SV Panta Rhei Retirement Trip

Vessel Name: Panta Rhei
Vessel Make/Model: Able Apogee 50
Hailing Port: Seattle
Crew: Larry and Karen
Social:
18 September 2017 | Seattle
23 August 2017 | Prince Rupert
15 August 2017 | Anan Bear Observatory
19 July 2017 | Petersburg, AK
17 June 2017 | Hoonah, AK
03 June 2017 | Seward AK
03 June 2017 | Denali
25 April 2017 | Seward AK
23 March 2017 | Seward, AK
11 March 2017 | Seward, AK
23 January 2017 | Seward AK
06 December 2016 | Seward AK
12 November 2016 | Seward Alaska
14 October 2016 | Valdez, AK
21 September 2016
05 August 2016 | Seward, AK
26 July 2016 | Whittier, AK
19 July 2016 | Valdez, Alaska
05 July 2016 | Seward, Alaska
Recent Blog Posts
18 September 2017 | Seattle

We are back in Seattle

It feels like home. Of course we are not in Silshole. Maybe we will be, someday, but there is a list and we are on it. In the meantime we are at Bainbridge Island Marina.

23 August 2017 | Prince Rupert

The dinghy holds air again

It wasn't very nice of the bear to tear the fabric across a seam. We were worried that we couldn't patch it but tried anyway. The glue had a job to do and it did it!

15 August 2017 | Anan Bear Observatory

A Grizzly Bear damaged our dinghy

We were visiting the Anan Bear Observatory south of Wrangell. It is one of the best places to visit in all of SE Alaska BECAUSE it has bears. But (as we learned) there is a dark side to this bear concentration. And of course, there is a story to tell.

19 July 2017 | Petersburg, AK

Moving On

"No matter where you go, there you are" (unknown reference). By now we have been there and done that. Most recently that included Cannery Cove on Admiralty Island. The photo shows the quiet grandeur of the setting with Ron and Suzie's boat SV Tango in the foreground. It has been like that for the last [...]

17 June 2017 | Hoonah, AK

We are in Hoonah, SE Alaska now

We got something resembling a high pressure ridge so we moved expeditously across the Gulf of Alaska. The crossing took three days and weather stayed as forecast. That was a very good thing. The weather changes in the far north far more rapidly and dramatically than we ever experienced in the more southern [...]

03 June 2017 | Seward AK

Crossing the Gulf of Alaska

We are still in Seward, AK. Now that spring has come, why not start south?

Drift Snorkeling

10 July 2012 | Anchored at Tahaa, French Polynesia
Larry Nelson
Somewhere in this blog of the South Pacific there HAS to be colorful fish and coral. Well, today's the day!

We've anchored on the west side of Tahaa. There are a couple motu's known for the coral and colorful fish in the pass between them. The drill is to take the dinghy ashore and walk up island. Then you wade into the shallow pass and drift through coral canyons filled with fish and eels. The current carries you back to your dinghy. We took bread along to feed the fish. They swarm you even if the bread is left in its plastic bag and they cannot eat it. The fish are colorful. Unfortunately much of the coral is dead. It has been degrading markedly since our friends last dived it 8 years ago. It's still beautiful, but that beauty is a fraction of what it once was. The water here is crystal clear and warm. The wind even cooperated and calmed down to a manageable level.

We visited the Le Taha'a Island Resort and Spa and made reservations for dinner. This resort is on the Motu next to the drift dive. It's a spectacular resort featuring the bungalows over the water and palm trees and an infinity swimming pool. The resort security came to send us away but rescinded their request after they learned we had reservations for dinner. It is a beautifully built resort and beautifully lit at night. They make it easy to spend lots of money.

The dinner doesn't start until 7 pm which is well after dark. We had anchored our yachts on the island side of the lagoon to get shelter from the forecast winds and to get better holding than was available among the coral bommies, so we had a night crossing of the lagoon to accomplish after dinner. That is a dark place to take a small dinghy. Fortunately the wind abated and the crossing wasn't too hard. dinghies are pretty seaworthy, but they are only seaworthy FOR A SMALL BOAT. And they are very small. There is also the issue of getting wet if there are waves. We were both "dressed up" for the night out. Karen wore her new dress that Katie Sizer brought her. She is especially beautiful in that dress. A smarter captain would have arranged for a local boat for transit across the lagoon. As it was, it worked out fine. If you have luck, you don't need brains.

The picture is taken outside the reef near the entrance to Bora Bora.
Comments

About & Links