Papeete, Tahiti - Garyn and Jessica are now captive in Tahiti.

Latitude:        17 32.407 S

Longitude:  149 34.247 W

We have been moored at the downtown Papeete Quay (kee) since early afternoon of June 8.  Worrall wind is med-moored bow first.  The Quay has what we call fixed slime lines (they are slimey when pulled up).  These lines are picked up from the quay where they are secured on one end at the quay and the other anchored into the fairway. 

When the boat comes bow or stern first into the quay, the bow or stern is tied off on the quay, then the slime lines are picked up on either side of the boat and and walked back to the opposite end lifting the slimy lines out of the water.  When the opposite end is reached, the slime lines are  then pulled taught from the rear where they are secured to sunken anchors,  and cleated off on the boat,  thus creating a three point tie off system, keeping the boat in a fixed position.

June 8 – We arrived, did some general cleanup, contacted our agent, walked around downtown area and ate out at a little pizzaria.  Papeete is a bustling city filled with sites and sounds unfamiliar to sailors who have been at sea.

June 9 – Our agent  arrived early and started the check in procedure for us.  We did more clean up and exploring.  Russ visited the port captain and found the local hardware stores.  Looks like there are some protests going on around government buildings.  Our limited French doesn’t help us comprehend what it going on.

June 10 – Today was a day of exploration of Papeete.  More protesting.  Still not sure what is going on.  The big open air market near the port has fish, produce, pearls and clothing. 

We discover a lot of fabric stores with tropical prints.  I’d like to buy some material to make some pillow covers for the boat and maybe an outdoor shower curtain.  Our shower sump has not been working well, so we have been taking freshwater showers on deck after dark.  This is not so easy to do in downtown Papeete.   Garyn and Jessica get packed up for their trip home on Friday.  They are looking forward to retrieving their pets, getting back to their jobs, and seeing their friends and family.

June 11 – We rented a car for the day to drive around Tahiti Nui and Tahiti Iti. Garyn and Jess’s plane doesn’t take off until 11:45 p.m. so we have all day.   While there were many places on the map we were unable to find, we did find some lovely waterfalls and short hike on the north eastern side of Tahiti Nui

a very old church in Tahiti Iti being decorated with fresh flowers

and some beautiful grottos on Tahiti Nui’s South western side. 

 

We also checked out Marina Taina where we have made reservations for Worrall Wind during our trip back to the states.

We dropped Garyn and Jessica off at the boat around 5:00 p.m., ran a few errands before parking the car, and returned ourselves to the boat around 7:00 to find Garyn and Jess fretting over rumors they had heard from other cruisers that the airport was shutdown and flights out had been cancelled.  Apparently the protests we had been witnessing were public employees.  In particular, the firefighters out on strike  are the reason the airport has shut down.  Big jets cannot land without the firefighters on hand for emergencies.  Whether planned or coincidental, the strike comes just before several big festivals and events, including a solar eclipse,  in French Polynesia that bring in thousands of tourists from aborad.

We got online to indeed find out if their flight had been cancelled.  It had been.  Since we still had the car, Russ, Garyn, and Jess went out to the airport anyway to see if they could talk with a Hawaiian Airlines representative.  The Hawaiian Air booth was dark, no one was around.  Quantas and Air Tahiti had also cancelled their flights, but were in their booths assisting stranded customers.  Strike 1.

It’s a good thing Garyn and Jess still have Worrall Wind as a home base.   Other crew members had just been dropped off and their boats had sailed on. 

June 12 – Garyn and Jess once again tried to connect with Hawaiian Air only to be referred to the website which had no new information.  No there was no one locally they could speak with.  No, they could not or would not inform them of updates.  It was up to them to keep calling and being put on hold.  Strike 2.

Russ and I went to the open market and walked all around Papeete.  We stopped at the tourist center and discovered the Haiva festival down the quay about a mile.  Haiva is an annual dance festival.  With our neighbors, Herb and Betty on SV Sulla, the six of us went to watch the dancing.  It was terrific.  All of the dancers were female from dance schools around the islands and ranged in age from  5 year olds to 60+ year olds.  Boy can they shake their booties!  The costumes were beautiful and the music hypnotic.

