We leave around 9.30 am for our trip to Raiatea, just over 15 miles in the distance. Mike goose wings out the two genoas as what little wind there is, is right behind us.
It’s slow going. We have the occasional burst of wind but mostly it’s so gentle that we go very slowly indeed. I cook lemon and garlic chicken Caesar salad for lunch and we all spend the day lazing around the cockpit.
We arrive at the pass into the lagoon around the island at about 2.30 pm and immediately have to make way for a huge ferry coming out of the same channel.
Once through the channel we turn left and motor down the east coast of the island, passing motus (tiny islands) on the way, where the coral reef pokes up enough for vegetation to form and a couple of what appear to be pearl farms.
I disappear off for a quick lie down and am woken a couple of hours later to be told that the crew want cake, so I get up and put a ginger cake into the bread maker.
We eventually get to our chosen anchorage, a motu named Noa Noa. The anchor goes down in what looks like sand, and while I sit and admire the view, John snorkels over the anchor to make sure that it really has set. The motu appears deserted except for a pack of dogs although people obviously work or live here as there is a ‘Private – keep out’ notice, a French flag flying on the beach and a couple of buildings which are just visible through the palm trees. We watch as the crew of another boat ignore the warnings and swim ashore. Suddenly all hell is let loose as the dogs notice them and as a pack, charge down the beach snarling and barking – not a wagging tail among them. The couple beat a hasty retreat back into the water.
Photo: Admiring the view
As the sun sets, the sky turns a beautiful pale pink tinged with mauve, and the smell of the ginger cake emanating from the galley is wonderful.
When it is ready, the reality is not quite as good. The old baking powder obviously wasn’t working (given the number of ‘bricks’ we produced), so we bought a new packet. This stuff works so well that the cake rises beyond all expectations, and when Mike attempts to tip it out of the tin, it completely falls apart. Realising that it will dry out really quickly in this state and become inedible, the crew fall upon it like vultures. In pieces and unsightly it may be, but it still tastes good. In the end we have eaten so much that no one feels like having dinner.
By the time we all go to bed, it has all mysteriously disappeared. I’m definitely going on rabbit food when Carole and John have gone!!
Our position is: 16 deg 54 min S, 151 deg 25 min W
Distance so far: 6791 nautical miles
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