Here, in the Google earth photo below, one can see the entrance through the surrounding reef, into VAIARE . Vaiare is on toward the north side of Moorea island's eastern shore.
The name Moorea, in the local language means 'yellow lizzard'.
Moorea once was named 'EIMEO'.
Despite weather warnings and friends already in Moorea saying they were recording wind speeds of up to 51 knots at anchorage a day before, we decided to leave for Moorea as watching the 'weather conditions carefully', we sensed a 'temporary calming' in the weather and swell and felt we could make a run for it!
Ordinarily, this is not something we would do, however, sailing there meant only covering a distance of 10.23 nm from pass entrance (Tahiti) to pass entrance (Moorea) and with a drop in wind and a calming of the sea we felt this to be our opportunity.
Our destination in Moorea would be VAIARE.
We had fortunately already notified the Yacht-master in Papeete of our intention to depart on the next 'weather window', and now quickly set Impi up for a speedy crossing, which at good speed could see us there in a little over an hour.
The winds had shifted and looking to the horizon, it was evident that a serious weather system was on its way and would soon turn the wind out of the north.
Our departure saw us progressing nicely and all the while we kept our eyes peeled to the north and had a discussion around how fast the front was moving toward us and at what time we could expect it to engage our territory.
All along, we felt it was important to keep speed on Impi and our gut feeling was that we would arrive just ahead of it.
Our timing could not have been more impeccable as only a mile or so out the wind dropped and the seas became unstable as pressure cells collided and played for dominance shifting the winds slowly around and from the north.
Sailors are also aware, that in calm conditions the passage between Tahiti and Moorea can often times be choppy with no regular swell pattern which run as 'cross currents' usually out of the east and south.
Add to this the fact that Vaiare is the terminal port for ferries crossing between Moorea and Tahiti, and watching from our anchorage I must say they operate in numbers and throughout the entire day so one has to be vigilant keeping an eye out for these huge fast ships.
By this time, and with the confusion whilst wind against wind fought for domination, we had reduced sail and engaged the use of our engines in order to make haste for the entrance of Vaiare pass which can have a reputation for whipping up some rough swell even in better weather conditions.
We entered the pass on the face of a building sea ... one could feel the power in it ... and despite being faced with an incredibly strong cross current, we looked over the breaking waves crashing on the surrounding reef and the beautiful turquoise waters beyond and felt happy and comfortable that we would be in before the storm.
As Impi slid through through between the markers we decide to 'hook a right turn' which placed us behind the reef in settled water ... heading in a northerly direction we aimed to anchor in the bay of NUAREI, a bay that is good for yachts carrying a draft (depth) of less than 2m.
In the photo below ... taken from our stern ... Impi has passed the beacons as the sea builds and is on the inside of the reef seen as 'light blue'. In fact the light blue colour is a sandy floor in crystal clear and shallow water. The black speckled look is that of coral heads ... and where the dark blue meets against light blue, there is a vertical wall under water which, later we would discover, is pretty to dive along ...
I took the photo below on a calmer day ... unfortunately the current was still producing a ripple, but you can only imagine how beautiful this is when the sea is transparent and calm ...
We had read in an old 'guide book' that it is possible to take ones yacht all the way up and drop anchor near the beach on the north side by closely following the black and white markers 'on the land-side'.
In fact, on a different day when all was calm, I took a photo of this bird sitting on one of the markers I am writing about ...
Manoeuvring to the first marker in the 'now howling wind conditions' and a very stiff current out of the north east, demanded the engines to 'punch some serious horsepower', and of course Impi has a lot of 'windage' which in these winds was proving to be ... interesting!
The depth meter was recording shallow depths as in my mind my eyes pictured the keels inches above coral heads ... this did not feel right ... and ahead of us and all around the markers, we observed scattered coral heads everywhere.
I held Impi steady which required working hard on the throttles ... kinda put on the 'pause button' so Impi hovered in one place so Ana could take a better look at the situation ... get a feeling for the true depth ...
Ana, leaning out over the bow, gave me the sign ... 'I am not feeling confident' ... it seemed to us that in order to pass in enough depth of water, we were to pass these markers on the 'sea side' and NOT on the 'land side' as stated in the book.
So here we were ... serious forces of nature pushing and pulling and a reef to either side with many coral heads in between ... I had 'relaxed the motors' throttling on and off on the port side throttle to keep Impi into the wind ... now again compensated by punching a bit of power on the starboard engine just to keep us stationary for a while whilst we took a breather to consider our options.
