Well the sail from the south pass of Fakarava to Tahiti wasn’t the fastest we’ve had, but it was quite pleasant with no squalls, and apparently the speed was just right for a meter long mahi mahi to gobble up the fishing lure Carla on SV Ari-B made for us. We haven’t caught a mahi mahi since we were in Mexico and were pretty chuffed!
For the most part the wind was on the stern and we flew the twin headsail rig, but eventually it crept up enough and the seas were flat enough that we were able to fly the main and screecher and make some good speed before finally furling the screecher and rolling out the jib for the last few hours of the trip. We rounded Point Venus at the northwest tip of Tahiti around 0830 and proceeded on down to the main harbor entrance, slipping on the inside of the arrival pontoon around 1000 on Sunday July 5th 2020. It had been nearly a year since we’d taken a marina berth but a marina employee caught a line and soon we were safely moored. Marina Papeete was still charging low season rates, so about $20 a night for us plus any water we used which was cheap.
The arrival pontoon accommodates about 16 vessels and is in front of the new facilities which include the marina office and a bar / restaurant, but the covid pandemic has delayed the grand opening, now scheduled for early August. It’s an impressive waterfront development. What’s the best thing about marina life? Unlimited potable water! Let the long showers begin! Feels like when we visit a hotel these days. . .
Our objectives in Papeete were to get routine annual physicals, dental checkups, dermatologist inspections, and to visit the US Consular official to get a US Notary Public stamp on a legal document. Mission accomplished, and perhaps more about that another time. Also on the list, repair and upgrade parts for JollyDogs, spear guns, fishing lures, some clothing, and lots of serious provisioning. Welcome to the “land of plenty”. The veritable cornucopia of fresh fruit, vegetables, and the weekly Sunday market features “pork products” as Isabel likes to call the various barbequed meaty goodness that the vendors only bust out on Sunday mornings.
For folks like us who had spent months in the Tuamotus with access to only coconuts, fish, conch and crabs when we could catch them, going to Papeete is like being a kid in a candy store. We walked about a mile down to the Carrefour and slowly wandered up and down every aisle, marveling at the vast selection of everything we could imagine. Wine! Cheese! Charcuterie! Real, fresh butter rather than the tinned stuff! My French isn’t so good and my Polynesian is awful, so I’m sure I missed the “clean up on aisle 5, aisle 6, aisle 7, aisle 8” announcements over the store loudspeaker as we stumbled up and down each aisle, drooling like mad hatters at the dining and adult beverage possibilities.
Marina life is also very social in nature. Friends we’d made since arriving in French Polynesia were in various slips around the facility, so sharing happy hour and meals aboard various boats was the order of the day. SV’s Leela, Rapture, Sugar Shack, Ari-B, Long Temps, September A.M., Yamaya, and more came and went during the course of our stay. We even had an evening at the local craft brewery, Les Trois Brasseurs.
We were in the marina for a total of 19 days, a fun and productive time. We accomplished all our major objectives, filled JollyDogs up with enough dining options to weather a zombie apocalypse, and identified major resources that will make life better in future. Such things as the variety of chandleries and the Technimarine shipyard where we’ll likely haul out for fresh bottom paint before departing French Polynesia next May.
Yep, with all the craziness in the world and the countries to the West still mostly closed or all horked up with quarantines and such, we’ve pretty much decided to spend another year kite boarding and spear fishing in these parts. Well why not?
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