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Free & BrEasy - Pedro the Polar Bear



At 7am the boatyard (TechniMarine in Pappeete, Tahiti) was full of life. Hammers banging, machines screeching, men shouting and dogs barking. What a difference from our beloved Moorea. At 7.30 am precisely, straps were placed under Free & BrEasy and she was lifted out of the water and driven to a new temporary home in the boatyard by a Travel Lift. As well as checking out the rudder this was also an opportunity for a spring clean. We set about de-barnacle-ising, replacing zinc anodes, repainting the antifoul where it was beginning to bleb, removing the black tyre marks from docking in Papeete harbour, regrinding the fittings on the boom which were showing wear. In fact everything was going smoothly except the reason we were there - the rudder! The problem was that there was no problem. The rudder bearings and stock were perfect and we could not get the autohelm to make the funny scrunching noises when the boat was out of the water. Allen, the boat yard manager was perplexed and so were we! All we could do was email the manufacturer for advice and carry on. Roger arranged for the gel coat to have a polish so at least she looked good!

Although the boatyard was very noisy during the day, it suddenly went quiet at 4pm when work stopped. We were enjoying the peace, chatting to a lovely Austrian couple next door (and their very shy cat) who were in for propeller shaft problems, when very loud native drumming erupted very close by and went on for three hours. Nervous that the Tahitians had not lost their taste for human sacrifice, we explored and were amazed to find 50 girls and 50 boys practicing a complex extended dancing routine in a container parking lot next to the boatyard. The drumming was by a 12 piece percussion band that made the percussion section in an orchestra look easy. From memory, the band beat out a fast, intricate, ever changing rhythm with amazing precision, while the dancers kept up with the rhythm, for hours on end. The boys leapt and gesticulated as though they were frightening an enemy while the girls moved their arms and hips with great grace and allure. It turned out they were practicing for the interisland competition called the Heiva which takes place in July. What a fantastic sight that must be!

We took the opportunity to provision as well as skype our wonderful partners and family and were very soon "splashing" back in the water. After refuelling, we set off on our way to Huahine, one of the more unspoilt islands north west of Tahiti. On the way our autopilot scrunch noise returned. It reappears when there is extra load on the rudder if sailing in medium to strong winds. We suspect that there is something affecting the platform on which the autohelm hydraulic ram is bolted but we can't see it! We are still perplexed! After catching and eating our first Wahoo (tastes a bit like cod and definitely not like Tuna), we stopped over night in a beautiful holiday brochure anchorage with sandy beaches, coconut trees and turquoise lagoon but after a quick snorkel we wanted more! Up anchor and off to the next island, Raiatea to get some of the local history.

Raiatea is "the cultural, religious and historic starting point of the Polynesian islands and is "the cradle of the ancestors of the ma'ohi civilisation which is claimed by the Polynesian triangle (Hawai'i, New Zealand ad Easter Island)". We visited the Marae at Taputapuatea where at least three large areas the size of two tennis courts were roughly paved with stones with raised coral rocks at one end for sacrificial alters. We tried to imagine the ancient ceremonies helped by an engraving of a ceremony (including a human sacrifice) witnessed by Captain Cook in 1769. The Marae overlooks the sacred pass through the coral barrier around the island and we could almost see the large ceremonial double sailing canoes coming through the pass to the sound of drums, just like Free and BrEasy, the previous night. We visited the Marae over a public holiday which celebrated the end of the Second World War. All the inhabitants of Taputapuatea were having a beach party playing games and as we left, long tables covered by food were being erected. It was a reminder that even in the South Pacific there was no escape from world events. Something that the locals know well because of the atomic bomb testing that took place in the southern Tuamotu atolls of Moruroa and Fangataufa during the 1960's.

Anchoring in Raiatea proved to be a challenge. The lagoon between the coral barrier and the shore was over 100ft deep but shallowed to coral rocks within a few yards. Poor Roger had two sleepless nights worrying whether the anchor would drag into the abyss and cast us on the rocks. Knowing that Roger had everything under control allowed the rest of the crew to sleep like babes. Thanks Roger!

We have a new crew member called Pedro the Polar Bear. Pedro stowed away on the boat in Panama and has only just come out of hiding! Being a ferocious animal we have been treating him with great respect. Pedro has quickly learnt to sit and likes a cuddle. He is not shy but hates cats. Now we have a Free and BrEasy mascot to look after us and help anchoring. Lets hope Pedro knows something about autohelms!


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