06/08/2007, Fakarava, Iles Tuamotu, French Polynesia
Diving, fishing, and a few boat projects thrown in - what a life! I may stay an extra day if there is a barbecue on the beach tomorrow. Otherwise, I will leave in the AM for Papeete.
|
Comments [0]
06/07/2007, Fakarava, Iles Tuamotu, French Polynesia
This afternoon my Chilean friends on "Patagonia" and I went scuba diving at the lagoon entrance. The visibility was at least 100 ft. and we saw over 100 gray sharks between 4 and 8 ft in length. They don't seem to notice us except for the occasional curious one that comes over to take a closer look. But look is all they do, fortunately, and at a very safe distance.
All else is well. This is one of my favorite places so far.
|
06/06/2007, Fakarava, Iles Tuamotu, French Polynesia
This morning I fly fished for about 6 hours. There were no bonefish to be found but I hooked and lost some bluefin trevally. They are hard fighters and when they run through the coral the line often breaks. Tonight I will be working on my tackle. All else is well. There are now 7 boats in the anchorage, mostly people I know.
|
06/05/2007, Fakarava, Iles Tuamotu, French Polynesia
Today I completed the trip to the south end of Fakarava Atoll and anchored with five other boats near the abandoned village of Tetamanu. Shortly after arrival I joined the crew of another boar to do a drift snorkel trip through the south entrance to the lagoon during incoming (flood) current. The visibility was over 100 ft. All we had to do was hang on to ropes from the inflatable and let the current take us into the lagoon. There were a couple of huge manta rays swimming below us and a school of about 12 gray sharks just within sight. What a remarkable trip!
Tomorrow I will explore the old village and do another snorkel trip. I am still looking for bonefish but the prospects here do not look so good.
|
06/04/2007, Fakarava, Iles Tuamotu, French Polynesia
The supply ship did not arrive today as of 2 PM so I decided to weigh anchor and head to the south end of the atoll for a few days of diving, fishing and exploring. Lagoon travel is usually a nail biter because of the numerous "bombies" or coral heads that get in the way. Fakarava, however, has a well-marked channel from one end to the other on the eastern, protected side of the atoll. This makes travel much easier. Today I motored 16 miles which is half way to the south end and set the anchor just before sunset. Tomorrow I will finish the trip to the south unless I find bonefish nearby.
I found a fabulous French restaurant on a side street in the village this morning and had a superb lunch there with friends. There is a fair bit of tourism on this atoll and there are numerous pensions and dive lodges. All else is well onboard.
|
06/03/2007, Fakarava, Iles Tuamotu, French Polynesia
High winds today prevented us from diving at the lagoon entrance so, instead, we dove on a reef just inside the pass. No hammerheads were seen, just the usual gray and black-tip reef sharks. The coral gardens were exceptionally healthy and vibrant and the variety of fish life was stunning. I saw many species I had never seen before including garden eels and napolean fish. The visibility was about 50 ft. which is less than normal here because the wind has been stirring up the sand. All-in-all a very good dive.
Tomorrow the supply ship arrives and with it the possibility of fresh vegetables. We will see. In the afternoon I will head down to the southern end of the island where the diving and snorkeling are said to be fantastic.
|
