SOUTH EAST CORNER OF FAKARAVA ATOLL, TUAMOTU ARCHIPELAGO, FRENCH POLYNESIAN ISLANDS
ANCHORING OFF 'MOTU HIRIFA'
POSITION: 16°26'57.25"S 145°22'20.07"W
Photo above was taken in low light from a moving boat ... so not the best quality but certainly a lovely full moon ...
We hope not to disappoint our ‘land bound’ readers with this news … a place we wanted to share more with sailors who will visit this area in the future … a place to find refuge from the storm and little else really ...
Well, Impi was headed for Fakarava South where as mentioned before, I was building up huge excitement to be diving with the sharks there … the reality of which was drawing near. You may recall my dive with the sharks in the northern pass of Fakarava when we visited here in last season.
(In the photo below, Impi approaches HIRIFA)
We had one last stop before reaching South Fakarava and dropped anchor at a spot right at the south east ‘corner' of the atoll (Fakarava) known as HIRIFA.
(in the photo below, Impi anchored in the bay off HIRIFA)
HIRIFA is a well protected anchorage in most wind conditions including winds from N, NE, E, SE, S and to a certain extent SW winds. It goes to logic therefore that West to North West winds are still a problem here.
Anyway, we had dropped anchor in sand between widely spaced coral heads here which makes for a terrific anchorage with plenty of space … however, we were somewhat disappointed in that the surrounding area offered little by way of meaningful exploration.
I must admit though, that the water was calm in building winds out of the east and on our first night here we enjoyed a stunning setting in the bay under a beautiful rising moon … a beautiful yellowish ball, it rose up magnificently from behind the palm trees and cast a shimmering sheen across still waters … amazing … we sat there over a glass of bubbly and found ourselves mesmerised by its beauty as it climbed into the night sky ...
Some local family members live on the motu here and are more than happy to prepare a meal for one if you provide them with 24 hr notice … the time needed to go out and pick coconuts and drain the milk for sauces and so on.
Ana and I took the dinghy to a spot where land meets the reef section forming the south coast of the atoll and moving in a south west direction. The currents proved to be quite strong here and made for difficult walking from sand spit to sand spit ...
Sand bars are broad here and mostly shallow with very little of interest to be found on them
We also found the last little motu against the reef to be rugged and somewhat unfriendly in that one sensed it had been well weatherbeaten by the elements and perhaps met the full force of a hurricane or two. This could also explain why we found this area to be a bit ‘haphazard’ … you know … without structure ...
Along the southeast shoreline the beach is pretty but typical of those generally seen most places in the Tuamotus … and although we had this spot all to ourselves,I think Ana and I had become spoilt by other ‘less visited coves and beaches’.
We managed to cut some coconuts from a nearby tree and pulled the dinghy up into a little cove between the otherwise very rocky shore …
Well, at least we got in a good nights sleep here whilst the wind whipped up waters in other bays.
Sailors reading this blog and looking for those ‘special places’ in Fakarava … this is a very pretty area compared to many spots one will have visited in other territories, however, as for 'Tuamotu beauty' … unless you are looking for shelter in severe winds we would recommend skipping this one and putting more time into South Fakarava.
Sorry this post is a short one, however, we felt it would be worth while presenting our views for yachtsman cruising this way as it is a bay of safety when wild winds are brewing!
Our next few letters will see Impi in the beautiful south part of Fakarava atoll … and of course … our dive with sharks and moving onto the beautiful atoll of Tahanea.
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