It's early Saturday morning and today will likely be our last day in the Tuamotu's. We arrived Rangaroa at dawn yesterday and were fortunate to arrive just at slack tide which made entry into the atoll very easy. As expected we found quite a few Rally boats already here and saw many of our friends when everyone was ashore. BEATOO departed for Tahiti just after noon, they had slammed into a coral reef several days ago while entering an atoll with a strong flood current and severely damaged their rudder. They made temporary repairs which seem to be holding up well but are anxious to reach Papeete to have a new rudder fitted. BRONWYN offered to sail with BEATOO for the 195 mile passage in case there were further problems with the jury-rig rudder.
Rangaroa has the largest population of any atoll in the Tuamotu's and has the most onshore services. After a simple but good lunch at a restaurant near the dinghy dock we found an ATM and also fuel for our dinghy motor. In the afternoon we moved east to a different anchorage which is directly opposite another luxury resort. Over-the-water, thatched roof bungalows are a very popular type of resort accommodation here and the girls want us to stay in one of these resorts at least once before departing French Polynesia. We went ashore for cocktails and dinner and saw everyone from JUBA, Mr BLUES and of course, the girls from SAMSARA! While the adults enjoyed their drinks the girls scoured the beach for hermit crabs.
We were given a recommendation for a snorkelling site nearby which is nicknamed "the aquarium" because of the abundance of tropical fish. Our goal for today is to go snorkelling, perhaps buy some additional black pearl jewelry, and then depart on the slack tide for the two day sail to Tahiti.
BRIZO Crew