About two thirds of the way through the show, it started to sprinkle then soak everyone in the open-air theater.  Spectators and visitors evacuated the stands looking for cover.  By the time we got back to the boat we were drenched.  It sprinkled and rained throughout the night.  As far as we know, there has been no progress made on the strike.

June 13 – Happy Birthday Abby.  We are thinking of you today.

Once again Jessica tried calling Hawaiian Airlines to find out what was going on and if there was any resolve to the strike.  She also wanted to let them know how unsatisfied she and Garyn were with their lack of customer service (helpfulness) in keeping them informed about strike progress and/or rescheduled flights etc.  At one point after going up two levels in customer service and spending considerable time on hold, the representative conveniently disconnected (hangup).   Strike 3!  Woe to Hawaiian when you’ve got assertive twitterers, yelpers, and bloggers on board.

It is hard to fathom why the airline can’t keep their ticket holders better informed, particularly when Quantas and Air Tahiti seem to be assisting their customers with updates, news, and room reservations.  No one blames the airlines, but airlines are in a better position than the stranded, non-French speaking tourist to assist with alternative arrangements and support.  Apparently the other airlines understand this concept.  Hawaiian isn’t getting it.  Their idea of support is to NOT charge a re-scheduling fee when cancelled flights are rescheduled.  Otherwise, travelers are on their own.

Hopefully, the public employees can get their strike resolved quickly.  It is bad for tourism and for stranded travelers.  In two weeks, we ourselves will be heading home for Abby and Neal’s wedding….on Hawaiian Air.    We certainly hope the situation is resolved by then.  For now, while all might not be well with air transportation to and from Tahiti,

All is well on Worrall Wind

Day 6 & 7 – Now moored in downtown Papeete, Tahiti

Latitude:        17 32.407 S
Longitude:  149 34.247 W

We spent the evening of day 5 in Opunohu Bay on Moorea with Brian and friends on Furthur.  We met other cruisers from Curious and Freestyle and enjoyed sundowners until long after the sun went down, before returning to Worrall Wind.

Day 6 – Rays, Sharks, and a Tough Hike!

On day 6, Garyn and Jess decided to go hiking and find the three coconut trail they had seen in their guide book.  Russ and I chose to do some dinghy exploration.   After dropping Garyn and Jess on shore, Russ and I packed a picnic lunch, took sun umbrella, snorkels, and fins, and headed towards the old Club Med property via a dinghy pass through the coral reefs.   Brian had given us some frozen fish chunks the night before to feed the rays.  He gave us directions how to find the the ray and shark hangout along the way.

It took us about an hour with the dinghy to find the sandy white bottom high spot amidst the coral where the reef shark and rays hangout and tourists come to visit.

There were some white mooring balls which we attached the dinghy to.  Russ jumped out first. 

The water was a little over waist high.  There was another tour boat with about 5 people close to ours.  The rays and sharks were circling.  I was a little worried about getting out of the boat, but when I saw that the sharks were standoffish and not remotely interested in the other human edibles, I finally got in the water. 

The rays were amazing.  There were about a dozen or more rays 3-4 feet across who have become accustomed to daily feedings.  They eagerly surrounded us, nudging us, folding their wings up and around us, allowing us to pet them.   

They loved the little bits of fish we gave them.  I tried to feed them like I would a horse, flat palmed, but since their eyes are on top and mouth on the bottom I don’t think they could see where the food was.

I got nipped a couple of times by their toothless jaws.  One of the nips actually broke the skin on my right middle finger.  It was a good thing that was the last piece of fish as I wasn’t inclined to feed them much after that.  And with the sharks around, I didn’t much care to have any blood in the water.

The black tipped reef sharks just kept circling, but never came very close….thank goodness. 

After our ray and shark experience, we motored on to the Club Med property and took a few photos from the water. 

One of the photos (night shot) was taken 16 years ago.  It was the genesis of our dream to return to Moorea. 

There is a similar shot, not exactly from the same perspective,  that we took from the dinghy.  

Returning to this spot wasn’t exactly how we envisioned it.  We did come in our boat, albeit the dinghy, and we would have enjoyed walking the Club Med property, but that wasn’t to be.  Nevertheless, we had returned and the circle was closed.

