Day 20 - Landfall is Alaska??
17 April 2016 | 9 48.18'S:139 01.83'W, Atuona, Hiva Oa, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia
Mark
Days at sea completed: 19 days, 19 hours
Distance sailed in the last 24 hours (nm): 102 Distance sailed total (nm): 2756 Distance to go until French Polynesia, as the crow flies (nm): 0
Wind Speed & Direction (knots): calm Waves (ft): calm
--- See the map on our blog for our current location---
Well we finally made it!
It was before dawn that we closed on Hiva Oa. We could see the island looming in the darkness and we were looking forward to dawn showing it in all its Polynesian glory. But, mother nature had other plans, shortly before daybreak, about five miles from our anchorage in Atuona, we were overtaken by a large rain squall. Instead basking in brilliant sunshine, we were engulfed by 25 knots of wind and torrential rain. Gee, mom nature, thanks for the welcome! I had to heave to for an hour until the visibility got above zero. It's no fun crashing into an island that you can't see.
As the sky lightened, we could see the island in the gray, gray gloom. At first, it looked no different than a rainy BC winter day with low cloud, drizzle, and minimal visibility. It wasn't the landfall that we expected!
But, as fast as the rain squall caught us, it departed again letting us see infinite shades of green in the cliffs facing us.
Yes, it was wet, and still is. But, it is also magnificent and smells like all kinds of flowers.
We are now anchored in Atuona, our port of entry. We'll clear into French Polynesia and then likely move on in short order. The anchorage, although handy, is vey crowded & muddy due to all the rain. The guide books advises not to swim here "due to the large shark population."
We hope that you enjoyed our daily blog posts while we were under passage. It was great for us to be able to share our passage with you. Your comments kept us company while underway and were a highlight of our day!
Now, we will return you to our less frequent, regular blog schedule.
Maeve Hiva Oa (Welcome to Hiva Oa)