Tainui Internet Log
June 2000
Recorded by Brian Fairweather
June was a good month, with the wind often squarely behind us and a lot of time spent in warm, beautiful places. We made it through the longest ocean leg of our trip, but haven't had a lot of contact by email - the good news is, we now have pictures!
June 1 – We are moving well, with a following wind and large following swell - we try our Sail Mail connection, but the paperwork has not yet gone through, so our account is not set up - at least we get a connection! Shepherd's Pie for dinner and all are happy, except Brendon, who is not eating yet...
June 2 – Just before 9am today, we cross from the Eastern Hemisphere to the Western Hemisphere! We are suddenly in June 1 again, as we have crossed the International date line.
June 1 (again) – In honour of this occasion, we decide to all relate the story of our 'worst date ever' - these stories shall not be repeated here! Brendon is feeling better, it's a bright sunny day and we are flying along...
June 2 (again) – We managed to actually get connected to SailMail and send our first emails - hooray! It is a bit of a trick, since only one boat can connect at a time, so we have to listen to the HF radio and understand the tones and pulses to see when the channel is clear. It is not clear very often, even though each boat is supposed to limit their transmissions to 10 minutes per day... We motor for a while to charge batteries... Brendon recovers enough to go on a full watch.
June 3 – We've been still having some hassles with our freshwater system - the pump tends to run constantly, as it loses its prime... We installed the weatherfax software that we got off the WWW, but haven't yet worked out the details in receiving transmissions. We have listened to most of the CD's in the rack and are debating the merits of Midnight Oil...
June 4 – Not much different, cruising along, decide to head more North to avoid a low pressure area far to the South. A few squalls and rain, but still flying - all the wind is in the right direction, and it gets up to Force 7-8 with 4 metre seas - we are literally 'surfing' our way eastward - I think of my friend Dave Staunton and how he would probably like to be towed behind us on his surfboard - a perpetual wave!
June 5 – We speak to Namasté, who are having a
bit of rough weather and don't sound too happy - they will go
straight to Tahiti, whereas we have decided to stop into the
Australe Islands, specifically Raivavae. It's supposed to be one
of the most dramatic islands, with steep cliffs and few visitors!
Our autopilot is acting up - we discover that seawater has gotten
into the switch in the cockpit, shorting it out. We fix it with
some tape to seal it, after letting it dry out. We'll want to fix
that in Tahiti... Same thing with the compass light.
Ate the last of the pre-made meals - we LOVE the Paihia butcher!
Anybody who sails out of Opua should stop in and get some of his
food to take along.
June 6 – We heave to for a few hours - after 7 days of fast downwind sailing, we are quite tired. Dan and Brian have a beer to celebrate the occasion - not our usual practice, but it seems OK just this once...
June 7 – The wind has now come around and we are sailing NE on a fast beam reach - we have the main, jib and our staysail up - a true cutter! We are doing 9 knots over the ground, according to the GPS! (That's fast...) Our water bladder is suddenly empty - turns out that there was a leak under the sink and we pumped most of the water in the tank into the bilge - this really sucks, as it also drained the house batteries. I tighten all connections and we switch to the forward tank. TAINUI has three tanks (we pulled out the fourth one, as it was a leaky bladder), so we still have lots of water, and we can make more, but it still sucks.
June 8 – We have been sailing for several days with the jib poled out using te spinnaker pole, and the main way out and tied down with a line to the bow. At some point, the track on the boom for the mainsail has separated from the boom itself, similar to our problem with the mast fitting. Fortunately, we now have a rivet gun and fix it on the go... of course, when we bring down the main to do this, we notice that several of the slides on the main are also broken! The truth is, we have been running hard for 8 days and probably put more hours on the equipment this week than most yachts do in a year or two of harbour sailing - we are quite used to all this fixing stuff and take the mainsail down into the cabin, attach new slides and put her back up...
June 9 – Tacked to starboard for the first time since Opua! Feels wierd to be heeled over in the other direction - all the familiar handholds and balancing points are gone... back to a port tack shortly. Decided to try putting up the spinnaker, but the winds prove a bit too strong and there is a small tear in the sock, so we decide to do it sometime in a nice quite harbour with light winds... Dan makes muffins and the crew rejoices.
