S/V Halley

  17 43.271 S 140 42.366 W We are hunkered down for a big storm passing over the next few days. Super windy and rainy. Thank goodness, the anchor seems to be holding. We have winds consistently above 35-40 knots and have seen gusts up to 63 knots (32 m/s or 72 mph). But we are dry and warm and glad not to be out on the open ocean. We are anchored in the lagoon of the Amanu atoll in the Tuamotus in French Polynesia. We have a tiny strip of land, or really coral with some palm trees, between us and the big waves. Circa 0.2 nautical miles (370 meters or 1200 feet). It’s not much but it is enough!

16 39.312 S 143 23.511 W Halley is back on the water. We took a 2 month land break and returned to the boat after Thanksgiving. It does feel like home-sweet-home. No wonder really - we are now into our 4th year as full-time cruisers. It’s our “back to normal”, as crazy as that sounds. The time on land was really nice though. Great to see friends and family. Sixten and Lauren were married and we are so happy for them. After the wedding, we drove out to Montana and spent 7 weeks at the Heekin ranch. We saw early fall progress into winter. Lots of hiking, friends and kids visiting, cozy evenings by the fireplace, grizzly bears by the kitchen window, elk in the meadow, etc. It’s an incredible place. And funny how it’s so different from our boat life, yet so similar - nature and solitude. We spent Christmas and New Year’s on the Fakarava atoll in the Tuamotus island group. It’s our first Christmas away from the kids, but we had a nice time with other cruisers we’ve gotten to know. Fakarava ...

15 33.634 S 146 14.481 W After 5 months away from anything remotely resembling a city, Papeete is a shock to the system. We flew in the other day from the remote atoll of Apataki in the Tuamotus. Traffic lights, cars, buses and people everywhere, lots of them. But it is still a gentle introduction for what we’ll be facing tomorrow night when we arrive back in Cincinnati via San Francisco and Chicago. And “civilization” does have its perks. An air-conditioned hotel room with unlimited hot water. Street cafes with good coffee and ice cream. French burgers with fries. A plat du jour at Le Petit Maison. Nice for a change. We left the boat in good hands on the hard on Apataki. It must be one of the most beautiful and remote boat yards in the world. We had to gingerly navigate the boat between shallow coral heads up to the palm tree lined beach where we were lifted out by a tractor-trailer. It’s a nervous moment when your 14,000 kg/31,000 lb home is suspended above water and ground. All went...

15 33.442 S 146 14.415 W Not. Gaugin, Herman Melville and Jacques Brel were onto something and we’re catching up. What a lovely place French Polynesia is. We just arrived at the Apataki atoll in the Tuamotus archipelago. A nice overnight sail from the Tahanea atoll. Now we are buckling down for another blow. A low pressure from the south will bring strong winds tomorrow, gusts up to 35 kt or 18 m/s. We have the anchor well set in sand and are floating the anchor chain with fenders and pearl buoys over the coral heads. We should be all good. But today was lovely, the pictures don’t do the colors justice. The vibrant blues and greens are unbelievable. Then throw in the shades of green from the palm trees and other tropical vegetation, then the shades of taupe, white and gray of the coral beaches, then the bright white of the Polynesian terns flying above. If I could paint, I would! 

16 57.379 S 144 34.881 W It feels like we are getting the hang of this lifestyle after three years of living at sea and the Tuamotus are definitely our favorite type of cruising grounds - vast, gorgeous and sparsely populated.  We spent almost three weeks on Makemo, which ranks as a top ten anchorage for us.  Just so beautiful and isolated.  Beach after beach, lots of healthy coral, tons of fish and more black tip reef sharks than mosquitos on a summer night.  There were a few other boats nearby and we made friends with a lovely Danish family and a German couple.  Snorkeling the reefs, hiking the beaches and coral flats, drift diving the pass into the lagoon, playing volleyball, sitting around a bonfire, cooking delicious meals, repairing this or that, reading, napping, and playing games in the evening with a cocktail in hand and an eye on the sunset.    I should probably add that Beata continues to work full time, warrior that she is, so she gets up a...