Le Tikehau Resort

Spoiled Rotten in Tikehau

Leave a reply

It is with a heavy heart that we leave Tahiti and the many friends we left behind, but it was beyond time for us to move on.  We headed toward Tikehau which is 174nm away and should take 1.5 days to reach.  It was a gorgeous, sunny day with blue skies, calm seas, and a light breeze.   This is a shot of us leaving the Tahiti airport anchorage behind.

Andromeda Super Yacht

On our way out of the Papeete pass we went by a HUGE mega yacht called Andromeda.  She is 107 meters long (352’) and 18 meters (59’) wide (that’s longer than Sugar shack).  She has a maximum speed of 16.4 kts and can travel over 9800miles.

Matt thinks there are well over 20 crew working on this magnificent yacht.  The interesting thing is that while she was at anchor, she had no anchors down!  You see that is strange in that, we normal boats, require an anchor to hold us in place.  However, Andromeda has dynamic positioning / sky hook which does not require an anchor.  It holds the boat in place using GPS coordinates!

Tahiti is a crown jewel, that is for sure.  Check out her crown between the two mountains.

The Passage to Tikehau

We had an absolutely stunning passage from Tahiti to Tikehau.  It was simply perfect, with gorgeous skies, light winds giving us a beam reach, small seas, and no squalls. We set the sails once and only had to adjust them lightly to accommodate changing wind speeds.

Passage Details

  • Total Travel Time:  24 hours
  • Total Distance: 174
  • Max Speed:  10.8kt
  • Average Speed:  7.2kt

We arrived at 10am in the morning, exactly 24 hours after we picked up the hook.  We did have to wait outside the pass for 1.5 hours for it to calm down.  It looked very unhappy when we arrived, so we waited for slack tide and headed in.  A rather easy entrance with an incoming tide and 2+kts helping us in.

We anchored near Le Tikehau Resort and had the anchorage all to ourselves.

Flash Back

Last year in Gambier, Matt and I were on a small hike.  During this hike, we met Raipunui who was visiting from Tikehau.  He stopped us on the side of the road, asked where we were going (if we wanted a ride), and when we told him we were going on a small hike, he asked to join us.  We ended up spending a few hours with him and exchanging contact info.

Fast Forward

We reached out to Raipunui and told him we were in Tikehau and would like to see him.  He said he was working that night (he is the front desk manager at Le Tikehau Resort).  I asked if we could come have dinner as we were celebrating our wedding anniversary and he said “I will make it happen.”

Le Tikehau Resort

This is a beautiful resort!  Le Tikehau is situated on the water with dozens of over the water bungalows. 

Le Tikehau Resort

Le Tikehau Resort

Guests have their own private beach, access to water toys, and gorgeous views of the sunset.

Le Tikehau Resort

Le Tikehau Resort

We are super blessed to be able to come on property, considering we are not guests.  Raipunui really gave us the royal treatment!  Everyone knew we were coming – we were known as “the boat people.”  It was so funny.  As we pulled up to the dock, the first employee said “ah yes, you are the boat people.”  Then we went to the check in counter (top photo above) and the receptionist said, “welcome boat people.”  Then the waitress took our drink orders and after we explained that we did not have a bungalow, she said, oh, are you the boat people?  It was rather amusing.

They have a beautiful pool that overlooks the lagoon.  It was stunning during sunset.   But then again Tikehau sunsets don’t ever disappoint.

Le Tikehau Resort

Le Tikehau Resort

Raipuni told us to get there at 1800 which was strange to us as dinner did not start until 1900. But, we did as we were told, secured great seats on the patio as we watched the sunset and had a cocktail.  At 1830, a local Tikehau band arrived and Raipunui was the singer.  With each song, a different waitress would come out and dance.  It was spectacular.  Our own private show – with maybe 10 other people!

Chow Time

We sat down at a nice two top on a raised platform.  Ordered another cocktail, because we are celebrating after all.  Matt ordered crispy red tuna and I ordered a quiche and salad.  Matt said the tuna was divine and unlike anything else he has ever had.  My quiche was ok, it looks like a pizza, but it was all quiche.  For dessert, they brought out a heart shaped chocolate mousse cake with kiwis. The band sang “happy birthday” along with the entire restaurant as they don’t have a translation for “happy anniversary.”  It was all really exciting and sweet!

Raipunui really went all out to make us feel welcome and special.  He is truly a master as his job!  We hope to see him in early December in Gambier again as he is going there to celebrate his birthday!

The pretty side of Tahiti is shown in on our last blog as we discover a new marae, snack and live concert.   Events from this blog post occurred mid-November.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.

Twinkly Tahiti

Leave a reply

I had to show you a fabulous side of Tahiti after our last blog on derelict boats.  We enjoy a live concert called “Rock the Dock” with our friends on Liward and we visit another fabulous lunch surfside.  If you look, not even really hard, you find the twinkly side of Tahiti.

