Blog

Dear F&F,

June 29, 2010

Aitutaki Diving

We had a lovely calm night inside the lagoon. What a pleasure to be still!
There was a bit of rain in the early morning. We got up early to get out our
dive gear & put fenders out so the dive boat can get close for gear transfer
without damage.

The Health Inspector & Agriculture Inspector (2 different guys) showed up
just as the dive boat arrived. It was great because they knew we were
already in wetsuits & needed to be on our way. I managed to hide my
contraband meat/few veggies without discovery. He did paw through my trash,
but did not find anything to protest. A few forms filled out. Fees of $20 NZ
dollars paid to each (about $14 USD). We got to take our Quarantine flag
down & are fully official. We asked where we can dispose of our trash & they
told us, so all is on the up & up now.

Scott took the video as it is the easiest rig to swim with. Sadly the
visibility was not great, partly due to damage/sand covering the coral from
Hurricane Pat in Feb. And plenty of the reef-eating Crown of Thorns
starfish. I gave them the evil eye, but kept my distance. Divemaster Onu
(company name = Bubbles Below) says he kills them by the hundreds, but he
has clearly not got the upper hand. We saw one large Napoleon wrasse & one
Triton Trumpet mollusk, which are two of the main predators that eat the
C.O.T. The reef is not pretty. Very monochrome, rubble looking. What the
C.O.T. does to a reef is the equivalent of strip mining on land. There were
fewer fish than the last 2 islands. I\’d always rather be diving than just
about anything else, but the sites we went today were very mediocre. The
coolest thing was the \”ghost coral\”. It\’s brown, touch it and it turns
white in sections, then back to brown.

The water visibility was murky in many places & a FULL 3 DEGREES COLDER! I
may have to switch to my dry suit soon! I know that sounds ridiculous, but
when I am submerged at 80 degrees for 2 hours per day my core temperature
goes down. Fine for a few days, but if we do multiple days of diving in a
row I will have to switch suits. Today I felt cold but not miserably so. A
nice warm pee helps you toast up. This probably sounds absolutely grotesque
to you non-divers, but you that dive have a knowing smile. Besides rinsing
all our gear in fresh water at the end of the day, we use white vinegar &
lavender scented fabric softener to counteract any residual effect.

The 2 other divers were Honeymooners. Nice couple from S.F. that met on
EHarmony 3 years ago. They were dive novices but did fine. The dive master
took her up to the boat ahead of the 3 of us whose air lasted longer. She is
a dietician at a hospital. He works for Intel, so lots of good conversation
all around. They are staying at the fanciest resort here, good for them!

Finger Report: Sloughing skin area enlarging. I taped it loosely for
protection but cut the tip of that finger off on my dive glove. No pain with
diving.

It is time to think about dinner. Eager to hear the report of the day from J
& N + kids. I think their plan was to tour the island via rented bicycles.
Not sure if we will dive or take tomorrow off. Time is very fluid now… No
whales seen or heard. Any day we hope.

Cindy & Scott

Dear F&F,

June 28, 2010

Aitutaki – Pass Entry

Scott & I made another depth test run of the channel via dinghy into the
harbor. We did not intend to make the passage today, just heading to shore
to check in with Customs & Immigration. But we could see it was a rising
tide & using a lead line (a piece of string, marked every foot, with a piece
of lead to make it hang down straight) for confirmation of the dinghy\’s
depth sounder, we felt we had an opportunity. The wind speed was 17-20
outside the reef, but once we entered the lagoon the wind decreased to only
11-14 knots. The sun was shining which really helps see bottom contour:
shallow sandy areas & coral heads vs. deeper, safe water. We seized the day,
zooming back to “Beach House”. Scott dropped me to help make her ready to up
anchor, while he went & picked up Dale who has been anchored outside the
reef in his monohull for 5 weeks. Dale volunteered to lead us in with our
dinghy since it has the depth sounder.

Jerome already had his anchor up & was on his way to the pass with his
dinghy trailing. Sadly we did not get our dinghy line cast off quick enough
(or move it to the side out of harm’s way), so the starboard propeller cut
the painter (name of the bow line we use to tie the dinghy to the big boat)..
This meant Scott had to strip & jump in quickly to make sure no piece of the
line was fouling our propeller. We were lucky, it was a clean cut. The
propellers were both clear. Using both engines makes maneuvering much, much
easier.

