This is the story of the one that got away. It started in the Bahamas where we were novices at fishing from a sailboat. Eric had just sent a line out and before he could turn his back, "Splang!!!", the line went tight.
Ok, but first let's start with the whole fishing story. We, meaning Eric and Jens, had researched tips for fishing at sea. We tried several things which seemed to bring a certain level of success, but we were losing more lures than we were catching fish. After consulting with a guy at a marine shop, we started using slightly smaller lures and using a bungee cord as a spring to let us know when we got a hit. This also gives the line a little slack so it is less likely to snap. That worked pretty well and we started catching some nice Spanish Mackerel and Tuna. We even caught a Barracuda but they are not recommended eating, so we released it back to the water.
Well, that Splang meant we had caught a big one. And sure enough, we did. A gorgeous four foot Mahi Mahi (also known as a dolphin fish). Such excitement and I of course needed a photo. I got a couple of good shots and then just as Eric and Jens were lifting it over the rail to bring it into the boat, it gave a might shake and got away. What a shame. But at least I had a photo...at least I thought so. But that is exactly when my Nikon acted up and wouldn't you know it, I couldn't download the photo. All evidence of this great catch was gone.
We have been hoping for another Mahi Mahi since then. But Jens seemed to have lost his fishing mojo and we haven't been catching much fish since we left the coast of Ecuador. We had caught a small Mahi Mahi a while back, but it was very small and we released it back into the water.
So anyhow, we had pretty much given up fishing altogether but the other day, as Jens was cleaning out one of our many storage bins, he came across a new lure we didn't know we had. He dubbed it the Lucky Lure in hopes it would live up to its name and as we set sail for Rarotonga he decided it was time to catch some fish.
After the second day of fishing, we heard that wonderful sound again. Splang!!! And wouldn't you know it, a beautiful Mahi Mahi. Three feet long, shimmering blue and yellow. We thought this time we would be more prepared having learned from our past experience. Instead of lifting the fish over the rail, Jens reels it in close to the boat, puts the gaffer hook through it and opens the side rail so he just has to lift it up onto the deck. By some strange fate, this guy too did a one, two and flew off the gaffer hook. In a blink of an eye It was gone, just like Eric's fish. Dang.
But we didn't give up and today was a repeat performance from yesterday. At around the same time of day as well. But this time, our beautiful 3 foot catch made it to the deck and less than two hours later, the filets were in a frying pan for lunch. Delicious.
PS: I stopped taking photos until the catch was safely on board, and this time we were so excited I didn't have time to get my camera. So you'll just have to take my word on the size of the fish. :)
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Moving On
We are now getting ready to move on from French Polynesia. It has been two months since we arrived to Hiva Oa after crossing the Pacific. Hard to believe as the time seems to have flown by.
We were lucky to be in Bora Bora for the start of the annual Heiva festival, which is the 'celebration of life'. It is a month long festival with traditional dancing, drumming and singing; canoe races, sports matches and lots of eating and drinking. The ladies wear flowers in their hair and long flowing dresses with bright flower designs. They are really beautiful. We attended the festivities in the town square a couple of nights. It was like stepping back in time. The costumes were enchanting, the drumming furious and the dancing hypnotic. What a delightful end to our stay in French Polynesia.
With every place you go there are the sights and sounds that will always stay with you. For me it will be listening to the sound of the drums through the night to the early morning hours as we sleep in the gentle motions of the boat at anchor in the lagoon, the light of the full moon slipping by shining through the top hatches into our bed.
We were lucky to be in Bora Bora for the start of the annual Heiva festival, which is the 'celebration of life'. It is a month long festival with traditional dancing, drumming and singing; canoe races, sports matches and lots of eating and drinking. The ladies wear flowers in their hair and long flowing dresses with bright flower designs. They are really beautiful. We attended the festivities in the town square a couple of nights. It was like stepping back in time. The costumes were enchanting, the drumming furious and the dancing hypnotic. What a delightful end to our stay in French Polynesia.
