08/06/2007, Penrhyn Atoll, Northern Cook Islands
The Cook Islanders today celebrated their independence from I don't know whom. They say they are self-governing but they are all citizens of New Zealand and carry New Zealand passports. There are only 10,000 of them living in the 15 islands but over 250,000 living in N.Z. There is very little economic opportunity in the Cook Islands so many of them just pack up and move to Auckland, especially the kids.
There was a parade today in Omoka, the main settlement on Penrhyn. I think there were two floats entered in a contest and some young kids marching. We missed the parade but showed up for the barbecue and hung around for about an hour waiting for the food to be cooked but no one was in a hurry so we packed up and returned to the pearl farm.
Another boat arrived this morning, my friends Larry and Trinda of "Katie Lee" out of Seattle. They remained anchored outside of the pass because of high winds in the lagoon. Let's hope the weather settles tomorrow as I would like to do a little more bonefishing.
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08/05/2007, Penrhyn Atoll, Northern Cook Islands
The church law and local custom here dictates that Sunday is a day of rest and worship. Operation of any mechanical equipment or doing work of any kind is strictly forbidden. This includes visitors and residents alike. I broke the law and worked on my windvane autopilot for most of the day but was not within sight of the village so I don't think it counts. For my penance though, I will voluntarily take two days off work next week.
For dinner I make up a batch of brother Jim's Gut Wrenching Bean Soup and served it up to Mike and his fishing guide Ba'a. They enjoyed it very much but I find I am reaching for the Pepto Bismol. Must have eaten too much.
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08/04/2007, Penrhyn Atoll, Northern Cook Islands
The never-ending search for bonefish nirvana was dealt a setback today. Although I had great expectations, eight hours on the flats produced no fish to the hand and only a half dozen or so to the eye. Either I am losing my ability to spot fish or they are not around. Maybe a combination of both. The moon is waning so perhaps that will have some effect and bring them back up on the flats. Regardless, the scenery is beautiful and the wading good exercise. I will rest the waters tomorrow and turn my attention back to boat projects. We will see how the weather is on Monday.
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08/03/2007, Penrhyn Atoll, Northern Cook Islands
The big excitement in Penrhyn today was the arrival of a small French Navy boat on a goodwill tour through the Pacific islands. The whole town was out to see them come in to the harbor. That's about all I have to report for now. The weather has been very nice, not too hot except for a few hours in the afternoon. I've been working on boat projects so that tomorrow I can go bonefishing without a guilty conscience.
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08/02/2007, Penrhyn Atoll, Northern Cook Islands
The wind was calm today making it an ideal time to cast a fly to some bonefish. The only thing missing was the bonefish. One of Mike's guides and I spent most of the day hunting for fish on sand flats at the far end of the atoll. We spotted perhaps a dozen bones but I managed to hook only one which quickly broke the line. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed walking the flats and taking in the incredible scenery. Tomorrow will be a day off from fishing and a resumption of boat projects.
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08/01/2007, Penrhyn Atoll, Northern Cook Islands
This morning Mike politely asked if I would mind rescheduling today's bonefishing because of his preoccupation with harvesting pearls from some 800 oysters. His guides were also tied up with this activity. Although I was anxious to fish, and not allowed by local law to fish by myself, I acquiesced and decided to learn all I wanted to know about pearl farming. This was not difficult, not because there is not great deal to know in this rather technically complex and high risk type of venture, but because of my lack of interest. In fact I was more interested in knowing how the oyster meat would taste if properly prepared.
All the pearls harvested were of rather low value, as expected, because of conditions present when the oysters were seeded. This was actually part of the process of shutting down the farm. Mike reports having spent millions of dollars over the past 10 years with only marginal success in the business. Farms throughout the Cook Islands are closing. It seems only the Tahitians are sufficiently organized, technically advanced and financed to have a prosperous industry.
Tomorrow I hope to bonefish.
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