SV Gypsy Rose
Jon and Gonda

Panama to the Galapagos Islands
Newsletter 29 May 06

Rising steeply from the depths of the Pacific, soaring majestically to great heights with peaks, spires and pinnacles, black and bare on the windward side, pounded relentlessly by wave after wave thundering onto hard unforgiving dark basalt in great clouds of swirling white spray.
The leeward side a lovely pastel of greens, lush valleys cutting deep into the mountains, streams cascading down from dizzy heights, colourful flowers everywhere! Truly a magnificent sight to behold!

Les Marquises….. Ten islands in the middle of the ocean, miles from anywhere.

Visible from far away, they are a welcome sight to weary travelers passing through on the seasonal trek from South America to Australia and New Zealand to the far west.

Our first landfall is the island of Hiva Oa with its little town of Atuona, settled on the mountain slopes and facing a tiny bay protected by a breakwater. Not much room to anchor as there are already 12 other yachts, but we all use two anchors, the stern one to keep us facing in the same direction without swinging to the wind.
Stepping on terra firma we wobble a bit, having had a rolling boat underfoot for the last three weeks! We’re happy to be here though and immediately notice the French influence, good infra-structure, roads, streetlighting, everything well organized and clean.

The people are a mix of Polynesians, many with a drop of French blood in them. They are perhaps not prosperous, but certainly live well enough. Everyone is very friendly.
No rushing around here, no drugs, no crime! A wonderful and relaxed atmosphere.
Do they realize they live in paradise? I wonder.

It takes a while to tune in to the French spoken here, having heard Spanish for so long in the Americas. Checking in is done at the Gendarmerie and is a mere formality taking exactly five minutes, what a difference from Central America! There it often takes half a day!

We thought that nothing was available here. Not true, the shops are stocked with goods from everywhere. Pate and wine from France, pastas from Italy, Heineken beer, baguettes, mangos, bananas and a host of other indigenous fruits. Vegetables are available, but we have to look for them.
The prices one pays are horrendous, but at least one doesn’t go hungry here. We stick to our own supplies, thus trying to create some much needed space aboard our poor overloaded Gypsy Rose.

With some other cruisers we arrange a car trip across the island, driving through valleys, zigzagging across mountains, along the many coconut plantations and viewing ancient temple ruins. Fatu Hiva We are treated to a local meal of goat meat simmered in coconut milk, chunks of raw fish marinated in coconut milk and lemon juice, a banana jelly which I don’t know how it is prepared, but tastes surprisingly good!

On we move to the next island Fatu Hiva. It is a little out of the way 35 miles south and requires a daylong beat into the tradewind. The anchorage is exquisite and I don’t mind admitting never ever having seen such a beautiful spot before. The narrow bay is surrounded by high mountains with oddly shaped spires and ragged steep cliffs, starkly silhouetted against a steel blue sky, absolutely awesome!
In quick succession we visit the rest of the group and wish we had more time to stay longer in these spectacular islands.

Reluctantly we say goodbye and on we go. The next destination will be Rangiroa in the Tuamotus.
The Tuamotus, infamous for the French nuclear testing of old, are a group of atolls, each one made up of tiny coral islets formed more or less in a circle often miles across. Entry is possible through the passes at slack water when there is little current. Once inside the lagoon, it becomes tricky moving through the many shallows and coral heads.
Eyeball navigation is the order of the day here!

Rangiroa is only visible from a few miles away, it’s flat and featureless, the highest spot the top of the coconut palms. Luck is with us, it’s almost high tide and we can enter without having to wait. With the motor at low revs, the boat still moves at something like 6 knots, the current is really strong here. Quite nerve wrecking, hurtling through the gap.

The anchorage in the lagoon behind the village is nicely secluded and we drop the hook in 15 meters of water watching it go down all the way and hit bottom, the water is that clear!

We share an icecold beer, despite the early morning hour. I reckon we’ve deserved it.
The beer I bought in Panama is lasting well, there’s still plenty left in the locker.
It’s called SOBERANA. What a name, whoever thought that one up deserves a medal, or does he?

Wonderful to do some snorkeling again and I go diving with the local outfit in the entrance pass. Strong current makes it quite tricky, but it’s worth it. We see plenty of colourful fish, a huge turtle, a ray, a shoal of barracudas overhead and about 30 sharks beneath and us five divers sandwiched between this lot, but nobody appears to be hungry. Now, isn’t that great, life is just wonderful!

Regards from all aboard Gypsy Rose.