"Treasures of Cruising the World" with Bill & Mary Ann: Report #22 Avatoru, Rangiroa, French Polynesia January 21, 2018 Sunday Chance of rain & 85 degrees Part #1 Of 4 80 Pictures

Our port of call for today was a most unique one – a coral atoll in the Tuamotus, and the largest in the archipelago. Imagine a string of pearls that surrounds a massive lagoon, and you will have Rangiroa. The center lagoon is 50 miles long and 13 miles wide. Once inside this lagoon, you cannot see the enormity of it, as the actual strip of coral reef is hidden from sight. Discovered in 1616 by the Europeans, it was not until 1850 that it was settled by Catholic missionaries. They encouraged the natives to cultivate coconut groves to produce copra….an industry that still employs many islanders today.

There are two major passes for ships into this lagoon from the ocean, and they are located at the two main villages. One is at Avatoru, and the other at Tiputa, which is the seat of the government. Up to 3300 people inhabit this atoll, employed by the copra, tourist, and pearl industries. Oddly enough, their other businesses are selling honey and wine. Yes, there is a vineyard that has been adapted to this climate, although not accessible to the public, the wine is sold in some of the little stores on the island.

The most famous activity has to be diving and snorkeling. There is a wall dive right inside the Tiputa Pass, where you can see the grey and hammerhead sharks, manta rays, turtles, napoleons, and dolphins. A couple of excursions were offered here with a glass bottom boat or a one tank dive. They ranged from $80 to $130 for one hour to three hours.

A most informative tour took the folks in mini vans to the Gauguin Pearl Farm, one of the largest facilities in French Polynesia. Here you can learn all about the black South Seas pearls and how they come to exist. Demonstrations show how these special species of oysters are grafted, cared for, and harvested. They produce round, baroque, and semi-baroque pearls graded from C to A+. Naturally, there is a shop where you can purchase these gems for $$$. They are gorgeous, although the prices are fixed, they do accept cash or credit card…..gladly.

Shortly after the Amsterdam entered the lagoon through the Tiputa Pass, the captain dropped anchor. To our surprise, another vessel appeared. It was the Wind Spirit, a sail/cruise ship built in 1988, and remodeled in 2012. It is 5350 gross tons and houses 159 passengers. She has 4 giant masts, 170 feet above the deck. The sails are computer controlled, and must look stunning when they are up. There is a water sports platform in the aft, where the guests can use a banana boat, kayaks, small sailboats, windsurf boards, as well as snorkel and scuba equipment. We noticed they were using one small tender boat, and dropping off their people at the same pier we were using.

Even though the newsletter said there was a chance of rain, the sun was out, and it was promising to be a really hot day. The ship was cleared around 8am, but we did not feel the need to be the first ones off. We have to admit, it is nice not to have to get tender tickets, as we can go off any time by just showing our room keycard to the staff member at the door to deck A. After a light breakfast, we headed down and boarded the boat for the 10 minute ride to shore. Henk, the hotel director, was helping people into the boat this morning. We did hear that someone had broken their leg on Nuku Hiva at the landing, so he is making sure the transfer is safe as possible.

All of us were greeted by some native musicians and dancers, where we proceeded to the tables of trinkets for sale. Waiting for those who booked tours, the vans loaded up, as well as the boats for water tours. Our plan was to follow the road to the dolphin monument near the channel. There are 60 bottlenose dolphins that stay in this area, feeding on the plentiful sealife. There is an interesting sign that describes these dolphins, including reasons why people need to stay away from them. They have lost their natural fear of people, and some have become aggressive. Much to our surprise, they can transfer a serious disease to people if touched, which is incurable. Who knew?

There are several lodges, resorts, and pensions (vacation rentals) on this stretch of the atoll. Mostly hidden in the coconut palms, they line the lagoon side of the road. Swimming is far safer inside the lagoon, than venturing into the ocean, where the current can be deadly. There are a few ways to get around this atoll, one of which is by bicycle or car. An unusual type of vehicle that can be rented is called a Twin – go. It is not much bigger than a motorcycle, but is made for two people. Talk about claustrophobic. You can get one for two hours for $50, or $125 for 12 hours. Since the distance from one end of the motu to the other end is no more than 10 miles, the two hour rental would work the best.

