Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Ted's Log Stardate June 3rd, 2008

MESSAGE 9 RIAITEA, FRENCH POLYNESIA JUNE 3


AHOY FRIENDS,


AFTER 3 DAYS IN THE TIANA MARINA, WE FUELED UP AND SAILED (ACTUALLY MOTORED AS THERE WAS NO WIND AT ALL) TO THE ISLAND OF MOOREA ABOUT 15 MILE WEST OF TAHITI. MOOREA IS SHAPED LIKE THE LETTER “W” WITH TWO DEEP BAYS ON THE NORTH SIDE. OUR FIRST ANCHORAGE WAS DEEP IN COOK’S BAY, A BEAUTIFUL SETTING WITH HIGH MAJESTIC MOUNTAINS ALL AROUND. ONE PEAK, MONT MOUAROA WAS THE BACK DROP IN THE FILM VERSION OF “SOUTH PACIFIC”. COOK’S BAY WAS ALSO THE SETTING FOR THE PICTURE “BOUNTY” WITH MEL GIBSON. THE SECOND NIGHT THERE CAROL, TOM AND MYSELF (DAN WAS NURSING A SORE TOE) WENT TO SHORE AND HAD DINNER AT THE SAME SMALL FRENCH RESTAURANT THAT PAT AND I WITH BOB AND RENEE ATE AT IN 2002. THE LaPATETE MANSION. THE FOOD THIS TIME WAS JUST AS GREAT AS IT WAS BACK THEN. THE NEXT NIGHT WE ALL WENT TO A DINNER AND SAW A TAHITIAN DANCE AT THE FAMOUS BALI HAI HOTEL. CAROL JOINED IN THE DANCING AND WAS THE HIT OF THE NIGHT.


AFTER 3 DAYS AT COOK’S BAY WE MOVE TO OPUNOHU BAY AND ANCHORED AT ITS MOUTH. WHILE THERE WE WENT SNORKLING AND SAW SOME BEAUTIFUL FISH AND A VARIETY OF CORAL. AFTER TWO DAYS WE HAULED ANCHOR AND MOTORED(STILL VERY LITTLE WIND) TO THE ISLAND OF RIATEA 100 MILES NORTHWEST OF MOOREA. MOTORING SLOWLY WE TIED UP AT A DOCK IN THE TOWN UTAROA 24 HOURS LATER.
RIATEA AND THE NEIGHBORING ISLAND OF TAHAA LIE WITHIN THE SAME CORAL REEF. BOTH ISLANDS, AS WITH ALL THE ISLANDS IN FRENCH POLYNESIA, ARE VERY BEAUFTIFUL. AT ONE TIME RAIATEA WAS THE CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS CENTER OF THE SOCIETIES.


WE STAYED ON THE DOCK FOR TWO DAYS, WALKED THE TOWN AND HAD A NICE DINNER AT A CHINESE RESTAURANT. THIS MORNING WE MOVED TO THE WEST SIDE OF THE ISLAND TO A MARINE BOAT YARD. WHEN DAN DOVE ON THE BOTTOM OF THE BOAT IN MOOREA HE DISCOVERED THAT A RUBBER MEMBRANE AROUND THE SAIL DRIVE (PART OF THE MOTOR) WAS COMING LOOSE AND HE FELT THAT WE NEEDED TO SEE IF IT COULD BE REPAIRED. AFTER CONSULTING EXPERTS AT THE YARD, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT IT WAS NOT A SERIOUS PROBLEM. DAN DOVE THE BOAT AGAIN AND REMOVED THE MEMBRANE. HE WILL GET IT REPLACED THE NEXT TIME THE BOAT IS HAULED.


LATER TODAY WE WILL MOVE OVER TO TAHAA AND AFTER VISITING THERE IT IS ON TO BORA BORA.


TILL NEXT TIME TAKE CARE


TED
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About Me

1291 Sanderling Island, Pt. Richmond, CA 94801, United States
Dan and Carol Seifers

Crazy

Crazy Caprice, or what

Like is so good to us. At 65, after 15 years of retirement, my wife, Carol and I have everything one could want Good health (for old folks), loving children ( one son and his wife Jenny is marvelous), wonderful grandchildren (one age 6 and one age 4, who have a remarkable ability to totally exhaust us in about 4 - 6 hours), a good home. Wonderful friends. What more could one want?

Then we were casually cruising in the Delta ( area between Sacramento and San Francisco) last summer with the Richmond Yacht Club Cruising Group. Life was serene, life was comfortable, and then it happened - WHAM - we saw a cruising catamaran tied up at the Rio Vista marina with a sign in the window which listed its adventures. Starting in Australia, across to New Zealand, up to Tahiti, over to Hawaii and on the the West Coast. What an adventure!!! That’s when Carol started thinking about the possibility of buying a new boat (we already had a Gemini 34’ cruising catamaran - life was good). Then sailing in Sydney basin for a few months, then either shipping it to California or sailing it across the South Pacific to California. Is she CRAZY?

That started our CRAZY file.

Over the next few months, she started feeding me articles about Australia, New Zealand, and multihulls. She even subscribed to Multihull magazine and would place various articles about sailing in the South Pacific under my nose while I was reading the morning paper.
She became obcessed. A devil (Tasmanian?) had her. Then around Christmas time, the bug really bit me. We were perfectly happy with our boat, but the idea of getting a new one (with all the new toys) and visiting “down under” seemed very appealling. A friend loaned me all his books on New Zealand and Australia, and the more read, the more I becaume enthralled with the idea