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Day 118; Sailing to Raiatea, Entered thru Pass1, 2014e Iriru and on a Mooring Buoy in Baia Foaroa; Thursday, May



Woke up at 1:30 AM. David talking to Joel in the cockpit woke me as I had my ceiling hatch open to let in some air. Woke up again at 4:30 AM, went to cockpit, checked chart plotter, then went back to bed. Paul and David were fine.



Up for my watch at 6:00 AM; and sighted land, Huahine, at 6:14 AM. On starboard bow, 21 miles out, mountains rising out of the sea. Cloudy. Lousy sunrise. Seas were 6 to 8 feet and sloppy, and the wind was 16 to 20 knots from behind. A lousy direction as the jib kept collapsing and popping. Chilly. A cold front. First one we've had since the 2 gales when leaving Florida last January. Wind howling in the rigging. 5.5 knots boat speed. Rain showers to starboard.



Jibed jib from port to starboard at 7:05 AM; and jibed back at 8:03 AM. Decided to head to Raiatea and Tahaa, both islands connected by the same reef system; instead of Huahine due to boat speed (slow) and the fact that the weather was lousy. Turned engine on at 8:10 AM due to slow speed (4.5 knots). Speed increased from 4.5 to 6.5 knots at 1,600 RPM's. 100% cloudy now.



Entered Iriru Pass at 2:00 PM, a couple of hours ahead of Folie a Deux. Wide pass, with motu (islands) on each side. Really deep pass, at over 125 feet. Like most passes in French Polynesia, breakers on both sides of the pass. You get used to it; but you always respect it. A catamaran was anchored behind the island to the south in shallow water, so we checked it out and decided that the location wasn't safe enough for us to anchor. Called Folie a Deux and Tracy advised us that there were 'old' Sunsail mooring buoys in Baie Foaroa. We headed there, found a spare mooring buoy, thru a 'loop' over it, and settled in. Water depth 86 feet, so grabbing a mooring buoy saved us from anchoring in really deep water. Folie a Deux arrived about 2 hours later and moored on a buoy near us.



From 4:30 PM to 7:30 PM David and I both zonked out. After waking up I fixed dinner. Blackened chicken legs cooked on the grill by Chef Joel (spices added by yours truly); egg rolls cooked at 400 degrees in the galley oven; and of course, French bread with New Zealand butter in a can. I hadn't mentioned this before, but the canned butter from New Zealand is to die for. Sweetest butter I've ever tasted. Addictive.



After dinner Joel, David and I watched the 2nd half of the John Wayne movie The Searchers. Paul went to the V-Berth to read. Seen the movie too many times before. In the movie John Wane and his nephew (Tab Hunter?) spend 5 years searching for a young girl kidnapped by an Indian name Scar. The young girl is played by Natalie Wood. The cinematography is stupendous. Directed by John Ford, the best director of westerns who ever lived. One of the best westerns ever made. Filmed in Monument Valley. Young people should watch this movie. A lot to learn about life in the West, life, persistence, commitment, family, and yes, even love. I can't believe I typed that. But its true. The young nephew gets the girl in the end. Great ending. Watch it.



FYI: One day overnighters are easy because they're short; but exhausting because your body doesn't have time to get into a new routine over one night. So you're always tired after an overnighter. Reason David and I napped for 3 hours before dinner. Your body adjusts after the first night.



Lights out at 11:00 PM.



Brian Fox

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