3rd Times a charm.....Ua Huka

Hello Everyone,

We are now anchored on Ua Huka at 8'55 S and 139'32 W in a bay called Haavei and I am wearing long pants and a sweatshirt with my hood up.! We left Tauhata on Wednesday afternoon after a fun filled morning of walking the beach, boogie boarding and snorkeling. That bay was amazing and in Hindsight I would have loved to stay and play there for a few more days. Steven was always there to help and watch over the kids. He also would gather little shells for them and bring fruit off the trees for little after swimming treats. He was quite that host and we should have known, he is Pifa O'Connor's cousin from Hiva Oa. It must run in the family, this generosity and welcome spirit they have. It is just beautiful and they really show the spirit of the Polynesian soul. We had come into that anchorage 2 nights before and I had mentioned how he had brought the wild pig meat out to our boat... The next day we woke up to torrential down pour rain .... ALL DAY! It was to the point that the kids were actually taking shampoo and were able to get a complete fresh water shower out on the deck. It was really fun to have a full day of rain and everything got a great wash down... This made the next morning extra special with the beautiful sunshine and clear turquoise waters to swim in.

Anyway we are on somewhat of a schedule and in order for us to enjoy the Tuamotus for the month that we would like we needed to move along. We went back up to the north side of Hiva Oa to an anchorage that was suppose to have a wonderful river to swim and play in.... except... Duh! When we got in the bay it looked like a huge mud puddle. Of course with all the rain the day before the river was overflowing with mud into the bay and debris was floating by... UGH>>> I was so disappointed that we left our beautiful beach for this. Well we couldn't go back so we hunkered down and made the best of it and got a good night sleep for our next venture of 60 miles over to the Island of Ua Huka. It was a really windy and bumpy ride over... again I feel so bummed that I have lost my sea legs. As it turned out Tristan, Mykaela and Alina and I all ended up taking Stugeron. The seas as the French say are Mer agitee... seas are agitated...and about 6 foot swells. UGH... The good news is that the wind was behind us and so were the seas so at least it was a decent, none banging ride over... we flew across averaging 9 knots. When we got to Ua Huka, the first anchorage we approached is Hane Bay, this is the one that they say is so beautiful.... it has a small maritime museum, church, and a small village to explore. We got in there and the swells were so big that we decided to move onto the next anchorage. The second bay which is 2.3 miles east is Vaipaee Bay. This bay is called the invisible bay because it is so hard to see from the ocean. There is a very narrow channel of 200 meters wide with swells crashing the rocks on both sides... you literally feel like you are riding the waves into the bay. So we thought this would be a protected anchorage. Well we got in there and the bay is so narrow... and shallow, and there was already another boat in there that when we dropped our anchor we couldn't get a solid bite. The other boat said they had to put 2 bow anchors out and they were pretty much taking up the channel so we decided to move onto the next bay...

Okay so I said 3rd time is the charm. We moved around to the 3rd and last chance to anchor bay and struck gold. We were escorted into the bay by a large school of dolphins and dropped anchor. Granted it is still blowing 15 knots with 20 knot gusts of wind in here but it is a completely sandy bottom, clear water, and a beautiful sand beach filled with huge crabs for amaia to chase. Did I mention the perfect boogie boarding waves. We have a stern anchor out because there is still pretty good swell coming through so it keeps out boat facing the waves and makes it pretty comfortable. This bay is called Haavei Bay and is a privately owned bay by the Lichtle Family. We decided to go ashore and check things out so we loaded up the kids and 5 boogie boards in the dinghy and decided to get a little closer to the beach and throw the anchor in and swim to shore... we were all enjoying the beach, Tristan was boogie boarding with chris. Amaia, Alina and Alexia were building things and playing in the sand. Mykaela and I went for a walk down the beach, on our way back I look up at the dinghy and it had drug the anchor and now our 11 foot dinghy was getting tossed up in the waves and almost getting flipped, Chris had to abandon the board and swim out to the dinghy and then take it back to the boat. He decided to leave it tied up to the Circus Tent and then we would just swim back. Granted it isn't that far... maybe 200 meters but with the 4ft swells that were coming our way it was going to be a challenge for Alina and Amaia to make it back.... Of course they love a challenge and are total surf babes and not only did they meet the surf like a pro and were catching all the waves but when it was time to get back they did it all by them selves and kept up with the big kids.

Depending on the wind conditions tomorrow we will decide if we stay or if we go. This bay is not only beautiful but it is also known to be the home of giant manta rays that you can swim with.... if the waters weren't so stirred it would be amazing if we could see them. If it is really windy still tomorrow I think we will head the 23 miles to Nuka Hiva and check out that island. This is suppose to be the most populated and the capital of the Marquesan Islands so hopefully we will get to reporvision, get on the internet and upload some pictures and maybe go see some more archeological sites, ride some horses and play on more beaches... oh yes.... and get caught up on school work.

All is grand, everyone is healthy, and hoping that you all are enjoying some sunsets of your own....

Hugs and love to everyone..

Heather

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