What a better way to end the South Pacific ports than with a visit to Nuku Hiva located in the Marquesas Islands. There are 12 islands that make up this archipelago, but only 6 of them are inhabited. There is a total of 9350 people that live here in an area that is spread out over 350 kilometers. Due to the distances between the islands, each one has kept its own personality, customs, and even language. Access to these remote islands is by boat or airplane.
Our destination today was Nuku Hiva, the second largest island in all of French Polynesia with Tahiti being the largest. The size of this "high" island is 330 square kilometers with about 3000 people. The main village and administrative center of the Marquesas is Taiohae and our port of call today. All of the Marquesan islands are considered high due to the fact they do not have lagoons, but are volcanic mountains so to speak.
Sailing into the scenic and protected Taiohae Bay, the bow was opened at 6:30am for the folks that wanted to enjoy the voyage into the harbor. Watching from our veranda and the bow channel on the TV, we could see a handful of people that showed up for this sail-in. From a distance, the island was in the typical sun haze, until we got closer. It was a spectacular view, as always, coming into the bay that was filled with many small and medium pleasure craft. It is quite common to see the "yachties" living on these boats, and using a small dinghy to come shopping in town for food and supplies. Also spotted were many birds…mostly white terns, noddies, and a few frigatebirds.
We left the ship about 10am when open tenders were announced. It seemed to be taking quite a while for the ticket numbers to be called, and we soon found out the reason why. Our boat filled quickly, and we were waiting at the tender landing before leaving right away. They needed to stall for the other boat to come back before we could proceed. The problem turned out to be a very high step from the tender to access the concrete landing at the dock. There was an usually low tide this morning which did not help. To prevent any accidents, the crew was taking extra precautions helping the folks out of the boat and also going back into the boat when it was empty. Lucky we have long and strong legs, but not every one does. There was at least one elderly couple that decided not to attempt it, and stayed on the boat to ride back to the ship. Can't say we blame them, as they knew their limits and despite all of the talks and warnings, we sure do not remember anyone saying there was a big step to get ashore today. It was mentioned in Fakarava, but not here.
There was one HAL tour offered here today at two different times. It was a scenic 3 hour drive to Taipivai Valley for $140. Private vehicles were used, as there are no tour buses here. It took the folks from Taiohae to the lush vegetation of the valley above the village with stops at many viewpoints. The roads were winding, steep, and rocky. And if you are subject to car-sickness, don't go. Besides small villages you would see churches and maraes, and there was a stop at Hooumi for a cold beverage. If we remember right, there is a small black sand beach there. In addition, the drivers may not speak good English and their cars and mini vans may not have air-conditioning. Can't be picky on such a small island.
Kimberly's talk also mentioned the fact that there were Marquesan horses here, and also wild pigs and goats. And fish was in their diet of course. There was no snorkeling here and few beaches. The murky waters can hide sharks such as hammerheads and sometimes the great whites. For that reason, few of the local people venture far into the bay. This island is also famous for the filming of a Survivor series back in 2001. Colette Beach or Bay was mentioned although it is abandoned now and it is not easy to access. Complicating the search for this beach, is the fact that "no seeums" or biting insects are rampant there. According to Kimberly, these almost invisible insects can leave you with big itchy welts. She suggested if you were going there, you would need insect repellant and lots of it. All good advice, but we think it was best not to go there at all.
First of all, it was much hotter than it looked. We think the high topped out at 90 degrees, and being closer to the Equator, the humidity was up. We took our normal walk through the produce market, craft store, and the info desk shop. Then we headed towards the old church, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Catholic church built in the 1800's using wood and stones from all of the Marquesan Islands. We learned from one of our buddies, that some of the stones were brought here from as far as Europe. But there was a problem, because the church was not opened to walk into the interior. There was re-modeling and construction going on, and according to the sign, it would not be completed until December of this year. Oh well, we did have the chance to look through the opened doors along with the crowd of people on the morning tour. There were at least one dozen vehicles parked in the lot when we arrived, with each one holding four to six customers. We got photos, then left.