With every place you go there are the sights and sounds that will always stay with you. For me it will be listening to the sound of the drums through the night to the early morning hours as we sleep in the gentle motions of the boat at anchor in the lagoon, the light of the full moon slipping by shining through the top hatches into our bed.
Monday, June 24, 2013
One More Fabulous Dive
Here we are in Bora Bora, 'the most beautiful island in the world' according to their brochures. It is also said to be the honeymoon island. It is certainly a beautiful island and most of the world's top end international hotel chains are here with the classic thatch roofed stilted bungalows over the water of the aquamarine lagoons. There are plenty of white sand beaches at the south end of the island and lots of services for tourists such as dive shops, lagoon tours, pearl shopping and entertainment. An excellent place to hang out for a bit.
The last dive we did with Michelle was awesome. Starting with the scenic white sand bottom and coral head bommies to the school of eagle rays that came by a few times. There must have been at least 50 them, of all sizes. What a beautiful sight.
The time went by so fast that we had to say good bye to Michelle last night. I couldn't believe it was already time for her to leave paradise and head home. We saw her to the ferry which took her to the airport on the other side of the island. As they locals say, nana (bye bye) and safe journey.
The last dive we did with Michelle was awesome. Starting with the scenic white sand bottom and coral head bommies to the school of eagle rays that came by a few times. There must have been at least 50 them, of all sizes. What a beautiful sight.
The time went by so fast that we had to say good bye to Michelle last night. I couldn't believe it was already time for her to leave paradise and head home. We saw her to the ferry which took her to the airport on the other side of the island. As they locals say, nana (bye bye) and safe journey.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
City Docks and Sun Rises
We are moored up to the city dock and I am sitting in the cockpit drinking my coffee watching the joggers go by. It is early morning and the sun has just risen over the reef that surrounds Ra'iatea. We moved to the dock yesterday afternoon, joining SV Ninita and SV Orkestren, boats we have met in Galapagos. We decided the anchorage we were at last night was a bit rolly and although the city dock is literally right in town, it was going to be nice to get to shore for a bit. We will soon need to get ready for a morning dive but for now I have a little time to reflect on the past few days.
Huahine
We left Mo'orea just before sunset on Friday and did an overnight sail to Huahine arriving just as the sun was coming up. Michelle kept me company for most of my night shift which was nice. She dropped out around 10pm and slept through the arrival to the pass and anchoring part but was up in time for coffee. It seems the motion of the boat is a sleep inducer for her as it is for most of us actually and of course the added issue of jet lag..
We had a couple of lazy days on Huahine, enjoying the Saturday morning market in the small town of Fare and happy hour at a seaside restaurant in the afternoon. On Sunday, we rented a car and did a self-guided island tour. It is actually two islands, Huahine Iti and Huahini Ini, joined together by a bridge and together they are small enough to get around in a half day if you don't stop too often. But we stopped and visited all the sights and view points; a pearl farm in a lagoon, the sacred blue eyed eels, a vanilla plantation which was actually a tour of the entire farm and finally we stopped to do a bit of snorkelling. The snorkeling was quite cool. Sort of like the Octopus garden under the sea (check out the Octopus photos below). Monday morning we did a couple of dives with Annie from Mahana Dive; one was a dive though the pass where we saw eagle rays swimming in formation and a few very large gray reef sharks; and the other was what is called the canyon. Great fun!
Ra'iatea and Taha'a
After our morning dives with Annie we had a quick sail across to Ra'iatea arriving just in time for a nice sunset. Ra'iatea is home to the only real wreck dive in the islands (the wrecks on Tahiti were placed there). It was to be an early morning shore dive so needless to say, we had an early night.