As we returned to Worrall Wind, it became apparent to us that one of the dinghy pass markers was missing.  We went straight from one post to another, only to find ourselves in the midst of shallow water and coral heads.   Sure glad our dinghy had a hard bottom and we had pulled up the motor.  We tried paddling, but the fetch and current made it too difficult.  We finally had to get out of the dinghy and find a path through the sand and between coral heads until we were in  waist high water and could see a pass out to deeper water.  Russ got  few coral scrapes which I immediately squeezed some fresh lime juice on (I had heard that this was a great anti-coral-bacterial).  When we returned to the boat, we took care of our coral scrapes and ray bites with antibiotic ointments.

Jess and Garyn returned to the boat about 4:00 p.m., hot, muddy, and sweaty.  They had gone on a 15 mile hike without ever getting to the three coconuts because the trail was so overgrown.  They were exhausted.  I think we had the better day.

Day 7 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010) -  We left Moorea around 10:30 this morning and are now tied up bow first on the quay in Papeete. on Tahiti.  We are right next to SV Sula from Paradise Village in Puerta Vallarta.  Papeete is the port city and capital of French Polynesia. 

It is obvious from the structures that the no taller than a coconut tree does not apply here.

Garyn and Jess have gone off to explore.  Russ and I are hanging out on the boat doing some cleanup work and waiting for agent to come and check us in.

The kids only have three more days before returning to the states.  We will probably rent a car and do a circle tour tomorrow or Thursday.  There is a lot to see and do here.

All is well on Worrall Wind

Day 4/5 - Society Islands, Moorea

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Latitude: 17 29.481 S

Longitude 149 51 117 W

Day 4  was a lazy day.  After  renting a car and touring the island the day before, we woke up with no scheduled to do anything.  Very nice indeed.  We read, downloaded and organized digital photos, listened to music, and enjoyed sitting on the lido deck soaking in the views.  Garyn and Jess went on shore for some land time around noon and didn’t return until late afternoon. 

Russ had done some dumpster diving the day before and found an old pair of broken flipflops which he cut up to make pads for the bottom part of the davits where there is ongoing dinghy rub.  He also worked a bit on  cleaning barnacles off of Hydie’s rudder.  About six we all returned to shore for pizza and salads.  There is a little pizza shack with wood oven.  We sat at the bar and were incredibly entertained watching a French woman and young man turning out pizzas. 

It was a small kitchen and the two of them did a choreographed dance with just two long-handled pizza pallets.  Each had his/her pallets.  The thin crust pizza’s only took about two minutes to cook (1 minute in the outer part of the oven and 1 minute on the inner part of the oven.  The oven looked like it could accommodate 3-4 pizzas at any one time.  So every minute., one- two pizzas came out, one to two pizzas were moved forward, and one–two  pizza’s were put on  the outside edge.

During the 1 minute intervals, the young man answered the phone, took orders, collected money from customers, and put balls of dough into a  press of sorts that made instant rounds which he then trimmed, floured, and staggered layers, sprinkled with flour onto a metal work surface.

The woman would flour one of the long handled pallets, lay on a round of pizza dough, sprinkle on the requested ingredients,  All of the ingredients had been prepared in advance and were ready to sprinkle.  The man would then take the his pizza pallet, remove the inside pizzas, shift the outside pizzas to the inside.  The woman would then put her pizza into the outside oven and immediately return it the work bench to flour and make another.  She could make two pizzas in   minute.

The timing was amazing to watch.  They worked steadily in this manner for the hour we were there eating dinner….great pizza’s too.  One of their specialties was the banana pizza.  The dough was covered with a thick whipping cream, piled with squished and sliced bananas and brown sugar.  It was one of the few pizzas that didn’t require the full two minutes.  After one minute in the outside oven, the young man would scoop it up on his pallet and hold up to the hot roof of the oven to bring the bananas and sugar to a golden brown.  When it came out of the oven and was cut and boxed, dark chocolate was dribbled in concentric circles all of the the the top!

We were exhausted watching the pizza dancers, so we came back to the boat, lay in  the hammock, listened to music and tried to count the stars before falling asleep.

