Gentle Cruising

 

La Orana!

On Thursday we celebrated our first anniversary of arriving in French Polynesia.  Little did we know then that a year on we would still be in the Society Islands.  

Sunset in Huahine

New viewpoint in Taha'a

We arrived with far more grandiose plans but one thing this past 12 months have taught me is that “gentle” cruising, as skipper calls it, has a lot to commend it.  At first the choice was not ours to make.  Papillon was simply not ocean worthy, and all our efforts had to be focussed on making that happen.  When we finally had sufficient solar power, a functioning water maker and the means to freeze months’ worth of food on board then decisions had to be made.  Did we want to move on immediately or did we want to explore the Society Islands more extensively? I naturally gravitate towards “ticking off” cruising.  New anchorages provide thrill and fear in equal measure and are exciting.  Fiji beckoned but we would have to go immediately as cyclone season over there is a serious concern.  Cruisers either have to leave by November or face the cost of a haul out in a “cyclone resistant” boatyard for months.  Neither option was attractive, and I was persuaded to slow down.  The trans-Pacific cruisers often spend less than 3 months in French Polynesia, an area approximately the size of Europe.  By the time they get to the Society Islands after brief layovers in the Marquesas and Tuamotu archipelagos their thoughts have already shifted to Fiji, and they barely manage a stop in Raiatea and Bora Bora before they are off again.  We have done it very differently exploring each of the 7 main islands at a slow pace gradually building up an archive of our favourite anchorages, walks, snorkelling waters and eateries.  It has been gentle cruising at its best.  The familiarity of favourite anchorages offset by the ever-changing weather conditions and activities available ashore.  Never was this so apparent as last week when our when our first and long anticipated visitors of 2024 arrived. 

First night on board with the Stewarts

Monica takes the helm!

The nerves were jangling the week before.  The weather had been shocking but added to that uncertainty everything on the boat seemed to be breaking at the same time.  As fast as we fixed a problem something else went wrong.  The last straw was our previously reliable windlass which refused to engage the anchor as we were attempting to drop the hook in Huahine after a very bumpy 6 hour crossing.  A pickup buoy further south in the lagoon was the solution and a work-around was fashioned but it was a close call. By definition, any boat job demands the use of every tool available  on board and this one was no different. After a few hours the boat was in complete disarray, and we were frazzled.  It seemed like we would never be ready but of course we were and with the workaround functioning like clockwork we were able to enjoy a wonderful 6 days with Monica and Graeme revisiting some of our favourite old haunts.  The weather was not always kind, but each experience was different.  A walk we had done in Huahine in sunshine with Mairi and Rob was repeated in steady rain, another on Taha’a was unrecognisable after a major landslide and a final one on one of my favourite motus found me disturbing a hornet’s nest and running for relief into the sea. That certainly hadn’t happened before! 

Wreath and coral offerings at the Marae	Leaving Papillon on the reef
Walk in Raiatea	Orchids on "Hornet's Nest" motu

The weather veered from virtual calm to steady winds.  Their first ocean passage had to be helped along with the motors.  No life jackets or seasickness pills required only lazy lolling about in the trampoline for 5 hours and lots of cups of tea.  The second was much brisker.  We raced down the west side of Raiatea in steady winds of 20-25 knots - a fantastic introduction to catamaran sailing and completely different from the day before. Eating out was slightly thwarted by the extended Christmas closures of many places and the complete disappearance of others, but we did manage a fantastic night out at Opoa Beach Hotel.  Good food and dancing to entertain and the wettest dinghy ride of our lives back to Papillon when it was all over. We can never tire of that place even when we do get home absolutely soaked!   Wildlife was plentiful but distinct from previous trips.  Dolphins jumped in the passes, turtles surfaced, rays leapt out of the water and baby black tip sharks gathered in coral pools. Snorkelling in Taha’a, usually so reliable was hampered by fierce currents.  Avoiding the coral became the primary objective, any additional fish sightings an added extra.  How does one predict when the currents are running strongly? We certainly got it wrong that day.  The GoPro was redundant until the end when we could finally lounge around in the shallows filming the fish grazing the last clumps of coral in glorious sunshine.  Everything we did with our visitors felt different and yet strangely familiar - we loved having them aboard.

Baby black tip sharks at our feet	Exploring the Motu
Walking in Taha'a	Out at the reef

But now they are gone, and we need to make plans for what next.  First things first though are the more pressing matters of the day: endless clothes washings, shopping to replenish the freezers, diesel tanks to fill and the water maker to run.  It’s all exciting stuff on a boat you know.  By Thursday we were exhausted.  Our normal pattern is to avoid alcohol Monday to Thursday, but this was our one-year anniversary after all, and it seemed worth celebrating!  We took a dinghy ride into town and visited the new wine shop that has just opened.  Emerging with a chilled bottle of white we enjoyed a lovely sunset back on board with skipper’s best shark steaks on the menu.  Reflecting on last year it seemed we had come a long way.  Back then on our first night in French Polynesia all we could find to buy in Champion were some  stuffed pasta shells and a box of unrecognisable tea bags.  A year on everything feels much more familiar.  We still have to figure out what’s next for us but we will leave that for tomorrow.  Today this gentle cruising malarky has a lot to commend it!

Sunset back in Uturoa

Papillon from the plane (middle row second from the front!)