Category Archives: Locations

Places around the world

Ile Makaroa – The Rocks

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New island, new anchorage in Makaroa.  We left Mangareva and headed to the rocks.  There are three islands that make up this southerly set called the rocks.  All three islands are uninhabited and difficult to anchor near.  Our friend had given us some waypoints (locations to anchor) so we thought we would give it a try.

There is no anchorage near Ile Manui.  Ile Makaroa is supposed to be fine for a “day spot” only.  The water is supposedly deep and does not offer good holding.  But there is good snorkeling here.  The last island is Ile Kamaka which has a nice sandy beach.

The three rock islands

The three rock islands

With the current weather, wind, and swell we decided to try Ile Makaroa first.  We drove around looking for a good spot and found a decent sandy area in 6 meters of water.  We added 4 pearl floats to the chain to prevent it from getting tangled on the coral and sat it out to see how the boat sat.

The top photo is of three islands on our approach.  The bottom two are of Ile Makaroa.

It is a bit rolly from the swell, but we decided to stick it out and go exploring.

We decided to stay one more night despite the rolliness.  It is a pretty spot with super clear water.  It is really amazing to look out your window and see the coral at the bottom of the ocean.

Snorkeling in the Rocks

We went for a snorkel to explore the beautiful coral. It is spectacular to see so many varieties of hard coral thriving here.  Staghorn, tables and more.  We were visited by schools of curious fish, large and small.

There were several schools of parrot fish and a few varieties of other small fish hanging around to check us out.

There were also a lot of jelly fish.  Normally I am completely freaked out by jelly fish.  I swim backwards, sideways and out just to get away from them.  But these are not stinging jelly fish.  Matt showed me by touching the inside and outside.  I did manage to touch one on the outside and I was completely surprised at how hard it was!

No Wind Creates Havoc on Our Floats

A good anchorage is one with at least a little wind.  We want the boat to always face the wind to give us a nice breeze inside the boat, to hold the boat in a safe position and to keep her safe.  However, when there is no wind, we do circles and do what we call the anchor dance.  Not really a big deal when you are all alone in an anchorage, but when there are other boats or coral heads you are trying to avoid it can be dangerous.

Our floats decided that quarantine was over and they gathered in a group.    They should be spread out with 7-8 meters in between each float.  Even though they are technically still doing their job of keeping the chain off the coral heads, they should be further away from each other.  The top photo is a view from the bow of our boat. The other two are from underwater showing you how the floats work.

Anchor floats not doing their job

Anchor floats not doing their job

The bottom photo has them all touching each other – don’t they know about covid-19?  Ugh!

Liming the Time Away in Mangareva

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We left our little sanctuary of the outer islands to head back to Mangareva, the “mainland” and main village.  We had been hiding out for almost a month from the population and town.  However, the supply ship is scheduled to return and we still needed to top off our diesel and we were out of fresh produce.

The anchorage of Riktea at Mangareva is only 4 miles away from our current position.  We decided to wait until we saw the supply ship coming in before heading that way.  We woke up just before 0600 and realized the ship had come in during the night.  So, we readied the boat and made our way toward town.

It’s so funny to see the anchorage full.  We think there are about 30-35 boats spread throughout the entire Gambier archipelago.  However, when a ship comes in, we all gather like flies to $hit.  It is a cluster truck trying to find a good anchor spot where you won’t bump into your neighbor.

Mayhem Commences

Our friends on Sea Jay arrived before us so they went ashore first to order us a 200-liter barrel of diesel.  They were purchasing two 200-liter barrels for themselves and one 200-liter of diesel of us.  We were planning on sharing our barrel with a new arrival who is quarantined an unable to leave their boat.  First things first.

A Coat of Diesel

Matt took me to the dock and dropped me off where I remained for hours helping several cruisers.  He was in charge of bringing me empty jerry cans and taking the full ones back to various boats to unload into their tanks.  Since I was waiting on the dock, I ended up helping several people.  You need two people to pump fuel.  The ship provides a hand crank pump and long hose that is inserted into the barrel.  One person cranks the pump while the other holds the other end of the hose in the jerry cans.  It is an extremely messy job and I was covered in diesel. I was not a happy camper.  But truth be told, neither was Matt.  Back breaking work moving 20-liter (5 gal or 45lbs) around the dock.

At the end of the day, we all got our fuel.  I did not take any photos as I did not want to touch my dry bag or phone with diesel covered hands.  Oh, and I had to wear a mask for quarantine, which was horribly stifling.  Fun stuff.

