Some of the questions from the 7th graders are challenging.  Here’s my try at answers and comments.

Regarding the color(s) of the water.  Yes, very different from Maine!  My understanding is that the cold water carries more oxygen, which in turn supports more plankton and/or other microscopic life in the water, with the result that the water is not clear like it is in the tropics.  With the clear tropical water the color is an indication of the depth.  Dark blue is deep and safe to sail in.  Light turquoise/green is shallow with a sandy bottom — good for anchoring…until it becomes too shallow.  Brown, or dark patches in the water indicates coral reef or coral heads — dangerous!  I love the dark blue and the turquoise side by side.

I would have loved to be there when you chose your favorite photos!  No, Hailey, I had not considered making a calendar of my favorites, but I might just do that when I get home, to remind me of the places I’ve been.

Regarding the black pearls — no, we didn’t get to keep the one in the photo, but I did buy one for my wife.  Zamzam, I can’t remember how much detail I provided in my original blog, so I may be repeating myself here.  What they do is choose an oyster that has a pretty color around the edge/lip of its shell.  They “sacrifice” this oyster, cutting that edge/lip tissue into many little pieces (I think they do 120 pieces from the one oyster).  This is the tissue that they implant with the “marble” to start the pearl.  For some reason that I don’t think anyone fully understands, that little piece of tissue determines the color of the pearl.

Chantel, thinking about the cost of fuel is always wise!  The fuel for our engines is diesel, and the fuel for our dinghy outboard is gasoline.  Here (and in most of the world) they are sold/priced by the liter, not by the gallon.  For diesel we paid 84 French Polynesian francs (the local currency) per liter.  To compare that to the cost at home, we have to convert both the currency and the units.  But for a simple approximation, one franc is very close to 1 American penny, and a liter is just a little more than a quart.  So 84 francs per liter is close to 84 * 4 = $3.36 per gallon.  The local people actually have to pay more.  We do not have to pay some of the tax (which can be substantial on fuel), because we are a foreign yacht in transit through the country.

Hmm, how to answer Ryan’s question as to whether my wife was a big help?  Yes, in the sense that it was great to be together again, and spend some time talking about people/relationships instead of about sailing.  But no, in the sense that she’s not much of a sailor, and she’s uncomfortable when the boat is moving, even when I think the motion is so gentle that I barely notice it.  Let’s just say I’m looking forward to having her back (in Australia), but mostly to go exploring together ashore, not for sailing.

Reginald, the doctor was being funny when he prescribed champagne.  But nevertheless he really did write it on a prescription form.  And the woman who was bit by the dog really was drinking it when we met with her that evening.

Brooke, yes, with what I know now I would indeed do this again.  Probably if I ever DO sail here again I will do it differently, because of what I have learned.  I would pick certain places, like the Marquesas, where I would stay for a month or more, and I might skip other places.  Sailing in a “rally” has its advantages (partnering with other boats, assistance with clearing into foreign countries, guidance about scheduling to avoid stormy seasons), but a disadvantage is that if you fall in love with a place you can’t stay put for a long time — the rally moves on.

Ben, I’d guess that the black tip sharks we’ve seen range from pretty small up to maybe 80 pounds.  But we saw one very large nurse shark (I think it was).  It was probably 10 feet long and must have weighed at least 200 pounds.  The locals do not consider these sharks dangerous, but if I saw a shark that big when I was snorkeling, I would be out of the water pretty quickly!

Alia, I’m not sure which animals are endangered and which are not.  I’m sure some that I saw in the Galapagos are endangered.  Notably the giant tortoises, which they were breeding and re-introducing to islands that no longer had them.

Veda, I’m never in fear of sinking, because our catamaran would not sink, even if it developed a huge leak.  There are other bad things that could still happen, like colliding with a ship, crashing on to a reef or capsizing the boat.  It’s up to us to pay attention and not let these things happen.  There are times when I feel scared, but I know what needs to be done to pull through, so I just need to stay on task, and do it.

I have plenty of time for answering questions.  Today we are at sea, and only occasionally do the sails need to be adjusted or our course checked.  I have hours for just enjoying a beautiful day on the ocean, and for answering your questions.

I will let you know whether it is possible to Skype between June 15 and 18.  We are heading for areas where Internet connections may be few and far between.  In early September we expect to arrive in Australia (Mackay, on the east side, near the south end of the Great Barrier Reef).  If we don’t connect before school is out, I send all the Team Rock students my best wishes for a fun summer.  May it include some adventure, large or small — and I hope you will tell me about your adventures in the fall!