Jerome took the lead on \”Na Maka\”, followed by Dale in our dinghy, and Scott
drove “Beach House” perfectly along the half mile or so, tricky course. Once
inside, each catamaran anchored bow and stern because it is a small space &
no room for swinging on one anchor. I could easily swim to shore, although
the water is not pretty or appealing for swimming. But it is a super fast
dinghy ride to the cement wharf with a dry landing. It is SO MUCH CALMER in
here!!! I was \”on watch\” last night, not only because my sleep rhythm got
disrupted by our 2 day passage, but the strong wind & choppy sea state
outside the reef kept the boat lively & noisy at anchor. I will not have to
use seasick meds while we are in here – hurray!

Once secure, we went to the Customs & Immigration office & learned the fees
to stay here, quite reasonable. We did not connect with the Health Dept yet,
so are still flying our yellow \”Q\” flag, designating that we have not been
completely cleared. Some countries & islands are extremely officious about
this & for good reason. They do not want foreign vessels to introduce
non-native species. But we were told that here they are quite casual & it
was ok to come to ashore.

We know for certain they will not allow us to keep any fresh fruit or
vegetables. No problem, I don\’t have any! I do have onions & garlic, but
have already scoped out that they can be bought here at the little market,
so if Agricultural Control wants to confiscate those, they can. There is
some uncertainty about frozen meat. Consequently I put all meat in the guest
cabin freezer then disguised it with blankets, cushions, camera gear &
shopping bags. They would have to be quite thorough to catch it. Food is
very expensive here, similar or more expensive than Tahiti with a very
limited selection. The next cargo ship is not due for over a week.

The gas station is a short walk from where we tie up the dinghy & the
mini-mart attached has a nice supply of NZ wines. The main market, oddly,
only had Australian wines. The Cooks are administered by NZ, so we can only
imagine that they are sold out at the market of NZ wines. We had a taste
test between the Aussie & NZ sauvignon blancs & it was no contest: NZ tastes
better to us. Scott is returning to buy all the Giesen on the shelf & ask if
more is stocked.

There is a notice posted on a public bulletin board advertising a tour of a
farm with produce for sale. We got a local cell phone card & pre-paid
minutes. Local calls are about $1 USD per minute. We walked looking for a
lunch spot, but nothing is close to the wharf, so we returned & ate aboard.
Hope to scope out the veggie scene.

Generator Report: We spent ALL DAY yesterday running the diagnostic tests &
replacing parts we have. Scott reported the lack of results to the tech in
Florida & he is sending a new Digital Diesel Control to Mike who will ship
it onto Rarotonga for us. It is basically the electronic brain of the
generator.

The helpful gal, Pitonga at Air Rarotonga gave us an address where our parts
can be shipped for \”Beach House, Yacht in Transit\”. Mike in Redondo Beach
should have the parts tomorrow. He will send them DHL to Rarotonga which we
expect to take 7-10 days. We will decide once the parts get that far, if we
will have them flown on to here, or if we will fly to pick them up
ourselves. We have been considering flying to Rarotonga from here anyway. It
is not a great place to go by boat, but might be an interesting 2-3 day
excursion by island hop plane. The fares are high, about $500 round trip per
person. But we will probably never go there otherwise & it is supposed to be
beautiful.

Competing Dive Operations: Bubbles Below never replied to our email, whereas
Neil Mitchell of Aitutaki Scuba did. But Onu (head of B.B.) answered our
radio call when we first arrived & gave us good info about the entry pass,
when we could not raise Neil. Today when getting the cell phone stuff, we
met Onu & he seemed like a perfectly nice chap & Dale on the monohull gave
him thumbs up (needed help getting his anchor unstuck from a rock). So we
decided we will start diving with Onu tomorrow. We will rip through a 10
tank dive package in about 2 1/2 days (2 tanks each x 2 people). If we don\’t
love our experience, we can try Neil next. We were up front with Onu that we
had already been in email contact with Neil. These small island politics are
kinda crazy, but you\’ve got to play the game the best you can.

Onu said they saw humpback whales at fairly close range just 2 days ago. It
is the beginning of the calving season, so we hope to have more & more whale
sightings. He was also honest that between the Crown of Thorn starfish &
hurricane Pat, the coral here is sadly quite dead or distressed. Sad. There
are some turtles & eagle rays, so we\’ll check it out. Have to bide our time
until we get our generator parts, so we may as well dive!

Finger Report: Great regret that I sanded my callous/scab. Now raw & sore
with white patch re-appearing. Drats! Will have to see how it tolerates the
compression of diving. Plan to cut off the index fingertip on that glove to
reduce the squeeze.

Weather: It is lovely with 10 knots of breeze and 80 degrees.