Ahead of us a charter catamaran (belonging to the hotel group, we think) lay tied to a mooring ball. They obviously move up and down along these markers clearing the coral heads ... but then again 'local knowledge' helps ... and furthermore, perhaps they carry less draft than do we ...
'No' ... our decision to proceed to calmer anchorage was a 'No'.
We would rather drop anchor and ride out the conditions than take a risk where coral heads could punch a hole through our side!
No sooner than we had made the decision to back track a little to where we could drop anchor in clean sand with enough room to swing clear of coral heads, that all of a sudden the port engine decided to 'die on us'.
To make matters worse, the weather was building and getting even stronger ... I braved to peek at the wind-meter which was registering well over 40 knots ... in fact we could hardly hear each other for the screeching and whistling sounds created by the wind in the rigging ... the engine would not start and the starboard engine was of no use to me without the port side operational as it tended to push the nose around and down wind which would hasten our drift onto the reef, let alone all the coral heads we were now having to contend with.
We were in an emergency situation ... I had no option but to accelerate the engine even if we were moving in the wrong direction. I knew that in order to have some form of control we needed sufficient enough speed to have water flow over the rudders so I could at least 'steer the boat' and get her nose facing upwind again.
This required some serious concentration as I had to 'tap off' now and again on the throttle ... to allow Impi to drift between corals which were too shallow ... kind of using the wind and current to 'place the boat' in strategic positions before punching the motor again for speed.
I quickly called out to Ana that she needed to lower the anchor just enough so it would dangle in the water ... I have a button at the helm to do the rest of the anchor work if needed in an emergency or if we suddenly found ourselves in a 'patch large enough between corals'.
Ana now could attend to other procedures.
Ana responded well and with the anchor now dangling for a quick descent if necessary, she immediately afterwards had run downstairs to engage the emergency house-bank battery switch which provided the voltage we needed to start the motor.
Thank goodness for this feature as now with sufficient battery power we were able to bring the motor back to life.
Had the engine not started, I now realise that we would have run out of space to manoeuvre and to be sure, I would most certainly have had to drop anchor and 'hope for the best' as that would put the boat at the mercy of the wind and current with the chance of swinging onto coral heads ... at least until I could get a stern anchor fixed anyway, and this would not be easy in these conditions.
As we took control of the situation again I felt my heart pounding up in my throat ... it was not a good situation to be in, but thanks to Ana's prompt descent to the emergency start isolator switch and the fact that we kept 'cool heads' we managed to 'save the day'.
In situations like this, it is fortunate that Ana and I work very well together and despite the seriousness of the situation, we make sure to be calm with each other and 'work things out'.
We had manoeuvred Impi into a position nearby in shallow water but with enough room to swing freely at anchor.
Our only hope now, was that the anchor would find good sand and hold in winds that seemed to just keep strengthening.
I know I have said it many times before, but once again, I am 'tickled pink with myself' for having gone with the Rocna brand of anchor ... it seriously bites and digs in quickly.
For a while we sat on board and contemplated all that had happened ... Ana put the kettle on and brewed up a hot strong coffee ... I sat there gazing at the anchor position I had placed on the plotter to make sure Impi was not dragging. Impi tugged hard at the chain but our position remained solid!
Although our anchor proved not to be dragging and so far had kept Impi in a constant position, I did not want to spend a night wondering if perhaps the anchor had caught hard material and not dug its-self in enough ... I needed to see the anchor with my own eyes to feel confident over night as clearly the wind was not abating.
This was not going to be possible by swimming since the currents were far too strong for that, and so we lowered the dinghy into the water.
The current tugged hard at the dinghy and as I climbed in I was overwhelmed by the force of the water tugging at it ... seriously ... it was incredible. The only time I had experienced worse was up a river in Brazil off Ilha de Lencois ...
Along with me I had taken my 'glass bottom bucket' which when placed in the water is like looking through a pair of goggles.
Once again, in my heart, I thanked my dear old friend 'Arndt Asmus' who back in South Africa advised me to go for the bigger Yamaha engine ... a 30 hp 2-stroke which delivers good power for our dinghy.
Once the Yamaha was warmed up and ready to go, Ana released the rope ... the dinghy roared up against the current and tide ... past Impi to where I thought I would spot the anchor below ... then drifting down over the anchor chain whilst holding the bucket overboard ... one eye peering for the anchor chain whilst the other kept a view on Impi which due to current was fast approaching.