In the morning we took the dinghy to the Ra'iatea Pearl Resort from whose dock you get to the Nordby Wreck. This is a boat that sank on the shores of the island in August of 1900. We discovered that this famous wreck was sailing under a Danish flag and was on its way to Liverpool with a cargo of dried coconuts, bees wax, cotton, pearls and copper. It stopped in Ra'iatea to pump its ballast when a storm drove it into the reef putting a hole in the hull. As it took on more water than they could pump out, the beautiful 50 meter three-masted Nordby slowly sank to its final resting place. Captain H. Christiansen had enough time to unload its cargo and salvage as much as possible from the ship which was auctioned to the locals.
It was a bit late for a dive through the pass because of the current and that's when we decided to move to the city dock. It turned out to be a good decision cause it gave Michelle and I a little time for pearl shopping.
After dinner, as we were sitting in the cockpit sipping a little wine, we could hear the sound of drums in the distance. We decided to follow the sound and found ourselves at a rehearsal of a dance and drum troupe consisting of over 50 dancers, men and women. What a wonderful show despite the fact they were not in costume. The dance and drum troupes on all the islands are getting ready for an inter-island competition that takes place in July. I am sure that would be an event worth seeing.
After our dive today we will sail to Bora Bora, meeting up with some new friends on Moonbeam for dinner.
Note: Under water photos courtesy of Michelle.
Huahine
We left Mo'orea just before sunset on Friday and did an overnight sail to Huahine arriving just as the sun was coming up. Michelle kept me company for most of my night shift which was nice. She dropped out around 10pm and slept through the arrival to the pass and anchoring part but was up in time for coffee. It seems the motion of the boat is a sleep inducer for her as it is for most of us actually and of course the added issue of jet lag..
We had a couple of lazy days on Huahine, enjoying the Saturday morning market in the small town of Fare and happy hour at a seaside restaurant in the afternoon. On Sunday, we rented a car and did a self-guided island tour. It is actually two islands, Huahine Iti and Huahini Ini, joined together by a bridge and together they are small enough to get around in a half day if you don't stop too often. But we stopped and visited all the sights and view points; a pearl farm in a lagoon, the sacred blue eyed eels, a vanilla plantation which was actually a tour of the entire farm and finally we stopped to do a bit of snorkelling. The snorkeling was quite cool. Sort of like the Octopus garden under the sea (check out the Octopus photos below). Monday morning we did a couple of dives with Annie from Mahana Dive; one was a dive though the pass where we saw eagle rays swimming in formation and a few very large gray reef sharks; and the other was what is called the canyon. Great fun!
Ra'iatea and Taha'a
After our morning dives with Annie we had a quick sail across to Ra'iatea arriving just in time for a nice sunset. Ra'iatea is home to the only real wreck dive in the islands (the wrecks on Tahiti were placed there). It was to be an early morning shore dive so needless to say, we had an early night.
In the morning we took the dinghy to the Ra'iatea Pearl Resort from whose dock you get to the Nordby Wreck. This is a boat that sank on the shores of the island in August of 1900. We discovered that this famous wreck was sailing under a Danish flag and was on its way to Liverpool with a cargo of dried coconuts, bees wax, cotton, pearls and copper. It stopped in Ra'iatea to pump its ballast when a storm drove it into the reef putting a hole in the hull. As it took on more water than they could pump out, the beautiful 50 meter three-masted Nordby slowly sank to its final resting place. Captain H. Christiansen had enough time to unload its cargo and salvage as much as possible from the ship which was auctioned to the locals.
It was a bit late for a dive through the pass because of the current and that's when we decided to move to the city dock. It turned out to be a good decision cause it gave Michelle and I a little time for pearl shopping.
After dinner, as we were sitting in the cockpit sipping a little wine, we could hear the sound of drums in the distance. We decided to follow the sound and found ourselves at a rehearsal of a dance and drum troupe consisting of over 50 dancers, men and women. What a wonderful show despite the fact they were not in costume. The dance and drum troupes on all the islands are getting ready for an inter-island competition that takes place in July. I am sure that would be an event worth seeing.
