Life at Apataki Atoll's Tamaro Island

Our first impression of Tamaro Island is from the vantage of the boat yard and looks like this:

Turquoise water and many coral heads

The family homestead is far from even a village.  The three generations that live here have many subsistence activities in addition to running a boat yard.

Activities like beekeeping

Beekeeping close up

They dry coconuts and sell the copra as a cash crop and
 fresh shredded coconut is found in most evening meals.

Fishing provides a major food source but commercial fishing is not part of the operation.  On a day when most of the family that runs Apataki Careenage is off in the skiff delivering passengers to the airport and picking up supplies at the village Jean, a spear fisher visiting from Corsica begins to worry about supper, so he grabs a cooler, loads it on a tiny kayak and paddles off into the sunset. We see the kayak bobbing 300 m offshore for an hour, then he returns with a mess of small-to-medium fish. While he cleans them, the launch returns from the airport resulting in a bustle of activity on the dock. Jean greets the newcomers and helps unload the boat.  The dogs join the celebration and take advantage of the confusion to raid Jean's stack of fish fillets on the dock. Tony notices the problem and chases the dogs away. Jean resumes his labors and salvages the fish for a dinner that now needs to feed about ten souls.

Jean filets fish before the hulabaloo

A small Ford tractor moves coconuts, barrels of fuel, boats,
etc. and makes good walking trails to the islands attractions.

Pets include villain dogs

and a reef shark named Tamaro.  (The child is safe.)

Raoria Atoll October 9, 2015

We sail about 450 miles south from the Marquesas to the Tuamotu archipelago.  Though both island groups are in French Polynesia, they have separate cultures and languages.

Our First Atoll!

We arrive outside the pass to the lagoon at Raoria, wait for daylight,
wait for the tide to be right, wait for the supply boat to go through
ahead of us, then cautiously pick our way through the pass.  We sail
across the lagoon to the windward side of the atoll which is the calmest
safest place to anchor IF you are on the lagoon side, not the ocean side.

So we hop in the water right away to see what is there, plus it is time for a bath after that passage.

And right away there is this squishy, googley thing.  I think
Henry had one of these in the bathtub.

Lots of small fish with bright colors, strange shapes and
wonderful patterns.  Lots of fish, trust me.

This is a bottle brush anemone.  Each spiral is about the size of a
thimble and can retract in half a heartbeat.

This is the business end of a manta ray (and some of the
internal workings.)  Debbie took this pic elsewhere
 but she doesn't read the blog so mum is the word.
This guy is about five feet  from side to side.

This eel swims around in a tide pool on the ocean side of the
island.    It is about a foot long.

Isla Isabela, Galapagos

Isabela is our third port of call in the Galapagos and seems more wild and remote than the other islands.

We enjoy some nature walks close to the port.

Here we share the boardwalk with the iguanas.

The flamingos gather in just a few places.

We join a tourist launch for snorkeling at a place called "Los Tuneles."

After a wild ride in the ocean and dramatic entrance through the surf

we find a maze of coral islands with penguins and boobies and abundant

life beneath the surface.

Rocky outcrop on the way to Los Tuneles.

This is kind of a stock tourist pose in a submerged arch.

And another standard pose on another arch.

The "Wall of Tears" was built by unwilling residents when Isabela

a prision island well into the twentieth century.  The walk was long and

hot and Gregg wondered if he could make it back.

But, we encountered several tortoises along the way

making it all worthwhile.

One reluctantly agreed to pose with Deb.

Please pretend you don't see the photographer's shadow.

We survive the day and fish soup with raw onions restores the body.

San Christobal, Galapagos

June 29, 2015, Kalliope and crew arrive in Barquerizo Moreno, Isla San Cristobal Galapagos, Ecuador.  Our entrance to the harbor is very dramatic with towering breaking waves on both sides and somewhat calmer water in the channel through which we pass.  Due to a wrinkle in time, this post is out of sequence.

On a walk to a nearby swim beach we see dozens of marine iguanas sunning themselves or making tracks into the brush and dunes.

A big marine iguana is more than two feet long overall.

We arrive on the last day of big seas that rolled in from the southern ocean without any wind or rain.  Following are some pics of the boardwalk and waterfront streets after the waves rolled through the harbor and over the seawall.

If you visit Barquerizo Moreno you will learn something about Galapagos sea lions, known locally as "Lobo del Mar" or wolf of the sea.  They are everywhere along the harbor front.  There is an effort to separate the Lobo from the tourists, mostly walls and fences.  These barriers felt the brunt of the waves and were largely ineffective during our visit.  We even encountered lobos making their way into shops.

They also love to rest on yacht tenders.

And pose for the ubiquitous tourist camera.

Seeking new adventures, we sign on for a day trip from

 the harbor to the local landmark known as Leon Dormida.

