On to the Northern Marquesas Group

I will (try to) keep this blog short, before we lose some – if not all – of our readers! :-)

In French Polynesia (and maybe even in all of the South Pacific, we don’t know yet), it is impossible to just make plans as to where you’d like to sail and then expect to be anchored there until you want to move on. It is not that easy anymore. The islands are mountainous and the location (= protection from wind and waves) of many anchorages is less than ideal. This means that most bays are uncomfortable most of the time and that the wind is very gusty, fluky, contradictory or accelerated because of the features of the land.

Approaching Ua Huka

Even though Mark and I picked the perfect weather window to explore the north coast of Hiva Oa, the anchorages were still very rolly and therefore uncomfortable with no place to go ashore certain times of the day. For this reason, we packed up and left a day earlier than planned; the predicted light ENE winds promising to be as good as possible to visit Ua Huka’s south coast. We prepared Irie for a night crossing, which – with Mark’s continuously painful right elbow and the bumpy sea state - entailed a bit of inventiveness, especially while taking the outboard engine off the dinghy and hauling it onboard. We picked 10pm as our time of departure, which allowed us to do any speed between 3 and 6.5 knots to get to Ua Huka during the daylight hours. A light 10 knots out of the east was forecasted, but we have learned to expect anything, so left (mentally) prepared.

SW coast of Ua Huka

It was dead calm when we left Hanaiapa in Hiva Oa and the land shadow had us motor for the first hour. After that, the wind filled in and we had a pretty perfect sail, doing 4 to 6.5 knots, all the way. The sky was bright with an almost full moon, the sea state was relatively mellow and we only had to dodge one giant squall. I did most of the work (as usual :-)) and we decided not to fish in the morning– Mark’s arm has to rest. The fish in the Pacific are too big and strong for me to handle. At 9am the following morning, we were settled in Hane Bay, Ua Huka. After a day of rest and catching up on sleep, we planned some walks along the scenic shore and to stay as long as we could endure the gusty winds and incoming swell…

Mouth of Hane Bay

Head of Hane Bay

A Magnificent Sail

Mark and I moved from Contadora, the “main” and most touristy island of Las Perlas, to the east side of the biggest island in the chain: Isla del Rey. The distance was only about 15 miles and all we hoped for was some wind and no current against us, something we seemed to always “time right”, meaning it has been taking us forever each time to switch anchorages, even though the distances are short.

On this beautiful sunny day with deep blue skies and not a white puff of a cloud, we had a magnificent sail. Not in the way of speed or it being invigorating – there just is not enough wind for that in this area, gone are the trade winds -  but magnificent in the way of our surroundings. There was barely 6 knots of wind from the north, so behind us, and we had pulled the spinnaker up. The seas were flat; the ride was smooth, comfortable and very pleasant. We didn’t mind only doing 2.5 knots, one or more of which was current; the brand new autopilot didn’t mind doing all the work.

It took us about 7 hours to reach our next destination Espiritu Santo, but the last couple of hours were filled with entertainment on top of relaxation. While Devil Rays were jumping and doing summer saults all around us (they leap out of the water and do acrobatics in the air!), we spotted some whales in the distance. Through binoculars, we saw them take turns breathing (“Look at the water spout!”), breaching (“Wow, he’s coming out of the water”), sliding along the surface (“His body is huge!”) and disappearing (“Watch the forked tail!”). It was an awesome spectacle and we are starting to believe the stories about an abundance of sea life in the Pacific Ocean.

We also noticed big, turbulent spots in the water, where hundreds of fish had gathered. The areas looked like breaking waves. Unfortunately, we were going too slow to catch anything. I should probably mention the birds as well: pelicans, frigate birds, birds of prey, they are ever-present at all times of the day and in large numbers. The other day, I spent an hour on the beach and counted at least ten different species of birds, while lying on my back in the powdery sand. To finally be surrounded by all these amazing creatures is a joy and – for me – one of the main reasons why I (still) live on a boat!