Day 5 – Russ awoke early and began to service the engine, changing filters etcs.  He checked the fuel tanks and discovered the starboard tank had some water in the bottom.  He bled off the bottom of the water. After everything was in good order, we pulled anchor and motored  to the next bay over, Opunohu.   This bay does not have any commercial establishments….stores, banks, restaurants, etc.  Snorkeling and diving, and gazing at the uspoiled beauty are the primary activities.  

The water behind the reef where we are anchored is a gorgeous turquoise.  Our anchor which we can see is in about 30 feet of water dug into white sand.  We can see the bottom and have already spotted a couple of rays.  Before lunch we all went snorkeling.  Garyn and Jess went out toward the western reef where they were followed by a curious puffer fish.  Russ and I went toward the shore where there is a huge variety of reef fish living in the coral heads.  I counted at least 10 sea cucumbers.  The shore which is less than 100 yards from the boat is a public beach which has been filled all day with Polynesian families laughing playing in the water.

As I write this blog, Garyn and Jess are snorkeling, and Russ has gone off with Brian from Furthur on a dinghy ride, and I’m sitting in my office on the lido deck, but it’s time to get ready for island happy hour.  The sun is dipping lower in the sky.

All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update 2/3- Society Islands

Day 2/3 - Moorea

Day 2 - After a great night's sleep, we lounged about the boat in the morning, eating buttermilk pancakes, calling our bank, and checking our email. We spent the afternoon, visiting local shops. Garyn and Jess walked the farthest and finally got their ATM to work. We came back to the boat at dusk and made a cold fruit salad. During the day, we had a visit from Brian on Furthur. We handed off his perfume package that we carried across the Pacific and met two (of 3) crew members from Slovania, both lovely young women.

Day 3 - We rented a car today and made a circle tour of the island. We stopped and had a wonderful lunch at a beach restaurant next to the old Club Med property.

This is where spent our 25th wedding anniversary, 16 years ago. We had heard that Club Med Moorea had closed, but it was so sad to see weeds growing through cracks in the tennis courts. We could see the tennis courts from the road. The rest of the property was was fenced with barbed wired. Part of our dream was to come back to Club Med, but I guess nothing ever stays the same. We could see the Motu's off of Club Med from the beach restaurant. We will have to figure a way to get to the Motus off of Club Med for some snorkeling. We remember this as being a pretty terrific place for snorkeling.

After a full day of touring (pineapple farms, beautiful vistas, jungle trails, and ancient ruins) we came back to the boat.  

While Garyn and Jess went for a sunset dinghy ride, we discovered as we were fixing some cocktails, that a beer can had leaked in the forward hold. What a mess. We smelled like a brew pub as we soaked up the beer and cleaned out the hold. Garyn and Jess fixed a nice pasta and salad for dinner this evening.


Russ and I set up the hammock on the foredeck and watched the stars come up over the jagged mountains. A gentle breeze is blowing. It is a warm caress. Tomorrow???? Don't worry. Be happy.
All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update 3/1 - Society Islands Arrived

Day 2/3 - Land Ho Moorea! The Dream is Realized!

UTC/Local Time: 0712/2112

Latitude: 17.30.266 S
Longitude: 149 49.221 W

Update:

Tuesday, June 1:
The wind decreased to 7 knots towards late afternoon of day 2 and our forward progress was pitiful. We were under 1 knot of speed in the 2 meter swells. Our estimated travel time of 2 days was now estimating a July through September arrival. Given our experience and resolve not to run with the whisker pole or genny at night,it was time to turn on Lehman and Ray (engine and auto pilot)as the weather was showing decreasing wind over the next few days. We are all ready for some land.
We turned on the engine about 3:30 p.m., and under motor with a small tail wind we should arrive in Moorea early tomorrow afternoon.

