Faaite -Tuamotu to Tahiti 22 July 2024
It was not a rolly night for a change and the anchor alarm did not go off. I got up once to check and all was fine.
We woke at a reasonable time and decided to have a good breakfast of bacon and egg on toast before we set sail for Tahiti. We all enjoyed it and the proper coffee which came after. Once cleared up and prepared we upped the anchor which came up smoothly. It was a much more pleasant sunny day and the wind seemed to be less and not howling but we were in the lee of the Faaite atoll and we could not see the normal sea state yet or the real underlying wind.
We had about 250nm to get to Tahiti which is part of the Society Islands and Tahiti is the largest of the group. The island is 45 km (28 mi) across at its widest point and covers an area of 1,045 km2 (403 sq mi). If you recall the Marquesas are the youngest Islands in French Polynesia and the Tuamotus the oldest where the volcanic mountain has disappeared into the sea. This combination of sinking island and growing coral reef creates islands with a barrier reef like The Society Islands which is a combination of the two. Tahiti has effectively two volcanic cones joined together in an hourglass shape with a small neck between the two. The Northern one and almost circular is called Tahiti Nui and the oval smaller section is called Tahiti Iti. There are spectacular sharp peaks with the highest on Tahiti Nui being 7,340 feet and on Tahiti Iti 4,340 feet. The valleys between them are apparently striking because of their depth and size.
Tahiti is surrounded completely by a coral barrier varying from 0.5 nm to 2nm off the coast. There are many passes into it. The main port and town is Papeete which is the largest town and administrative centre for French Polynesia. Its population was 189,517 in 2017, making it by far the most populous island in French Polynesia and accounting for 68.7% of its total population; the 2022 Census recorded a population of 191,779.
The interior of Tahiti Nui is almost entirely uninhabited. Tahiti Iti has remained isolated, as its southeastern half (Te Pari) is accessible only to those travelling by boat or on foot. The rest of the island is encircled by a main road which cuts between the mountains and the sea. Tahiti's landscape features lush rainforests and many rivers and waterfalls, including the Papenoʻo on the north side and the Fautaua Falls near Papeʻete.
About 1.4 million to 870,000 years ago, the island of Tahiti was formed as a volcanic shield. The first Tahitians arrived from Western Polynesia sometime before 500 BC. Linguistic, biological and archaeological evidence supports a long migration from Southeast Asia via the Fijian, Samoan and Tongan Archipelagos using outrigger canoes that were up to twenty or thirty metres long and could transport families as well as domestic animals.
Tahiti has a very long history and was visited by Captain Cook. However, it is well known for Mutiny on the Bounty. On 26 October 1788, HMS Bounty, under the command of Captain William Bligh, landed in Tahiti with the mission of carrying Tahitian breadfruit trees (Tahitian: ʻuru) to the Caribbean. Sir Joseph Banks, the botanist from James Cook's first expedition, had concluded that this plant would be ideal to feed the African slaves working in the Caribbean plantations at very little cost. The crew remained in Tahiti for about five months, the time needed to transplant the seedlings of the trees. Three weeks after leaving Tahiti, on 28 April 1789, the crew mutinied on the initiative of Fletcher Christian. The mutineers seized the ship and set the captain and most of those members of the crew who remained loyal to him adrift in a ship's boat. A group of mutineers then went back to settle in Tahiti.
Although various explorers had refused to get involved in tribal conflicts, the mutineers from the Bounty offered their services as mercenaries and furnished arms to the family which became the Pōmare Dynasty. The chief Tū knew how to use their presence in the harbours favoured by sailors to his advantage. As a result of his alliance with the mutineers, he succeeded in considerably increasing his supremacy over the island of Tahiti. In November 1835 Charles Darwin visited Tahiti aboard HMS Beagle on her circumnavigation, captained by Robert FitzRoy
We set off from Faaite and wanted to get to Tahiti in the early morning of the 24th which meant averaging about 6 kts which is quite slow for Stormbird but we did not want to damage the mainsail any further. We therefore started off with genoa alone and this was fine but as we got out from the lee of Faaite the swell increased and it became quite rolly. We had to reef the genoa from time to time when the wind went over 20 plus kts. It seemed that the general range is about 18-20 with gusts above this and we had up to 27 kts. We changed for the Staysail but this meant we were too slow so we had to keep adjusting to keep us averaging about 6 kts. The wind is predicted to increase slightly overnight and then to reduce again in the morning.
It was a sunny day and the swell was left over from the windy days we have been having. We hope it will calm down overnight. We had a nice wrap for lunch and now into our shift system of 3 hours on and 6 hours off. We therefore rest if and when we can. Andy tried fishing for a while but no joy and we were going too fast at times.
This trip meant departing from the Tuamotus and in the end we visited 7. They are extraordinary and we were very glad we were able to visit them. We need to protect them as they have the most amazing fish life and live corals under the water where not many parts of the world still have that. Our favourite was Fakarava followed by Ahe. We are sorry to leave them behind but we move on to somewhere new again.
The afternoon wore on and the forecast was for more wind overnight and we had gusts of up to 30 kts and the wind varied from 15 kts to 30 but was mostly about 20-24kts. For the night I reefed the staysail and had the main on the storm size as we had been going too fast and we need to slow down and have a cautious night bearing in mind the fickleness of the wind.
Andy cooked duck breasts with ratatouille and rice which was no mean feat in the swell which we enjoyed struggling from time to time on the benches in the cockpit as we rolled around. We were now into night mode with our night torches and night settings on our instruments. We can adjust our speed tomorrow so we arrive at Papette at light on the 24th. In the meantime, we need to do our watches and rest if we can. The galley orchestra is in full flow with the percussion of the pots and pans.
The picture is me back at the helm with the swell behind.
Crewing Opportunity Year Two
In addition, in year two I will be going from New Zealand in early January 2025 across to Sydney and up the Eastern Australian Coast, Indonesia and probably across the Indian Ocean to Cape Town and I will need some more crew.
If there is any interest do email me at hine.nick9@gmail.com
The blog will continue as we move through French Polynesia and beyond.
If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com I can only upload one picture a day and visit our website www.stormbirdgoesglobal.co.uk