I have a really bad night’s sleep. The constant tickling in my eyes and nose signals that my feeling of grottiness is due to a cold. Nothing more but irritating just the same as I don’t often get a cold and don’t know where this one came from. I wake about 4.30 am and that’s it for the night. Great.
Luckily Mike is awake by 5.45 am (must have been all that wriggling) and he gets up and makes a cup of tea. We have pain chocolat for breakfast then it’s back to the supermarket.
As we walk once again past the row of super yachts, in the bright morning sunshine, we see the stark reality of the difference between Jeannius and her neighbours. However, Jeannius has probably seen more open ocean than any of these giants.
Photos: Jeannius dwarfed by her neighbours
We re-trace our steps to the supermarket and spend a similar amount to yesterday. We should only need to buy fresh stuff now on a regular basis, ‘should’ being the operative word.
When we get back to the boat, Laurent, the agent is waiting for us to give us our paperwork and return our passports. We attempt to put all the shopping away but some of it has to be left in bags for now. We start to untie the boat from the quay, looked on by the same nervous crew on the boat next door. Get a life, guys!
As we pull away from the dock, Brown Eyed Girl is hovering to take our space. I try to call Judith on the VHF as I haven’t seen her for a few days but there’s no answer.
We motor out of the marina, and follow the marked channel through the reef. Inside the reef the sea is flat calm.
Photo: Floating bar just inside the reef
Photo: Lumps of evil looking reef poking out of the water
Photo: Flat calm sea inside the reef
At the edge of the reef, however, waves are rolling and breaking in. Yet again, people are in the water with surf boards.
Photos: Breakers on the reef – the little black dot is a surfer!
Carole prepares lunch and we motor through the smooth water back towards Moorea – Groundhog Day, no less. We are all just sitting in the cockpit when Mike accidently switches on the salt water pump and sea water gushes out all over the cockpit floor. While I sit there calmly, Carole practically jumps up on the seat thinking we’ve suddenly sprung a huge leak and are sinking, then feels very foolish when she realises what it is. Mind you, the same incident gives Mike a terrifying moment – when he switched on the salt water pump, he actually thought he had switched on the holding tanks pump (holding tanks are where the contents of the toilets go when you are in port) and when he hears the gushing, gurgling, splashing noises, he thinks there is raw sewage shooting out somewhere inside the boat!
I go down for a sleep but only manage to drift off for a few moments as it is so hot in the cabin. Eventually I give up and squish myself into a bit of shade in the cockpit instead. As we round the headland the wind picks up – we are still motoring so the boat pitches around a bit although the large waves are well spaced so as not to make it uncomfortable. Another test for Carole – she manages to read a book in the cockpit without puking over the side!
We arrive inside the reef just outside Opunohu Bay in the mid afternoon in the shadow of Bali Hai, the high mountain behind us. This is supposedly where the film ‘South Pacific’ was shot (although a few places claim this). The anchor seems to set but half an hour later, when Carole and John are off swimming, we start to drift backwards at an alarming rate and have to quickly pull the anchor up and reset it. We do this another three times before it eventually digs in properly and John dives over the anchor just to make sure.
Photo: Opunohu Bay, Moorea
The scenery is quite like Cook’s Bay – dramatic and rocky and makes a nice backdrop for the boat. Ronja and Liza are already moored here, but Liza leaves for an overnight to Huahine just as Wild Tigris arrives. We eat the fabulous white tuna for dinner and I retire early, tired and feeling sorry for myself. Where did this bug come from?
Our position is: 17 deg 29 min S, 149 deg 51 min W
Distance so far: 6660 nautical miles
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