However, the clock is ticking and of course Impi was to be hauled out in Raiatea in preparation for our departure to Thailand for Manu's wedding (to Gamyui). Following Thailand we plan to visit South Africa to see family and friends and all this meant we had to keep moving along ... first stop ... the island of Huahine.
Hauling Impi in Raiatea also meant that Impi would be stored here over hurricane season and so a lot of preparation was needed to see that the boat would be safe.
Anyway, back to our passage from Moorea to Huahine ... the island which the 'Department Of Tourism in Tahiti' refers to as 'one of the best kept secrets in all of French Polynesia', and to be sure, it truly is a marvellous piece of paradise NOT to be missed by cruisers.
Our passage from Moorea saw us leaving with winds predicted at around 20 knts from the south east which we looked forward to as out of the south east this would place the wind from behind and allow us to utilise our 'repaired' asymmetric sail Ana calls 'The Beast'
In the photo below Impi has just left the island of Moorea seen in the background ... it is evening and we will soon be sailing into the setting sun ..
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In the photo below: Impi sails as the sun sets to close a chapter and seal yet another spectacular day into the history book of time ...
However, as we sailed into the night, we were to discover the weather had different plans to those that had been forecast, and instead the wind blew out of the north west the entire way meaning we had wind on 'the bow'. Of course this meant we had to tack quite a bit in order to get there. However, the journey was just over 10 hours to the south of the island and we had to slow down in order to arrive during daylight hours.
I took this photo on a different day from our dinghy on the inside of the reef
Huahine Island is made up of two main islands ... Huahine Nui (the larger island to the north) and Huahine Iti (the smaller island to the south).
These islands are surrounded by a fringing coral reef system and several motu (little islands).
In between the islands is a huge lagoon which at one point narrows and forms a thin sandy spit joining the two islands at low tide ... not to mention the little bridge that has been constructed here to allow vehicles to access one to the other.
Anyway, back to Impi ... we headed for the northern anchorage initially, to the town known as Fara which also is the administrative center of Huahine in the municipal district of the 'Leeward Islands'.
Here there are two approaches through the reef system and we decided to take the southern passage and anchor on the inside of the reef between this passage and that to the north.
The Google Earth photo below shows the two entrances and the red line indicates our passage
Although there was not much to see in the little town of Fare, we spent a few days at anchor here as we had to sort out an issue with our water maker, which had just been repaired under warranty in Tahiti.
Following many frustrating hours including the replacement of a spare feed pump I had purchased, I could not get the water maker to perform and had to engage the agent via telephonic instructions to do the repair. Even the US based manufacturer became involved by email.
Many attempts on my behalf proved fruitless and the agent and manufacturer were hesitant to send someone out from Tahiti to effect the repairs which eventually had me instructing the agent to send out a technician by aircraft at my expense.
The technician arrived with a spare feed pump and discovered that the spare they had initially supplied was a faulty unit ... it will be interesting to see if the manufacturer compensates us for our costs.
Anyway, the 'stay in town' saw us getting to know some of the local people and fellow cruisers which was terrific and the anchorage was a nice place to be at.
With the water maker now repaired, it was time to make our way south as we wanted to anchor in the picturesque little bay off Hotel Mahana just off Point Tiva in Huahine Iti.
The Google Earth photo below ... our passage more or less is indicated by the red line:
The passage south as seen in the Google earth photo above is as far as one can get by yacht before the reef system becomes too shallow.
Our journey down to the south proved to be stunningly beautiful and well marked with navigational aids ... another reason why I love the French so much ... they simply are terrific when it comes to looking after their islands and one easily can tell that there is no expense spared in making sure people are safe in their waters.
Part of the way down, we turned port side to enter the 'Lagoon area' which proved to be beautiful.
Unfortunately, the day was relatively overcast the light for photography was poor but the place was simply amazing and we had the feeling of being encapsulated in an arena surrounded by majestic mountains over a vast expanse of water ...
In the photo above: looking back as we entered the lagoon ... on the right is the main land of Huahine and to the left a little motu in the entrance
Although not a great photograph, one gets the idea as Impi motors through the lagoon area
The area is simply amazing and all along we marvelled at little beaches and bays which one could easily adopt as one's own for a while, such was their remoteness ...
We had eventually gone as far south as is possible and dropped anchor in about 9m depth where we marvelled at the beautiful contrasts in blues ... of course created by varying depths of the seabed below ...
In the photo above, I took this photo from Impi of a Wharram built catamaran which was able to anchor in very shallow water on account of its shallow draft.
Ana and I loved this part of Huahine ... it truly is a magnificent place to explore by dinghy and explore we did!!!
Sundays are terrific ... here locals and cruisers alike descend on a little restaurant called 'Chez Tara' who cook food in the traditional style ...
In the photo above ... Ana relaxes near the beach at restaurant 'Chez Tara'.
The 'traditional style' of preparing food here is very interesting in that the cooking starts at the very early hours of morning.
To summarise the 'event', the oven is prepared by digging a huge hole deep into the earth.
Several dozens of volcanic rock are heated by a roaring fire which is set alight alight in the hole.
When the rocks are glowing red, the remaining firewood is removed and the rocks are spread out and positioned.
