Our 3,000 mile trip ended with a whimper. The breeze died out 40 miles from Fatu Hiva and we sparked up our engines. The passage was over and I had an odd feeling. Like a guest had left. Yes, it is nice to have peace and quiet, but I already missed our guest, the long passage.
Fatu Hiva's harbor is dramatic. First named penis bay by the locals but renamed under pressure from the missionaries Bay of Virgins. The locals got it right as the bay is surrounded by phallic shaped rocks. The cone-shaped bay is carved out of a steep rock gorge resulting in frequent strong gusts. We were greeted by a few boats already in the harbor offering advice "don't anchor near me". One Speedo clad Frenchman had lots to say and proposed we anchor in a tiny space near the rocks with pounding surf. "C'est trop petite pour mois" (it is too small for me) was my reply. We slowly toured the harbor until we found a spot we liked. 25.5 meters deep. It takes forever for the anchor to touch the bottom. I called for 5 to 1 scope which is 125 meters of rode. Gail pressed the down button on the windlass for what seemed like an hour. We typically anchor in 5 meters so this was a big change. By the time we had let out all the required rode it seemed like our anchor was on another island. Gail did a great job tying a rolling hitch to the nylon rode from our anchor bridle. With the strong puffs the bridle makes the boat much more stable. After a few libations to celebrate the passage (lemonade) we then finished up our anchoring process by backing down on the anchor with the engines. Finally we tossed the diver (me) into the water. Because of the extreme depth I was in SCUBA mode. I followed the nylon rode down into the clean blue water. I felt like I was falling through the atmosphere of Neptune. Two yellowfin tuna swam by and gave me an incredulous look. I reached the bottom at 33 meters. 42 meters is the maximum suggested depth for a recreational diver. I continued to follow the anchor rode, which now had switched from nylon to 5/16 chain. The chain was lying on the upwardly sloping bottom. I was literally swimming uphill. Salmon may relate to that sentence more than humans. At the end of the long swim, I was greeted by an anchor securely stuck into a dark grey muddy sand mixture.
The next day we headed to shore for our first time on land in 19 days. Unlike astronauts, our legs worked just fine. Also, we did not feel the land moving like some folks experience after an afternoon sail. We went in search of a 100 foot waterfall but got lost in the two road town and instead went for a multi-hour uphill march. From the top we could see Two Fish and took the requisite boat owner photos. We noticed two things right away about Fatu Hiva. First, it is very clean. No trash in the culverts, all the lawns and roadsides are mowed and all the houses kept organized - even the coconut drying platforms. Secondly, the residents are friendly. We got a language lesson from one resident, an offer to come by another person's house and were offered a ride during our arduous hike. I declined the ride before anyone in our party had second thoughts.
I have attached some photos to this post. It is hit or miss if the satellite will accept the data load. However, they do not do justice to the color green. Two-thirds of the island is green. But so many different greens. Many look like an amateur photographer's Photoshop experiment. The greens are so vibrant that it can not be nature's palette. Rothko should come here before painting a study of green.
We will stay here another day unless the authorities kick us out as we need to go to Hiva Oa to check into French Polynesia. I dread Hiva Oa because the swarm of rally boats together with a tiny harbor and required stern anchoring will surely give me some angst. I continue to moan about it, but the ARC oversold this rally. That is one of the reasons we did not follow the other 31 boats directly to Hiva Oa and blazed our own path to Fatu Hiva.
Our total transit time was about 18 days and 2 hours which is just shy of an Antares' record. However I need to see if the record holder left from a closer island than our start. Actually, who cares. Great sail with a great crew. And Fatu Hiva is a special place because of the people, the green and the lack of an airport.
A Pae,
jason
www.twofishcat.com
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