Curising Logs for Tahiti Islands (II)

Contributed By: Jacques and Nita Steininger - October 2002

Geographically, French Polynesia (Tahiti and her islands) can be considered a mirror image of Hawaii.  It is situated at approximately the same longitude and latitude but in the South instead of the North Pacific. There are many significant differences however.

First of all, instead of the sharp volcanic islands of Hawaii, the Tahiti islands are atolls surrounded by coral reefs and lagoons.  The water inside the lagoons is calm, warm and clear. In short, ideal for swimming, snorkeling and sailing.

Second, while Hawaii is very much americanized, Tahiti offers an attractive blend of Polynesian and French cultures.  The Tahitians are warm, friendly and relaxed.  They learn French in school but most of them speak Polynesian at home.  Many of them also speak English.

Third, Tahitian society appears to be quite stable and family oriented.  We didn't notice overt poverty, drug use or alcoholism.  In fact, most Tahitians are quite religious, mostly Protestants or Catholics with some Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists, etc.

Last but not least. French Polynesia had 250,000 visitors last year. That's what Hawaii gets in a week !!! 
Although administered and supported financially by France, Tahiti has its own government and does not use the euro. They still use the CPF franc, which was about 120 for US $1 at the time of our visit.

We love Tahiti very much and have been there 5 times over the last 10 years, staying either with friends, at the Moorea Club Med (now closed) or cruising on the beautiful Renaissance 4 (now the Tahitian Princess) for the Year 2000 Millenium.  From the West Coast of the US, it's only a 7h30 non-stop flight. This however was our first sailing trip, on a Beneteau 464 chartered with The Moorings.

Getting There

We flew out of Los Angeles with our daughter Lisa and her friend Wendy on an Air Tahiti Nui Airbus 340 nonstop to Papeete, the capital of Tahiti. On arrival we were met at the airport by a local Tahitian band and by our local friends, Pierre and Christine. After a refreshing night at their house, we flew with them to Raiatea, only 45 minutes away on Air Tahiti, the smaller local airline. The Moorings van was waiting for us at the airport and took us directly to the base, about a mile away.

The Moorings Base

Our boat Apache, a Moorings 464, was there waiting for us and ready to go. Even though it was a 1997 model and close to retirement from the fleet, it was in excellent condition and we didn't have any problems, mechanical or otherwise.

We were greeted by Base Manager Jerome and by Christian who gave us an excellent and humorous briefing. The base is well maintained and the local staff friendly and helpful. They allowed us unlimited use of their computer for internet connection. This must be one of the best if not the very best Moorings base that we have seen.

Provisioning

We had ordered partial provisioning from The Moorings since their prices were quite reasonable. We knew that the basic food necessities - such as bread, rice, chicken or meat - are under price control and/or subsidized by the government. A baguette of French bread is only 35 cents US. Imported luxuries and alcohol are more expensive. For example, a can of local Hinano beer is $2, a bottle of Beaujolais-Village, $12 and Cutty Sark Scotch $30. So, it's a good idea to buy your liquor at the Duty Free store in LAX.

Sailing

As shown on the map, the two islands of Raiatea and Tahaa are located inside the same lagoon. The lagoon is surrounded by a coral reef and by small islands that are called "motus". Tahaa is the only island that can be completely circumnavigated.

The tradewinds normally blow from the East. Bora Bora is downwind about 24 sailing miles away and Huahine the same distance upwind. Since we had the boat for only 12 days and our crew were not avid sailors, we decided to sail only to Bora Bora and save Huahine hopefully for another trip.

Day 1 - To Uturoa and Motu Mahea, Tahaa

After a nice lunch on the boat, we motored 45 minutes to the town of Uturoa (R20 on Moorings chart) for additional provisioning at the two local supermarkets. There is a brand new dock and terminal for cruise ships and a separate dock for visiting yachts.

After leaving Uturoa, we motored to the island of Tahaa carefully avoiding the Central Reef.

Navigation and Markers

This was our first experience with sailing inside the lagoon. In general, the water is either very deep or very shallow. However, the reefs are well marked, using the international signage system.
Unlike the US and Caribbean, the red markers are on the left when entering a channel or pass and the green ones on the right. Inside the lagoon, red marks the island side and green the reef side. There are other markers (balises) showing isolated reefs.

We anchored near Motu Mahea (T5) behind the reef in about 15 feet of clear water and spent a beautiful and quiet night.

Day 2 - To Baie Tapu Amu, Tahaa

We spent the morning snorkeling behing the reef and exploring the small motu that marks the entrance to the pass. The water was warm and clear. Unlike previous Moorings visitors, we found the coral and fish were interesting and varied if you dinghy close to the reef.

