Chapter 153: Paradise in Polynesia

Cruising in the Tuamotu islands has been magical.  While the sailing in and out of passes is nerve wracking, each and every island has been worth the worry. We now understand why some cruisers opt for a long stay visa and remain for a year! We have visited Raroia, Makemo, Fakarava, and on Monday of this week we sailed to Toau. The previous three atolls, while varying in size, were all inhabited and had some access to supplies and services.  Toau does not and it is truly stunning to see the beauty of a place that is mostly uninhabited. God’s creation is awe inspiring in every view. The experience we are having here makes all the prior boat work and stress all finally seem worth it.  Paradise in Polynesia, this is the “why” for our journey aboard Meraviglia.

Toau is 22 miles long and 11 miles wide. The main village of Maragai is abandoned but there are several huts in place to the east of the main pass that locals from Fakarava maintain to visit for pearl farming and copra production.  While we have been here we have not seen anyone visit to utilize them.  We are currently on a mooring ball along with three other boats in the southeast corner of the atoll. On the northeast corner, there is a “false pass” or “blind bay” where the only island residents live.  They are a couple and their family who have installed mooring balls in the bay that cruisers may use for a small fee.  The couple makes their living through pearl farming, fishing, and serving cruisers meals as well as providing a local experience for their visitors. There are no supply ships that visit the island, so they must source everything on the island or travel by boat to Fakarava. It is hard to imagine living in a place and being the only family there with no access to supplies, health care, or schools even when it is a place of beauty.

The water here is truly stunning.  It is so clear and so many shades of blue visible from the mooring field.  In one direction you look towards the center of the lagoon and it is dark blue.  If you look towards shore, you see the progression of dark to light blue as it shallows and reaches the sand.  Looking out towards the eastern edge there are no trees or sand, only coral and the fringing reef so you can see the waves breaking from the ocean beyond with shades of blues and greens. We have gone exploring with our faithful dinghy, Piccola and did some drift snorkeling out near the reef edge.  The corals are beautiful, with some vibrant shades of purple below.  There are also more giant clams that add so many different colors from blues, to greens, to purples.  Finally, the fish bring more splashes of colors with vibrant yellows, blues, blacks, and greens.  We have seen parrotfish, different varieties of tangs, angelfish, butterflyfish, wrasse, and chromis just to name a few. We saw a chinese trumpetfish which is quite different in appearance!  We have also seen the largest barracuda we have ever viewed under our buddy boat, S/V Fortuna!

There are many beach spots to choose from to spend a few hours.  We spent a very peaceful morning in the shade of a palm tree enjoying the quiet and zen of the island. We also had a fun evening bonfire on the beach with our friends from S/V Fortuna plus many hermit crabs and a random chicken! There are many options and not enough time to enjoy them all. We can see why people stop here and then find it hard to leave. We hope to visit one more atoll before we need to head to Tahiti so we will likely leave here by the weekend for Rangiroa but we will for sure be very sad to leave.

We need to be in Tahiti around the weekend of the 17th so we can prepare to leave Meraviglia for a short trip back to the states for our nephew’s wedding.  It will be fabulous to see our family and celebrate Ben and Tatyana. Once back in Tahiti, then it will be decision time once again. Our visa for French Polynesia will be over at the end of June so it will be time to continue west.  We hope to visit some of the islands around Bora Bora before our departure but it will all depend on weather and timing.  Then we need to decide whether to head to the Cook Islands, Tonga, Fiji, or Samoa.  To be continued as we explore our options!