Cindy & Scott

Dear F&F,

June 28, 2010

Aitutaki – Pass Entry

Scott & I made another depth test run of the channel via dinghy into the
harbor. We did not intend to make the passage today, just heading to shore
to check in with Customs & Immigration. But we could see it was a rising
tide & using a lead line (a piece of string, marked every foot, with a piece
of lead to make it hang down straight) for confirmation of the dinghy\’s
depth sounder, we felt we had an opportunity. The wind speed was 17-20
outside the reef, but once we entered the lagoon the wind decreased to only
11-14 knots. The sun was shining which really helps see bottom contour:
shallow sandy areas & coral heads vs. deeper, safe water. We seized the day,
zooming back to “Beach House”. Scott dropped me to help make her ready to up
anchor, while he went & picked up Dale who has been anchored outside the
reef in his monohull for 5 weeks. Dale volunteered to lead us in with our
dinghy since it has the depth sounder.

Jerome already had his anchor up & was on his way to the pass with his
dinghy trailing. Sadly we did not get our dinghy line cast off quick enough
(or move it to the side out of harm’s way), so the starboard propeller cut
the painter (name of the bow line we use to tie the dinghy to the big boat)..
This meant Scott had to strip & jump in quickly to make sure no piece of the
line was fouling our propeller. We were lucky, it was a clean cut. The
propellers were both clear. Using both engines makes maneuvering much, much
easier.

Jerome took the lead on \”Na Maka\”, followed by Dale in our dinghy, and Scott
drove “Beach House” perfectly along the half mile or so, tricky course. Once
inside, each catamaran anchored bow and stern because it is a small space &
no room for swinging on one anchor. I could easily swim to shore, although
the water is not pretty or appealing for swimming. But it is a super fast
dinghy ride to the cement wharf with a dry landing. It is SO MUCH CALMER in
here!!! I was \”on watch\” last night, not only because my sleep rhythm got
disrupted by our 2 day passage, but the strong wind & choppy sea state
outside the reef kept the boat lively & noisy at anchor. I will not have to
use seasick meds while we are in here – hurray!

Once secure, we went to the Customs & Immigration office & learned the fees
to stay here, quite reasonable. We did not connect with the Health Dept yet,
so are still flying our yellow \”Q\” flag, designating that we have not been
completely cleared. Some countries & islands are extremely officious about
this & for good reason. They do not want foreign vessels to introduce
non-native species. But we were told that here they are quite casual & it
was ok to come to ashore.

We know for certain they will not allow us to keep any fresh fruit or
vegetables. No problem, I don\’t have any! I do have onions & garlic, but
have already scoped out that they can be bought here at the little market,
so if Agricultural Control wants to confiscate those, they can. There is
some uncertainty about frozen meat. Consequently I put all meat in the guest
cabin freezer then disguised it with blankets, cushions, camera gear &
shopping bags. They would have to be quite thorough to catch it. Food is
very expensive here, similar or more expensive than Tahiti with a very
limited selection. The next cargo ship is not due for over a week.

The gas station is a short walk from where we tie up the dinghy & the
mini-mart attached has a nice supply of NZ wines. The main market, oddly,
only had Australian wines. The Cooks are administered by NZ, so we can only
imagine that they are sold out at the market of NZ wines. We had a taste
test between the Aussie & NZ sauvignon blancs & it was no contest: NZ tastes
better to us. Scott is returning to buy all the Giesen on the shelf & ask if
more is stocked.

There is a notice posted on a public bulletin board advertising a tour of a
farm with produce for sale. We got a local cell phone card & pre-paid
minutes. Local calls are about $1 USD per minute. We walked looking for a
lunch spot, but nothing is close to the wharf, so we returned & ate aboard.
Hope to scope out the veggie scene.

Generator Report: We spent ALL DAY yesterday running the diagnostic tests &
replacing parts we have. Scott reported the lack of results to the tech in
Florida & he is sending a new Digital Diesel Control to Mike who will ship
it onto Rarotonga for us. It is basically the electronic brain of the
generator.

The helpful gal, Pitonga at Air Rarotonga gave us an address where our parts
can be shipped for \”Beach House, Yacht in Transit\”. Mike in Redondo Beach
should have the parts tomorrow. He will send them DHL to Rarotonga which we
expect to take 7-10 days. We will decide once the parts get that far, if we
will have them flown on to here, or if we will fly to pick them up
ourselves. We have been considering flying to Rarotonga from here anyway. It
is not a great place to go by boat, but might be an interesting 2-3 day
excursion by island hop plane. The fares are high, about $500 round trip per
person. But we will probably never go there otherwise & it is supposed to be
beautiful.

