Marquesas

(click on an island to go there)

At the end of a long trip..

Finally, land!! This is Fatu Hiva, our first glimpse of French Polynesia. Although Fatu Hiva is not an official Port of Entry, the local gendarmes really don't ask many questions, and you can always play dumb.

Here we see the approach to the "Bay of Virgins", which is a kind of Polynesian joke. Those with a critical eye will notice various forms of jury-rigging. We were not used to sailing downwind with no wind, which can involve lots of sail slatting and rig banging. We improvised en route but not before the boom bail and a few shackles broke. Our advice is to rig a preventer from the bow to the end of the boom and have a strong vang.

The Marquesas are truly a tropical paradise and the islands are largely uninhabited. Fatu Hiva is one our favorites, if for no other reason than it doesn't seem to harbor any no-nos. If you don't know what a no-no is, you will by the time you leave Nuku Hiva. They are also known as sand flies or no-see-ums. You don't notice the bites at first, but they later start to itch and keep itching for about a week, longer if you yield to temptation and scratch them.

Our next island was Tahuata. While not as spectacular as Fatu Hiva, it has nicer anchorages and some of the friendliest natives you'll ever meet.

One Sunday morning some people pull up on an outrigger canoe. We ignored them at first, being used to obnoxious boat boys in the Caribbean. No, it was a family that just wanted to invite us to dinner - it was Father's Day! So, we went over and had a feast. We spent hours eating BBQ, drinking coconut milk right out of the shell and singing & dancing. It was priceless. So, if you go to Tahuata, head for a bay called Hanatefau, on the SW side. There you will find a fare' (hut) under construction and inside there are the nicest folks on the planet. Tell Richard we said "hi".

Well, we had been there a couple of weeks and still hadn't checked in. We had been warned that the gendarmes would sometimes come down from Hiva Oa and check on boats so we decided to head for Atuona and legality. Above you see some shots of Atuona, including Paul Gaugin's grave. We never liked the anchorages in Hiva Oa. The one in Traitor's Bay is very crowded and rolly. So, we went back to Tahuata.

This time we stopped in Hanamoenoa Bay, which is on the NW. There you will find an old plantation with lots of coconut and lemon trees.The challenge in the Marquesas is finding fresh produce; it's either free from a nice local or outrageously priced and rotting in a store. You learn to forage.

Here are some photos of Oa Pou (pronounced Wapoo). We didn't give this island enough time. The harbor on the NE is sheltered but very,very shallow. We departed for Nuku Hiva, unfortunately into a close-hauled, 30kt passage of 30nm that took all day.

Let's sail to Nuku Hiva.

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