16* 48.7 S 150* 59.6 W
We left the marina on Tahiti at 1600 on Wednesday afternoon headed for the Leeward Islands of French Polynesia. The primary islands here include Huahine, Raiatea, Tahaa, and Bora Bora. We had great motoring conditions for the 100 nm over night passage with light winds and relatiely smooth seas.
Thursday morning the sunrise showed us nearing the island of Huahine and we could see the other mountainous islands, including Bora Bora in the distance.
Our friends on Mystery Ship, the identical Nordhavn 64 that we crossed the Pacific with, were already here and anchored in beautiful sheltered bay. We spent Thursday scuba diving with them and then went to a local restaurant, where we settled our bet with them that we made on the Olympic Gold medal hockey game. We had not seen them for nearly two months since we arrived in the Marquesas and it was good to catch up. Today, we moved down the island and rejoined our friends on Mulan.
These islands are high volcanic mountains surrounded by barrier reefs. Each island / reef system has one or more passages through the reef where we can get into the inner lagoons around the mountains. It is the best of both worlds that we have experienced here in French Polynesia. The Marquesas are high volcanic mountains with little or no reef around them to give protection from the wind and seas while at anchor. The Tuamotus are lagoons surrounded by barier reefs, but with no terrain or inner islands.
Once inside the passages, we are in perfectly smooth waters and find anchorages surrounded by lush tropical jungles and high mountains. In our current location, if we look to the east we are right next to the mountains. To the west, we are looking across 20 miles of open ocean at the next islands. There are huge breaking waves crashing on the reef not far from us, but by the time the seas cross the reef system and get to us, they are only a ripple. The waters are crystal clear and we can easily see our anchor on the bottom in 40' of water. Nearby are many coral heads and smaller reef structures with wonderful tropical fish.
For the last 2 months the air and sea temps have rarely strayed from 80 - 85. Sitting here, watching the sunset, and listening to the power of the wind and seas crashing so close by, while the boat sit motionless at anchor, is surreal.
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