June 10 – Dan makes banana cake - the crew is satisfied for now, but getting edgy for landfall...
June 11 – Finally got email connectivity again - the problem is just that there is a lot of traffic, so we don't usually seem to get a clear channel - this time, we get emails from friends and family, which are happily received!
June 12 – 220 miles to Raivavae - Dan gets hit in the face by a flying fish that comes over the side! There are a few of these over the next couple days...
June 13 – The last 80 miles are going slowly, with
little wind - Brian had a night watch and looked up at the stars
just as a satellite was passing overhead - followed it all the
way to the horizon - very cool. As the sun rises, Raivavae is
suddenly visible ahead! (See the
photo!)
We navigate our way through the reef entrance and at 11:30am, we
are anchoring in a little cove, with two other yachts present.
One is 'Penelope' - a Moody 42, owned by Burkhard and Sabine
Strauch, who come over to greet us and bring 'pamplemousse'
(grapefruit) as a welcome present. We invite them over for drinks
and they tell us that the other yacht is owned by someone on the
island, so we are the only visitors!
June 14 to 17 - We intended to stay only a couple days,
but Raivavae is so beautiful that we decide we have extra time
and will spend 3 extra days here. We explore the island and its
motu (islands on the surrounding reef) and become friendly with
the Gendarme of the island and his family - Jean-Jacques, Jenny
and Melanie Pillipponeau. They are great and take us to Motu Haha
for a picnic, show us how to get around and supply us with fresh
bananas, pamplemousse and lunch and dinner on a couple occasions.
We had them out to the boat for dinner one night and they really
seemed to enjoy our company - they are just about the only
non-native people on Raivavae and they live 'in parallel' with
the natives, so I think that they welcome the chance to meet new
people in travelling yachts. There is no airport, but one is
being constructed - it is somewhat a shame, as I hope that the
island can stay unspoilt, but Jean-Jacques thinks that the
natives will be careful of development - they don't want to
become BoraBora or Tahiti. I couldn't agree more - we are only
the 11'th yacht here in a half year, so we feel privileged to
have seen the place while it is pristine.
We have lots of interesting interactions with the locals, who
don't actually go out of their way to seek us out and greet us,
but are pleasant when we see them. We buy local bread and get
meat and chicken from the provision ship that arrives on the
15'th. Dan and Brian practice French and Brendon learns a few key
phrases...
When it's time to go, we are all a bit sad - it's been a great
few days and a perfect intro to the South Pacific Islands - we
sign the Gendarme's book of visiting ships, which dates back to
1959 - they send us off with a nice dinner and Jenny cooks one of
our chickens for us in a great sauce!
June 18 – We head out of Raivavae at 12:30 and by 17:00, Raivavae is gone from the horizon - next stop Tahiti! Brendon has a recurrence of seasickness, but not as bad. Our outdoor speakers got soaked on the way to Raivavae and are now trashed. We remind ourselves to ask Kathleen to bring some supplies from Sydney when she arrives...
June 19 – A slow day without much wind - we are low on batteries, so we run the engine, checking the diesel, which I have calculated to be almost empty in our starboard tank - surprisingly, we have a lot left! Maybe the rate of burn is less than I thought, since we have been keeping the revs low. With hardly any wind, we leave the engine running a bit longer. There seems to be a problem with the HF radio, though. (The long-range, high-frequency radio that we use for weather, scheduled check-ins and email.) It seems to be 'stuck' in transmit mode, which renders it unusual - we suspect either the modem connection or some short circuit caused by salt water as the culprit...
June 20 – The winds are very light, so we start the motor early and run it most of the day - Dan and Brendon spend the day reading, while I decided to update this log and add the photo page! We should be in Tahiti tomorrow, so I'll see if there is an internet cafe or other way to get this stuff uploaded.
