WE MADE LANDFALL
last Wednesday, after 17 days at sea. It was great to see the little hump of land in front of us, right where it should be. It got bigger and bigger, and then we were anchored in a beautiful bay in Hiva Oa, one of the southernmost islands of the Marquesas. We had made it! I learned from a guide book that if you are on a yacht halfway between the Galapagos Islands and the Marquesas, you are farther away from land than on any point on earth. I felt that way many times during our crossing. We flew the spinnaker for at least 9 days, 24 hours a day. It was so nice to look up and see the friendly slippers on our chute dancing in the breeze.
Hiva Oa was a feast for the eyes and the tummy. It is very mountainous, with sharp spires going up into the clouds. The valley is lush and green, with fragrant flowers everywhere. The women put a fresh flower in their hair every morning – on the right if they are available, on the left if they are married. Every tree is laden with fruit – mangoes, papaya, noni and avocados.
The baguettes here are about two feet long. The French government subsidizes bread for the islands, so every morning truck loads of bread get delivered to the stores, gas stations, and tourist sights. It is fresh and hot. This bread delivery is a bit like the manna from Heaven that was delivered to the Israelites in the wilderness. Only enough is delivered for one day’s supply – everyone meanders to the store and buys what they need, knowing that tomorrow there will be more. There is no stocking up or over buying. I kept wondering what the effect of our buying 10 baguettes at once would do to the supply and demand. All stores are closed on Saturday and Sunday, so there is a bit of a frenzy on Friday. If you get to the store too late, the bread is all gone.
We rented a car for a couple of days and went up into the mountains. The roads are not paved, and there is about a 1,000 foot drop right into the ocean. The hairpin curves were pretty exciting, and the mountain goats that we encountered were a lot more adept at navigating than we were. Way up in the mountains is a small village that holds the distinction of having the oldest archaeological site in all of the Marquesas. There are stone Tiki statues and a burial ground that has been there since the 1600s. We also visited the gravesite of Paul Gauguin, the painter, who died here in 1903. It was a very simple grave, as he did not become famous until many years after he died.
We stocked up with what food the small town had to offer, and headed north to the next island. We went snorkeling and Jim speared a few fish. It was a pitiful sight to see him raise his spear from the water and there was a little tiny fish on it; he said they looked a whole lot bigger underwater! We will use them as bait, I guess. Right now they are in a plastic bag in the fridge – staring sadly at me every time I open the door. Snorkeling was great – there were lots of angel fish and even some lion fish – which are highly poisonous, but beautiful – great big wavy, feathery fins floating above them.
We are now in a cove on the island of Ua Pou, about 100 miles north of Hiva Oa. This little bay is surrounded by steep green cliffs, and the island is full of wild goats. We could hear them bleating all night, competing with the waves crashing onto shore. The water here is crystal clear; we are anchored in about 50 feet, and can see all the way to the bottom.
Jim finally caught some skipjack tuna yesterday – after a month of not catching fish – and we had a great dinner last night, plus we had enough left over to make poisson cru – fish “cooked” in lime juice, onion and fresh coconut milk. It will be ready to eat soon. I know I sound very worldly and adventurous, but I probably won’t eat very much!
We are slowly making our way north to Nuku Hiva – the northernmost island of the Marquesas. There, our friend Dave will fly home to Hawaii. He’s been great to have aboard, and has taught us a lot about vegetarian cooking, botany, and has entertained us with some pretty tall tales. The four Rards plan to hang out in Nuku Hiva for a couple of weeks and do some exploring, boat maintenance and serious school work – we really need to catch up.
We have yet to find an internet café where we can download some pictures onto this website. Maybe in Nuku Hiva. Happy Easter and happy spring to all of you!