14:58.7S 157:39.0W

 

Our departure from Bora Bora at 11.00 am on Tuesday 13th marked the end of our time in French Polynesia where we have been since our arrival in Hiva Oa in March. We have had the most wonderfully memorable time and the Marquesas will stand out as the jewels of the area.

In Bora Bora we were moored outside the excellent Maikai Yacht Club where we were made to feel very welcome by the couple who run the place. Sadly Bora Bora has a bad reputation for thefts from boats and despite vigilance on the part of most, some items were removed from yachts in the anchorage. Whilst there, we enjoyed a spectacular dive with huge, graceful manta rays; considerably less alarming that the tiger sharks of our Tahiti dive. The yacht club premises also houses a black pearl store where were able to have the black pearls we purchased from the pearl farm in Ahe drilled and made into items of jewellery.

The start line in Bora Bora was inside the reef and once we’d safely navigated our way out, we sailed into second place which gave us a good view of the yachts with a backdrop of the island. The fishing lines were deployed and within 4 hours supper was on the hook. Thanks to the strenuous efforts of Tim & Ollie, an 18kg mahi mahi was landed. Our freezer is stuffed full again – very comforting!

We are delighted to have our boys back on board with us after their month away on land and once again, we have settled back into life at sea. We have another 330 miles to go to Suwarrow, northern Cook Islands where we will be for a 72 hour stopover on this ‘Robinson Crusoe’ island.