French Polynesia covers an area of the South Pacific Ocean about the size of Europe. It is made up of over one hundred islands in five archipelagos: the Marquesas, Tuamotus, the Society Islands, Gambiers and Australs, as well as Clipperton atoll, a small French possession off Mexico. From the rugged beauty of the Marquesas to the crystal clear waters of the Tuamotu atolls and the lofty peaks of the Society Islands, the variety in scenery and sailing conditions is unsurpassed anywhere in the South Pacific. Most yachts make their landfall in the Marquesas, which is a perfect introduction to this vast cruising ground. There are few man-made ports here and the swell can tuck into the anchorages, but this is more than made up for by the beauty of these high islands. In complete contrast are the Tuamotus, once called the Dangerous Archipelago on account of its treacherous currents and lurking reefs. Yachts used to avoid this area, but now often stop and visit the low atolls, as the hazards have diminished considerably with the advent of radar and satellite navigation. Negotiating the passes into some of the lagoons can be a difficult operation, mainly because of the strong currents. Passes are for the most part well-marked, some even lit at night. However one should still be sure to use careful eyeball navigation, ideally when the sun is overhead and the colour of the water gives a good indication of its depth. Entirely off the usual cruising routes are French Polynesia's other two groups, the Austral and Gambier islands.
Iles de Marqueses
At 9.30pm on Monday 28 June 2010, nineteen days and fourteen hours since setting sail from Galapagos, we arrived at the Island of Fatu Hiva, Iles de Marqueses, and anchored in Hanavave Bay, commonly knows as Baie de Vierges (The Bay of Virgins). We really should have arrived at the island of Hiva Oa, to clear in to the Marqueses, but after such a long journey, we were exhausted, and even though Fatu Hiva is south of Hiva Oa, Mal had heard so much about the beautiful Bay of Virgins, that he decided that we could afford to spend a couple of days in the bay recouperating from our long voyage before, once again, tackling the onerous chore of clearing in. We had also arranged to meet our friends Brian and Ann on “Cabillito de Mar”, who were in Galapagos during our stay there and sailed for the Marqueses the day after we left Galapagos.
The Bay of Virgins
The Bay of Virgins (Baie de Vierges) was previously known as the Bay of Penis’s (Baie des Verges). You may understand why when you view the photos of the bay.
When missionaries first arrived in the late 1800’s, they were horrified at the given name and changed it to the Bay of Virgins, of which the spelling in French is very similar to the original given name.
The sailing guide stated that this was a small deep bay and
there was only room for a few yachts to anchor.
On arriving at 9.30pm, after our long voyage from Galapagos, we were
amazed to count thirteen yachts.
Choosing a place to anchor was not easy as the bay is very deep and not
a very good holding so trying to find a spot where we would be secure, in a
reasonable depth and not swing onto the rocky cliffs was a challenge. After anchoring a couple of times, the anchor
finally held and settled in for our first still night of sleep in nineteen
nights.
In the morning, we were enthralled with the rugged beauty of
the island and the deep clear blue water of the bay.
We spent the next two days, getting our land legs, exploring the lovely little village tucked into the corner of the bay, trading t-shirts, shorts and thongs for locally grown fruit, and chatting with the locals.
The church in the small village in The Bay of Virgins, Fatu Hiva, Iles de Marqueses.
We expected Brian and Ann on
“Cabillito de Mar” to arrive within those two days, and when they didn’t, we
became concerned and asked some of the other yachts if they had come across “Cabillito
de Mar”. To our relief, we were told
that they had sailed directly to Hiva Oa and had been asking whether anyone had
seen “Hasta La Vista”. As we needed to
clear in to the Marqueses, we set sail for the village of Atunioa, on the
island of Hiva Oa, the capital of the Marqueses, on Thursday 1 July 2010.
After six hours of sailing we arrived at Atunioa, Hiva
Oa. A large swell rolled into the bay
where yachts were anchored to access Atunioa.
We anchored close in shore with a bow and stern anchor so that “Hasta La
Vista” rose over the incoming swell. A service
station, an attached small grocery store and a boat ramp lined one side of the
bay with the main village of Atunioa located approximately five kilometres walk
around the bay and on the other side of a slight hill. We decided to tackle the walk the next day
but in the mean time, we were glad to catch up with Brian and Ann on “Cabillito
de Mar” and exchanged our sailing experiences of our transit from the Galapagos
Islands. “Cabillito de Mar” had hit a
whale while sailing and Brian and Ann received a terrible fright. Luckily, there was no damage and Brian and
Ann were able to continue sailing unlike some sailing vessels that we have read
about where the vessels suffered severe damage and sunk quite quickly. Brian and Ann didn’t have a “grab bag” but
after that experience, they quickly packed one for the remainder of their sail
to Australia.
A five kilometre walk to Atunioa the next day allowed us to clear in and have a three month visa approved. Details of our visas were faxed through to Tahiti. All boats/yachts visiting French Polynesia are required to leave before November 1st and visas are only issued for the period between April and October. We discovered later on that extensions are available if one wished to store their vessel on the hard and return to continue their voyage at a later date. As part of the visa process, we were required to place a bond, one for Mal and one for me, equal to the cost of an airfare back to Australia. Our bond totalled approximately AUD$1,700. This was held by one of the Society Island Banks and was refundable when leaving Bora Bora, the last island of our visit to the Society Islands. We also had to specify the exact date of when we would collect our bond in Bora Bora. This was quite difficult as we didn’t know how long we would be staying at each of the islands in French Polynesia, and of course, the weather was a factor. We made a rough guess and hoped that we wouldn’t be too far out. The visa covered all islands visited in the Society Islands but we were told that we needed to present ourselves to the Customs Office in Tahiti when we arrived to confirm that we had “cleared in” to the Society Islands. The remainder of the day, was spent walking the village, enjoying lunch at a small hotel and provisioning at a well stocked grocery store. Our stay in the bay lasted two nights, as the rolling swell made it very uncomfortable.
“Hasta La Vista” and “Cabillito de Mar” sailed to Baie Hananoenoa on the island of Tahuata which was near to Hiva Oa for a few days prior to sailing our separate ways. We hoped that we might next meet in Tahiti. Mal and I decided that our “taste” of the Marqueses during our short stay was sufficient and that we would not travel north to the other islands. We were getting closer to home, and after being away for so long, were keen to keep moving. Early October was our planned arrival in Bundaberg. Our next stop would be Manihi in the Tuamotus some three and a half days sail away.
