It doesn't seem possible but we have been in the Marquesas Islands for 3 weeks. As a first landfall after 21 days at sea this isn't too bad. Lush green islands with fruit trees everywhere. The native people of the islands could not be nicer. They are always smiling and welcoming you to their village. They have the patience of Job dealing with people like us who know no French and have a hard time with the language. Somehow or another we both figure out what the other wants and we end up with a mutual understanding. You get the point this place is very unique; both the land and the people.
A few days ago a friend wanted to know what it was like seeing land for the first time in 21 days when we arrived in the islands. Out at sea the colors you see are very limited. There are many shades of blue, gray and white. At sundown we have orange, red, yellow, and pink. The one color you don't see is green. When we came in sight of land and we could start to make out the island with its many shades of green that you see and it reminds you how much you have missed that color. When we pulled into the little bay we were headed for I really didn't give much thought to this being the end of 21 days at sea. Those first few minutes we were very focused on getting the anchor set and making the boat ready to stay a while. Barbara was not feeling well so as soon as we got the anchor set she went below and took a nap. I got the deck chairs up on deck, got a cold beer and a cigar and started to think about what we had just accomplished. It was a very special moment. The dream of doing this for so many years was finally being realized. The other thought I had on first seeing the island from about 30 miles out was that I could travel 2,700 miles in this giant ocean and find this little speck of land. Technology is great.
After 3 weeks we are actually getting excited about going back out to sea. Next weekend we will head SW toward the Tuamotu Islands. These islands are about 460 miles SW from the Marquesas and about 200 miles east of Tahiti. In fact they are the largest island chain in French Polynesia.
Since my last update the water maker stopped working again. Spent several days taking it apart and putting it back together. I was able to finally get in touch with the guy who installed it and he told me what was probably wrong. When we get to Tahiti that will be one of the first things that gets worked on. So as far as making water, when we are underway it seems to work and when we sit at anchor it doesn't work. Such is life on a boat. The only other thing that isn't working quite right is our dinghy. 4 days ago a rusty dock ladder put a hole in the side of the dinghy. That's not good because air leaks out. My first attempt at patching the leak would be graded as a C-. When we bring the dinghy back on deck I will start over and try to get the leak stopped. Compared to other boats we are doing quite well in the area of equipment breakdown.
Some observations after joining the cruising community. The boats and crews we met when we arrived in the islands are kind of our cruising pals all the way to New Zealand. Good thing we like most of them. When things break it usually happens along with other stuff at the same time. That phenomenon greatly increases the stress level on our boat, if you know what I mean. Even though we are surrounded by water, fresh water is like gold. When we talk about the water maker going out you might as well be talking about sinking the boat. It is the ultimate stressor. The Milky Way is brilliant here and we watch it every night. Additional information - it runs east to west and you could use it to navigate. The villagers are getting rich off of coconut oil. Who would of thought? The one part of our boat life Barbara and I have not mastered yet is the radio. Our goal in the next month is to learn how all that works. We are really not acceptable members of the cruising society until we master that aspect.
Time to go it is way past my bedtime (9pm). Busy day tomorrow, we move to another bay and village. We really are having the time of our life. Every day is new and rewarding and we look so forward to the next day and what it will bring. Take care land lubbers and we hope your day and week will be as rewarding as ours. "This is Destiny, back to 16."
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