June 21 – The lights of Tahiti were spotted at 4:35 am - by noon, we had made our way into the main harbour and took an anchorage outside the church near the quay, as there were no soaces available at the quay. Dan went ashore to deal with the immigrations people while Brendon decided to have a swim... once we realised how polluted the harbour was, he also decided to have a shower... Unfortunately, Papeete harbour is a cesspool.The large number of yachts, commercial boats and lack of sanitary facilities add up to make it a real toilet. By the time we head ashore, we are a bit disappointed by the general state of the place, but decided to console ourselves at the nearest drinking establishment. We spent the day and evening exploring a bit, and ate dinner that night in Papeete at one of the 'roulletes,' which are little cafes on wheels, complete with bar seating and cheap prices - the best value for food in Papeete, we think. After buying ourselves tickets for the upcoming Miss Tahiti Contest on Friday night, we head back to the boat for the night. The water smells horrible and all agree that we should get out of Papeete Harbour as soon as possible!
June 22 – We considered moving to Maeva Beach for an anchorage, as we were told that the Yacht Club de Tahiti was full - however, we were very keen to have shore power and water handy, so Brendon and Brian went for a ride on the 'truck' towards the YCT. The 'truck' system is Tahiti's bus service, with small converted flatbed trucks serving as cheap transport around the island - the trick is to pick the right one, which is difficult if you are not sure where you are really going. After a bit of a ride and a few worries that we were taking the truck to the other end of the island, the driver dropped us right at the entrance to the YCT. Turns out that the marina manager Michel was very friendly and once he realised that we would only be a few days, offered us a berth on the end of the pier - this was great! Brian and Brendon returned victorious, with stories of pleasant scenery, a restaurant and laundry facilities... we decided to move at once, heading out o the reef and around towards Venus Point - the spot of Captain James Cook's original landing in Tahiti, where he set up an observatory to watch Venus transit the sun on the 3'rd June, 1769. It was tough to determine where to get into the reef, as the entry marks that Michel desribed did not exist! Finally, he came out to meet us and guide us in, realising that we had chosen the second of two passages rather than the first and therefore would never find his marks... The Yacht Club was a perfect change from the smelly harbour - when we left the boat, some locals were practising their dancing for the upcoming Haeva (festival) and we watched with interest.
June 23 – Today we started on some repairs and maintenance, including servicing the steering. We had noticed a 'click' in the steering mechanism that got worse as time progressed. By the time we got the steering apart, it was obvious what the problem was - the chain had rusted a bit and several links were very stiff - this caused them to jam as the wheel was turned, then they released with a jolt. Dan also noticed that the steering cable had some separated wires - bad news. We could not get new cable right away, so we oiled and manipulated the chain and after a lot of effort, managed to get the thing back on - it was under a lot of tension and it took Brian and Dan pulling together to do it! We are very glad that we have a big evening planned and get into our best clothers for the Miss Tahiti Contest, held at the Hotel de Ville (Town Hall) out on the lawn. We had purchased three seats at a table, so we got there early to enjoy dinner. And what food! A great big buffet, with sashimi, cooked fish, chicken, meat and all sorts of other things that are all awesome... we spent a bit of time getting to know the other five guests around the table, Rafaela and her Mother, Tahitian ladies who are friends with one of the contestants, and a family of French Tahitians who are less friendly. Admittedly, we are three guys who are there to eat a lot, drink a lot and stare at women, but they could at least be social! The contest is a lot of fun and after a while, I decide to leave the table and walk to the front of the stage, where I got in front of the TV cameras, alongside the professional photographers and just behind the judges! I drained my digital camera batteries, taking over 150 pix... all in all, a fun night and we even managed to get away with the 1999 Miss Tahiti's nameplate and two long strings of Hinano beer flags to decorate our mast with - a total success!
June 24-26 – The girlfriends finally arrive - hooray! Brian and Kath spent a night off the boat at the Mandarin Hotel, which turns out to be across the street from the Hotel de Ville courtyard.Not exactly luxury, but it's nice to get away from it all for a while... Kath brought with her some new gear for the boat - outdoor speakers (waterproof this time) and five small electric fans to cool the cabins with.
Brendon had to go to the airport at about three in the morning to try to get on a flight, as his ticket was actually for some time in July, but he wanted to get home earlier. He must have managed to get a plane back to New Zealand, as he never showed up back at the boat again... We have not yet received email to see if he made it, but admittedly haven't checked email at all in a while...
