Tahuatu

Tahuatu is a small island located not far from Hiva Oa. It was one of our favorite spots in the Marquesas and we made a point of stopping here on at least 4 occasions.

On each occasion we stopped at a beautiful little bay called Hanamoena on the northwest corner of the island, but for reasons which will become obvious in later posts, we nicknamed it Monster Bay.

Our initial visit began with a bit of weather as we approached our anchorage.

Generally, we had the bay mostly to ourselves but the weather had a number of boats hunkered down waiting for better weather.

And this goat watching over things.

We later learned that the boat in the foreground was occupied by a family of 5 – Mom, Dad and 3 little ones. They had departed San Francisco on their dream voyage which turned into the voyage from hell. The boat was ill equipped for the journey and this was their first major offshore passage. The weather enroute was horrendous and Dad lost half of his finger when some rigging let go. They were all shell shocked and a number of us tried to help them put things back together and muster the courage to head for Tahiti to undergo repairs. It was during this time that we met and became friends with Jim Mckay who is sailing around the world in his 30 something boat. Subsequently, Jim is now watching Iron Lady in Hawaii for us until his visa is renewed in French Polynesia.

A pretty sunset promised better things the next day. That is Hiva Oa across the channel.

The next day did indeed bring better weather and it was off to explore the beach.

There are few beautiful beaches in the Marquesas, but this one was spectacular – except for the nonos. Vicious little insects that are about the size of a grain of sand and have jaws as big as alligators. Late afternoon is when they tend to make their appearance and then it is time to leave in a hurry. Even the strongest bug repellents are no match for them.

Behind the beach was this collection of makeshift dwellings which are used by the locals when harvesting coconuts to make copra.

The water clarity in the bay was amazing with visibilities to 60 feet. It was delightful swimming during the day but as evening approached, large critters started to make their way from the channel into the bay. Large tuna actually herded thousands of terrified bait fish against the rocky shore and had their way with them.

As the evening progressed, the critters got bigger and more nasty – hence the name Monster Bay. But more about that next time.