After our dive today we will sail to Bora Bora, meeting up with some new friends on Moonbeam for dinner.
Note: Under water photos courtesy of Michelle.
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Diving, Polynesian Dinner and Dance, Sailing, Snorkeling
So now we know what it is to be in paradise! Michelle has arrived and we have been out diving and snorkeling. A few wreck dives ... three boats, two planes; and lots of fish, coral and the usual suspects that hang around the reef. A couple of highlights were the amazing huge Titan Triggerfish that kept following us around, a sea cucumber that looked more like an alien life form, large snails, octopus and the icing on the cakes (cause there were two cakes) were the lemon sharks and the rays.
We had seen pretty much every species of shark that live in these waters except for the lemon sharks. These babies grow to be 10 feet long and I am sure these guys had been taking steroids cause they sure looked big. My new book, Reef Fish Identification, hand delivered by my sis, indicates they are 'solitary and considered dangerous'. Oh, yeah. I guess I should have read that before the dive. But being innocent and naive, we spent almost an hour cavorting with them together with a few black tip reef sharks. What an excellent dive.
Then there was the snorkeling expedition to see the Tahitian Stingray. They can be as big as 3 1/2 feet (100 cm) and are so graceful in the water as they fly along with their magnificent wings and long tails. They are a real treat to watch. There is nice sandbar just off shore opposite the Intercontinental resort on Mo'orea where the rays like to rest in the sand. Well, the tour operators have gotten them used to being fed and so now every time they hear a motor boat, they come by expecting some free nibbles. It was quite intimidating to see so many around the dinghy and we were a little reluctant to jump in. But as soon as they realized we hadn't brought the feed bag, the quickly ignored us and went about their business. There must have been 20 or more together with the ever present black tip reef sharks hovering around.
Before we left the island of Tahiti we took in a show at the Intercontinental Resort. They put on a Polynesian night with a sumptuous buffet of local foods followed by a traditional dance show with drums and singing. It was nice to get a little of the island culture even if it is solely designed for the tourists.
We have since sailed to Mo'orea and then to Huahine. We hope to visit Ra'iatea and Bora Bora before we have to say good bye to Michelle.
The underwater photos below are courtesy of Michelle.
We had seen pretty much every species of shark that live in these waters except for the lemon sharks. These babies grow to be 10 feet long and I am sure these guys had been taking steroids cause they sure looked big. My new book, Reef Fish Identification, hand delivered by my sis, indicates they are 'solitary and considered dangerous'. Oh, yeah. I guess I should have read that before the dive. But being innocent and naive, we spent almost an hour cavorting with them together with a few black tip reef sharks. What an excellent dive.
Then there was the snorkeling expedition to see the Tahitian Stingray. They can be as big as 3 1/2 feet (100 cm) and are so graceful in the water as they fly along with their magnificent wings and long tails. They are a real treat to watch. There is nice sandbar just off shore opposite the Intercontinental resort on Mo'orea where the rays like to rest in the sand. Well, the tour operators have gotten them used to being fed and so now every time they hear a motor boat, they come by expecting some free nibbles. It was quite intimidating to see so many around the dinghy and we were a little reluctant to jump in. But as soon as they realized we hadn't brought the feed bag, the quickly ignored us and went about their business. There must have been 20 or more together with the ever present black tip reef sharks hovering around.
Before we left the island of Tahiti we took in a show at the Intercontinental Resort. They put on a Polynesian night with a sumptuous buffet of local foods followed by a traditional dance show with drums and singing. It was nice to get a little of the island culture even if it is solely designed for the tourists.
We have since sailed to Mo'orea and then to Huahine. We hope to visit Ra'iatea and Bora Bora before we have to say good bye to Michelle.
The underwater photos below are courtesy of Michelle.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Pape'ete, Tahiti
So here we are, at one of the worlds most popular exotic destinations and after four days we haven't done anything but boat works and shopping. But now we have finally finished our work and are ready to play. This is the first time we have been moored up to a dock since we left Ecuador in February. So needless to say, we had a few things to do.
