May 1 - Ua-Huka and Nuku Hiva
02 May 2014 | 08 52.75'S:140 03.00'W, Comptroller's Bay, Marqueasas
Colin
From the island of Tahuata in the southern Marquesas, we made the 60 mile passage to Ua-Huka in the northern group. With 15-20 kts on the beam, we had a pretty fast passage and set anchor in Hane Bay in less than 10 hrs. This proved to be a windy anchorage with gusts over 30 kts occasionally deflected into the anchorage by a very large, fin shaped offshore rock. But we met some nice people here and I scored a very cool carved war club; which I desperately needed to have. We explored by dinghy the neighboring small anchorage: Baie Hokatu, but it was too rough. We also poked Bangorang�'s nose into a long skinny bay called Baie Vaipaee, where you could literally tie off to either wall of the vertical canyon. In fact there were bollards set in the rock for the supply ship. We decided to press on for the island of Nuku Hiva 30 miles to the west. Again, we had a great reaching breeze, so with just the spinnaker up, we dashed across in about 4 hrs. On the north shore of Nuka Hiva we anchored in a very sheltered and highly recommended anchorage called Anaho Bay with a half dozen other cruising boats. After a walk ashore, where there wasn�'t much to see, it rained and got buggy. Next day we moved to an adjacent anchorage reported to be �"rolly�" called Hatiheu Bay which was deserted and lovely. Unfortunately, the swell precluded our landing on the wharf to see the town, so we had to settle for a high speed dinghy fly-by with the GoPro. Hopefully, that video will come out. Today we sailed down the east side of Nuka Hiva against a striking backdrop of jagged cliff face and took a very sheltered anchorage in Comptroller�'s Bay. After a pretty hike ashore, we took a dinghy tour of a neighboring bay and nearly ran over a school of giant manta rays just below the surface. Some of these things were nearly the size of our dinghy! Sorry no pics. We hope to be in the �"big�" town of Taiohae in a few days to refuel, provision and maybe find internet! Mo re pics then.