Wednesday, June 2:
By 2:30 this afternoon, we were anchored in Cook's Bay in Moorea. This island with the backdrop of the lush green mountains with cumulus clouds building on top with deep blue seas is where we started the dream 15 years ago. On our 25th wedding anniversary, we came to Moorea and saw sailboats in the bay. We said, wouldn't it be wonderful to sail our own boat here someday? At that time, it was just a fantasy dream. As we were waiting on the bow while we were making sure the anchor was really set, Russ said, "Pinch me, are we really here?" I gave him a little pinch and a kiss. Yes we are really here! It's unbelievable. We did it! In the bay with us are several other Puddle Jump boats, including Alobar and Furthur.
We disembarked and went for an afternoon walk into town. We all seem to be having some difficulty getting money from the ATMs. We tried three of them with no success. Our challenge tomorrow will be to figure that out. In the meantime, we used plastic to buy some groceries and had a wonderful French dinner of curried shrimp and rack of lamb at one of the established restaurants on the bay. We sat next to the water and noticed that manta rays were swimming in. We counted 9. The waiter told us that up to 13 come in every night and are hand fed by the owner around 8:00 p.m. Sure enough at 8:00 p.m. the owner, descended the steps to the water with some tuna. The rays were flapping and vying for his attention as he pet them and gave them some tuna. It was fun to watch.

Garyn and Jess have gone to bed and we will be following as soon as this update is posted. It will be a joy to sleep all night on still waters. We look forward to some snorkeling and hiking over the next couple of days.

It is a beautiful night in Cook's Bay. It's very still. We cannot feel the boat move at all. The stars in the inky sky are brilliant. The moon has yet to rise. We have the doors and windows open and covered with mosquito netting. Off to our port side their is a church community center. When we walked by after dinner this evening, the place was packed what looked like funeral (not a lot of happy faces). Now that we are on the boat, we hear Polynesian singing waft across the water. Lovely.
All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update - Society Islands Bound

Day 2 - June 1, 2010 - Thunder storms - Tides and Weather

UTC/Local Time: 200/1000

Latitude: 16 38.09 S
Longitude: 147 15/ 436 W

Course Over Ground: 240 degrees at 6 knots
Wind Direction: ESE 9-18 knots
Sea Swell: following/wallowing seas 7-9 feet
Sky: 100% cloud cover
Barometric Pressure: 1018
Temperature 81 degrees, 80 % humidity

Update:

Last night was probably our most uncomfortable night yet. The direction of the wind and direction of the way we wanted to go created a compromise route which placed the rolling seas right on our beam rocking us back and forth all night. In addition to the uncomfortable ride that had things moving about the cabin all night, clanking, groaning, banging, bell ringing, ther was some anxiety about the lightning we could see off our starboard stern and catching us. No one got much rest.

We ran all night with just a handheld gps, turning off all of the other electronic equipment and stowing the sat phone, computer and dongle (navigation software key) in our ovens to protect them from potential lightning strikes. We hand charted our position every hour. The thunder storms stayed to our starboard and passed us by early this morning. We were relieved.

Right now the sky is very cloudy and grey. We can see squalls coming behind us, but with the entire sky cloudy and grey already, they don't seem to pack the intense gusts, or maybe because we are running downwind we just don't feel it as much. We are all trying to catch up on rest today.

ABOUT POLYNESIAN WEATHER:

The followiing information is primarily for our sailing friends who are in our wake, but might be of general interest to others as well.

Bring a French dictionary so that you can interpret the daily French Polynesia weather forecast from saildocs. The areas are broken into sectors. We have a list of the most common phrases, but there are always some words that aren't there and need to be looked up...for instance "orage" which means thunder storm. The forecasts are pretty accurate. Here is an example of our forecast for today:

C45
TAHITI/OUEST TUAMOTU
SECTEUR EST 18/22KT MOLLISSANT CE SOIR 12/16KT ET DEMAIN 08/12KT, RAFALES 30KT, MER AGITEE, DEMAIN PEU AGITEE, AVERSES OU GRAINS ISOLES AVEC ORAGE.

We are looking forward to the less agitated seas, not looking forward to the light winds or isolated rain and thunderstorms.

ABOUT SLACK TIDES FOR ATOLL PASSAGE:

Getting in and out of atolls can be very tricky, particularly if the pass through the coral is narrow and currents are strong. The lighting (directly above)and calm seas are ideal, but obviously not always available. We bypassed some atolls with disappointment because we were not willing to compromise on the lighting and seas (which has been squally and high seas. We felt comfortable going into Fakarava because even though the seas and lighting were marginal, the pass was well marked and very wide. We also had some good rule of thumb information regarding how to calculate a slack tide to avoid what could be nasty currents. This is what we were told, and it worked for us.

