12 September 2024 – The Bora Bora Water Tour

The heavens opened heavily in the night and I could hear rain but it was not coming into my hatches. This was I worked out because it was raining hard nearby but it had not yet reached Stormbird. It soon did and I closed the hatches.

We were off for our all-day lagoon tour today. The morning was grey and looked threatening and we had breakfast and discussed taking a rain jacket. Initially we thought no but then agreed it would we sensible. This was just as well as when we left in the dinghy the rain came in hard and we put on our jackets and it rained hard all the way to Vaitape about a nm away. We moored the dinghy and it started to stop.  It has in fact rained every day since we have been here but not for long.

We met the boat we were going on and there were two young ladies on board who both spoke good English, one from Tahiti and the other from Paris. I think they were a couple. We met Ramon our guide for the day who was from Tahiti but had been in Bora Bora for 7 years and who had some land in Tahaa where we are going next on our tour of the Society Islands. We headed off to a hotel which had little villas on stilts in the water with bamboo roofs and picked up a French couple who spoke no English. Ramon told us about the itinerary for the morning.

We headed off to a particular area where apparently you can see Eagle rays but when we snorkelled we saw nothing but that is the way things go. We then headed off to the shallow are of the reef off Tapua a small Island. This was literally about 3-4 foot deep and you could stand or swim. However. there were lots of sharks and some stingrays swimming around as well as lots of reef fish. This turned out to be a fantastic spot and I have never swum so close to reef sharks as here and there were often about 4-6 swimming around you. They have this sort of deadpan expression with their mouths open showing their teeth as if they have no sense of humour. They seem to swim toward you and then move away but literally so close that you could touch them. Ramon had told us not to touch them and I had no intention of doing so. There were some quite big rays being a grey black colour and about 2 and a half feet across with eyes that looked at you and you see the holes where their gills were and they had sort of short stumpy tales. The reef fish also seemed to swim around you as if you were a piece of coral and it was a great experience and felt amazing to get so close to these wonderful creatures in a lovely setting. The water was a sort of aquamarine blue.

We then headed off into deeper water on the east side of Topua and in about 10 meters of water and we were told to get into the water. I looked down and my gosh I was stunned. There were about 50 Eagle Rays in a great pack slowly swimming along as a group almost like in formation. Each were about a foot to two feet apart and every now and then one would move and go into a new position. They had a sort of leopard pattern on their backs. Some were darker than others and it was incredible and we spent about 20 minutes following them and I filmed them on my GoPro as I had done with the sharks and other rays.

We then started to head round the lagoon going toward the airport and came to a shallow area which was called the Jardin de Coral – the Coral Garden. This was healthy coral and was essentially home to a wide variety of reef fish. It was like a large aquarium and there were lots of fish of a variety of colours and sizes and certainly is up there with some of the other islands I have snorkelled in.

After this we headed further East and came to a point where  Ramon told us to go and swim. Looking down I suddenly saw a massive Manta Ray -it must have been about 2m across and was swimming slowly with sort of silver curled what looked like rolls at each side of its head. It was black with bits of white and a long tail. It was so graceful and I had not seen Manta Rays this close before. I swam a bit further and then there were two of them together one behind the other swimming along equally as large and like the first I had seen. Wow this was such a fantastic experience.

We then headed off from this to a moto (island) which was essentially sand and palm trees with coral underneath. We were greeted by a family and given a drink and then lunch which we eat sitting on tables with roofs in the water with our feet in the water. There were lost of fish swimming around our legs and feet. The lunch was very nice being rice, chicken, poisson cru (fish in coconut milk) fruit, coconut bread and cake.

After lunch we wondered to the other side of the motu and saw the reef on the ocean side. The family then showed us how to make tie die sheets which Keith and I politely declined. They then laid on a demonstration as to how to dehusk a coconut and open it for the milk and then how to get the white coconut out of the coconut. Once of the individuals was just dressed in traditional dress of a loan cloth type skirt and a sort of jockstrap at the back. He had tattoos down his side and on his left buttock which I guess he wanted to display. Keith and I thought no. There is being Harrington but not like that and it did not look that great.

We then got in the boat again and dropped people off on the way and went right round the central island that we had driven round yesterday. We were dropped off at Vaitape and took the dinghy back to Stormbird.

We reflected and thought it had been a fantastic day and we had seen amazing things. My take on Bora Bora is that it is a beautiful island but its real beauty is in its lagoon and what is under it rather than the land. Whilst it has some nice views it is not as attractive as the sea. We saw during the day a fantastic range of blues and I have never seen water like that.

Whilst we reflected more  I prepared a spaghetti bolognaise with broccoli and made enough for 3 meals. Bora Bora has been an interesting island and we are so glad we came. This island was badly hit by covid and a number of large hotels with villas in the water are closed and no longer used. Whilst they depend on tourism they must not allow this to ruin this paradise.

We move on tomorrow to Tahaa – an island only about 22 nm away back toward Tahiti.

The picture of the day is Keith and I at the motu where we had lunch.

Crewing Opportunity Year Two

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 then through Bali, Singapore and on to Thailand to end year two about the end of November 2025. 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