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Marquises Islands
Tuamotus Atolls
Tahiti
Cooks
Bay, Moorea
Our stay in Tahiti lasted a month and a half. This was the longest we had stayed in one place since we left Trinidad in October. In the seven months getting to Tahiti we had traveled 6,586 miles. It felt good to stay in one place for a while.
Moorea
Huahine
Here we were in a remote Polynesian Island watching Americans performing traditional island dances for native Polynesians.
Raiatea and Tahaa
On July 20 we set sail for a 20 mile trip west to Raiatea and Tahaa. Once again the wind was light. The wind switched from one side of the stern to the other. We used only the mainsail with a preventer to stop us from jibing.
. . . When rocks and rapid water stopped me I wedged the kayak between the rocks and took a dip in the cool clear fresh water. Barrette came paddling around a bend and saw me splashing in the water.
He said, "I wouldn't get in that water. Just a short way back I saw something big go in. I thought is was a person but it never surfaced."
. . . Tahaa has been one of my favorite islands. The anchorages are well protected by the outside reef. There are many deep bays. The Polynesians love to dance and we often watched the locals dance and sing. The vegitation is lush and filled with songbirds. The farmers here grow vanilla and tropical fruits. A short distance from the island within the calm water are plenty of tiny island motus with soft white sand and palm trees. The weather turned windy and rainy for days. One gust reached 47 knots in our protected anchorage. Tahaa was a pleasant place to be stranded by bad weather. We sure were glad we were not out in the ocean.
Bora Bora
. . .
Bora Bora concluded our stay of over three months in French Polynesia. It would have been nice to stay even longer, but cyclones hit this area so we needed to move while the weather was good.
Bora Bora to Aitutaki
Aitutaki
. . . Into our second day of motorcycle riding we had traversed every paved road twice and most of the dirt trails. One steep trail that lead up to the cliff we had avoided so far, but no longer. We already knew that on this trail Fred from Aldeberan (Milwaukee) had wiped out a week ago. Pete started climbing the hill with me holding on behind him. The motorcycle hit a rut and swerved.
"Maybe I should get off and walk," I said.
Pete replied, "No, it's all right."
We hit another rut. The motorcycle was going too slowly. It did not have enough power. The ruts took control. Our balance was gone. . . .
Find out who got injured in the motorcycle accident, order The Sailing Adventures of La Boatique.