SCORE – Fresh Produce 

We spent the next day loading up on fresh produce.  I went to shore early and scored.  Mangareva is the only island that has magasins (stores or markets that are like fuel station markets or a 7-11) in all of the Gambiers.  A few other islands have locals that grow gardens and will sometimes sell you produce.  We purchased cabbage, carrots, potatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, cucumbers and some pork chops.  We have not seen tomatoes in I don’t know how long – maybe since we left the Marquesas.

Pomplemouse and red peppers were scored on our hike to Mont Mokoto.  Our friends on Taravai sold us some bananas, lettuce, avocados and lemons.  So, we are stocked up for the next 2-3 weeks and then we start the hunt all over again.

Internet AOL Style

One of the other things we do while “in town” is use the internet.  Right now, there are only two places in Mangareva that will allow us internet access.  One is JoJo’s and they only let you use it for 5-10 minutes at a time and the connection is ridiculously slow.  The other place is at the local baker’s house.  Yep, we saddle up to a table on Phillipe’s porch.  He will allow 8-9 people on his connection at 200 xpf ($2) for 2 hours at a time between 8a-10a or 2p-4p only. 

It is still really slow and often websites time out because there is not enough of connection. I could barely get a connection to do some banking.  Unfortunately, the connection is not nearly strong enough to do photo uploads for the blog updates…. Here is a photo with Missy and I and Phillipe and a photo with Missy and I and Yanell.

When we finally got internet, we were able to upload a few photos and blogs.  Here is a photo with Missy and I and Phillipe and a photo with Missy and I and Yanell.

Phillip the Baker and Missy and I

Phillip the Baker and Missy and I

We did not stay long as we are not fans of the Mangareva anchorage.  It is always nice to come here to get food and fuel and do a few hikes, but after a few days you want out.  Back to the isolation of the outer islands.

 

A pretty shot out of one of our hatches during sunset

Hiking Mont Mokoto

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For the past month we have been hiding out in the smaller motus due to the quarantine.  Which has been good in that we have more liberties and no people.  But they are super small and do not offer many opportunities to walk, let alone hike.  Mangareva offers the best hiking in the Gambiers.  There are two mountains, Mont Duff and Mont Mokoto.  Last year we hiked Mont Duff.  We decided to hike Mont Mokoto this year with our friends on HooDoo.

Mont Duff is 441 meters tall and Mont Mokoto is supposedly 423 meters tall.  I say “supposedly” because two of our devices showed it at 430 meters.  So, your guess is as good as mine.  You start out taking the same route for both hikes.  The hike up is about 2.5 miles to the top.  At about 1.5 miles there is a split off where you have to decide which Mont you want to ascend. 

First you hike to the top of the saddle on a paved road under the intense sun.  Then at the turn off you go straight up but you are in the blessed shade of the trees.  Our young friends (under 30) and my goat of a husband attacked the hill with great speed.  I was a bit tamer and slower.  They kindly waited for me several times.

Mont Mokoto’s Trail

This is an example of the path we hiked through the trees in the shade.  There were some areas with boulders and rocks to climb over, but for the most part it was straight up on a nice cleared path.  Half way to the top we had a pretty view of the bay.

Yanell was kind enough to grab a few photos of the photographer. The first is in the midst of the trees

At the top of one of the mountains we could see the view of the top of Mont Mokoto.  In the shot below you can see Missy and Yanell in the foreground.  If you zoom in, you can see Matt almost at the crest of Mont Mokoto.  He is a small speck on the left side almost to the top.

Me trailing behind again, but still on the move!  Almost to the summit and I am so ready to be there already.

Bird Population

There are tons of birds in the Gambiers.  Just before the summit there was a sign explaining a little bit about them.  The four main birds are the white-tailed tropic bird, brown noddy, white, tern, Herald Petrel.  The Herald Petrel is slowly going extinct on the island.  There are less than 50 in the area and only one chick is produced per brood.  They are seen primarily between May and September which is the breeding season.  Their greatest enemies are the rats, cats, dogs, and goats.

View from the Top of Mont Mokoto

We had arresting views at the top of Mont Mokoto.  You could see Rikitea bay (left bay with boats) and the opposite bay which is home to several pearl farms.

Being at the top gave us great views of several other islands in the Gambiers.  First is a photo of Taravai (large island on right) and Agakauitai (smaller on left).

This is a photo of the three “rocks.”  Kamaka is the main island in the center where you can anchor.  The others are either not suitable for anchoring or only suitable for a day stop.

Three rock island

Three rock island

This is Bernard’s island or Aukena.

Aukena Island

Aukena Island

And of course, a photo of the four of us at the top of Mont Mokoto.

Overall, I walked 7.9 miles and over 19,000 steps today.  I made two runs to all the markets and put in extra miles before the hike.  Let’s just say that I was exhausted by the time we got back to the boat.  I showered and crashed on the couch.