Rock the Dock

Steve on Liward hosted another live concert, but this time in Tahiti. He plays with different locals depending on which island he is located at.  He has done this for years so he knows people everywhere.  In Tahiti, he plays with La Guitune (or Guy) who plays the electric violin!  I’ve never heard an electric violin before, but he played it so amazingly well.  Think of the Charlie Daniel’s Band “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” fiddle playing – truly impressive. I posted a video on my Instagram account if you want to hear him (christine.mitchell4) on 13 November 2021.

Steve and Lili set up a huge pop up tent, powered the speakers and sound system and set up chairs for the many fans.  

The stars for the night.

The fans were plenty. We ended up having well over 35 people enjoying the live music.

SNACK TAHARU’U on the Surf

Steve and Lili took us to a new place to eat called Snack Taharu’u. It is a cute little place located about 20 minutes from Marina Taina. It is situated on beautiful black sand and has a patio overlooking the surf. 

Usually many locals are showing off their surfing talents here, but on the day we went, the seas were super unhappy making it too difficult to surf.  But there were some brave body surfers (can you see them in the 3 photos on the right) and tons of people playing the river mouth.

It was a gloomy day, but we made the best of it.  As did some of the locals who made a shelter out of the drift wood.

MARAE ARAHURAHU

On the way to the snack, we stopped at a beautiful marae right off the road.  It was so easy to get to and really lovely.  There are two tikis in front of the marae (spiritual site).

The grounds were immaculately kept and well cared for with a clear path leading you to the sacred grounds.

The marae is the only marae that has been 100% restored.

We had some fun posing in front of the statue.

And some more craziness…

It was time to say goodbye to Tahiti.  We need to make our way towards Gambier and the easiest way to do that is to go through the Tuamotus.  On our last night we had a marvelous sunset over Mo’orea and I was even able to capture the moon.

       

Derelict boats of Tahiti are showcased on our last blog.   Events from this blog post occurred early November.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.

Derelict Boats of Tahiti

1 Reply

Yeah, we are in Tahiti still.  Can you feel the sarcasm oozing off the page?  I know, most people think of Tahiti as a truly exotic and beautiful place to holiday, but for us as cruisers it is a congested, city where we have to provision, refuel, and get boat parts.  In addition, we are sandwiched between many derelict boats.

The tourists typically stay in resorts with private, white sandy beaches, negative edge pools, air-conditioned rooms and a full staff to wait on you hand and foot.  We unfortunately do not have the same experience.  Where we anchor, which is directly across from the Intercontinental hotel’s over the water huts, there are lots of derelict boats.  Why do we anchor here then?  I’d like to say it’s because these ugly, abandoned boats make Sugar Shack look like royalty, but that is not why (really, its not). We anchor here because the water is shallow, 2m, sandy, and good holding.  And we can get internet, for free, from the hotel.  Yep, you got it, that is really the real reason we anchor here.

Derelict Boats

Marina Taina is about 1-1.25nm from here.  The airport anchorage, where most boats anchor is another ½-3/4 of a mile away and downtown is about 2.5-3nm away.  Not convenient, but these are our only anchoring options.  The marina is saddled with many abandoned boats.  They move these derelict boats from the marina slips (where they can fill with a paying customer) out to the mooring fields (which they own as well).  And then they are left to die.  It is so sad.

The last time we were here, there was a small monohull tied to another monohull called Voodoo Child.  We returned 5 months later and the small monohull had sunk with its mast sticking above water.  It sank in 2 meters of water so it is no surprise that the mast is above water.

Sunk derelict Boat in Tahiti

Sunk derelict Boat in Tahiti

I swam over to it and got some photos of the inside which has been stripped clean (looters).  You can even see where they tied the rope to a wench and the broken line that is tied to the mooring.

There is a blue boat that is abandoned but still floating happily.  However, when you swim underneath it you find a sea garden on the prop, rudder, and hull.

A neighboring catamaran lost its mast last year.  It is super close to the boat that sunk.  And another mono is left abandoned near those two.

Derelict Boats

Derelict Boats

Takai Boat Sinking

A small monohull on a mooring in front of Sugar Shack looked like it had owners because there was a canvas tent over the cockpit.  But we never saw anyone on the boat during the entire time we were anchored here.  Then one morning we work up to it sinking.  Yep, the entire bow was taking on water.  We took photos, posted it on the local French Polynesia Cruiser Facebook page, emailed the marina, Port Authority, and DPAM.

They responded within 30 minutes and the marina sent 4 people out with a pump to make repairs.  They worked for hours to get all the water out and then fix the issue.  Since we don’t speak French, we don’t know what the issue was, but it has been floating since they left.

We’ve heard that France has strict laws about jettisoning derelict boats. I am not sure what those rules are but evidently, they are strict and French Polynesia cannot take abandoned boats (devoid of batteries, fuel, and harmful elements) out at sea.  All of the marinas and yards have abandoned or derelict boats that they can’t get rid of which costs them lots of money.  It is really very sad.

But, lucky for us, we are still in crystal clear turquoise waters, with sunny skies, green hillsides, and lovely Tahitians.  Always a matter of how you look at it and we chose to look it through rose colored glasses.

Our Yamaha 25hp Enduro gets repaired in our last blog.   Events from this blog post occurred early November.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.