https://www.jacobysaustin.com/2024/05/pjgd25ex9 (10th to 30th Sept 2022)
click At 12.05 on the 10th September, the anchor was up and by 12.35 both sails were out and both engines off. That first afternoon and evening were fairly windy and choppy which always makes preparing and eating meals interesting ( it’s too warm to have everyone in the saloon to eat with all the hatches closed and so dinner is still eaten in the cockpit). The second night was much windier which bought bigger waves so it was a noisy and bumpy night, but all of our crew coped exceedingly well with the conditions. Crossings of more than one night always bring about a different vibe onboard as everyone takes there shift on watch and then rests between – it’s much quieter as everyone spends time in their cabin or reading/watching tv etc. By lunchtime on the third day the winds had died down to a more comfortable level which also meant smaller waves resulting in a much quieter night. For all of the night crossings we had wonderful moonlight which is always helpful and in the very early morning we had beautiful moonlit waters to the starboard side and sunrise on the port side both at the same time.
https://someawesomeminecraft.com/2024/05/13/o1dkqar8v We arrived outside the atoll of Raroia at 09.15 on the 13th September, but it was very obvious there was a very strong current outside the pass so we would have to wait for the slack tide to enter. We motored very slowly along the outer coastline of the motu to pass the time and we were extremely lucky to encounter humpback whales, a mother and baby, as well as a pod of large dolphins who came to play on our bows. As we were only travelling slowly, they really showed off swimming upside down under the tip of the bows, making prolonged eye contact and spraying us with water as they came up for air…..it was our best ever dolphin encounter yet and everyone on board was so excited and awestruck at the experience.
https://annmorrislighting.com/8s7kg16r4ss On our return to the pass entrance, the current was still evident but it had diminished a little so Shawn decided we would try to go through. We made slow (sometimes just 0.3kt/hr) progress but eventually came through the other side where we motored along to the village, Ngarumaoa, where we were the only yacht until the following morning when 3 others joined us. We went ashore to explore, but there is very little here. A main road, a post office, town hall, private homes and an outdoor catholic church! The chap living next door came out and chatted for a while – he was hilarious, cracking several jokes in English. We found the very small supermarket where we bought a few supplies from the limited items available there. The shop owners, Gerard and Vaea were very friendly and their English was great. Vaea offered to cook us a meal one evening, so we took her up on that and arranged a day. A local guy, Callie, came by the boat and stopped to chat for a while on his way home after a day out fishing on his boat. He told us he loves living here because he loves to fish and he has a pearl farm with his brothers. He agreed to come back the following morning with some pearls so we could see them which he did and they were really pretty. The girls ( Ally, Jeanine, Sue and Camie) all took their time looking at them all and several purchases were made 😉 After shopping, most of us snorkelled on reef outcrops between us and the shore for a while and some saw a couple of very small black tipped reef sharks as well as some huge parrot fish and electric blue and purple giant clams.
https://www.vertaglia.com/dv4h0hu
get link We moved across to the Eastern side of this very pretty atoll to see if we could find the motu that Kon-Tiki had washed up on in 1947 ( if you’re not familiar with this vessel, you can read about it here, Kon-Tiki expedition – Wikipedia ). We found it using GPS coordinates and it was just a very tiny island made up of dead coral and volcanic rock with a small tree and a small pile of rocks/coral/shells marking the spot. On another small motu, we took what seemed like half of the contents of the boat to go ashore for a BBQ. We set up camp putting up a canopy for shade and we all set about gathering wood for the fire. Just as we got sorted out, a massive black cloud came over and dumped a ton of rain so we rushed to cover all our belongings with a ground sheet and made our way into the shallow lagoon water with our drinks to let the weather pass through over the next 40 minutes or so – it was much warmer in the water than out! Once it had passed and the sun was shining again, the fire was lit and the festivities continued until just after sunset. The snorkelling here took us all by surprise – it was so pretty and we saw corals we’d never come across before as well as gorgeous irridescent corals and many colourful reef fish.
https://yplocal.us/b9cnhvbng The following morning, we motored along a few Motus where Sue and Jeanine visited a de-funked pearl farm where the guardians told them all about the farming process and then gave them mother of pearl to bring back to the boat for everyone. Once they were back, Shawn, Ally, Jeanine, Camie and Patrick went for a dive from the back of Imagination – our first in French Polynesia. It was a nice relaxed dive where we saw many reef fish including a Ramora which seemed to want to try and find someone and somewhere to latch on to, some very healthy corals and several pretty Picasso Triggerfish
Cheap 2Mg Xanax Online On Sunday (18th), Shawn, Camie and Patrick went for dive in the pass with Callie and his brother whilst the rest of us remained on board and that evening, we went ashore with 2 couples from another couple of boats in the anchorage for a meal prepared by Vaea. It was a really lovely evening – the food was beautifully presented but unfortunately not to everyone’s taste as it was mostly raw fish/seafood with fried fishcakes and rice. On Monday afternoon ( 19th Sept) we set off for the overnight sail to Makemo. We zoomed through the Raroia pass reaching up to almost 11 knots as we went with the current this time and when we came through the other side we were greeted by the same pod of dolphins that had welcomed us last week. They stayed and played again which was fab, but they didn’t stay as long.
https://aguasamazonicas.org/zbqokef We arrived at the entrance to the Makemo Eastern pass at around 6am the following morning after a fairly comfortable night, although with no moon, it was a dark one. We were met by another pod of dolphins, but as we were close to the rough waters caused by the current, they only stayed with us for a minute or two. Progress through the pass was slow as we were going against the current again, but we made it through and were anchored by 07.05. Everyone took it easy for the morning before going ashore for a walk and to top up provisions …and we all treated ourselves to an icecream which was bliss. This is yet another happy, friendly atoll where everyone greeted us as we explored and shopped. The next few days were spent visiting other areas of the atoll where we spent time ashore beach combing, playing Frisbee in the shallow waters, snorkelling, relaxing and Shawn, Patrick and Camie did another pass dive.
https://thegreathighway.com/jdsyd449pkh All of a sudden, it was the penultimate day for our crew and so everyone got busy cleaning the boat inside and out and once the chores were done, we all went ashore and relaxed together with a few drinks before going to a restaurant for a great steak and chips meal. The following morning (25th) Camie, Patrick and Jeanine left soon after breakfast to catch their flight back to Tahiti while John and Sue stayed on board. We motored along the atoll for a couple of hours where we had lunch on board before Shawn dropped them at their accommodation right on the beach. The following afternoon, John and Sue invited us over to the beach at their resort where we had a great time sharing drinks and memories, playing patonque and then having a lovely early meal together before saying a final goodbye to them and making our way back to Imagination, dodging the rocks and corals in the shallow water off the beach. We got back just as big black clouds came over, the heavens opened and darkness descended. We’ve had a such a lovely 25 days with everyone, it was sad to see them all leave and the boat seems way too quiet!
https://dentaris-sa.com/2024/05/13/78ecp22f It was so great. Loved it. An experience of a life time ❤️