We prefer to walk, getting photos along the way. There is not a huge amount of bird life here, although we did see some frigates, white terns, and brown noddys. The views of the lagoon and ocean were stunning. The heat of the day was also stunning. Most of the time, there was no breeze. And when the wind did start to blow, you could feel the temperature drop. That meant rain. About ½ hour into our hike, the rain did come down hard. Good thing we brought umbrellas. Hoping it would continue, we were disappointed when it stopped, since it made it even more steamy and humid.

By the time we reached the airport, our water was running low. Lucky for us, the airport was open for a few hours. Open-air, this airport has no security. But it does have a place to sit and relax out of the beating rays of the sun. Better yet, there were nice bathrooms here. We purchased a huge bottle of cold water for $3 USD. Yes, they do take dollars or francs, and credit cards. It was apparent that people were expecting a plane to land soon. It did 10 minutes after we resumed our walk.

Making it to the Gauguin Pearl Farm, we repeated the same tour we had a few years ago when we stopped here on another cruise. And it was free, although, this place is never open on a Sunday. We understand that we had to get special permission to visit this atoll on a Sunday. Good thing they said yes, or else everything would have been closed.

We began to worry that the resort was not open, much like the lodge in Nuku Hiva. Would have been one long walk for nothing. Not only were they opened, they welcomed us for lunch. With only one other customer in the restaurant, we figured this is off-season. According to the info booklet, the cooler season is from May to October. No wonder is was so hot today. Anyway, we ordered their ham and cheese panini, which came with a mountain of skinny French fries. We downed four bottles of Heineken beer, which was a life saver today. In order to have the energy to hike back, we indulged with an order of profiteroles. This one we split, even though we think they made the dessert super-sized. Lunch was not cheap, but then, nothing is cheap here. It is an expected part of traveling the world, and makes us realize how remote this atoll really is. Everything has to be imported, so naturally, there is a price for that.

We took our sweet time heading back, estimating that we had hiked near ten miles. Now the breeze was blowing at us, and we knew it would probably rain again. We welcomed it. And it did, but not until we were back near the boat landing. Perfect timing. We always check out the trinkets on the souvenir tables. Well, not trinkets, because mixed with the sea shell jewelry, were expensive black pearl pieces. Unless you have done your homework, spending big bucks here may be a roll of the dice.

The tender boat was ready to leave, so we jumped on for the short ride back. By now, it was pouring heavily. Couldn’t help but overhear two ladies grumbling about their interrupted excursion. They had donned their swimwear, lathered up with sun block, threw on a moo-moo, and came over to swim. They gave up with the passing shower, not knowing that within 10 minutes, the sun would be out again. So they rode back with us, complaining about all of that lotion they just wasted. In our minds, what’s a little rain, when you are headed to go swimming? You get wet either way. It’s got to be about the hair we suppose.

The Captain got the ship out of the lagoon after 5pm. Dozens of natives lined both sides of the passage as we sailed out, waving goodbye. Keeping our eyes peeled for those dolphins, we were rewarded with a jumping display near the entrance on the ocean side. Those of us that witnessed the dolphins cheered and clapped as they disappeared as fast as they appeared. Many fellow guests remarked what a wonderful visit this was today. On the down side, there will be a whole lot of people sporting a serious sunburn tonight. Snorkeling, swimming, or even walking in this strong tropical sun is a killer if you’re not prepared for it.

It has been a week since one of our tablemates has been missing from dinner. Seems he has come down with the deep cough that goes with the recent cold going around the ship. All of us are grateful that he has chosen not to contaminate us. Brenda had lugged the straw hat she had saved for him last night, only to pack it back to her room after dinner. She is so thoughtful. The entrees have still leaned towards the tropical theme. But we opted for the English sliced beef with the traditional Yorkshire pudding. It was good – tender and tasty.

The stars were out when we walked the deck after our meal. No rain tonight. Tomorrow we will be docked in Papeete, Tahiti, staying until the wee hours of the following morning. Should be fun.

Bill & Mary Ann

The Wind Spirit