After lunch, we hoisted sail and sailed inside the lagoon half way around the northen part of the island in a beautiful 15-knot easterly breeze. After passing the cruise ship World Explorer, we anchored in the wide and deep bay of Tapuamu (T12). We let out in 150 feet of chain plus 100 feet of anchor line. This was a good hold for the night as it was quite windy. However, we found out the next day that 150 feet of chain is quite heavy to bring back in, even with the power winch. Somehow, we managed to do it.

Day 3 - Back to Raiatea

In the morning, we dinghied ashore for a visit to the small supermarket where we got our daily ration of fresh baguettes. Then we motored across the lagoon to visit the new Palm Beach Resort and to go snorkeling in the Coral Garden (T11). The coral and fish were spectacular but there was a strong current through the pass. We therefore walked up to the head of the motu and let ourselves drift back with the current.

We had to go back to The Moorings base in the afternoon because our friends were flying back to Papeete. However, the weather turned suddenly nasty with heavy rain and poor visibility. At one point, we had to stop and pick up a mooring until the rain abated.

As we reached the base, we called The Moorings and they dispatched a pilot boat to take us in and help us dock the boat. They immediately refilled our water tanks and replaced our linens. Because of the bad weather, we decided to relax and spend the night at the base.

Day 4 - To Baie Haamene, Tahaa

In the morning, we sailed back across the lagoon to visit the Motu Pearl Farm in Baie Faaaha on Tahaa (lots of a's !!!). We were warmly welcome by a young Tahitian woman named Sabrina. She gave us a lecture on black pearl culture and then naturally stirred us to the boutique to purchase some pearls. When Nita dropped her sunglasses in the water, a local boy immediatel jumped in and retrieved it for her with a big smile. By the way, there is no tipping in Tahiti, like in New Zealand. It's against the Polynesian culture.

We then motored again in a heavy rain inside the fjord-like Baie of Haamene (T3) where we anchored in a very quiet anchorage in 30 feet of water with a mud bottom.

Day 5 - To Hibiscus in Baie Haamene

The rain had stopped by the morning and we went for a walk in the charming little village of Haamene. We stopped at the supermarket and bought fresh pineapples. These local pineapples are smaller and much sweeter than Hawaiian pineapples and we enjoyed them throughout the trip.

We took a walk up on the road toward Huepiti on the other side of the island. As we were walking back, a local French teacher stopped and gave us a ride to a vanilla farm.In the afternoon, we motored back for more snorkeling near the reef at Motu Mahea (T5) which we had enjoyed on our first day. In the evening, we took a mooring in front of the Hibiscus restaurant (T2).

At 7 PM, we went for drinks and to watch the polynesian show.This was our only negative experience on the islands. Leo, the French owner had told us that there was no charge for the show and that we could come for drinks. The show was not great and we left before the end. When we asked for our bill, he tried to charge us an extra $50 for the show. When we mentioned The Moorings, he became quite upset and told us to go home. He's got quite a bad reputation in the islands and is even written up negatively in some tour guides. So watch out if you decide to go!

Day 6 - Sailing to Bora Bora

We slipped out of the mooring at 6 AM and motored back to The Moorings base for showers, email and re-provisioning prior to our crossing to Bora. By 11AM, we were ready and motorsailed inside the lagoon to reach the Papai Pass (T14). We then had the most beautiful sail in 10-15 knots of wind with flat seas. We arrived at the Teavanui Pass in Bora at 3 PM. This is the only access to the lagoon, unlike the Raiatea/Tahaa lagoon which has several passes.
We sailed in the SW side of the lagoon and anchored in 5 m. of clear water with a good sand bottom (B4) near the Bora Hotel at Matira Point. The water was so clear that we could see our anchor as well as isolated coral patches. We immediately dove in for a refreshing swim.

At sunset, we dinghied around the Bora Hotel and docked at Bloody Mary's for drinks. The place was packed with mostly American tourists, mainly young honeymooners. They serve fresh fish from the islands in a definitely American style.

Day 7 - Visiting Vaitape

In the morning we enjoyed snorkeling near the reef and relaxing. After lunch, we motored to the town of Vaitape near the pass. The South Pier is reserved for visiting yachts and you can leave the boat as long as you want (B2). We visited the tourist shops and went to the Supermarket for fresh baguettes and fruits.

It was late when we left. We had planned to go and anchor in the bay near the new Sheraton Hotel on Motu Topua (B7). However by the time we got into the narrow channel it was getting dark and it was difficult to see the coral heads. We wisely decided not to press our luck and returned to ourprevious night's anchorage (B4) near Matira Point where we enjoyed another beautiful sunset.

Day 8 - Around the Lagoon

In the morning, we dinghied over to the Sheraton Hotel that we had missed the previous night. When we docked, a security man came over and we asked him if we could visit. He told us to wait and called for an escort with a golf cart. We had a tour of the beautiful property followed by a nice lunch at the bar-grill on the beach.

