Where Did Those Five Weeks Go?
Rich's 2025 World ARC PatBon Blog
Richard Hurd
Fri 16 May 2025 00:33
16:29.568S 151:45.84W
Well looking back, those 5 weeks in French Polynesia just flew by and disappeared in a blur. I last said hello to you all when I was on board AquaLuna with Claire and Malcom for a few days in the Tuamotus. As planned, I met up with Pat Bon in Taina Marina in Papeete, Tahiti and we promptly departed on Saturday 26th, along with 1D, Amelia and Magea for Moorea and the other Society Islands. Moorea is only 20NM or so from Papeete, so a short crossing to 2 large bays in the north of the island, well sheltered by outlying coral reefs.
Moorea was a lovely place and several ARC’ers had gone there while work was being done on various yachts in Papeete. Sadly, due to amount of rain that had fallen, these large bays had fairly mucky water, so we anchored just inside the reefs, where the water was much clearer. We did a short hike up to a small peak called Magic Mountain that overlooked Cooks Bay; yep, just where the British captain dropped his anchor all those years ago! We also took our dinghy’s through a shallow small boat channel inside the reef to a Stingray cleaning station and to an island called Coco island. Sadly the small beach bar was closed, but we managed to persuade them to rustle up some BBQ’d chicken and chips and some nice cold beers. We then had many stingrays come into the beach and nuzzle your ankles, completely fearless. They even ate from your hands and allowed you to stroke them. Quite amazing - at least the black tip sharks kept their distance as I’m not sure I’d be hand-feeding one of those rascals!
Time to move on to the next Society island called Huahine. This again was a delightful island and we anchored inside the SW of the coral reef, near a couple of restaurants. This is where Laurène (from SY Amelia) and I hired bikes to cycle to the start of a hike up a mountain called Mont Pohu Rahi and we then carried on cycling all around the island, about 40 miles in total. Great fun and even bumped into Jim and Heather out for a ride on their Brompton bikes. Saw strange and huge ‘blue eyed’ eels in a stream and went through the main town - well village - of Fare.
After a few days in Huahine, we sailed over to Raiatea and Taha’a, two islands, but ringed by a common coral reef. When I came sailing here in 2019 with my kiwi friends Simon & Claire, this is where we picked up our charter boat, so I’ve been to this part of paradise before. We sailed to the Coral Garden in Taha’a, where you walk across a motu to the outside of the reef, jump into a narrow and shallow passage with your mask and snorkel and get taken through by the current and over a magical world of corals and fish. Just beautiful. Later we went to a bizarre rum and tapas bar on a floating traditional catamaran. Fab day. Then off for a wreck dive with Nathan, Simon, Tracey & Chris. The Nordby was a trading 3 masted steel sailing ship that sank in 1900, after being washed ashore after a storm. Lying on her side, she was remarkably well preserved with even her steel masts still there in part. We were able to dive through her hold which was a very eerie experience and seeing her anchor that failed to hold her from being wrecked was, for a yachtsman, quite emotional. You rely on and put your trust in anchors, but now and again they don’t work and this is the result when all goes wrong!
Sadly, Nathan left Pat Bon in Raiatea and after a couple of days on 1D, he’s found a berth on Luminous 3 and will be sailing with them until Tonga at least. Our little gaggle of yachts then decided to head to Bora Bora, our last stop in French Polynesia. Yachts are no longer permitted to anchor in the lagoon, so we had to moor up to buoys near the Bora Bora Yacht Club. The ARC fleet splits in half for this next leg to Tonga due to the number of available mooring buoys here in Bora Bora and also in Niue, the smallest independent nation in the world! Luckily our gaggle of yachts are grouped together, so we’re all here. While in Bora Bora we hired bikes one day and circumnavigated the main island, which was fun. The island is strange in a way, in that it is a holiday paradise for couples and honeymooners, but they tend to go to the ‘all inclusive’ resorts that are mainly based on the outlying reef with there huts on stilts over the lagoon. The main island is where the locals live and isn’t that attractive. It’s a busy place, with battered cars, loud mopeds, litter and run down shacks. Quite shocking really when you consider that some of the high end resorts charge $1,500 a night and that is their starting rates!
Simon and I decided to climb one of the peaks that overshadow the island called Mt Pahia , which stands about 660m above sea level. Laurène had climbed it by herself when we all went cycling, so up for a challenge, we kitted up and set off early to avoid the heat of the day. Well it had been raining hard all night and it was still raining hard! This is a steep climb and ropes had been laid to help get up (& down) and climbing when wet is not recommended due to the slippy rocks. What an epic day - completely soaked, climbing up raging torrents, through waterfalls cascading off cliffs to the summit. Bloody crazy looking back, but big smiles over a beer later that day - deffo a day where memories are created!
Sad to say that my mate Dave from 1D decided to fly back to the UK from Bora Bora due to a medical issue that needed to be sorted - we wish you well mate and you’ll be missed!
So, we crossed the start line for Leg 6 of the ARC on Tuesday 13th May at midday. Three of us aboard Pat Bon, now all heading for Niue, then after a 3 day stop-over, off to Tonga and the Vava’u archipelago of islands in the north. Guess who’s gonna meet me there - Paula❤️. Can’t wait for her to get here - we’ve been apart for 3 months since she was on Pat Bon in Galapagos. We’re sailing through our 2nd night now with 777NM still to sail. Hopefully if the winds are kind, we’ll arrive on Monday or early Tuesday. The moon is bright, the Southern Cross guides us and 1D are about 5NM to the south of us with their masthead tricolour light flickering in the distance.
That’s all for now folks. Love and light to all.
Rich.
At the top of Magic Mountain overlooking Cooks Bay in Moorea.
Feeding the stingrays off Coco Island, Moorea
Laurène & I at the top of Mt Pohu Rahi on Huahine.
A drone shot of the anchorage in Huahine.
Just chillin’😎 and waiting for a beer at Fish & Blue on Raiatea.
Simon fighting his way up a raging torrent on our way up Mt Pahia in Bora Bora.
At the summit of Mt Pahia.
Mt Pahia with a full moon rising behind it. Pahia is the peak to the left - the right hand peak is higher, but not climbable without grade 1 mountaineering qualifications.