Our first stop was to a marine shop. Are you surprised? On our shopping list was a new fender to replace the one we lost in Galapagos, oil filters, rust remover and a few other odds and ends. They didn't have the right size and type of fender so we bought two more (we discovered that a boat can never have too many fenders and we had been sailing all this time with only two!). We will continue to look for the twin of the one we have just to have a complete set.
And it was high time to restock our pantry. We had only been buying fresh foods since we left Galapagos and our stores were getting a little sparse. Not to mention all the pasta I had to dump because of an infestation of a kind of weevil. Ick. Luckily there is a Carrefour within walking distance to the Marina and three trips and $1500 later we are well supplied for the next two months.
Tonight we will make another trip to collect Michelle from the airport. We have already booked a dive trip for early tomorrow morning. We won't give her a chance to get acclimatised before we have her in the water. But I am sure an early morning dive will cure her jet lag speedy quick.
Our first stop was to a marine shop. Are you surprised? On our shopping list was a new fender to replace the one we lost in Galapagos, oil filters, rust remover and a few other odds and ends. They didn't have the right size and type of fender so we bought two more (we discovered that a boat can never have too many fenders and we had been sailing all this time with only two!). We will continue to look for the twin of the one we have just to have a complete set.
And it was high time to restock our pantry. We had only been buying fresh foods since we left Galapagos and our stores were getting a little sparse. Not to mention all the pasta I had to dump because of an infestation of a kind of weevil. Ick. Luckily there is a Carrefour within walking distance to the Marina and three trips and $1500 later we are well supplied for the next two months.
Tonight we will make another trip to collect Michelle from the airport. We have already booked a dive trip for early tomorrow morning. We won't give her a chance to get acclimatised before we have her in the water. But I am sure an early morning dive will cure her jet lag speedy quick.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
French Polynesia - a little info
We arrived to Marquesas at the end of April, and as a Canadian I am limited to a 90 day stay in this country so we will have to move on by the end of July. Jens, as a Danish citizen and part of the EU can stay as long as he likes. But 90 days it will have to be. We will only get to three of the five archipelagos of French Polynesia - Marquesas, Tuamotus and the Society Islands. The Gambiers (rarely visited as the French were conducting nuclear tests there as late as 1996) and Austral Islands will have to be missed. They are both a little too far south, off wind and off course for us.
In the five archipelagos that make up French Polynesia there are 118 islands spread over an area of the Pacific Ocean the size of Europe. The islands signed a treaty with France and became a French colony in 1842 but as of 2004 French Polynesia has gained a high degree of autonomy. They still have their own currency but fly the French flag as well as the Polynesian flag. We, as a visiting yacht should also fly the French flag, but we arrived here with only the Polynesian flag. We'll have to buy the French flag in Tahiti in order to be respectful and compliant.
The Society Islands are the most popular and most well known with the islands of Tahiti and Bora Bora being the most recognised of them. We'll discover them next and see for ourselves what has made them such a haven for honeymooners and mega yachts.
In the five archipelagos that make up French Polynesia there are 118 islands spread over an area of the Pacific Ocean the size of Europe. The islands signed a treaty with France and became a French colony in 1842 but as of 2004 French Polynesia has gained a high degree of autonomy. They still have their own currency but fly the French flag as well as the Polynesian flag. We, as a visiting yacht should also fly the French flag, but we arrived here with only the Polynesian flag. We'll have to buy the French flag in Tahiti in order to be respectful and compliant.
The Society Islands are the most popular and most well known with the islands of Tahiti and Bora Bora being the most recognised of them. We'll discover them next and see for ourselves what has made them such a haven for honeymooners and mega yachts.