First we entered the position of the pass we wanted to enter and checked the moon rise and set times for that location on our GPS. Then we used this local knowledge to get in and out of the pass.

Rules of thumb on moon set/rise:

4 hours before moon set - slack ebb
5 hours after moon set - slack flood

3 hours before moonrise - slack ebb
5 hours after moonrise - slack flood.

We came in on a slack ebb at 10:49 a.m. and left on a slack ebb at 1:00 p.m. The current was insignificant both times. The sun was high in the sky.

That's it for now.

All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update 1 - Society Islands Bound

UTC/Local Time: 0500 6-1/1900 5/31

Latitude: 16 13.450 S
Longitude: 146 10.082 W
Course Over Ground: 240
Wind Direction: ENE 15-21 knots, broad reach, port tack
Sea Swell: 8 feet, 6 seconds from ENE
Sky: 50% cloud
Barometric Pressure: 1017

Day 1 - Society Islands Bound

Update:

Last night was our last in Fakarava. The wind blew with a 20+ knot fury most of the night and it was squally. We got up early and were at the post office by 8:00 exchanging dollars for francs, the boulangerie for chocolate croissants by 8:30, and the Hanani Pearl store by 9:00. Gunther the proprietor of the pearl farm picked us up in his car and drove use about 12 kilometers out of town to the pearl farm. Gunther is a German ex-patriot, married to a Tuomotan. They harvest pearls from their 150,000 oysters, and have two show rooms, one in town and one at the farm. We had a very interesting tour and learned how pearls are seeded, grafted, grown, and harvested. The pearls from Polynesia range in hue from shades of gray, green, and lavendar. Naturally, when the tour was over, we all had to buy some pearls.

We were back on Worrall Wind by noon and and had weighed anchor by 12:20. There was an ebb tide that we wanted to ride out of the pass as it was beginning to slack. We motored through the lagoon at about 6 knots. The current was about 1.5 knots accelerating our outward passage to 7.5 knots. We really loved Fakarava and the friendly people we encountered. It was difficult to leave. By 1:00 p.m. we were out of the lagoon in open water.

It is very dark, warm, and humid tonight. We can see occasional lightening in the clouds to the north. The moon will not rise until much later. The wind is on our port stern and the waves are close together rolling us from side rail to side rail, not comfortable. We have a triple reefed main, reefed jib. The wind almost at our back seems minimal but we are moving 5.5-6.5 knots. On our current course and speed, we should be in Tahiti in 2 days. Russ and I have first watch. It is hard to believe that we left Mexico almost 2 months ago and tomorrow it is the first of June. Garyn and Jessica will only be with us for a few more weeks.

All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update 3/4 - Tuomotu

Day 3/4 - Fakarava, Tuomotu

Update:

Day 3 - After our dive yesterday, Russ and I took a nice bicycle ride along the paved road of the Atoll. This is my kind of bicycle ride....flat road, beautiful scenery, and an occasional squall to cool us off. There were a couple of hotel-pensions that looked very relaxing, inviting, and expensive (Havaiki and Maitai Dream)that would be fun to come back too. The Maitai Dream Hotel allowed us to get 5000 francs from our credit card.

Garyn and Jess cooked dinner on the boat. Russ and I met up with folks from other yachts (Trim, Beaujolis, Infini, Bamboozle) for dinner at a little snack shack only open on weekends. All the dinners were the same prices of 1200 francs, and we could choose from lemon chicken, raw fish, steak and fries, or chow mien. It was a lot of food for the money and we all had a good time.

Around 3:00 a.m. in the morning, we heard some tooting and woke up to see a huge cargo ship weaving its way through the anchorage to the dock. It came within 10 feet of the back of our boat and scared the #@! out of us.

