes slowly and lightly, sometimes over more time and at higher speed. The only fully protected harbor in the Gambier is the town of Rikitea on Mangareva, so instead of spending a hoped for two weeks in Tarawai, we had to motor for three hours and return to our (and everybody’s) base anchorage after eight days. The positive of this move is that we can splurge on fresh baguettes again, and there should be a supply ship in port “soon”. Each time we inquire in town, it will arrive “demain”… Sounds like mañana. There is always mañana! :-)

Here are some pictures of our “vacation” in the beautiful environs of little Taravai:

Irie all by herself in the southern bay, with Mangareva visible in the cut.

Having a picnic with Birgit and Christian (SV Pitufa) in Onemea Bay, a cold and wet dinghy ride away. Based on the tropical looking location, you won't expect us to wear wetsuits or foul weather gear to stay warm!

Tasty spread for our picnic, with the last baguettes from Rikitea.

Navigating Onemea Bay (and other ones) by dinghy to go around all the shallow coral heads involves standing up and pointing out dark spots

Picturesque island in the southeast corner of Taravai; the dark spots in the foreground are reefs
 

Historic church in Taravai village, built by the Belgian infamous priest Laval

Walking through the well-manicured environs of Taravai "village"

View from Hervé's property in Taravai village

Hervé and his son Alain, near the church

 

The picturesque setting of the only house on the small island SE of Taravai 

Pigs and chickens on the property of the only house on the island in Taravai's southeast corner

This pig reminded us of a dog. She was very friendly, curious and loved her belly rubs!

Bush wacking to the top of the SE island of Taravai; this was the first point we got stuck

After an hour or so, we reached the top with this view from a patch of pine trees.

On the way back, it was easier, because we could follow the trail we made before. Here, it turned into a slide down in between the tall and sharp reeds.

Irie and Pitufa in Onemea Bay; we decided to move the big boat here for a bit (photo by Birgit Hackl)

  

Irie in the sunset of Onemea Bay (photo by Birgit Hackl)

Pitufa in Baie Onemea

Bright and pretty parrot fish while snorkeling in Onemea

One of the colorful coral formations in the Gambier islands (Onemea)

 

When you brave the cold water and chilly air, you can swim in expansive coral gardens