I think it took all of 5 attempts, each time roaring back up away from Impi to a new position before I finally found the end of the chain. It became obvious why the anchor had been difficult to spot ... the shank to which the chain is attached was well and truly buried as was chain along with it ...
I then spotted the tip of the anchor roll bar just protruding out from the sand.
This meant the Rocna had dug its-self in well and truly ... a very good feeling in conditions such as these.
That night I stayed up and did an 'anchor watch' to make sure Ana would get some rest knowing I was keeping an eye on our safety.
All the while and throughout the night the wind screeched through the rigging whilst currents moved so fast it felt we were under sail and at speed.
The following morning the wind had died down to a mere breeze ... the current was more 'relaxed' and I was able to go and check the anchor once again. I could easily see the position where the Rocna had first engaged sand and where it lay 'dug in' ... and interestingly enough, the total distance from contact to full engagement was a little over 1 meter ... not bad for these conditions. ( for non-sailors reading this letter, what I am trying to say, is that at the point the anchor touched sand whilst Impi was being driven backwards by current and wind, the anchor moved in the sand just over 1 meter before it stopped ... and it held us in that position the entire night).
This Leopard catamaran had left the bay passing us whilst the wind was up ... returned with his sails shredded to pieces ...
In the photo below ... Impi in beautiful surrounds ...
In the 'morning light hours' we marvelled at our surrounds ... truly, this place is magnificent in calm enough weather conditions.
The photo below shows deep water between the reef and land. It is amazing to think that this has resulted because the 'mountain' has collapsed into the ocean leaving behind the rim of hardened coral limestone that had formed by being exposed to the sea ...
One can only imagine how stunning it is when there is 'perfect calm' and the water is glassy smooth, for here the water is so clear that it appears one is floating on air, except of course for the odd trail of bubbles which appear from seaweed being smashed against the rocks.
Ahead and to our left we marvelled at the view of the 'Sofitel Hotel Complex' with its rooms suspended on stilts above the water.
We took the dinghy to have a look around the complex ...
The beach offers a great walk too ...
Unfortunately some of these photos had to be taken with a cheap underwater camera so the quality may not be the greatest ... but one gets the idea ...
Swimming and snorkelling off the little dinghy dock at the hotel complex apparently can have one seeing some beautiful fish. Ana and I were not so lucky and found it rather bland compared to what we are used to.
A great spot for diving or snorkelling is just off the reef where one sees a cardinal marker in the proximity of moored yachts ...
In the photo below one can see the 'upright cardinal marker'. Swimming along the edge of the reef from the marker in the direction of the smoke has one up against a beautiful stoney wall with an overhang.
Today there were many dolphins swimming about here and locals spearfish here ...
We continued to explore with the dinghy and I was in my element doing this ...
From time to time I could not resist the temptation to be in this beautiful warm, crystal clear water and jumped overboard pulling the dinghy behind me ...
The sand is course and feels really good between ones toes ...
An sadly, yes ... we only had our cheap camera in the dinghy with us so unfortunately these photos are not the clearest ...
I know I always comment on this, but it really is incredible how the water colour changes with different angles to the sun ....
In the photo above, we had now anchored near the mooring balls and this yacht was tied to one of them ... seems they have been here for months ...
Above ... Impi at anchor ...
And below ... a catamaran sails off beyond the reef ... Tahiti can be seen in the background ..
The marina is small and does not have much to offer in the way of entertainment and so on, but it is quaint and people here seem to be friendly ...
The water is not always as calm as this in the marina ... mostly because of the number of ferry boats that come and go and with the ferry dock being across the way, not only does one have to contend with the wake these beasts produce, but also the noise ...
Below, a ferry is tied up alongside the ferry terminal ... these boat run back and forth to between Tahiti and Moorea in great numbers all day long ...
A parking lot nearby has a great deal of cars parked there and it seems obvious that many local people living in Moorea work in Tahiti and use the ferry as for daily transportation
VAIARE is a beautiful place to 'stay a while' ... we have enjoyed the experience, the views and the vibe, however it is time to move along to our next destination which is on the north coast of Moorea ... a bay called Opunohu Bay
Sadly, our terrific internet connection will come to an end and of course it will become more difficult to keep our news flow and especially the ability to post photographs.
Time for me to plan our course for our morning departure ... fair winds and calm seas !
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