Competing Dive Operations: Bubbles Below never replied to our email, whereas
Neil Mitchell of Aitutaki Scuba did. But Onu (head of B.B.) answered our
radio call when we first arrived & gave us good info about the entry pass,
when we could not raise Neil. Today when getting the cell phone stuff, we
met Onu & he seemed like a perfectly nice chap & Dale on the monohull gave
him thumbs up (needed help getting his anchor unstuck from a rock). So we
decided we will start diving with Onu tomorrow. We will rip through a 10
tank dive package in about 2 1/2 days (2 tanks each x 2 people). If we don\’t
love our experience, we can try Neil next. We were up front with Onu that we
had already been in email contact with Neil. These small island politics are
kinda crazy, but you\’ve got to play the game the best you can.

Onu said they saw humpback whales at fairly close range just 2 days ago. It
is the beginning of the calving season, so we hope to have more & more whale
sightings. He was also honest that between the Crown of Thorn starfish &
hurricane Pat, the coral here is sadly quite dead or distressed. Sad. There
are some turtles & eagle rays, so we\’ll check it out. Have to bide our time
until we get our generator parts, so we may as well dive!

Finger Report: Great regret that I sanded my callous/scab. Now raw & sore
with white patch re-appearing. Drats! Will have to see how it tolerates the
compression of diving. Plan to cut off the index fingertip on that glove to
reduce the squeeze.

Weather: It is lovely with 10 knots of breeze and 80 degrees.

Cindy & Scott

Dear F&F,

June 26, 2010

Aitutaki – Outside of Lagoon

I think I fared better than Scott overall on the passage. Besides the
scopalamine patch, I took anti-seasick meds 2x/day. Lucky for me they all
work with minimal dry mouth side effects. So I rotate between Bonine,
Phenergan & Cinerzine (given to me by Mazatlan sailor friend, Sandy). Drank
lots of water. Kept a full belly. Got plenty of catnaps even when on watch.
Not exactly a high traffic area, so safe to doze 15 minutes.

Aitutaki (eye-two-tock-ee) has a \”high\” part (124 meters, so about 410 ft)
plus a fringing reef with several motus (islets). We have been in email
contact with dive master Neal plus several cruising boats that say you can
enter the lagoon at high tide. We missed it by about 2 hours this morning.
Each foot of water under the hull really counts. In many places it is only 2
feet deep at low tide.

Pros of Anchoring In the Lagoon: calmer, less boat motion & noise. Closer to
shore.

Cons: Very shallow, must watch that we don\’t swing over a shallow spot & go
bump (day or night). Further in dinghy (or pro dive boat) to the dive sites
– all outside the reef).

We are currently anchored outside the reef. It is a bit bumpy as the wind
does not want to reduce from 20 knots. “Na Maka” (sister ship with Jerome,
Natalie & 3 kids) are here too. There is one other boat: New Zealand farmers
that bought a boat on a whim and have been here 5 weeks. They have 5 grown
kids & 13 grand kids. It is only a 5 hour flight from Auckland so they have
been anchored here, outside the reef, with a parade of family visiting them..
Their boat draws too much to go inside. Monohulls usually have a deep keel.
We can bring our dagger boards up & skim over water on 4 ½ feet deep but we
certainly prefer more.

Dale ,(s/v Further) kindly went with Scott & Jerome on an early run just
after we anchored the big boats. We all decided we\’d missed today\’s
opportunity. Next high tide is 9:30 pm, negotiating the pass is not a
maneuver we want to do in the dark.

My first shower after we anchored was delicious. Had not bathed in 48 hours
since the starboard bathroom is toward the bow & dances the most with big
seas. Risky business. Scott hosed the salt off “Beach House”, sent the
position report, hung our laundry in the shower then we both had a nice nap..

After lunch, both Jerome with family & we went ashore in our dinghies.
Dumped trash that we\’ve been stowing for 20 days. There was no place to dump
it on Mopelia, out last island & Jerome discouraged us from adding to the
local trash fire pit. Port authority office here is closed until Monday, so
we are not officially checked in, but Dale who has been here 5 weeks thought
it would be fine to go ashore. We forgot our ATM card, so Jerome loaned us
some local currency (from the ATM). The one market we went to has pretty
meager supplies. Eggs cost about $4 USD for a dozen but I was so happy to
buy them. No NZ wines, only Australia which seemed odd to us, because The
Cook Islands are administrated by NZ. Minimal produce: onions, potatoes,
eggplant.

They drive on the \”wrong\” side of the street, mostly in mopeds &
motorcycles. One enormously fat chap stopped his motorbike when we waved him
down to ask about the lay of the land. Pretty funny after a year of French,
to encounter Polynesians who now have a New Zealand accent! He was very
helpful & kind.

