15°40 lat south, 146°13 long west

We have just left the stunning anchorage of Mahuehue on the atoll of Kauehi in the Tuamotus archipelago & are now sailing under the stars.  We had planned to leave early yesterday so we could sail just during daylight, but Bob offered to be a good Samaritan & helped out our friends on the wooden boat Larina. They had a leak in the hull & Bob donned his dive gear to go under & patch it with some seam goo. 

We arrived in the Tuamotus, an extensive group of coral atolls, about 5 days ago after a 4 day passage. The Tuamotus were named the ‘dangerous archipelago’ by the 1^st European navigators because of the risks they presented to ships during that era. Geologically, each atoll were formed eons ago after the center of volcano collapsed into the sea & eventually left a ring of coral that is no covered by sand & palm trees with the palms being the highest point (50’) to spot from the sea. If you were to see these atolls from the sky, each would look like a dotted circle or ellipse because the ring is not continuous as there are usually a pass or two allowing boats into the lagoon on the inside. Kauehi itself is s 12 miles long & 8 miles wide.

Kauehi has a reputation for the quality of its naissin or baby mother-of-pearl oysters. We did not see any pearl farms up close but expect to see some at our next stop. We were told by a cruiser that if you found an oyster diving or snorkeling, you would find an oyster in about 3 out of 10 cases, but we never came across any. The water around our anchorage was an incredibly clear turquoise. We anchored off an uninhabited motu or island. When we arrived, I saw some turquoise birds fly by that looked like they belonged in a jungle they were so bright. It turned out that they were white birds but just reflecting off the water – that is how vivid the color is!

We spent time snorkeling where we saw an amazing array of fish – most were very exotic-looking & colorful like I’ve only seen in books before. We recognized the parrot fish that were often turquoise & pink but sometimes orange, as well as the angel fish with its large yellow & black stripes & long tail that actually curves around & floats over its head. We bought dive gear with the boat. Neither of us are certified but have both done resort dive courses in the past so we figured we could study a dive course book & just plan on simple dives. Bob finished the book (I am only on chapter 3 –not as fun as my fiction books!) & went for 2 short, shallow dives while I watched.

We did some exploring ashore with the landscape just covered in small shells, sand, & bleached coral that almost looked like bones. As we waded through one tidal area, we did spot a black tipped reef shark (about 5’ long) which are usually of no problem but they do make me a bit nervous. We also had a great time at another beach BBQ with our friends from Windrose & Street Legal. These other cruisers are part of our ‘Polly Needs Ya’ radio net which has turned out to be a great lifeline to other cruisers.

Nana (goodbye)…Courtney