Day 4 (Sunday) - Jess and Garyn were off on a long bicycle ride to the end of the atoll by 8:00. Church was in session and when Russ returned from taking Garyn and Jessica ashore, church goers, particularly the LDS men were dressed up in shirts and ties. Russ and I stayed on the boat doing some chores and projects (cleaning out the not-working refrigerator, downloading photos and backing up the hard drive, finishing the sail repair, replacing the duck bills in the head pump, and making water). By noon, Russ and I went on shore to the Mother's Day Festival under the covered basketball court behind the primary school. There were probably 30 people in attendance and most of them looked like the organizers (ticket takers, band members, bingo master, artisans) and children. Some of the women had flower wreaths in their hair. A handful of cruisers were buying some of the jewelry and food. We recognized one of the band members as the dive boat driver from the day before. Russ wandered off to look at the booths while I videoed the band. One of the men got out of his chair and came over and kissed me on both cheeks. I think he was wishing me a Happy Mother's Day, but I wasn't really sure. The rest of band were looking quite amused by his greeting. While we were there, I bought a pretty little necklace that one of the artisans had made. It used up the last of our francs. We walked into town after going to the festival. There wasn't a car or bicycle on the road. Everything was closed up tight. Tomorrow, when the post office is open, I think we can exchange a few more $ for francs. By 3:00 p.m. Garyn and Jess had returned from their bike ride.

Within the hour Jessica had climbed the mast up to the first spreader and was helping us to restring our flag halyard. She looked like a circus soleil acrobat. She did a great job. Since we are out of money, we are eating on board this evening. I'm downloading grib files to see if we have favorable enough conditions to leave for Tahiti after our visit to the pearl farm in the morning.

All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update 2/3 - Tuomotu

Day 2 & 3- Fakarava, Tuomotu

Update:

Day 2: On day 1, Garyn and Jess were the only ones who ventured ashore for about an hour around sunset after the squalls subsided. On day 2, the sun was out, most of the clouds were gone, and the wind had significantly subsided. Russ, the early bird, was just returning from town in the dinghy when we woke up. His back pack was stuffed with two fresh baguettes and 4 chocolate croissants. We sat on the deck enjoying our breakfast with fresh brewed coffee mochas.

After breakfast, Russ and I went ashore for awhile to do some exploring. The land of the atoll is narrow enough that if you stand in the right spot on one of the cross roads, you can see the lagoon on one side and the ocean on the other. The residents of Fakarava live on a very long strip of land only a few feet above sea level. A lovely cement and paved road runs the through Rotoava, the town in front of which we are anchored.

In Mexico, we were always impressed by the Mexican people sweeping, sweeping, sweeping. In French Polynesia, the residents are raking, raking, raking, keeping their gardens and grounds clean from falling coconuts, leaves, and fronds. We made arrangements to go on an introductory dive the following day, and through our friends on Trim to visit a pearl farm on Monday. We talked with the vegetable lady whose stand was barren and she told us the boat was coming later in the day to bring her fresh supplies. We also did a little tide pooling on the ocean side of the reef. The tide was out and we were able to collect some shells and pieces of broken coral.

We bought some cold drinks and returned to the boat. We met some boys near the dinghy dock and talked with them. Russ gave them some of our balloons! They wanted to come on the dinghy with us back to the boat, but we decided that was not a good idea. We didn't want anyone thinking we were kidnapping these children.

Jess and Garyn took the dinghy and bicycles a shore after lunch. They befriended the same young boys we had met at the dock. They wound up giving the boys a ride in the dinghy. The boys then rode with them through the atoll giving them a tour, showing them how to climb and pick coconuts, husk them and drink the milk. They have some cute stories to tell of their adventure with these rambunctious youngsters. Russ and I stayed on board during the afternoon to catch up on some boat chores, including sail repair. About 4:00 p.m., Russ and I went back into town. While we had been on our boat, the big boat from Tahiti passed between us and Trim for the main dock. We hoped that the vegetable lady would be restocked. She wasn't so we will have to return on Saturday morning.

We met up with Garyn and Jessica and all went to dinner at a little restaurant called Teanuanua. There are picnic type table with bench seats on posts in the sand with market umbrellas that flap in the wind. As the tide comes in the table seats go under the water. We sat on the deck as the sun went down. The tide was already in and the seats were already in the water so we decided to stay higher and drier. Jessica and Russ had mahimahi in a vanilla sauce. Garyn and I had steak. It was excellent. Dinner and drinks for the four us came to about $140.00, about $35.00/ea. There is no ATM or bank on this Atoll and we are almost out of Francs. We will need find someplace to take $, debit or credit card. The owner of the restaurant was very pleasant and spoke very good English. He had previously worked at Club Med in Moorea and had probably been there as a security guard or bartender when Russ and I were at Club Med 15 years ago. Russ gave his little five year old niece some balloons. She and some other children of customers had fun batting and playing with the balloons. After a lovely day. We all returned to the boat in the moonlight.