In the afternoon, we had a leisurely motorsail around the lagoon to the other side of the island. We anchored in 2.2 m (7 feet) of sand behind Motu Tupe (B20) near the Lagoonarium.

Day 9 - Lagoonarium

At 9 AM, we dinghied over to the Lagoonarium next to the Meridien hotel. The water was so shallow that we had to wade into the water and pull the dinghy.

Since it was early, the Lagoonarium was not crowded and we swam at our leisure with fish, turtles, bat rays and sharks. The lagoonarium is located in the pass and the fish reproduce and sustain themselves naturally. They replace them every six months so that they don't lose their wild instincts. The fee is $20 including a nice fruit plate after the swim.In the afternoon, we motored to Motu Aau (B23) across from Club Med, the Sofitel, etc. In fact we were almost back to Matira Point but the coral there is too heavy to navigate.

After anchoring in 4 m. (12 ft) of sand we dinghied over to the Coral Garden and got caught in a heavy downpour. Unlike the Coral Garden in Tahaa, the coral here was mostly dead due to the high water temperature and the lack of water recirculation inside the lagoon.

Day 10 - Touring Bora

In the morning we motored back to the town of Vaitape (B2) and rented a small Peugeot 106 for a tour of the island. We stopped at the Beachcomber hotel near Point Matira for a delicious lunch by the beach. At the village of Faanui, we turned off the main road and drove up on a dirt road toward the top of the mountain. We stopped and picked up flowers and mangoes. We also got a bunch of ripe bananas that had just fallen off a tree. These are small bananas and they are delicious.

For the night we motored again to our favorite anchorage near Point Matira (B4).

Day 11 - Sailing back to Raiatea

We left early at 6:00 AM for the sail back to Raiatea. We enjoyed a nice sail until we reached the white marker at the SW point of the reef by 7 AM. Then we had to turn into the wind to make Raiatea. This was slow motorsailing in 20-25 E wind and heavy bashing. We then eased up by 20 degrees which gave us a faster and more comfortable ride.

We entered the Rautoani Pass (R2) on Raiatea at 11:30 AM and motored back to The Moorings base for resupply.

Anchoring Problems

We left at 3PM for Motu Taoru (R9) on the East side of Raiatea and tried to anchor in 10 m. (30 ft) of sand. However the chain had become entangled during the bash back from Bora. While we were trying to clear it up, it jumped off the winch and the 50 m. (150ft) rolled out completely in the deep channel. We couldn't bring it back up because of the eye of the chain-line connection and were drifting toward the coral head on the mainland side of the channel.

We called The Moorings on the radio but it was already 5:05 PM and they had just closed the office. Fortunately, we received a response from Michel 20 minutes later. He advised us to tie a line on the chain and winch it back up but we couldn't do it. He then went back to the base and came to our rescue in the chase boat with Eric as a helper. They managed to winch it up and we went to re-anchor. Thanks for their help.

By that time we ran into another problem. The wind was from the E but there was a strong current from the Teavapiti pass running W opposite to the wind. This made anchoring very dicey. As we dropped the anchor, the boat would drift back downwind but the current would then turn it around 180 degrees. This means that the anchor chain was actually under the boat. We finally managed to anchor to our satisfaction but spend an anxious night. During the night, the current reversed its course and the boat turned another 180 degrees. This is definitely NOT a recommended anchorage!

Day 12 - Touring Raiatea

After all this excitement, the crew asked to go back to The Moorings base for the last day and rent a car for a tour of the island.

We drove along the East coast to the Marae Taputapuatea, which is an old sacred Polynesia site, the largest in the islands. Tapu means taboo, so "taputapu" means: highly sacred. To the ancient Polynesians, Raiatea was the most sacred island and the one from which they left to settle New Zealand. There we had a delightful picnic lunch with fresh baguettes, pate and cheeses followed by a last swim in the lagoon.

Back to Papeete

We had arranged for an early checkout of the boat so that we could catch our 8:30 AM flight back to Papeete and spend the day touring the main island.

After leaving our luggage in the storage room at the airport, we rented a car and drove through heavy traffic to downtown Papeete for a visit to the famous market.

The market is a riot of colors, scents and displays. Since it was the eve of All Saints' Day, every family was buying flowers to place on the tombs of their departed. In the evening, they dress up in their best, take candles and food baskets and have a picnic party with the deceased. Very colorful and joyful actually!.

We did our tourist shopping and then had an excellent and inexpensive lunch at the cafeteria upstairs, accompanied with live music. After lunch we toured around the island of Tahiti Nui, stopping at the Gauguin museum. We then went to the gigantic Carrefour Supermarket to stock up on French food and goodies to take back to the US.

Our plane left Papeete at 11:45 PM and we slept through most of the trip to Los Angeles.

This was a most enjoyable vacation and we hope to return next year to sail to Huahine, the mysterious island.