Last checks, re-fueling and a entertaining other couch sailers
We raised anchor in Papeete at 16:30 on Mach 26 and dropped it in Radiate at 16:20 off Ile Taora, Raiatea the next day, starting the voyage with a night sail. Living the lagoon in Tahiti involved calling the port control for clearance to pass the runway of the international airport and afterwards the very busy shipping line exiting the lagoon in Papeete. We motored with only the jib set helping us to save a bit of fuel. On the second day we tried to raise the main sail after breakfast, but failed. The reef line detached, this needs fixing and some more sorting out when we are anchored in a quiet place.
There is also a small airport in Raiatea, with planes landing or taking off crossing the shipping line. A sign at before that requests to call port control for clearance for crossing. Beeing law abiding people we complied, got a response to go to channel 22 and stand by. After standing by for around 30 minutes and several attempts to follow-up, and studying some sited in the in the internet (we did not have broadband while on sea), which suggested that yachts are not welcome in our intended anchoring place, we turned around and found a nice, protected anchoring spot at Ile Taora, which was also suggested by Eric as one option.
Regis Sr, Karen and Martin then went to shore to visit the hospital to have a look at Martin’s rope burn, which got infected. The cashier of the hospital had already gone home too, so we were asked to come back the next day for both.
Clearance granted and a Mishap
After a calm night in our protected anchorage we took the small tender in the morning to go to town for the clearance at the gendarmerie and to pay Martin’s bill from yesterday at the hospital. Regis Sr. Joined as translator and guide, most of the locals don’t seem to like speaking English too much. At the gendarmerie we were told that we need a file number for the clearance from Papeete, which we never got. After showing the email communication with the Papeete port authority and manually filling out three forms, they told us that maybe tomorrow after they checked with the Papeete institutions we would get the clearance. They promise us to do their best to speed up the process. At the hospital we were told to come back in the afternoon because the cashier was still not in.
Back to Costa Rica, now since we most likely might have to stay longer than planned, Regis Jr. Miriam and Karen went for their first dive in the South Sea with the local dive operator Hemisphere Karen had had found on the Internet.
At 11:00 a phone call from the Gendarmerie brought the excellent news that at 14:00 we could pick up our clearances.
At 13:45 the dive group came back. Being a bit late Regis Sr. And Karen went to town again with the boat papers and passports to pick up the clearance and to pay the hospital bill, while we made the boat ready for docking and re-fueling. We then decided to not raise anchor first because for the refueling it would be the first docking maneuver with this boat and Martin felt for that we were possibly a bit short of hands on deck. So Regis Jr. cooked a quick lunch.
When the land party was back on board with the clearance (Yippee) and had sat down for lunch too, the others raised anchor and made the boat ready for docking.
At the Total fuel station next to the Marina one catamaran was just docking. The cove where the fuel station is located is quite small, so a good opportunity to practice staying on spot using the two engines. The rudders don‘t work below 1.5 knots speed.
Another much smaller catamaran, much easier to maneuver than our large ship, with a bunch of young people on board overtook us and appeared to try to jump the queue. Regis Sr. and Karen took the tender ashore and we had some communication with them via a VHF ship to ship channel about fueling up, which seemed to have scared them away since they left shortly after. So it was just us waiting for the first cat to fuel up, which seemed to take ages. He was finally done and left. Our turn.
The docking maneuver, the first one ever with such a monster ship, went very well. After filling up both diesel tanks and the empty gasoline jerry cans, we asked the gas station guys whether we could stay 10 minutes to take the tender on board. We were the last customers anyway and they were closing. They agreed, little did we know that the 10 minutes would become an hour.
When lifting the tender out of the water with the crane, having it all the way up and trying to turn it inwards, the fiberglass deck in the bow where the lifting rope was attached broke and the bow of the tender fell back in the water. A bunch of people on another boat docked close by and sitting around having cocktails, cheered – morons. It took us around an hour with a lot of improvisation and failed attempts to get the tender finally up to the deck, after running some ropes underneath it and deflating it partially. Fixing work to be done later.
We left using a wonderfully executed “Eindampfen in die Achterspring” (inching backward into the back spring) maneuver and were on our way to the Cook Islands.
Got a reply email from the Cook Islands about Check in / Clearance procedures. Looking good.
Shifts tonight
20:00-22:30 Miriam
22:30-01:00 Regis Sr.
01:00-03:30 Regis Jr.
03:30-06:00 Martin