Day 3:
Russ got up early to take a bike ride and to see if the vegetable stand was open (it wasn't) and Garyn worked on the refrigerator this morning. It still isn't working correctly. I've transferred the most perishable foods to the little port refrigerator. By 9:30 a.m. we were in the dinghy and headed for the dive shop. We got outfitted with our dive equipment and then we were off to the reef in the middle of the lagoon. Our introductory dive was fabulous. We were able to see flute fish, pipe fish, reef shark, shrimp, beautiful clams, coral. The time went all too quickly. I was sorry to get out of the water and the last one back on the boat. Russ and I want to do more of this. It was fun and particularly nice because our dive instructors were so great.

Garyn and Jess are on the boat this afternoon while Russ and I search for a place to exchange some $ for francs.

All is well on Worrall Wind.

Worrall Wind Update 6 - Tuomotu Arrived

Day 1 - Anchored in Fakarava, Tuomotu May 27, 2010

UTC/Local Time: 2130/1130 a.m. Tahiti Time

Latitude: 16 03.508 S
Longitude: 145 37.363 W
Course Over Ground: At Anchor
Wind Direction: Southeast 120 degrees, 14 knots
Sea Swell: 0, windwaves 1 foot
Sky: 80% cloud cover, squallish, raining at the moment
Barometric Pressure: 1019 +2, 84 degrees F, 80% humidity

Update:
After 5 days of sailing, we are at anchor in Fakarava, Tuomotu. We had hoped to go to a smaller atoll north of Fakarava first, but at 5:30 a.m. it was decision time, turn into the 25 knots of wind and motor through a squall line and 9 foot seas to reach an atoll with a tiny opening or continue on the same course and try to enter Fakarava by 10:30 a.m. when the conditions might be more favorable. We chose the second option, knowing that we might have to pass this atoll by as well.

A couple of boats, Trim and IO, that had flashed past us during the journey were outside the channel and had been hanging out for slack tide, having made the same decision. We had purposely slowed our speed way down so that we would not have to heave to. It also made an uncomfortable sea more bearable. I think all of us sailors are exhausted from the last 72 hours of sailing, 9-12 foot seas, consistent 20 knots and more of wind, gusts up to 30 knots, and too many squalls to count.

The opening into Fakarava is well marked, and our Nobeltec Navigation system has been very accurate in French Polynesia. Much more so than in Mexico. Considering how we have to weave our way through the coral reef atolls, we are very thankful for the accuracy, particularly at night when we cannot use dead reckoning. Unlike the Marquesas which have huge land masses protruding out of the sea, atolls are flat and the palm trees as we approached looked like they were growing out of the water. We kept very close if not on top of our course line all through the night.

By the time we entered the channel, the wind had subsided to 20 knots, the current coming out of the atoll was only 2 knots, and the wind waves/swell were about 1-2 meters having splashed over and through the coral on the south-south east side. With our motor on and sails down, we followed Trim and IO in. Several of the other Puddle Jump Boats are in this atoll as well.

We are anchored in 48 feet of water. The anchorage is not idyllic calm, but far better than being at sea. We are all glad that we made it in and hope to enjoy this atoll a couple of days before heading to Tahiti. We may attempt some sail repair. During our trip, we lost another Seven Seas Sailing Association Flag overboard when the port flag halyard snapped. The starboard flags are wound up in a roll and will need to be detangled along with the topping lift that just got caught up in our wind generator. The fun never stops. Since we have never been in this neck of the "sea", we don't know whether the wind and sea conditions are the norm or out of the norm due to the southern low/storm and/or El Nino. It's just been a bit more than we expected.

We are all looking forward to a shower in calm waters and a little R & R. Snorkeling and drift diving is supposed to be the best here, so we are looking forward to some time in the water, catnaps, feet on the ground, and fresh baguettes.

All is well on Worrall Wind.