When we got together with Freezing Rain, Trim, and Pincoya on Friday night, we posed the question whether our day trip to Maupiti on the express ferry was going to be a rain or shine event. Even though it was raining as the question was posed, Ken assured us that the weather was forecasted for light winds and clear skies. Hmmm?
It rained almost all night and was still dark and dreary when we got up early Saturday morning. Visibility was about 1 mile. Ken and Lori opted out as did Don on Freezing Rain. Despite the rain and much discussion, Russ and I, Gene and Gloria, and Marie with backpacks and snorkeling equipment made our way to shore and got in the taxi that was picking us up at 8:00 a.m. and taking us to the ferry dock.
The Maupiti Express was a small bullet-tank ferry that makes the trip over to Maupiti from Bora three times a week, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Since we planned to be leaving French Polynesia the following Wednesday, we knew Thursday was out as was Tuesday (provisioning and stowing day). The trip took about one and one half hours to travel the 25 mile distance. The bounding, rolling motion of the ferry during the crossing was not a pleasant one. Gene and Gloria were both lamenting that they hadn’t thought to bring their sea sickness pills. Marie was hanging in there. Fortunately, Russ and I weren’t bothered, but there were buckets being passed around for those who were.
The seas got progressively bigger as we got closer to Maupiti, close to 9 feet or 3 meters, not huge but big enough that when we went through the narrow pass it was quite a rush to see breakers on either side with tons of green water and white spume on either side of us, some in front, and our skipper surfing the ferry through the opening. We were glad to be aboard the ferry and not on our own boats. We came through the pass around 10:00 a.m. in the morning. It is recommended that sailboats come and leave around 7:00 a.m. in the morning when the swells are generally at their lowest.
By the time we reached the ferry dock in Maupiti, the grey clouds were blowing away and we could see blue skies. Looked like the forecast was going to be correct. In Polynesia, weather forecasting is not very accurate as the islands tend to create their own systems without regard to the forecast.
Our guide book suggested a two hour walk around the island, stopping to see the petroglyphs, a climb to the top of the rock by the ferry dock, and a swim in one of the lagoons. Maupiti is a small, very non-commercial island with about 1200 inhabitants. The single road around the island was cement, and it reminded us of the quaint but sturdy roads in the Marquesas islands. Small, tidy homes with gardens lined the streets of the Vei’ea village.
There were some micro-small grocery stores (an open half-door with the proprietor standing between the door and a few shelves behind him/her). Customers request items and the proprietor retrieves them. Since customers cannot really see what is available, it is a guessing game whether you will get what you want.
It took us nearly the whole day to walk around the island as we stopped and enjoyed the views, rediscovered other cruising friends, took pictures, had lunch in the river ravine where we found the petroglyphs of sea turtles, and snorkeled in the lagoon. The views from the top of a ridge that we climbed to get from one side of the peninsula to the other were spectacular.
We returned to the ferry dock about three thirty with plenty of time before the ferry took off, but not enough time to climb to the top of the rock behind the ferry. The only reason people do this is to get the view, but we had already climbed the peninsula ridge and gotten some great panoramic shots.
The clouds had come back in, the wind was whipping up, and the swells coming in through the pass as we were going out of the pass were enormous. We had met up with Steve and Monjula on Endless Summer during the day, and they told us of two boats that had left early in the morning when the seas are supposed to be their calmest. One of the boats was a catamaran that was pitching straight up and down getting through the waves. The other was a 65 foot oyster that was awash with waves.
Steve and Monjula had a hair raising experience that morning as well. They took their dinghy inside the reef in the channel that leads to the pass to explore the waves for possible surfing. The outgoing current seemed to be getting the better of them even though their motor was on. Steve tipped up the motor to discover that the propeller on the motor had fallen off! The current was too strong for them to paddle. They had no radio with them. It was very, very scary as they cold see the monster waves looming in front of them and the current pushing them closer and closer. Fortunately, a local inhabitant in a fishing boat saw them and came to their rescue, towing them out of harms way.
Needless to say, the afternoon waves were much larger than the ones earlier in the day. We stood on the top deck of the little ferry (not sure that was the wisest thing to do) as we went through the pass at full throttle. We were airborne, in deep troughs, crashing through swells, getting soaking wet. It was a caldron of white water. The swells on either side of the pass were easily 20 feet high. The boat was only about 20 feet high so these waves were at our height or higher. What a rush! It took us several minutes to get through the swirl and far enough away from the reef before the seas calmed down to 12 or less feet. I took some pictures from behind the ferry cabin as I was trying to keep the camera dry. Unfortunately, I just couldn’t capture the tumult from that direction….but the camera stayed dry. I was damp, but those directly on the bow were soaked. Oh yeah! We can see why some boats are stuck in Maupiti until the waves calm down. There is no way we could have made it out in any of our boats.
Our trip back to Bora Bora took about two hours as we bucked the waves and head wind at full throttle. Again, it was an awful ride for those who got sea sick and cold for those that had gotten wet. By the time we reached the ferry dock in Bora Bora, our earlier plan of going out to dinner when we reach land had evaporated. We were all anxious to take a taxi back to the Yacht Club, take hot showers, eat soup, and go to bed…..which we did.
All is Well on Worrall Wind
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