Boatyard Reunion

After a few days tolerating fumes and nakedness, we moved to the bay next door – Vaitahu. We heard that the place is worth a walk ashore and that wi-fi is in plentiful supply if you hand over 500 francs to Jimmy of Chez Jimmy’s fame. So, just half an hour after leaving Hanamoenoa, we dropped anchor close to where we parked last year after our trip back from the Tuamotos.

As we entered the bay, we spotted our old boatyard neighbours onboard Zook. So, after parking up and launching the dinghy, we invited them for sundowners onboard lady Jane. Then, after a quick stroll around town, we stumbled into Chez Jimmy’s for drinks and WiFi and to take a few photos.

Vaitahu revisited

Church tiki

Vaitahu revisited

Church

Vaitahu revisited

Inside the church

Just as the sun went down, the crew of Zook arrived onboard bearing a gift of CDs: Michel Thomas advanced English on the basis that if it works from French to English, it should work the other way.

That person who blocks your driveway

All was well on Lady Jane and in the bay. Then, like recent history repeating itself, another arse arrived.

Vaitahu revisited

Arse 2

This guy came in at ramming speed and parked his boat as close to the dinghy dock as possible – right in front of us. His logic for doing that escapes me, but it’s the nautical equivalent of someone parking across your driveway while they just ‘nip to the shops’. What made it more annoying was that there was enough space behind us to park a cruise liner.

The impact was that we couldn’t leave Lady Jane while these miscreants enjoyed their extended shopping trip. I was kept busy with a large fender each time their boat swung near to us. When he returned, I told him he is too close. His reply: “We are just leaving.” Right. Thanks for that.

Anchoring isn’t difficult; it really isn’t. There are several articles on it and at least one book dedicated to it. ‘Happy Hooking – The Art of Anchoring.’ Slightly odd title, but there are a few good tips in there. They even give some useful hints for those with generators.

Vaitahu town

We spent the next few days exploring Vaitahu. Maria and I walked up the hill to on the north side of the bay, towards the cross, to get these views of the bay.

Vaitahu revisited

Cross on top of the hill

Vaitahu revisited

View from the cross

Vaitahu revisited

And again

And the next day we went the other way to see a bit more of the interior: plenty of goats, gardens, mango trees and more bulls than one might care to imagine. On the way back we bought some starfruit and pamplemousse from a local woman who wasn’t sure how much of a distance to keep just in case we had coronavirus (although her reticence was quickly overcome when I lifted my wallet.) And later we paid several more visits to Chez Jimmy’s to get a fix of wifi and cold drinks.

Vaitahu revisited

Village cemetery

Vaitahu revisited

Starfruit and pamplemousse

Vaitahu revisited

Bully

Vaitahu revisited

Daft

Vaitahu revisited

Local farm

Vaitahu revisited

Beehive

Vaitahu revisited

View from the other side of the bay

The even more greatest show on earth

I think that sounds a little presidential. I know I’ve used part of that title for a previous post on the stars and phosphorescence. But this was something else altogether. This is what happened when the dolphins arrived in the bay. It lasted for two days, and we hadn’t seen anything like it before:

After that treat, it was time to move on…