Apparently they got hit hard by Cyclone (hurricane) Pat in February, so
almost all the fruit crops got wiped out & many trees are denuded &
buildings with roofs ripped off.

The cargo ship from NZ only comes 1x/month (next due in about 10 days). But
there are at least 6 planes per week from Rarotonga. We met a couple from
Arizona who were here for 5 days. They loved the snorkeling but could not
rave about much else. Well, that\’s what we\’re here for – the diving. So as
long as we don\’t starve life is good.

We did a \”test run\” many many times with the dingy on how to enter this
lagoon at high tide. We decided to wait until we can get more info, probably
Monday. One dive operator did come back to us via VHF when we first arrived,
but it was NOT Neal who is the one (of 2 dive masters) who has been in email
touch with us. Neal had written us that he monitors Channel 16 24/7 but we
have not roused him on several tries. We aren\’t savvy to what small island
politics are going on here. We aren\’t partial to either operator, just would
like to arrange to dive & get more info on how & when exactly to enter the
pass. We weren\’t sure if we are on the same time zone as Tahiti, but we are
(three hours earlier than Los Angeles).

Tomorrow morning plan is for Scott to pick up Jerome at 8 a.m. & run the
entrance in our dinghy at what we think is high tide. We have a depth
sounder with digital readout. On today\’s test run, I read out the depth
constantly while Scott drove. Felt like an auctioneer: Low 4s, hi 3s, mid
4s, hi 4s, hi 5s, blah blah blah. I am calling out the depth in feet while
he is trying to dodge coral heads & shallow spots. We did this test at low
tide. High tide is nearly 2 feet higher.

If I\’m not too seasick out here, I don\’t need the added stress of going in &
risk bottoming out. For Jerome with the kids it is better that they can get
to shore to play every day. We know whichever dive operator we go with will
pick us up on our boat, so it does not really matter for diving. Only reason
to go in is for comfort/more calm water while at the anchor & we have to
weigh the risk/rewards. We also did have the idea to fly to Rarotonga if we
felt we could safely leave the boat here. But this is not essential, just an
idea.

We enjoyed one of my \”cooked in Tahiti\” meals (frozen chicken mole with
brown rice & green beans) & a bottle of red wine, so life is good. We have
plenty of chocolate too.

It will be SO lovely to sleep all night. Scott enjoyed the 60% lunar
eclipse, but I got the sunrise which was gorgeous. Red sky in the morning,
sailors take warning & all. To my eye it went quickly from red to gold. I
got the \”Land Ho\” reward which is always fun.

Tomorrow, besides trying to get more info about negotiating the lagoon pass,
maneuvering safely once inside & where to anchor, mostly Scott will run the
suggested generator tests, so we can determine if we need parts or not. We
are hoping there is a loose wire somewhere, but poor guy will have to
contort down into the locker before he learns more

Cindy & Scott

Dear F&F,

June 24-26, 2010
Passage from Mopelia to Aitutaki

June 24
One year, three days in French Polynesia….Cook Islands, here we come!
Similar conditions to our Galapagos crossing: good conditions to fly spinnaker, but it is high maintenance. Full concentration steering, using long wire remote for the auto pilot. I can move around & not be glued to the helm seat. Click Left, click Right sometimes big turns, sometimes fine tuning. Barely able to glance at the sea or sky because of the focus required to keep the boat moving. Too far to motor. Too light a wind to use a smaller more self-managing sail, so we are stuck with the horrible video game. Scott does not mind it & is having a grand sail. I wish I found it more enjoyable, but I don\’t. I must take oral seasick medication on top of the scopalomine patch, so underlying bit of mal de mer no doubt coloring my mood.

Making yogurt now so we will have enough for the next 2 mornings. Already made enough oatmeal. I\’ll be going to sleep as soon as the yogurt temperature is right (cooled down to 110 F from 150 F) to put in the thermos for 7 hours. I am on watch next 10 p.m. – 2 a.m. Different than we\’ve done before, but should work out fine. Probably won\’t be writing much, boat lurching about.

June 25
I am sure glad we waited for the bigger seas to settle down a day. Sure looks & feels plenty big still! The wind has been 20-25 knots with a port aft quartering swell of 8-10 feet. The waves are close together, only about 7 seconds, so no chance for \”Beach House\” to surf them, just lurch amongst them. I have medicated myself adequately so NOT seasick which is a relief. I know things are rough when Scott takes phenergan which he asked for a couple hours ago. I also gave him a 4 hour sleeping pill so he can get some rest. I have been able to take cat naps between my 15 minute watch beeping.

