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THE TUAMOTU’S
May 2 - 6, 2010
These 76 islands are all coral atolls except for two. Most of the atolls are uninhabited because the soil is calcareous and full of salt. There are no rivers or fresh water. They cover such a wide area the climate can be quite different on the atolls. It wasn’t until 1996 that the French stopped using two islands as nuclear test sites. The primary recourse of the islands is tourism followed by black pearl farming.
MANIHI
It was early morning when we arrived at Tairapa Pass. It was out flowing current so we gunned the motor and entered the pass against the current. It was crystal clear and full of fish dining on the morsels that the sea had stirred up in its current. You need to stay clear of the many coral heads but they are easy to see. The wind continues to blow 20 knts but the inside of the lagoon is relativity calm. There were several BWR boats anchored and we received a rousting hello. It was Chamomile Sue’s birthday so after dinner we all went aboard and got reacquainted. It seems like years since we last saw them in Nuku Hiva.
The next day the boys went to the pearl farms and to Xavier and the sail-a-mail station. I had done this two years ago so I decided to go with several people to the big
Manihi Pearl Beach Resort and have a civilized lunch. They described their outing to the pearl farm and Bob and I agreed that we should have gone again as it was a very different experience. The yatchies got to dive for their own oysters, open them and find the pearls, and eat the flesh.
We wandered around the resort and found a carved out canoe sitting in a restaurant.
It was interesting to see the similarities and the differences in the stylized art from the Marquesas islanders.
At 5:30pm we were ready to leave with the setting sun. It was hard to see the coral heads but we followed the markers and made it out to sea with no problems. The night was filled with stars and we were reaching in 20 knts of wind. The sailing was so fast that we would have made our next stop at 3 am and had to sail around in circles waiting for morning. Nobody wanted to do that so we decided to head for an atoll that was further south and closer to Papeete.
TOAU
This small atoll has 10 permanent inhabitants. There is a commercial Chinese black pearl farm but they do not want any visitors. Seasonally, the population can swell to 40 when coconut production is at its’ height. We are heading for Amyot Pass but it is not connected to the inner lagoon; they call it a cal-du-sac. It doesn’t look sheltered but the coral reef calms the sea even though we have 20 knts of wind.
There were several huts on shore and Mike and I decided to snorkel to shore and check out the local scene.
This is the main drag into the settlement. See the indentation in the grass? We met Valentine and Gustof. They run the local restaurant and they were the local tourist board for the atoll. We made reservations for the following day for a luncheon because we wanted to leave before dark and could not wait long enough for dinner. Mike and I strolled around and I could see how easy it would be to live here. We were accompanied by two dogs and the Rotweiler mix stood in the water staring at it and then !splash! He caught a fish and ate it. No need for dog food here. They obviously make enough of a living off of fishing and a coconut plantation to support new clothes and two 225hp outboard motors. There is a communal shower and toilettes and
You can phone home anytime you want.
The following day Mike went over to talk to a long term yachtie about places not to be missed in the Society Islands. Towards high noon Mike, Adrian, and I decided to go snorkeling ( Dean didn’t want to go because he would have to shave off his beard to get the mask to fit and he didn’t want to do it ).
Not the best reef but the water was warm and the fish very colourful.
I find these clams very interesting. They become covered in coral with nothing sticking out except their mouths. The linings are very vibrant blues, greens, and purples.
Valentine set up the restaurant which overlooked the pass. Two other yatchies showed up and so we had a catamaran and the salty steel-hulled sailboat joins us for
the lobster extravaganza.
The best part was that we saw more sea life just outside the door than we saw snorkeling the whole afternoon.
There were several sea rays and lots of fish that must have known we were dining and came to visit. Valentine cracked me a coconut; I had already given her some coconut cookies from the coconut she had given me the day before and we had an exchange of recipes. Life is good.
As the sun was setting we sailed off into the squall infested future to the south-west and the Society Islands. Just as we were leaving the supply ship anchored and Gustof went to pick up the crew. The small supply barge pulled up to the restaurant and we could hear the laughter as Valentine and Gustof started up the BBQ.
It was an easy sail so we decided on two hour watches. In my two hour watch I got hit with four squalls. The winds went from 6 knts to 15 knts in 10 secs. Then back to 9 knts two minutes later. I was soaking wet when I woke up Dean for his watch.
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