Papillon in the Pacific

La Orana!  It’s windy here in Raiatea and has been for the past week. Our wind instrument is currently reading 30kn and above but has hardly dropped below 25 all week. Too strong for pottering about, too wild for seeking out calm anchorages and too much swell for many dinghy rides into town. Ironically it is forecast to settle down next week while we are in the boatyard but meanwhile, we are confined to barracks.   Windy days in Raiatea   Mooring buoy doing its work in the wind Well almost. On Wednesday I was fixing a sail bag. The sewing part had been done but the bag still had to be secured into its locker. As I was wrestling with this task a boat came in to pick up a buoy. That isn’t remotely unusual but hearing another yachtsman hailing a boat midway during a manoeuvre in heavy weather is. I glanced across at the noise and there was the skipper of a neighbouring boat standing at the bow gesticulating wildly and shouting to the helmsman...

La Orana!  We finally left Bora Bora on Friday morning. The wind had been strong for 3 days but seemed to have eased slightly, blowing roughly a Force 4 when we got up. It remained from the east so little chance of sailing, but we decided to take our chance on it. The new dinghy was hoisted onto the davits and the old one tied securely at the stern to the starboard hull. It was going to be a bumpy ride. We had great sailing down the west side of the island but once we had rounded the lighthouse at the southwest tip the wind  was heading us as expected, and it was motor sailing all the way back.    Bora Bora   Walking ashore Dinghy watch was an unnerving responsibility. Duncan’s well tied bowline was certainly put to the test as the little boat jigged and bounced over the waves or slapped down on top of them creating spray that splashed right into the cockpit. At least with a rigid hull it was less likely to flip over than a purely inf...

La Orana! This time last week we were sitting somewhat glumly at the “borrowed” mooring in Papeete. The real owner had turned up to ask very graciously if we could leave in the morning and there was still no news of the freezers. What's more the Friday party boats were beginning to assemble reminding us that the weekend was definitely on its way - we were not exactly feeling like celebrating.    Party time on the lagoon   Unconventional spot to moor ones dinghy It was at this moment that the phone rang. It was a delivery guy. He had the freezers and would be at the marina in 30mins. Unbelievable. We couldn’t make his rendezvous time, but it was agreed he would leave our boxes at the chandlery which remained open until 4pm.  We literally threw everything including ourselves into the dinghy and raced off – well chugged off as quickly as our little dinghy and outboard could manage. 40 minutes later we had reached our destination.  Our ...

La Orana This week we have been waiting in Papeete for our new freezers to arrive.  I know that sounds ridiculous but we are learning the hard way that purchasing goods from overseas for delivery into French Polynesia is a complete minefield.  So much of the final taxes charged seems to depend on the delivery address and whether it is business or personal.  It's difficult for us to use a personal address so we keep getting hammered by the tax and this time has proved to be no exception.  It’s painful but made worse by the fact that despite receiving  a delivery note almost a week ago the items have still not been released.  The contents have been inspected, the invoices approved, and the taxes paid (on freezers AND delivery from China)… but we still don’t actually know where they are or how we pick them up.     Airport anchorage with Moorea behind   Plane spotting at the mooring All this has been a tad stressfu...

  La Orana! This week we have been circumnavigating Moorea.   I could start with the spectacular but to keep things real I’m going share some of the challenges aboard first.      Rotui from the North   Sunrise setting off the new solar panels Look away now if you don’t like creepy crawlies because this next bit is about cockroaches and specifically certain stowaways we have picked up on our journey so far.   The first sighting was months ago back in Uturoa marina.   I was sorting clothes out for the machine when a huge one scuttled out of the dirty washing bag and up the wall of our cabin. I’m not sure where the quick thinking came from, but I grabbed a beaker from beside the bed, trapped it against the wall and dispatched it far away into the sea.   Turning to google we discovered that cockroach eggs can take up to 60 days to hatch!!   Various sticky traps were laid, and the countdown began.   By day 50 we ...