One positive to the stronger wind is that we are not flying the spinnaker, so do not have to tediously hand steer the auto pilot control. I don\’t love being tossed about, but I prefer it to the aggravation of hand steering. Scott reminded me that on his \”To Do in NZ List\” is upgrade the auto pilot\’s ability to steer down wind according to the wind angles which is happy news. We have heard there is a gizmo that does this. You have to teach it, program it a few times, and then it learns your boat & how to adjust to the wind & swell conditions. I am all for the modern conveniences that help keep boating fun.

When we were still flying the spinnaker, one line that controls it broke, but we were able to get it down in a controlled fashion. We went straight to the genoa plus took 2 reefs in the main, so you get an idea we have \”boisterous\” conditions. I laugh to hear sailing described as \”harnessing the wind\”. In light wind I suppose it can feel that way. But in strong wind it feels much more like \”toss up a hankie & hold on for the ride!\” I keep mopping seawater that is trickling down the port bathroom ceiling hatch with each breaking wave. We are on port tack (boom & sails to the right, wind coming from the left beam/slightly astern). I think it is leaking because our Sunbrella fabric covers are on & sometimes a bit of the elastic or cloth interferes with the gasket getting a good seal when closed. Neither of us leaves the cockpit or interior without the other up & watching. So it will have to wait until Scott gets up to take off that cover & see if it will seal better.

Happy news is that the escape hatches are not leaking despite repeated slamming waves under the steps. We did replace those gaskets in Tahiti.

This morning I set down my cup of tea (with snap on lid) & left it unattended for just a moment & Wham! it douched the right side of the settee where I like to curl up for my cat naps. Drats. I mopped it up & used a bit of oxyclean & now have a 12 volt fan blowing it dry.

The temperature is a very pleasant 84 in & out, but I cannot really sit outside right now because of sea spray & splashes of the waves. It is a game to see if I can dash out to check our course, heading, boat speed, wind speed, look 360 degrees for traffic without getting too wet. In shorts & tank top. During the night watches I wore but lightweight long pants & sometimes put on my windbreaker.

Tonight we may get to see a partial lunar eclipse, hope it\’s not too overcast.

Generator Update: during satellite phone call & with multiple emails to FL, Scott learned more tests to do to help diagnose. It did finally start cranking but would stop abruptly at 10-15 secs. We think it may be a fuel starvation problem. Too rough to make any tests underway, it can wait until we get to Aitutaki, sometime before sunset Sat (hopefully a.m. to noonish). Scott already has parts on hold for the Florida rep to mail to Mike in Redondo who would DHL them to Rarotonga, which is the closest major shipping site to Aitutaki. Scott has been (by airplane) to Rarotonga before & does not think it is a good place to take the boat because the harbor is small & somewhat industrial. We had talked about an island hopper plane from Aitutaki (eye-two-talk-ee) to visit Rare-oh-tonga anyway, so all the more reason if we need to pick up parts. But we\’ve been in email contact with Neal the dive center guy & he said he could help make sure our package got mailed from Rarotonga to Aitutaki if we decide NOT to fly their ourselves.

Because Neal runs a dive center there, we may dive with him, so having the generator kaput is not the end of the world in the short run. We can charge everything else to run \”the house\” via engines. The scuba compressor is the one thing we absolutely need the generator for. So again we are lucky, that this happened in a place where it won\’t delay diving fun, and we still can get parts flown in.

Finger Report: Trying to use it a bit, to desensitize the tip which has a hard leathery, but not crusty kind of brown scab. Our sailing doc friend finally wrote & said the CoT does have venom in its spines & some people are highly reactive (moi), whereas other people it is no big deal (Scott). Still no word from Divers Alert Network, which is bad. What if we had a serious urgent question? I suppose we would get a faster response by satelite phone, but since it was already on the mend when Alberta reminded me to contact them, we just sent an email.

The #4 Ring finger is still a problem & overall I feel spaz as it can get sore easily doing sail changes, handling lines, etc. I always wear my sail gloves, but the fingertips are cut out for dexterity so no protection to the owie bits. Getting better day by day now.

Ok, don\’t want to push my luck on writing. Rather save myself to read your emails. PLEASE WRITE!!! Many thanks to those of you who do write often. Each email is a great gift, especially when we are at sea.

