Marquesas –Nuku Hiva 25 May 2024 – Moving On.

It was a good start to the day and it was a pleasant morning with sun and cloud. We had a good breakfast with Keith cooking an egg and tomato omelette. Ian and I looked at the generator and took off the pipe from the header tank and it was cracked which is why it was leaking. We also looked at the hole into the radiator tank and that was blocked. This had been the cause of the overheating and why it cut off. We therefore cleaned the blocked hole and cut a bit off the pipe and put everything back and then refilled the header tank. It was no longer leaking so we started her up and all was well. At some point I will need to replace the pipe so hopefully we will be fine for a while.

We all went ashore apart from Ian who packed as he was leaving today. I collected the gas from the Yacht Services and with my fittings he had been able to fill it which was good. He also had the documentation to apply for a duty-free fuel permit which I will need in French Polynesia. We went to the chandlery as one of the hinges on the cockpit table was broken and we needed some replacements. However, they were closed. It seems here that opening hours are 8.00am to 12.00noon and no weekends. The laundry to which we  had given 5 bags of washing was closed too as was the bakery which we had been told would be open on Saturday morning.

We therefore got a few things in the supermarket and returned to Stormbird. We then received a WhatsApp from the laundry to sat they were open, so we came ashore again to get the washing. There was a fete today but otherwise nothing was open.

Mark cooked a prawn and salad lunch which was good and then we dropped Ian off with his bags.  We then prepared  Stormbird for departure as we planned to go to a different bay nearby as a change as Mark was not leaving for a couple of days. We then got  message from Ian that his taxi had not turned up, so I gave some suggestions but luckily he found a minibus going and was able to get a lift with them. He will be missed.

We pulled up the dinghy and got ready and upped anchor. There was little wind, so we motored out of Baie Taiohae and then turned west along the dramatic rocky coastline with some sail. We were headed for Tai Oa bay or Hakatea Bay which is 1nm west of the most southern point of Nuke Hiva and about 5nm west of Baie Taiohae. We put up the white sails briefly for this passage and then went under genoa alone. The bay is quite difficult to see from the sea but there was a 1600 feet cliff to the west and a lower cliff to the east. We came in and then there are two choices of bays and we took the eastern part which already had several yachts moored. We looked around and chose a spot on the outside and anchored. Due to the height of the cliffs we could not see the sun. The anchorage was dramatic as it was surrounded by high cliffs but we did have a white sandy beach at the end. It was quite stunning.

Keith and Joyce had a swim and then we chilled on the aft deck which was nice and then we had sundowners. It was nice to be in a different bay which was also less rolly. This was also seeing some to the raw beauty of Nuku Hiva which you could only get to by boat. It was interesting to see the ruggedness of the cliffs change with the different light conditions.

Mark cooked a great chicken curry which we all enjoyed and then there was star gazing. It had been a full day and tomorrow we will explore ashore.   

Picture of the day is Baie Tai Oa.

Crewing Opportunity

We have arrived in the Marquesas in French Polynesia and will explore these islands and then move through to the Tuamotu’s before getting to Tahiti about the end of July 2024. There may be some space on Stormbird during this period should any sailor/reader be interested in joining for this period or part of it in what must be one of the most distant and beautiful places in the world.

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