                                                     We snorkel along the vertical walls

and through the narrow channel

Deb tells me it has the alias of Kicker Rock

One of the denizens of Leon Dormida.

We find several Herons willing to pose.

After several days we set sail for Santa Cruz, one day's sail west.

Oa Pou reaches for the sky

Just on the southern horizon as seen from Nuku Hiva is Oa Pou and it sings a siren song.  So we sail down there one day and walz right into the capital of Hakahau (pop. 2,110) where we are the only cruisers at least for one night.  Soon we are comfortable with the anchorage and the people.

Did I mention siren song?  My first view of these peaks was from ten miles away.

The sunrise painted them with a special palette and I lost my heart to Oa Pou.

There is a water spigot on the beach which we use for laundry.  We are washing our dirty laundry in a public park when two gendarmes approach striking terror into our hearts. Which one of our offenses did they discover?  They ask us in English to move our boat to make room for Aranui, the supply ship due the next day.   Breathing a big sigh of relief, we move Kalliope and Aranui doesn't run over us and everybody is happy.

A collision with Aaranui is to be avoided by all means.

There is a derelict building near the spigot where we were apprehended by the gendarmes.  Some years back it was painted brown but the painter considerately left this older piece of graffiti exposed.

Fresh supplies from the ship make the islanders happy so they host a reception and throw a party for the few guests that travel on the supply ship.

After the visitors are fed and offered local crafts at the park they are invited to walk a couple blocks to a historic site for traditional music and dance.

I give this band three stars.

She looks like she has been practicing and
will lead the troupe in six or eight years.

It is hard to believe these are store clerks, dignified government  officials, nurses and horse wranglers the other six days of the week.  They work out their aggression through their dances which historically emphasize the warrior role.  Four stars.

This guy concludes a dance depicting a successful battle with a celebratory howl.

We have seen a couple of these carved wooden ships prow pulpits.  This is my favorite.

We visit this Catholic Church at 10:00 Sunday, after the service I guess, for there is not a soul around.  However someone decorated the altar with beautifully woven fresh palm fronds.

We move to the next bay with the almost identical name  of Hakahetau where a beachfront park becomes our dinghy landing.  The designer made maximum use of these natural rock outcrops which even include a little geyser powered by the waves.

We have no photo of the geyser but here is is the rock.

The Marquesians must think it gauche to advertise nature's natural attractions with neon signs and tee shirt shops and Deb and Gregg often have difficulty finding them.  With only a couple false starts we find the perfect waterfall and skinny dip pool.  I can't believe how few people visit this place.

Our search is rewarded.  Five stars.

Deb worked really hard and threw out dozens of photos to get this one.

French Polynesia – First Taste

Approximately June 29 at 11:22 a.m. we conclude our first long ocean passage with landfall in Hiva Oa, Marquesas, French Polynesia.  We are delighted when “old” friends we know from Ecuador paddle over to welcome us.   We learn that another boat was dismasted the week before and a crowd of volunteers gather daily in the parking lot to assist with building a new mast from the wreckage.  The young owner works like a man possessed to get underway because his sweetheart is waiting for him in Papeete.

   Ev is a Frenchman we know from Bahia Caraquez seen here supervising rigging the mast.

The anchorage is about a forty minute walk from the commercial center of town.  Along the road, we snap a pic of this beach where the local school has broad frontage.  Not a bad location eh?

Surf on the beach backed by lush green jungle.

School just out of sight to the right.

This mountain hides in cloud most of the time so we snap a photo when the mist clears.

View from Kalliope at anchor

 View of Kalliope at anchor

On an excursion in a rental car shared with another couple we tour the north side of the island and some sights along the way include horses cooling off in the surf.

Horses are used for transportation and hauling loads like coconuts 

Marquesian mariners are particular about boat design and a flat bottom will not do for beach landings in the surf.  This type of boat is used for errands and inshore fishing and often carries a small outboard.

Searching the Jungle for petroglyphs, Deb indulges her inner botanist.

Our arrival coincides with preparations for celebration of Bastille Day.  Here a lady weaves palms to decorate the hall for the evening dance festival.

The Bastille Day Gala is a large undertaking for a small town and on Hiva Oa represents a celebration of the culture of the Marquesan people.  The band is made up mostly of drummers and the music supports the lady dancers whose moves are well choreographed and very “hip.”  The next two photos are dedicated to our friend Andy D. back in Alaska who is an avid and talented drummer.  We hope the third image conveys some idea of the dancing.

This drum is so tall that the drummer stands on a stool to get a comfortable angle to beat the drum with his palms.

The band warms up

There are over thirty dancers who mime the planting, cultivating, harvesting, cooking and eating breadfruit.  There are several costume changes, the rhythm of the drums and smiles of the island girls.

Soon we will try to post the video – Much Better