Love & Hugs,
Cindy & Scott on passage from Mopelia to Aitutaki (our first Cook Island)

Dear F&F,

June 22, 2010
Martha Stewart of Sailing
Mopelia Day #18

Tuesday morning a boat came into the pass & anchored amidst the 4 of us here in Mopelia atoll. We were quite surprised that any cruising boat would venture here with the weather we have been having. This was not just any Joe Blow cruiser. They are professional mariners who run a business & had 6 clients onboard their 45 foot monohull. They had already sat extra days in Bora Bora with the bad weather. And had to skip Maupiti because the entry was not passable due to big waves. So here they came, to Mopelia. This is a 3 week \”cruising experience\”. The passengers pay for a hands-on learning adventure & get a taste of high seas cruising life. Because they have only a 3 week itinerary, at some point the captain has to decide to press on, even if the weather isn\’t ideal.
The owners have been here 8 times, so are very familiar with the narrow entrance.

We recognized the name of the boat: Mahina Tiare III. Small world story on multiple levels:

#1) The captain/owner is John Neal. He is 9 months older than 56 year old Scott. In 1975 John published a book of his adventures & mishaps as a young, inexperience sailor traveling from S.F. to Hawaii on monohull named Mahina. Book title: \”Log of Mahina\”.
Scott read this book in 1976 as he made his own maiden Pacific crossing from Santa Barbara to Hawaii. He enjoyed this book of sailing follies as he followed (nearly) in John\’s wake.

#2) John\’s wife is Amanda Swan Neal. I bet nearly every American cruising woman with a galley owns Amanda\’s book: The Essential Galley Companion. Good marketing to include the word \”essential\” in a book title! Under the title it says: Recipes and Provisioning Advice for Your Boating Adventures. I bought this book probably before we took delivery of \”Beach House\”. I have perused it, not read it cover to cover. There is a lovely photo of Amanda on the cover with a white hibiscus behind her ear, smiling in a floral dress as she threads a skewer. So, in my mind this is THE Martha Stewart of boating. Look attractive and maintain a sunny attitude, all the while whipping up a tasty meal in a small space with limited supplies. THE Galley Goddess.

#3) John wrote an article about the shipwreck here that Scott downloaded when we had internet in the last island. A lot of good information.

#4) John & Amanda keep a condo in Friday Harbor, WA. He is American, she is from New Zealand & she grew up as a \”cruising kid\”. They run their sailing instruction/charter business about 8 months per year & have been doing this for over 20 years. They have had more than 1000 clients!
They use the same bookkeeper Tracy McClintock to collect their mail & do other business for them, as we do. The Mahina Expeditions business office is in the same building as Tracy\’s. We saw the name on the door when we originally flew up there to meet Tracy. They are probably her most famous/prestigious clients (that we know of).

Scott welcomed them to the lagoon via VHF radio and we were stunned (horrified) to see 8 bodies roaming the deck of a boat less than half our size! OMG!!! John is nearly as tall as Scott, seemed friendly & approachable. Indeed, shortly after their anchor was set, he zoomed over in his dinghy to say hello. I got to the stern first & introduced myself & welcomed him to come aboard. He declined because he needed to shuttle his crew ashore. I asked him how the conditions were outside: 30-35 knots with a \”confused\” swell of 3 meters. Yikes! Interpretation: Godawful uncomfortable conditions that most sailors would try to avoid being caught in. He asked me how long we\’ve been here: 18 days. He seemed shocked & asked if we needed fresh bread. We aren\’t eating bread these days, but I know that the family of 5 would be happy to have a fresh baguette. Or solo Bernard who will be sitting here waiting another 2+ weeks for another boat to deliver him a new battery. His is kaput. I\’ve been giving him rice & yogurt.

Scott quickly came outside & told John of all our connections listed above. We explain our Mission Statement: We are a DIVE BOAT that sails in search of the next great dive site. When Scott mentions that he is an underwater photographer & we have many videos & photos, John sees a \”field trip\” opportunity for his crew. He said he would have to ask Amanda, but after tour/slide show aboard \”Beach House\”, would love to have us aboard their boat for dinner. Dinner Out 2 nights in a row??? I could not believe my good luck. But Martha Stewart coming to my house…I better start tidying up!

Actually we really wanted to go ashore first while the breeze wasn\’t too strong & go look at the windy side again, to compare it to yesterday\’s conditions. As we are passing Mahina in our dinghy, John waves us over. The invitation is extended officially & I meet Amanda for the first time. Well, it should not have been a surprise that she is looking a tad more bedraggled than the photo on her book cover. With shorts, tank & a hat that makes me laugh out loud: \”Out of Chocolate – Life is Crap\”.
This is definitely the cynical flip side to the \”Life is Good\” tagline. Her kiwi accent is charming, but she has sharp edges. Not smooth & poised like Martha Stewart. Example: I ask her, \”How was your trip?\”
She answers, \”Fine. Most of the crew were seasick so they weren\’t a bother\”.

