Thank you Martin. Thank you Jeff & Paula.

Thank you for funding a much needed “fancy dinner” in town. I remember reading Lin and Larry Pardey’s books and how Larry would take Lin out for dinner on their first night in port as a break from cooking. We both cook on board but when we can, we still enjoy the treat. 

Compared to French Polynesia, eating out in Tonga is relatively inexpensive. It still isn’t necessarily cheap unless you search out the right local spots but it is much tastier and less expensive in general than we have been accustomed to.

On a gorgeous sunny day we picked a spot overlooking the harbor of Neiafu, Vava’u, Kingdom of Tonga, ordered a glass of house wine, an appetizer and two tasty seafood dishes and had a slow meal while watching the sun go down. Martin, Jeff & Paula – you rock!

I know, it is like we are obsessed right? The moment we get back to “town” we want burgers (or something similarly heavy and meaty) and beer. As you can see by Carol’s three burger coated fingers in this photo, we don’t even slow down for the social niceties ;)

These burgers and beers were wolfed down at the Aquarium Café in Neiafu, Vava’u, Tonga, after two weeks of excessive kiteboarding with great enjoyment courtesy of Karen.

Thank you, thank you Karen!

The area between French Polynesia and Tonga has been called “The Dangerous Middle” by one of the freely available online guidebooks (Mr. John's). This is, in large part, because of the unsettled weather in the region. We call it the complicated middle because there are a bunch of different weather phenomena at play in the region, each of which can occur without advance notice: fronts, the official South Pacific Convergence Zone, other convergence zones, etc. 

If a new system suddenly appears, it changes the forecasted movement and strength of the other systems. It’s a place to keep a weather eye, and to take seriously. A week after we made landfall in Niue, when we wanted to leave, there was 5m swell and 35+ knot winds in the region. We waited. Another boat stuck on passage during that system took damage to sails, solar panels, bimini etc. in squalls and oversized waves. Later that same week a small depression showed up suddenly on the weather charts. Within a few days it was over Suwarrow and they had 40 knot westerly winds in an anchorage exposed to that direction. Sadly, a boat was lost that night when their anchor tackle failed somehow*.

With this in mind, although we wanted to sail directly from French Polynesia to Niue, we set off from Maupiti with our bow pointed much further north than the direct line, at Suwarrow. Suwarrow was about 5 days sail from Maupiti which is about as long as you can trust a weather window. Further, there was a front passing south of Suwarrow when we left and so sailing north of the rhumb line would both allow us the option of stopping in Suwarrow if the weather went wonky and keep us above the squalls, wind strength and wind directional shifts associated with the front.

As we were closing on Suwarrow, we saw another front passing Niue and knew if we took a direct line we would pass through the front. Having experienced rough weather in an atoll before, we thought we would rather be at sea sailing to Niue than inside an atoll (e.g., Suwarrow) during the front (in hindsight, this particular front missed Suwarrow, staying south and so things were fine there). We sailed directly for Niue, experiencing strong NW winds, a squally night with unsettled wind, 6 hours of being hove to waiting for the front to pass overhead, and then “frisky” SW-then S-then SE winds. All of that was as expected and we flew the last few days into Niue, running fast and wet ahead of a decent swell.

All of this tactical maneuvering took a 1050nm passage**, added a bunch of miles sailed extending the passage to almost 10 days – but we we very happy with our 10 carefully chosen days of within limits sailing,. Another passage with nothing broken on our bodies or our boat – cheers to that!

*So far  this year we know two boats that have lost rudders, one that went aground, one that took shaft damage when a pearl farm line wrapped their prop, and the two boats described above. Oh, and the French Polynesian customs boat which ran aground on an atoll!

**This is our second longest passage sailed with only the Mexico to Marquesas run being longer.

Bora Bora is a great place to see the Heiva and we saw it here in 2012. When we were here in 2012, we noticed the fabulous restaurants they make, in temporary structures, decorated with local materials, weaving and flowers until the walls are groaning with decoration.

Thanks to David R and Carter B, we splurged on dinner and wine at one of those establishments before catching two song and dance performances at the main stage.

The beating of the drums, the harmonies, the intense emotion of the speeches in Tahitian and the solos – what a way to say goodbye to French Polynesia.

Ahhhh…Fakarava. Having spent so much time in the area, with more time in Fakarava than any other atoll, it was a delight to try two new anchorages, both of which we loved as our last stops in the Tuamotus.

Hirifa, in the SE corner of Fakarava, about 5 miles from the S pass, was a kiteboarding paradise. Long sand spits for launching, almost no coral heads to hit, and we could anchor either in the protection of the motu or right by a sand bar to shorten our “daily commute”. Add to that, there is a NEW RESTAURANT in HIrifa, run by Liza and her family, who will make delicious meals for anyone with a little advance notice (the day before or perhaps the morning of). We were there for the opening (more on that later) and the feast was spectacular.