Super Yachts and Mega Yachts
Pape'ete is host to some of the world's most beautiful super yachts or mega yachts rivalling Bahamas and the Mediterranean as the place to cruise for the rich and famous. We have seen a few of them on our journey and they never cease to amaze. Such magnificence and so very opulent; it is hard for us to imagine what it would cost to own and operate such a craft. We have come across a few of them more than once. Some are charter yachts such as SuRi and Dragonfly. By the way, you can charter Dragonfly for as little as €490,000 per week. But you can always split the tab amongst the other 11 guests making it so much more affordable, don't you think? Some of these yachts are privately owned so to get on it you would either have to be hired as crew or be in the same social circles as the owner.
Below is Arctic P which anchored near us in Fakarava. Then Nahlin showed up as well as Dr. No. Between them there were submarines, helicopters, full dive gear and a dive master, a sailing dinghy and who only knows what else.
You know you are moored next to a mega yacht when...
....the mast is so tall that the mast head has a red flashing aircraft warning light.
....the fenders or bumpers are bigger than your dinghy.
....the tender is almost as big as your boat.
....the motor on the tender has more horsepower than the main engine on your boat.
....they open the stern doors and roll out a helicopter.
....the crew hire locals to do the cleaning.
....one of the captain's toys is a submarine.
....they have a chase boat to carry the rest of the toys.
Below is Arctic P which anchored near us in Fakarava. Then Nahlin showed up as well as Dr. No. Between them there were submarines, helicopters, full dive gear and a dive master, a sailing dinghy and who only knows what else.
You know you are moored next to a mega yacht when...
....the mast is so tall that the mast head has a red flashing aircraft warning light.
....the fenders or bumpers are bigger than your dinghy.
....the tender is almost as big as your boat.
....the motor on the tender has more horsepower than the main engine on your boat.
....they open the stern doors and roll out a helicopter.
....the crew hire locals to do the cleaning.
....one of the captain's toys is a submarine.
....they have a chase boat to carry the rest of the toys.
Friday, June 7, 2013
The Dive
We're suited up and ready to backflip off the boat and into the water. Matthias gave us our dive briefing on the short ride over. We were ready. On the count of three we leave the safety of the boat. Check our buoyancy and down we go. Not too deep. Only about 20 meters or so. And there they are.
It's all about the shark. Whitetip reef shark, silvertip shark, long nose shark, black tip reef shark and the magnificent grey shark. They estimate the shark population in this area to be about 400 or so. The sharks love to hang out in the pass, holding their position and letting the water flow by.
And the seven strangely clad creatures with bubbles flowing up from their heads are lined up on the edge of the pass clinging to a ridge, watching. It is an awesome sight. The sharks are truly beautiful. And so many. Serenely swimming by, sometimes a little too close for comfort, their steely eyes looking you over. And when you have sharks in front, behind and over you, it is all you can do to just keep breathing, calmly and slowly. No panic, no drama.
We did two dives observing the sharks. It was a great experience and leaves you just a little bit more in awe of the life below the surface of the water than you already were.
THE SHARKS
Black Fin or Long Nose Shark. Carcharhinus Limbatus - max 275 cm (9')
Whitetip Reef Shark. Triaenodon Obesus - max 210 cm (6'11")
Blacktip Reef Shark. Carcharhinus melanopterus - max 200 cm (6'6")
Grey Reef Shark. Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos - max 225 cm (7'4")
Silvertip Shark . Carcharhinus albimarginatus - max 300 cm (9'10")
It's all about the shark. Whitetip reef shark, silvertip shark, long nose shark, black tip reef shark and the magnificent grey shark. They estimate the shark population in this area to be about 400 or so. The sharks love to hang out in the pass, holding their position and letting the water flow by.
And the seven strangely clad creatures with bubbles flowing up from their heads are lined up on the edge of the pass clinging to a ridge, watching. It is an awesome sight. The sharks are truly beautiful. And so many. Serenely swimming by, sometimes a little too close for comfort, their steely eyes looking you over. And when you have sharks in front, behind and over you, it is all you can do to just keep breathing, calmly and slowly. No panic, no drama.
