Hi All
Been enjoyng land so its a bit longer than usual.
23/7/2012
Position 14:00 UTC -8 08 46.142S 137 33.215W
Wind not being helpful to get us to Nuku-Hiva in the daylight tomorrow.
24/7/2012
Position 14:00 UTC -8 08 56.679S 139 59.836W
Both motors running to get us in before dark. Passed Ua-Huka – covered in cloud, Peak 385m. Nuku-Hiva not visible yet some 40 odd miles away and cloud coverd.
Finally Nuka-Hiva pops out of the horizon, steep high black volcanic peaks. A very impressive sight. We enter Taiohae Bay passed two sentinel islands on either side of headlands that form the Bay. The village of Taiohae is at the head of the bay and what a wonderfully protected bay it is. The pilot says it is possible to tie up to the pier for a short while. Sounds convenient so we try – big mistake – there is a surge – not big but too much to lay alongside with no bollards and rough concrete sides. Back to Plan B – anchor and get the dinghy in the water. Finally anchored at 15:30 ships time. Then all into the dinghy and off to see the gendarmerie for immigration and customs. As we wereonly staying 2 days and then going on to Tonga we were let off having to provide a bond equivalent to an airfare back to SA – that was for George and me, but we still had to get a Visas – go to the bank get some money, then buy two CFP3000 stamps and bring your passport back. Oh and then by the way please buy a stamp and post the customs form to Papeete, Tahiti. But all done very pleasantly. They even tried to speak English.
25/7/2012
Position in Taiohae Bay, Nuka-Hiva
George and Joyce had met up with some church folk and went off on a tour of the island . Rob went walking while I sorted out the visas and found out where to fill up with diesel. We would have been able to get duty free diesel, if we had gone to Papeete and obtained the necessary customs form. For some reason Papeete will not allow the Gendarmerie to issue that form – it has to be done in Papeete. So Diesel went up from CFP105 to CFP168. Also we must be at the fuel jetty early as the supply boat comes tomorrow and takes up the whole quay.
Our first taste of the Pacific Islands, and it has been a very pleasant experience. The islands are all very rugged and covered in foliage, making them look lush. The people are very friendly, though lacking in any real drive or ambition. Also they are not small – both men and girls.
Rob and I visited the Catholic Cathedral, built in 1975. They got all the best carvers on the islands to produce passion scenes for the walls. The pulpit was carved out of a solid piece of wood. All very fascinating.
Not much in the way of agriculture on the island – all produce seems to be imported hence it is not cheap. Beer R50 for 500ml.
26/7/2012
Position 14:00 UTC -10 09 03.039S 140 30.453W
Woke up early – anchor up 06:30 and moved to fuel jetty. What fun that turned out to be. There was no going long-side as again there was too much swell and this time much more than at the head of the bay. So had to anchor off and back on to the quay. George got stranded on the quay and had to walk back to the town, while we motored back and anchored to go to the gendarmerie to clear out. Again all done in a very friendly manner. A quick shower on the dockside and back to the boat – up anchor and set sail for Tonga by 0930.
Motored out of the bay – no wind – turned right and Tonga here we come. There is a high waterfall some 385m high at the head of the next bay. We thought we would be able to see it, as it is really only visible from the sea, but it seems you have to go up the bay to see it – next time.
The wind is not playing ball – so the quick passage I was hoping for is going to be longer than anticipated.
27/7/2012
Position 14:00 UTC -10 09 40.399S 142 19.984W
The forecast is not good for the next 5 days, so have had to work on a strategy for maximizing our speed with minimum fuel consumption
Cheers
Chris
No virus found in this message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 2012.0.2197 / Virus Database: 2437/5160 - Release Date: 07/28/12
No comments:
Post a Comment