We ask John if we should offer drinks aboard our boat (I had already made extra ice & calculated I had enough gin & tonic to offer one short drink per guest.) He says No, they are a dry boat. Well, that makes a lot of sense. You can\’t risk people not being alert while on watch etc & it\’s only 3 weeks anyway so no great hardship. Terrific! We can focus on the tour & video show. Scott & I strategize that we will each take 4 people on tour, then when the sun goes down show 3 videos plus a few slides. Voila!

We have a nice walk ashore. The place we walk across the atoll is reminiscent of the Galapagos. Volcanic rocky reef, dry scrub brush. The wind strength is down a bit, but the breaking waves are still quite impressive and help us decide to wait two more days leave, in order to allow the wind whipped swell to calm down.

The great thing about having company (ESPECIALLY someone I view as a Martha Stewart equivalent) is that it provides a strong impetus to clean house. When we return to \”Beach House\” I get in a 1 hour nap, which has become a new delicious habit since my index finger vs starfish incident. More rest needed to heal perhaps. I then have exactly 1 hour to spit & polish. Hiding things I normally let lie about. Scott is testing the audio visual system. It is 5:30 p.m. and they are loading their dinghy. I have pulled out my Amanda Swan Neal cookbook for her to sign & only feel a twinge of regret that it still looks brand new. At least I have a couple of post-it notes stuck in, marking key pages for \”Passage Preparation\” and \”Pressure Cooker Bread\” (nope, never tried it).

CREW of SIX:
1)Single guy from Vancouver in his late 20s comments that I am wearing Lululemon label yoga wear. The company was started by a friend of his – cool. I am flattered that a man under 50 notices me!

2&3) Married couple from Long Beach who own a boat & plan to leave for Mexico in about a year. She is the only other woman aboard, besides Amanda.
4&5) Man from New York with 18 year old (godson?) family friend. It is a High School graduation present. He will be attending college at Puget Sound University.

6) Married man whose wife will not let him buy a boat because she does NOT want to go cruising. This is his 8th trip with Mahina Tiare.

The \”divide & conquer\” method worked very well. Scott & I each had roughly 4 people at a time, avoided crowding any space by maneuvering them bow, cockpit, port, starboard & salon/galley. Timing worked very well as the touring was done just as the sun set, which made for better viewing of the computer screen. I chose the video/slide sequence & Scott acquiesced to my suggestions.

Videos: #1 Whale Shark, #2 Fins of Bora Bora, #3 Manta Magic
Followed by: about 30 slides of the shipwreck here and another 30 slides of sea life here & on the last island. Perfect. They\’d had enough, those who were enthusiastic took our cards & may subscribe to our website. It was about 7:00 p.m. & time to go to their boat for dinner, to keep the evening moving along. We took our own dinghy plus a couple of their guests to help balance the load.

I have hosted many more elegant dinners, but not for a party of 10. Just getting everyone\’s belly full is the main goal. I tried to chat with her a bit as I cleared the table & she began the dishes. Scott & John swapped more small world stories & the other guests joined in. I had set my watch to beep at 8:30 p.m. & that was just about right to take our leave. They already have 8 people to get showered & settled for the night. Two of the single men sleep on the seats where we ate dinner! I was quite tired, but content to return to our spacious \”Beach House\”, counting my blessings that we are not required to take crew for pay in to afford this lifestyle. John & Amanda MUST love it to do it for so long. Like I said, she is a salty dog & he seems a big teddy bear, so they probably make a great team for teaching & introducing newbies to the sea.

Today they and the red boat left. \”Mahina Tiare III\” planned to anchor just outside the pass to let their crew snorkel over the shallow parts of the shipwreck then proceed to their next destination (different than ours, but same general direction). They asked us if they could make our website a link to their website, & took photos of us on our boat, so I suspect we will get a few more subscribers through them. It would be fun to cross paths again. Which is possible as they will return to New Zealand in December, which is our plan also.

More stories about Bernard, Jerome, our generator, etc but need to wind down for a last full nights sleep before 2 days/nights full moon passage. It should be a great sail. Hopefully our patience with the weather has paid off. For sure it has given my fingers time to heal. I can do many more things than even 2 days ago. It seems that time has taken on new dimensions: only 8 days of diving & tomorrow we depart on day #19 & it does not feel like we have been here too long. Just about right. Even if my fingers were not hurt we would not have been able to dive due to the weather. Having an owie made me somewhat less restless & (eventually) more resigned. We certainly had plenty of socializing between Jerome & family, Bernard & lastly the gang aboard \”Mahina Tiare III\”. A memorable final French Polynesian island experience. Here we come Cooks!!!

Cindy & Scott