Monday 14^th May: South Pacific Ocean 15 8.70S  153 42.3W  On passage for Suwarrow

Today’s Blog by David(Time zone UTC -10.00;  BST-11.00)

Blogging is something that happens when we have both: (i) Something to say and (ii) time to write it. When we are in port (as opposed to on passage between ports as we are now) rarely have enough time to do anything – let alone blog.  So it  is then that it is ten days since we last blogged!

Since we left Tahiti we have been cruising in the other Society Islands:  Huahine, Raiatea,Ta’Aa and Bora Bora.  Together with Moorea and Tahiti this island group provides one of the loveliest cruising grounds  we have sailed – better in some ways than the Western Isles.  True there has been rain – more showers than desirable – but not enough to spoil the experience.  The islands of Raiatea and Ta’Aa are enclosed within a single atoll; there is enough inside that one atoll to occupy a cruiser for at least one and quite probably two weeks; if you include Tahiti and Moorea then it is quite easy to see you spend 6-8  weeks in these Islands alone. Sadly, we have had to confine ourselves to  a little more than three weeks – and much of that tied to a dockside in Tahiti and Bora Bora.  A two months cruise here is definitely an item to put high up on the Bucket List.

The scenery is breath taking.   It is hard to do justice to it with a pocket camera from sea level;  this is the sea breaking over the reef around Bora Bora (we were looking for the gap in the reef at the time!):

And this is a picture from the inside edge of the Raiatea atoll, at the Coral Garden looking towards Bora Bora. The huts on stilts are more of those air conditioned hotel rooms that we have previously talked about.

And for the sailors among you, that iconic photo of Bora Bora (this time from the north west):

Anyway, s’nuff for now.  We are on passage to Suwarrow,  an uninhabited atoll,  about 680 miles from Bora Bora. Simone is in good spirits and – as you can see – is  especially proud of her new hairdo:

And while she is in good spirits ……………………. all is at peace in Serendipity!