The breeze was a bit better by the water, but that's when we ran into more road construction. There were a few backhoes and a lot of men working on a huge project of re-configuring the road. Much of the seawall property with the fields, moais, and outdoor patios were detoured by a new road. Not wanting to climb more hills than we needed, we stuck to the dirt path and around the workers. This brought us to the school area, the local beach front, and the old cemetery. There used to be a monument for the writer/sailor Herman Melville (1819 to 1891) whose book Typee put this place on the map. One of us was fortunate to have found this book in the library and read it thoroughly before our arrival here. Although some of his writing about he and his friend, both teenagers at the time, being held captive upon leaving a whaling ship, may have been stretched to make it more appealing. But most of his writings were factual concerning the natives he met and how they managed to live with them for a time. The subjects in his book dealt with basic survival, cannibalism, warfare among the natives, and relationships with the tribe. It sure put a different face on what we were seeing today. There used to be a Herman Melville memorial near the cemetery, but sadly, it was removed as it was deteriorating over the years. Perhaps a new one is part of the road project.
Finding our way back to the main road, we followed it until we reached the sign for the Nuku Hiva Pearl Lodge. It was quite a climb to get up the steep and rocky road in the worst heat of the day, but we made it. We ran right into friends Rosie and Randy who had also come up here for the cold beers. We told them a story of a man from the ship that was coming up here to go to Colette Bay, which we knew was not this way. He insisted it was, and we said nothing. Near the lodge, we found him asking some local girls where the way was to this bay and beach. As far as we know, there is no road that goes that way, so we do not know where he ended up.
Entering the resort restaurant, we were greeted by the waiter/waitress? who recognized us from being here often. Welcoming us back, we were seated in the shade and the million-dollar breeze. We ordered Hinanos, which came in cans that were ice cold. Even the glasses were frosted. We shared a Neapolitan pizza with fresh rolls with butter as starters. Staying for 1 ½ hours, we ended our meal with a shared chocolate volcano cake with vanilla ice cream. Upon leaving, we were invited back and we said – same time and same place in a year from now, God-willing. Sadly, it was time to head back into the heat, hoping for a better breeze along the way.
Going down on the exposed beach, we walked halfway back in the wet black sand before going back to the road. Very few folks were coming our way now, as we think the majority of them had already gone back to the cooler ship. Going from tree to tree for shade, we got back to the dock by 2pm just missing the tender that left. A line of 20 or more folks were already there enjoying the water and lemonade drinks while they waited for the next boat. A crew member was handing out wet chilled washcloths to help cool us off. Usually we do not use them, but today it was nice.
Sitting at the middle exit area of the tender, we were lucky to be the first ones off and heading up the platform steps. That first blast of air-conditioning was very welcoming. Cooling off in our room was even better with the help of a cold shower and more than a few sodas. All aboard was 4:30pm, but the loading of the final guests took longer than expected as a swell had come up, and loading was slower than earlier.
Captain Paul came on the speakers around 4:30pm, and congratulated his crew with the tendering operations today. Reading between the lines, it sounded as if some guests were not happy with the slowness of the ride going and coming back. He apologized for the inconveniences, but that can be expected sometimes. He added that the 3rd officer, a female that joined in Papeete, would pull the anchor she had dropped 130 meters, and sail the ship out of the bay. Under his supervision of course. We have 2929 nautical miles to reach our final destination of San Diego, and it will take 18.4 knots of speed to arrive there. It will also take three engines to do it. Finally, sunset would be 5:50pm and sunrise would be 5:20am tomorrow.
Dinnertime snuck up on us, and we ordered excellent mixed salads, a bowl of chicken dumpling soup, and one shrimp/pork spring roll. Mains were fajitas with seasoned rice, peppers, sour cream, guacamole, and slices of tender and tasty steak cooked medium rare. We heaped it all in the flour tortilla, savoring every bite. What fun for a change. This chef does Mexican cuisine quite well. Maybe we can ask him to serve enchiladas, a favorite meal for us at home. Desserts were one brownie cheesecake, and a plate of sliced pineapple with vanilla ice cream.
Looking forward to six lazy days at sea as we head towards home. Well, not quite lazy as we will have to begin packing……
Bill & Mary Ann
