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7/28/2006 7:00:00 PM
Moorea
Opunohu Bay in Moorea

Moorea - A Few Days Relaxation

A visitor, a crazy passage and a great excursion with the rays in Moorea.

During our days in Papeete we also met Judith (20), the German au-pair from "Verena III", a very delightful young girl. Alfred, Steffi and the kids were going back to Germany for 5 weeks and since Judith's work with them was ending we suggested her to come along to Moorea with us for a week, before she too had to fly back to Germany. It did not take a lot of convincing and a week later she moved on board with her two big bags and her saxophone (we got a little performance on the last night). We haven't had a visitor for a long time and it was a real pleasure to have her. She was so uncomplicated, helpful, interested - absolutely nice - the boys had great fun with her as well, I can see how she would be the perfect au-pair!

She proved to be of great help just an hour after coming aboard, during our passage to Moorea. One should think we knew better after cruising for over half a year now, to tie everything down even for short trips... Oh, well another lesson learned. The few miles over to Moorea can be deceiving since it often blows in the channel once you come out of the lee of Tahiti... which we should have thought of. Luckily we decided to take down the sun awning, but the rest stayed put - all the little knick-knacks down below that usually get stored in baskets when under way, the sail bag on the deck, toys and food baskets on the kids beds and floor were left out,...  It was almost like a switch it turned from 5 knots to 25 knots in a minute with gusts up to 30 knots! We hadn't pre-pared any sails and taken covers off since we only wanted to motor (and charge) this short distance... The waves and swell came from everywhere, luckily we had our lunch when it was still calm otherwise I am sure the chicken salad would have gone flying all over the place. Robert took over the helm to ride out the waves a bit better than Joe, our autopilot. Well and Judith was my savor because she doesn't get seasick and was able to read the map to Robert, since without my seasickness medicine I would have had a terrible time down below. The boys bunkered down in the main salon while toys, food and miscellaneous things got tossed around in their aft cabin (including their lego box with 1000 of pieces ending up from one side of the bed to under the mattress on the other side!). What a sight! The last half hour was a bit smoother since the waves came from behind but it was a long 3 hours!

Much to our delight our friends Susi and Georg on "Tortilla Flat" were at the same anchorage and gave us a happy welcome. It is funny how quickly the mood changes once at anchor and calm seas, admiring the place and viewing 40 feet down into turquoise water. Opunohu Bay is really very pretty with its' magnificent steep rocks, the little, white, sandy beach and clear waters. Within no time (Judith and the boys helped a lot, too!) we had it all cleaned up again and could enjoy this beautiful place. Judy and Ray on "Nereid" arrived shortly after us, a lot better pre-pared not like us "Vacation" sailors. After dinner Susi and Georg came to play cards and Georg's Viennese humor always makes for a wonderful entertainment!

With the arrival of "Blue Sky" the next day we had a nice group together and the kids were happy to have play mates again. Together with Nereid and Blue Sky we went one morning and did the "must do" trip to feed the sting rays. A half hour ride in the dinghy along the reef and you can swim with them - fascinating! We all took a few pieces of fish along, apparently that really makes them come. We anchored the three dinghies in a shallow place just perfect standing height, they show up every day (about 15-20 of them), being harmless wanting nothing more than a bit of food and a petting on their back. They feel very soft almost like a thick piece of velvet. Naturally the whole thing is a bit creepy since these are wild creatures (about 6-8 feet in diameter) and can give you a deadly sting, but it seems they have forgotten how to do that... at least while swimming around humans. Robert as always was the first one in and very famous with them (as you can see on the pictures on the webpage), they came up all the way to his neck! Sebastian was a bit handicapped with his hand and the plastic bag did not give him enough comfort, so after a short hop into the water he decided it was more fun to touch them from the dinghy. Benjamin felt safest on Robert's shoulders and Niki was very proud to have made it in the water, even if it was for a short time... in overall it was an amazing experience that we all will keep as a memory for a long time!

The next day we explored the island from "above" and went on a nice walk up to a beautiful view point. It was funny to see the different flora on Moorea and even some of the other islands in the Societies, there are palm trees right next to pine trees. Apparently they were brought by the explorers hundreds of years ago to have wood for their boat repairs, as well as studying how these European plants will do in those climates. During our hike one could have thought to be in the middle of Austria if it wouldn't have been for a few palm trees and exotic flowers to peek through once in a while. The overview of Opunohu and Cooks Bay was worth its walk up and we all needed some exercise after so much boat work. Kids and adults got rewarded with a delicious ice sorbet, grown and made by the Moorea agricultural college.

The days went by way too fast and since Judith had to be back on the 28th of July and we had to finish up a few things ourselves we left on Friday to go back to Papeete - a bit more prepared that time I might add! Blue Sky and Tortilla Flat continued on to the other islands and we hoped to catch up with them a week later or so. But as so often in our lives things turn out differently, we'll keep you posted in our next report.

Today lots of dear hugs and a special "au revoir"! Yours the 4 Schmids Niki, Robert, Sebastian and Benjamin

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