We moved from Taiohae to Anoha Bay on the north of the island to avoid an increasing swell which would make the town’s anchorage untenable. Once again we were overwhelmed with the spectacular natural beauty of our surroundings. On arrival we jumped in to snorkel on the nearby reef and were disappointed to find the water was full of plankton (good for manta rays but bad for visibility). As I reached the shallow coral I looked down to see a reef shark dart underneath me from behind. I continued on but couldn’t clear my mind of the shark feeding frenzy I had seen off the quay in Taoihae, capitulated and swam back to Spiip.
On Tuesday night we prepared to start our 550 mile passage to the next island chain. We were ready and relaxed as we started to store the dinghy in the tender locker but that mood quickly changed as it sprang off its prong on the end of the boom and started flying about wildly, crashing along the hull. Before we got it under control it had bent a stainless steel stanchion on one swing and the outboard had taken a chunk out of the side of the boat near a porthole (lucky it didn’t hit the glass)on another. The aluminium was dented on one of the dinghy’s pontoons, an engine winglet was dislocated and the propeller irrevocably damaged. More repairs for poor Robin to tackle.
After dinner we set off from the dead calm of Anoha Bay and found ourselves suddenly in 4 to 5 metre waves and a howling 30 knots of wind. We had an uncomfortable time rounding the island until we could get on to a more favourable course. Somewhere in the midst of all this, the cups for the wind indicator came off the top of the mast and we were left with only direction, no true or apparent wind speed. Boats!
