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American Spirit II - Day 114: The Car Tour thru the Clouds and 20 Waterfalls; Sunday, April 27, 2014



Paul and David were early (6:30 AM) risers. Breakfast at 8:00 AM was special in that besides eggs, we had bacon for the first time on our trip. Along with French bread, of course.



Around 9:00 AM we departed for our 4 wheeled drive around the island, looking for the road that would take us to the top of Tahiti's highest mountain, at 7,340 feet. The highest mountain in French Polynesia. We looked for this road first alongside the west side of Tahiti, but after a half dozen forays down dead end roads, we opted to drive to the east side of the island to find the road. We found it; and it even had a sign pointing to the direction we needed to go in. This road started out paved, then paved with a lot of pot holes, then dirt and gravel, and finally rutted with 12 inches of grass growing between the tire ruts. And warning signs after warning signs, about the 15% inclines; falling rocks; and a narrow bridge that was so narrow that only one car could traverse it at a time. And it had a weight limit of 3 tons, so you didn't want another car on the bridge with you at the same time. That wasn't a problem because there was no traffic jam where we were going. Two hours and 20 kilometers into the interior, we came upon a hotel/restaurant on a mountain top. We stopped for coffee and a breathtaking view of the mountains surrounding the hotel. It is so far off the beaten path that it seems impossible that they would ever have 100% occupancy. The hotel name was La Maroto.



Back to the warning signs. One warning sign had 4 warning symbols on it, including falling rocks and and exclamation point; and the words 'Piste Dangereuse; Access Aux Risques It Perils Des Utilisateurs.'



At one point we came head to head with another vehicle and only managed to clear each other by 2 inches. With a 2,000 foot drop to our right, there was no margin for error. Paul, in one of his brighter moments, got out of our car to help 'direct' us by each other. Later he admitted that he got out primarily because he didn't want to be in the car if we fell off the mountain.



During this journey we saw 20 or more waterfalls, and drove across two spillways associated to some sort of dam and hydro electric power generation. One of the spillways had colored concrete blocks 18 inches above the roadway so you could see where the road was in the event that water obstructed you view of where to go.



Some of our travel on this road was in the clouds. Because the road kept getting more dangerous, we finally decided to call it quits, turn around, and head back. But even that was not easy as there was no place to turn around. Picture a single lane road with weeds growing up 3 feet along the road. No shoulder. We emptied out the car and before I would back up or pull forward, Joel, Paul or David would stand in the tall grass first to make sure that the ground was solid enough to support the vehicle.



Once back on the road around the island, we headed north toward Papeete. Along the way we stopped at Venus Point, where Captain Cook had landed over 200 years before; which was also the same location that the first missionaries to French Polynesia had landed and where the Bounty had also anchored. We also saw dozens of surfers in the water, even as late as 5:00 PM, with darkness only 1 hour away. What was interesting was that half of the surfers were using boogie boards, and most of those on surf boards were standing up using paddle boards to paddle out to the next wave. No wonder that surfing is French Polynesian's second largest sport.



Back at the boat at 5:30 PM; then David and I had to drive back to the airport to drop off the car; then take a taxi back to the marina.



We ate dinner in the marina restaurant, then back at the boat to go thru 162 emails on AOL and get the Passage Weather Forecast.



Brian Fox


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