We did two dives observing the sharks. It was a great experience and leaves you just a little bit more in awe of the life below the surface of the water than you already were.
THE SHARKS
Black Fin or Long Nose Shark. Carcharhinus Limbatus - max 275 cm (9')
Whitetip Reef Shark. Triaenodon Obesus - max 210 cm (6'11")
Blacktip Reef Shark. Carcharhinus melanopterus - max 200 cm (6'6")
Grey Reef Shark. Carcharhinus amblyrhynchos - max 225 cm (7'4")
Silvertip Shark . Carcharhinus albimarginatus - max 300 cm (9'10")
The South Pass
Here we are, at the entrance to the South pass of Fakarava atoll. The main village of Fakarava, together with the airport, is at the North end, but the South pass is home to a few resorts and dive outfits. This is apparently THE place for diving in the Tuamotus. Why is that? We are about to find out.
We had so many marvellous days of snorkelling at Kauehi, so fabulous that I personally rated one of the coral heads as one of the top ten best ever snorkels. The abundance and variety of fish was amazing. We saw black tip reef sharks, gastropods such as cowries and conch, lots of stony corals and the first time I have seen mushroom corals, an amazingly large crown of thorns starfish, hundreds of bivalves including the very colourful giant clams, nudibranches, a huge moray eel and tons of reef fish; many I had never seen before. It was an underwater wonderland.
We organised our diving yesterday and will head out to the pass tomorrow afternoon to follow the incoming tide. It will be a drift dive, meaning no swimming required as we will simply drift in with the current. Matthias, our dive master, has been diving here for more than two years. He promises us an excellent dive.
What makes this area such a good place for diving is that the incoming tide brings with it a lot of the large ocean fish looking for food (which hopefully we are not on their menu). The coral along the edges of the pass attracts the reef fish and is also a good place for spawning, egg laying and for juvenile fish to hide out in.
We did a pre-dive recon in the dinghy and jumped in with our snorkelling gear just before the breaking waves at the entrance to the pass. Jens tied the dinghy to his arm and we did a drift snorkel riding on the incoming tide. How fun was that! It was better than any amusement park ride I have been on that's for sure. There were areas where the current was quite strong so it was really like flying under water. What a feeling. What incredible sights we saw. My new all time favourite fish is the majestic Napoleon fish. OMG!!! They are incredible. Literally brought tears to my eyes to see these large beauties so close up and just as curious about us as we were of them. The Napoleon also known as the Humphead Wrass are the largest in the wrass family and grow to be as big as 230cm long (7'6") weighing up to 200kg (440lbs). At this point I am not sure how the dive tomorrow will exceed our experiences so far.
We had so many marvellous days of snorkelling at Kauehi, so fabulous that I personally rated one of the coral heads as one of the top ten best ever snorkels. The abundance and variety of fish was amazing. We saw black tip reef sharks, gastropods such as cowries and conch, lots of stony corals and the first time I have seen mushroom corals, an amazingly large crown of thorns starfish, hundreds of bivalves including the very colourful giant clams, nudibranches, a huge moray eel and tons of reef fish; many I had never seen before. It was an underwater wonderland.
We organised our diving yesterday and will head out to the pass tomorrow afternoon to follow the incoming tide. It will be a drift dive, meaning no swimming required as we will simply drift in with the current. Matthias, our dive master, has been diving here for more than two years. He promises us an excellent dive.
What makes this area such a good place for diving is that the incoming tide brings with it a lot of the large ocean fish looking for food (which hopefully we are not on their menu). The coral along the edges of the pass attracts the reef fish and is also a good place for spawning, egg laying and for juvenile fish to hide out in.