Just left Hallie at the ferry to the airport. Time now to focus on the voyage once again. We pick up Bob at the airport ferry in the morning. We have a few boat chores to do, and we will make another run to the supermarket. Then we check out Monday morning, and go to the bank to get our “bond” money back. (If you’re not an EU citizen and you don’t have a plane ticket home, you have to deposit a bond for the cost of a plane ticket, and you get it back after you check out.)

We have visited three distinct parts of French Polynesia. The Marquesas were awesome, and it is hard to imagine any other place measuring up. By the way, did I mention that the Marquesas left their mark on me…?

The squiggly cross is a symbol of the Marquesas. The dark/shark teeth area is about strength and courage in the physical world and beyond. On the back are three rows of symbols that you can’t much see. One is a symbol of waves/voyaging, one of sea turtles, which are a symbol of protection (at sea, by juxtaposition), and the third row is a symbol of men, which could refer to family, to my sailing partners, to having ‘brothers’ in my life, or more specifically I think of them as a symbol of my men’s team.

And someone took this photo of us attempting to join in a dance in Ua Pou (also Marquesas). (I have a fun video of us learning the pig dance, but still I cannot upload video, so ask me about it when you see me!)

Part 2 of French Polynesia was the Tuamotus — the atolls. Very cool in a very different way from the macho Marquesas. And then Part 3 has been the Society Islands, starting with Tahiti. It has taken a while for the Society Islands to grow on me, but they have. I think particularly with the drumming, joining in the dancing (another good video you can’t see now!), and the wonderful friendliness of the Polynesian people. And having a fringe reef around the rugged islands is the best of both worlds (impressive sights plus calm anchorages).

Now what?

At the start of the BPO this question might have had a simple answer. We just follow Jimmy Cornell to whatever destination he declares. But Jimmy is not here. And in fact three additional boats have just dropped out: Ransom, Libby and Coconut Woman. They all have good reasons, and I wish those crews all the best, but boy will they be missed! On the other hand, Tahawus is back in.

And then there is Joyful — the boat that lost their crew back in Key West just before departure. They found crew, and set out to catch the fleet (if we can still be called that). They went non-stop from Panama to the Marquesas– 40 days! And then direct to Bora Bora. They caught up, but the skipper is not feeling well, and seems to have some unidentified infection. They may also have to drop out of the BPO.

So our “fleet” in this voyage-of-attrition is now Tahawus, Chapter Two, Maggie, Drina (a boat that went through the Northwest Passage and will be joining us in the coming weeks), a questionable Joyful, and ourselves! Getting individual attention from the BPO reps is wonderful, but you can’t help but wonder if we have a critical mass to hang together.

In any case, there are many paths that can be followed between here and Australia. We all plan to rendezvous in Vanuatu. But that’s over two months away. I think most boats will rendezvous in Vava’u in two weeks. Whatever…we’ve got a plan, and hopefully we will cross paths with others. And if not then we’ll just have to make some new friends. Our plan is to stop in Maupiti (still French Polynesia) on our way out. Then skip the Cook Islands and go to Niue. Then Vava’u (Tonga). Then tentatively Tuvalu, but that’s too far ahead to really know at this point.

We’ve done a bunch of cruising through the Society Islands. To the town of Fare on the west side of Huahine (food shopping and expensive laundry, nice dinner ashore with Coconut Woman), south to Avea Bay (beautiful bay but got rolly at midnight when high tide seemed to let some of the waves reform after the reef), out the pass with impressive surf breaking close by on both sides, to Raiatea (anchored in five feet of water with a sandy bottom glowing turquoise for miles; Bill put out a stern anchor by carrying it out on foot!, visiting the most sacred of the maraes), into the big town of Uteroa (for diesel and gasoline and bread), sailing north to the island of Tahaa, which is inside the same coral fringe reef as Raiatea, initially anchoring in a spot too open/rolly and going back to a nice spot off a resort, snorkeling the coral garden, moving across the lagoon to a more sheltered mooring, getting a tour of the island, then a fun windy sail to Bora Bora, where we have been parked on a yacht club mooring for the better part of a week.

Although we were warned that Bora Bora is sometimes considered Boring Bora, I’ve been enjoying our stay. The club is nice, with a swimming pool and wifi and good (expensive) food, and less than a mile into town. Better yet is the dancing and drumming. We had some dancing here at the club, which we participated in, but also the locals are practicing every night for the big annual competition in Papeete. We can hear the drums from the boat, and if we walk into town for dinner we get to watch some of the practice. Very cool. We also did a fun island tour. There are some alluring anchorages around Bora Bora, but at this point we are shifting from cruising mode to preparations for voyaging, so we will continue to hang on the mooring, and run errands.

Here are pix from the past two weeks.