We are finding that the best way to get around the island is either to take the 'truck' or to hitchhike - we have never failed to get a ride and the locals will normally take you where you want to go, even if they are not heading there! When Kath arrived at the airport, I went to pick her up and caught a ride with two young Tahitian guys, probably 19 or 20 years old - they were eager to speak English and when they asked me where I wanted to go, I said, "The airport, but just to Papeete would be fine!" They drove for a while and then told me they would take me straight to the airport, another 5 kilometres or so - this was the first time, but not the last that someone took us out of their way... In fact, these guys pulled up to the airport, parked the car, walked me into the arrivals area, showed me where to buy a welcome head wreath of flowers for Kath and stood there until I had purchased one. Then, they shook my hand and walked away, with no expectations of anything in return! Dan had a similar incident going to the airport, where the driver actually returned after a short while to ask if they needed a ride back - instead, he caught a different ride back and the locals offered him a beer!
We like Tahitians...
June 27 – We had only planned to stay at the YCT for two nights, but it was so nice that we stayed for five - then, the owner of the slip that we were in returned a bit early and we had to head out... decided to go to Point Venus, as Chris & Chris on Namasté (see May 24-30) had recommended. Apparently, some guide book says that it's a bad anchorage, so nobody ever goes there! While Dan and Abi brought the boat around inside the reef to Point Venus, Brian and Kath went to the local supermarket (the 'Continental') to stock up on supplies. This place has everything - from fresh bread to televisions, from painting supplies to clothing. Bizarre!
Once we were all back aboard, we tied the stern up to the reef marker to stabilise the boat in the waves. It was a great place to anchor - Point Venus is a black sand beach that the locals congregate on - it is pretty cool to think that we are perhaps in the exact spot where Captain Cook anchored over 230 years prior...
June 28 – Today is the day that the girls are tested on their first ocean voyage - we leave the comfort of the reef and head for Moorea, which is within sight of Point Venus. Moorea has a fantastic set of mountain peaks, cliffs and sawtooth ridges, which were more and more impressive the closer we got! We entered Cook Bay in the late afternoon and anchored near the small village of Paopao - took a short stroll on land and bought some basic food... The massive cruise ship R3 (Renaissance Three) comes into the Bay and anchors, nearly blocking the entire entrance! They turn around using their massive engines and depart for an evening cruise lit up like a small city...
June 29 – We all got up early and went for a walk around the Bay, towards Opunohu Bay and visited the Pineaple Juice factory/distillery - turns out that this is a public holiday, so there are no tours, but we do sample a bit of the local fruit concoctions and decide to buy a couple of litres of 'Tahiti Drink,' which goes down very well. Dan and Abi walked around to Opunohu Bay, while Kath and Brian headed back to the boat and took the dinghy for a spin to see some beaches. On the way, we spotted 'Penelope' at the mouth of the Bay and dropped in on Burkhart and Sabina. They invited us aboard for drinks and a look through their yacht. After a while, we had to depart and on the way off the boat, I looked down and saw a stingray swimming just behind the boat - when I pointed it out, Burkhart exclaimed, 'a spotted eagle ray!' and basically dove off the side with his snorkel gear... we followed it for a while, then headed back to TAINUI. When Dan and Abi arrived back, we all decided that the reef near the mouth of the bay looked more interesting, so we picked up and motored out to anchor next to 'Penelope.' Everybody had a swim and an explore and then dinner with lots of Tahiti Drink...
June 30 – We passed the day quietly, enjoying the anchorage and relaxing - Dan and Abi had booked themselves into the Linerava Hotel, on the far side of Moorea, for the night. Kath and Brian had planned to take the boat around to Opunohu Bay, but it started to rain... and rain... and rain! Basically, it rained so much that we started filling the water tanks with buckets of water collected from the canopy. By the time we were well into it, we had a compex system of canva, several buckets and a routine for passing them around, as the rain was filling a bucket every couple of minutes. We never made it to Opunohu Bay that night, but had a great time on the boat, getting soaked and diving in the water, then having natural showers on the deck...
