Jason and Karen fix the mainsail

We arrived in Hiva Oa yesterday afternoon, just over 15 days after our departure from Galapagos. The passage was relatively uneventful, minus one chafed-through reefing line and a small tear along a seam in the mainsail that was quickly put to rights through Jason and Karen’s sewing teamwork. Karen and Frank also had an incident with a flying fish that landed in their bed one night, having flown through their hatch over the bed. That one was a shocker, but if that’s the biggest thing we have to say about the longest ocean crossing we’ll likely ever make, that means things went pretty well.

Arriving in Hiva Oa

We motored very little on our way here, and that was rely more for a desire to keep up speed than an out and out lack of wind, and fishing was spare until we landed a 45″ mahi our last day out. That’ll make us some dinners for awhile.

Cleaning mahi

Now that we’re checked into French Polynesia, we’ve begun to wander around the town of Atuona in Hiva Oa. The island is full of steep volcanic ridges and cliffs, and while its easternmost end is almost entirely desert, the western side is lush with greenery, breadfruit trees, coconut, banana, mangoes and noni fruit. The beach in Atuona has fine powder black sand and crystal clear water, and the people here are friendly, with the soft round features and body tattoos that the natives Polynesians are known for. People wear carved bone necklaces, and stores carry French bread…it’s all very pleasant and well kept so far. The only downside I’ve seen is the speed ad expense of Internet. It’s astronomical! $6/hr in some places.

View from Hiva Oa anchorage

Atuona Beach, Hiva Oa

Tomorrow we hope to visit a waterfall and swim near the anchorage, so we’ll be back to tell about that one later.