To begin with, here are a couple photos from our days at sea. We didn’t get many nice sunsets, but the few we got were beautiful. We also had a huge rainbow around the boat the days it rained.
We dropped anchor at 6:00 am local time on May 19, just as the sun was coming up (8:30 am PST). The view of Taiohae was just as we had seen in photos. The bay is filled with lots of sailboats, surrounded on three sides by tall mountains. That morning the peaks were enshrouded in clouds. The landscape is lush with greenery, with a few small buildings dotting the area. It is absolutely beautiful here.
It took us a good solid four hours to get the boat and dinghy all situated and ready to go. By 10:30 we loaded up in the dinghy and headed to the dinghy dock. The “dinghy dock” turned out to be a small rusty ladder mounted on the sea wall. We had to push our way through some other dinghies to get at the ladder, and then we tied the dinghy up to the ladder.
Our first stop was to the agent we hired to help us clear in. We cannot begin to tell you how smart it was to hire an agent to deal with customs and immigration. We were cleared through in less than an hour. We can imagine being stuck checking in for hours without a translator and someone who knows the check-in red tape.
From there we went and got food. The food was excellent. Richard and Christi got the most popular dish in French Polynesia, which is raw fish in coconut milk. It was really good. Eric got shrimp, which came in full shells, including eyeballs and tentacles.
We walked up and down the main drag, which parallels the bay. Among other things is a park with a large number of Marquesan carvings. According to Lonely Plant, some of those carvings are as old as 2,000 years. Notice the island of Ua Pou in the background of the bay. Kosmos is actually behind the tree.
It felt good to be walking on terra firma, but it was hot and it had already been a long, busy day for us, so after strolling the main drag, we decided to call it a day. We were all exhausted. We went back to retrieve our dingy and found it floating along another portion of the sea wall. The sea wall is L shaped, and fortunately, the dinghy was up against the perpendicular wall. We were lucky. We came very close to losing our dinghy. Eric walked along the wall, above the dinghy and tried to reach the dinghy from above, but the waterline was too low to reach the dinghy. Christi was taking off her shoes and socks in preparation for a swim when a local teenage boy came to our rescue. He lowered himself into the dinghy and brought it around for us. Another local helped us to get the dinghy through the maze of boats and over to the ladder. The locals have all been very nice so far.
And back to Kosmos we went. We were in bed early and slept extremely well. It was so quiet with no engine running, so peaceful to hear the gentle pounding of the surf on the sea wall instead of the smacking of huge waves on the hull.
Hey Guys;
Glad you made it!
Love the pics. Keep them coming.
So what does it cost for a meal there?
To give you some reference, I just paid $130 for breakfast for 4 in Maui!
Mike
What a coincidence. After 200 miles I’ve just finished my first full tank of gas on the GTI. By the way, ask Ray to call me again. I accidentally erased his number and I still need to pick up that rack.
Didn’t they teach you knots in “how to cruise around the world in 700 days” class?
Congrats on your first leg of your adventure. I’m not sure if you know, but there is another Nordy 43 “Special Blend” crusing in your area at this time. They just arrived a couple of days ago.
Their website is http://tinyurl.com/2v34us
Just in case you were interested.
The pictures are beautiful!!!! How long are you staying? Where are you going next?
Brans & Family
Thanks for the update- keep ’em coming!
Beautiful pictures and congratulations on completing the first leg of your voyage. Everyone at DivX is following your journey closely, filled with admiration and envy.
Woowhooo pictures! How exciting!! I’m glad you guys have made it safe and sound and had a nice day. I love being able to see your blog progress on my google personal page hehee
So does it feel like the land is rocking when you walk now?
Let me know when you get to Tahiti so I can come visit 🙂
Congratulations, guys!
Sadly, Veronica Mars came to an end yesterday. So, I’m going to transfer all my obsessive energy to following your travels. Keep those pics coming!
BTW, want us to get you the rest of the VM episodes at your first drop?
Hi Guys, love your work. The photo’s are awesome. Can you tell me how fast a knot is in km/h and how many litres to a Gallon? 3.8? Are they Brittish or American Gallons? It’s about time you guys went metric again.
Congratulations on your passage. Say “hello” to our good friends Bill & Laura on Chantell who arrived there on the 20th.
Congratulations from a deeply envious UK based boatowner.
I’m so happy you made it. Conrats to all of you for a epic voyage.
-rich
PS-We just got back from a long weekend at Lake Powell. Our new third deck is now complete. Check out what the Mystic Dancer looks like now: http://i104.photobucket.com/albums/m176/Lover-of-Lake-Powell/Photo0138.jpg?t=1180026638
The pictures were just great! So happy for both you, enjoy every minute!
Joanne has been following you very faithfully. The pix are truley amazing.
GOD speed…travel safe
One day, I won’t just live vicariously by your blog but would really envision traveling to these places now that you’ve given us a little taste!! A trip like this seems just a bit closer now…
Keep on sailing!! 😀
Quote from Lisa Randall regarding the cosmos:
Until now, string theory has been an entirely abstract, mathematical construct, but the new supercollider may change all that, and if so—if, for example, it shows evidence of particles that travel in, or through, those extra dimensions—it will represent the first great theoretical breakthrough of the 21st century, blazing a path for physics the way relativity did a century ago. “The cosmos,” Randall says, “could be larger, richer and more varied than anything we imagined.”