Those are outrigger racing canoes (called pirogues) and the island of Moorea in the distance.

On July 09 we pulled out of Fakarava, bound for Tahiti. It is a 280 nautical mile trip that we made in the company of three other boats – the weather in the Tuamotus was about to change for the windier. However, the forecasted wind didn’t fill in for 24 hours, so after a little slow sailing we fired up the engine for a day until the breeze picked up. When it did, we had a nice sail in 15-20 knots of wind the rest of the way to Tahiti, with a little extra puff into the 30 kt range as we rounded Point Venus at the north end of the island.
It was so great to have a crew on board! We were able to get twice as much sleep compared to when it is just the two of us, not to mention the extra hands on deck and in the galley… although after sitting in the absolutely calm anchorages of the Tuamotus for a couple of weeks the rolling of the open sea needed a little getting used to again and the galley wasn’t where anyone really wanted to be.
Mike also had a milestone birthday while we were en route to Tahiti, but we waited to celebrate it until we were comfortably in port. Thanks to our families for the birthday goodies!