Well, we are still in Nuku Hiva waiting for boat parts to arrive as we need to make repairs before heading off to the next destination. Our alternator broke about 30 minutes before making landfall and we can't charge batteries. The alternator was sent to Taihiti for repair, but we still weren't able to charge batteries. We are waiting for a new voltage regulator to arrive. Which means all unnecessary items needed to be turned off to save power. So for the past month we have been without a freezer or refridgerator. I tried to save some frozen items by canning butter and cheese and pickling some frozen vegetables, but it's hard to can on a boat when you are trying to save water and rocking.

Luckly, the cruiser community has been amazing and we have been borrowing a generator to charge the batteries for the past three weeks. We do have the solar panels and the wind generator, but the freezer/refridgerator use more energy than we can charge in a day.

Of course there is a list of additional items that need to be repaired such as the the tangs of the port/starboard lower shrouds. Those broke and we had to have new tangs fabricated in Taihiti. But such is life of a cruiser. There is always something to fix or clean.

However, if you have to be stuck somewhere waiting for boat parts, Nuku Hiva is a pretty awesome place to be stuck. The wildlife and scenery are amazing. We have manta rays, hammerhead sharks and Tuna feeding in the bay on most days. One day we had six large (6ft) manta rays feeding around the boat for hours. The days are usually sunny with cool nights and if it rains, you see the most amazing waterfalls coming down the valley.

There are several small grocery stores (think 7-11 size) for canned goods and a good farmers market close to the harbor. French bread is made daily and sold in the grocery stores. Canned goods get delivered via boat about once a week and everyone is very aware of when the boat comes in. If you see something in the store that looks good, you have to grab it otherwise it's gone. I have been waiting a month for black beans to get restocked in the store. There is a small fishing fleet here, but David and I haven't eaten fresh fish here yet as we need to stay away from certain kinds of reef fish due to toxins. David and I have eaten more canned fish here than anything. Prices are high, but comparable to the Hawaiian Islands.

The town is small and from what we understand only received paved roads in the last 14 years. There are no stoplights here and I can't remember seeing a stop sign. Some people ride horses instead of driving cars. There are hitching posts everywhere and you can tell that there is a definite relationship between horse and rider.

Polynesian drumming can usually be heard from shore several nights a week as the local population practices for the visiting cruise ships. Other nights we can hear the radio turned up high as locals hang out by the beach or at the harbor and listen to french techno music. Music is a big here.

In some ways we have been quite lucky to be stuck in Nuku Hiva. Unfortunately, our visas are only good for 90 days. We need to get going as we have to make a delivery to Ahe Atoll in the Teamotus before heading to Tahiti. I am starting to put together my grocery list for provisioning. It will be a 7 day passage to the Teamotus and another 7 days to Tahiti from there.

In the meantime, we sending prayers all of our friends in Hawaii as hurricane Lane approaches. Stay safe!