We did a pre-dive recon in the dinghy and jumped in with our snorkelling gear just before the breaking waves at the entrance to the pass. Jens tied the dinghy to his arm and we did a drift snorkel riding on the incoming tide. How fun was that! It was better than any amusement park ride I have been on that's for sure. There were areas where the current was quite strong so it was really like flying under water. What a feeling. What incredible sights we saw. My new all time favourite fish is the majestic Napoleon fish. OMG!!! They are incredible. Literally brought tears to my eyes to see these large beauties so close up and just as curious about us as we were of them. The Napoleon also known as the Humphead Wrass are the largest in the wrass family and grow to be as big as 230cm long (7'6") weighing up to 200kg (440lbs). At this point I am not sure how the dive tomorrow will exceed our experiences so far.
Fakarava!
Don't you just love the name of this atoll. Fakarava! It definitely deserves an exclamation mark at the end. This atoll has a population of just over 700 people. It has a grocery/hardware shop and a boulangerie where you can buy fresh baguettes. They also have a restaurant with three menu choices -- poisson cru, steak frits and chow mein.
Fakarava is a Unesco protected area because of its particularly diverse ecosystem. Well, I will have to investigate that a little more I think. We arrived on Sunday together with three other boats, Enchantment, Exit Strategy and Honu. We all left early in the morning to get through the Kauehi pass at the end of the outgoing tide and arrive to Fakarava in time for the incoming tide. As we all headed for the exit, Honu took the lead and made it safely through the pass, reporting back to us with some advice to stay a little closer to the starboard side of the pass to avoid the current and standing waves. Yup, standing waves. That's what they are called. I am still not sure what a standing wave looks like and this time I even had the binoculars out as I was standing in the boat, ready to wave back. I am a little embarrassed to ask what is a standing wave, as all the sailors use the term and everyone seems to know exactly what it is. And when someone throws a sentence at me like "We had the wind from our quarter aft and the GRIB files indicated a steady 20 knot wind from the north but luckily our ground tackle held ...(blah, blah, blah cause by now I am still trying to picture an aft quarter wind and decipher GRIB)", I just nod politely and say, "oh yes, I know what you mean". What I do know is we were the last ones out and we hit a speed of 11.1 knots as we rode the current. Yipeeeyayay!
It was a pleasant sail leaving the dark clouds behind and arriving to a calm and sunny anchorage at the northern corner of Fakarava. We plan to get to the south pass today which is about 30 nautical miles distance. These atolls are surprisingly large and the motus (local term for the island bits of the atoll) are long and narrow. We have heard the diving here is spectacular, so you know what's on our agenda for this week.
Fakarava is a Unesco protected area because of its particularly diverse ecosystem. Well, I will have to investigate that a little more I think. We arrived on Sunday together with three other boats, Enchantment, Exit Strategy and Honu. We all left early in the morning to get through the Kauehi pass at the end of the outgoing tide and arrive to Fakarava in time for the incoming tide. As we all headed for the exit, Honu took the lead and made it safely through the pass, reporting back to us with some advice to stay a little closer to the starboard side of the pass to avoid the current and standing waves. Yup, standing waves. That's what they are called. I am still not sure what a standing wave looks like and this time I even had the binoculars out as I was standing in the boat, ready to wave back. I am a little embarrassed to ask what is a standing wave, as all the sailors use the term and everyone seems to know exactly what it is. And when someone throws a sentence at me like "We had the wind from our quarter aft and the GRIB files indicated a steady 20 knot wind from the north but luckily our ground tackle held ...(blah, blah, blah cause by now I am still trying to picture an aft quarter wind and decipher GRIB)", I just nod politely and say, "oh yes, I know what you mean". What I do know is we were the last ones out and we hit a speed of 11.1 knots as we rode the current. Yipeeeyayay!
It was a pleasant sail leaving the dark clouds behind and arriving to a calm and sunny anchorage at the northern corner of Fakarava. We plan to get to the south pass today which is about 30 nautical miles distance. These atolls are surprisingly large and the motus (local term for the island bits of the atoll) are long and narrow. We have heard the diving here is spectacular, so you know what's on our agenda for this week.
SY Enchantment on our starboard with Michelle and Vern.
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