On our way to Roratonga

16 August 2024

On our way to Roratonga

The next leg of our journey is to Rarotonga. We have over 11 days to sail 620 nautical miles. That gives us the opportunity to make a few more stops on the Society islands. The weather forecast first predicts a few days with little wind, then a brisk southeast wind, just what we need to sail effortlessly to Rarotonga.

After leaving Papeete (Tahiti), we sailed to Huahine with a light southerly wind, a delightful first day of sailing. Just before breakfast, we dropped anchor at the town of Fare. The anchorage is very tight and full of sailing yachts, so we anchored just outside the permitted anchorage. It did not take long before the local police asked us to go somewhere else. Fortunately, we were allowed to tie up the ship a little further on to a huge plastic mooring buoy meant for cruise ships.

The next day was windless and we took the Oosterschelde on a lagoon tour between the islands of Raiatea and Tahaa. These two islands are surrounded by a large coral reef. Within this barrier reef, there are numerous Motus (islets) and coral reefs. We entered the lagoon on the east side of Raiatea and sailed to the west of Tahaa while meandering between the motus and reefs. Just before lunch, we dropped our anchor at a shallow pass where water from the ocean flows in and out of the lagoon. This pass is completely dense with coral, a perfect place for snorkelling. You’ll see lots of colourful fish and the occasional stingray here. After a few hours of snorkelling and swimming, we continued on our way and with the last bit of daylight we sailed out of the lagoon towards Bora Bora, our last stop on the Society Islands.