After this a layer of banana fibres and leaves which contain much moisture which have been pounded into a stringy mass is now placed immediately onto the hot rocks.
The food is wrapped in leaves and placed on these fibres after which broad leaves are placed on top and specially woven mats made from the wild hibiscus tree are placed on top.
This creates a steam cooker and at this point to ensure the best results, earth is spread over the top encapsulating all within a huge 'natural steam earth cooker'.
Of course the food is 'to die for' ... it is simply amazing and the variety of foods is incredible.
I loved the 'Tahitian Coconut Bread' as it was uniquely different to anything I have ever tasted, but then again there was the pork, chicken, bananas and a great deal more things which all were dug up from within this oven. This event apparently happens here every Sunday and is a MUST DO !!!
The place has an amazing atmosphere and is located right on the beach. In fact we had arrived by dinghy and dropped anchor just a few meters off the shore ...
In the photo below one can see (to the left) our dinghy at anchor just off the beach ...
And inside the restaurant one finds oneself with feet on a sandy floor and staring at the ceiling which is woven from grass and has all sorts of sculptures and local art, and to the front the spectacular views of the ocean is awe inspiring ...
And the ambiance in this establishment makes the soul overwhelmingly happy as local people play their ukuleles in grand style and sing with powerful and cheerful voices ...
The French Polynesian men seem to have voices 'pitched to the higher side' of what one is accustomed to and they sing with such vigour and take they ukelele playing skills very seriously ...
And the locals ... young, old, male and female ... party hard ...
We loved the ambiance of these people ... they are incredibly humble and very easy to befriend. People everywhere here have a good time and there is 'peace among men' ...
Ana and I feel so privileged to find so many wonderful people on our travels ... we marvel at the good in 'man' ... the friendships forged with so many local people on these islands ... the happiness and good cheer we see is something we will always carry with us in our hearts.
At one point during the meal, an elderly lady started dancing around the tables ... and boy oh boy ... could she 'move it, move it' ...
And as the meal progressed she got wilder and wilder ...
There was no way 'old age' was going to 'keep her at bay' and eventually she asked Ana and I to dance with her ... which initially we reluctantly did, but as dance after dance went on we loosened up with many a jiggle which had the guests there in an uproar of laughter. We were even given the 'encore' shout time after time ... it was terrific fun!
And then of course ... many locals joined in with the musicians and sang along as they recognised songs ...
... And from where we sat, I gazed all around and admired the spirit of these people, the wonderful cheer and happiness in their souls despite what we would perceive to be great poverty ... they are truly the type of people who make a terrific situation out of the little they have ... you know ... give them a lemon ... and they would make lemon juice ...
Through the doorway, I looked at the beautiful and colourful linen set upon the tables and plenty of food for everyone ... as many helpings as you like ...
And the dear old lady in the kitchen kept calling on me to have more ...
This impressed me hugely and the reason why is because Ana and I had arrived with not much cash in hand thinking at first to use the credit card at the hotel nearby.
The restaurant only takes cash and when we explained we did not have enough, they simply said that we need only to pay for one person but both of us are welcome to eat and share from the same platter ... as much food as we liked ...
What an event ... and certainly one that will go down as one of the highlights of our travels !
After lunch we wandered about and took in the views ...
Above, I had to post this photograph I took as when I had initially posted it on our facebook page (Cat Impi) our dear friend and photographer extraordinaire, BEV SIMPSON-HURST, jokingly suggested I had found the picture on google :)
This is actually right beside the restaurant ...
We found the beaches to be fairly 'secluded' ... there was hardly a soul to be seen anywhere ... a truly magical place to be ...
And here and there one could see 'humble little houses' where these good folk live. In fact, these folk may not have much wealth but they live in places most people will only ever dream about ...
Ana finds a swing hanging from an old tree, its branches reaching out over the sand and water ... she swings freely and for quite some time. No person comes out to complain ... they merely smile ...
And we walk on ...
The following day we decided to take the dinghy and explore the waters too shallow for Impi to navigate ...
We head for the reef and I want to get some photos as the waves pound in ...
The water here is crystal clear and to get to the waves we need to meander between corals ...
The experience is one of delight in mother nature ... the fish, the corals, the calm waters on this side of the reef compared to the fury of the sea beyond ...
And eventually we find a spot to anchor in the sands between ... and we spend hours just watching the sea roll in ...
Sometimes the wave breaks and sends water flushing over the reef in our direction which on occasion had us startled as we held on for dear life ... yet the power of nature so close up is exhilarating ...
Some waves roll in with a colour of deep sea blue but when the roll over and break they transform into a beautiful turquoise blue ... I cannot explain how wonderfully blessed we feel to be sharing God's almighty creation like this ...
And moving on around the point we come across a little bay where many surfers ride waves ...
And as the bay opens up off the reef there is a lovely break just short of the little island where locals enjoy life in the sun ...
This is truly a magnificent place with many, many surf spots ...
And then we came across some interesting stone formations ...
We found this fascinating ... is it some type of art form ... new or ancient?
Huahine is a terrific visit and although there is much more we could share with you, I have to move along now as we prepare for our trip by air to Thailand.
I hope you enjoyed sharing this journey with us.
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