We also anchored not far from the N pass in Fakarava. The reef by the first marker as you are heading into the pass toward Rotoava had some excellent snorkeling and the beaches were long and sandy.

Fakarava is a great place to have guests which we did for two weeks (again, more on that separately).

I think it is fair to say that most N American cruising boats have pressure cookers. We cruised for 3 years without one and have recently added one.

When we were preparing to cruise, the reasons that people gave for needing a pressure cooker just weren’t compelling to us. When we were reading it seemed like people recommended a pressure cooker primarily to save gas and to reduce heat in the cabin. We have a 20lb propane/butane tank as our main tank and a 5lb for the BBQ. We go 3 months between propane fills -- cooking three meals a day, coffee and tea, and baking whatever we like. We don’t have a problem with propane lasting a long time and in general our propane costs are very low compared to our gasoline and diesel costs. As for reducing heat, the only time we make a lot of heat with our stove is when we bake which we wouldn’t use the pressure cooker for, and pressure cookers aren’t heatless devices. In short, we didn’t buy one because we weren’t sold on the benefit and they aren’t cheap.

What convinced us to buy one? Well, first we found a used one very cheap, that didn’t hurt.

Second, faster dinner preparation. We realized how quickly we could cook large quantities of things that normally take a long time. In particular, we realized we could cook two favorite foods which we rarely cook because of the length of time they take: a whole chicken in 20 or so minutes and/or an entire pot full of whole potatoes in less than that. THAT was impressive and sounded like a game changer.

Third, we have found that we have cut costs a little with the addition of a pressure cooker. So far in our travels, we have found whole chickens to be regularly available and inexpensive and now that we have the pressure cooker we can take advantage of the low cost to buy two whole frozen chickens when at a grocery – cooking one right away and the second in a day or two when it defrosts. Now that we have a pressure cooker we also cook a lot more dishes with inexpensive dried beans than we used to which is a health gain as well as a financial gain. Plus, the ability to quickly cook beans opened up some dishes we enjoy but weren’t cooking (curried lentils, chilis, etc.).

You don’t need one to cruise – clearly – but there are me reasons to have one that weren’t articulated in anything we remember reading while prepping.

I’m embarrassed at how behind I am on our liquid motivation posts. This one is from TAHITI for goodness sakes! I could blame the storm, the haul out, or the passages, but it is really because I’ve been lame.

While we were in Tahiti, working our arses of at our haul out, we were a short walk away from the only place in Tahiti that brews something resembling a microbrew – Les Trois Brasseurs. This is the same cold deliciousness that is served at the Dinghy Dock Pub by the large marina in Tahiti which we have also sampled.

Well, thank you Dana G for a round of cold ones at the Dinghy Dock Pub. And just to prove that we have firmly internalized the frugal values of the CFSA, we provide proof that we went at the two for one special and were able to get 4 (yes, *4*) beers in Tahiti (where beer is so not cheap).

And thank you, thank you, Gary B, for the opportunity to stuff ourselves with burgers and pizza* (and beers of course) at the Trois Brasseurs main location in downtown Papeete, Tahiti.

On a cruising budget, eating out in Tahiti is not something we can treat ourselves to often. We enjoyed every single bite and those calories went to good use in the several weeks of boatwork (which is also on my blog catch up agenda).

*Incidentally, what is with cruisers and our obsession with finding burgers and/or pizza after landfall. Neither Carol or I were huge burger eaters but man-oh-man do we crave them when we arrive in a "city”.

Since we started cruising, I’ve had a difficult time getting up the nerve to row up to someone’s property, beach our kayak or dinghy, and say hello. For whatever reason, I have this preconceived notion that I will be bothering them, or invading their privacy, or in some way disturbing their peace. Carol, of course, has no problem doing this.

I know that in future countries we will be expected to row ashore and greet the local bigwigs or officials at every anchorage, and it is easy for me to do so when I know that is “the rule”, but so far, in Canada, the US, Mexico, the Cook Islands and French Polynesia, it isn’t required.

Still, it is polite and so I’ve been forcing myself to overcome my mild anxiety.

Of course, as it turns out, most of the people we have introduced ourselves to are living in remote places and welcome the occasionally company. We have never, not once (yet), had a negative interaction after rowing ashore to say hello.

In fact, the general problem, if you can even call it a problem, is that the hello often turns into an invite for more than a quick greeting and introduction.

We have been invited to have coffee, try smoked salmon and visit and learn about the salmon smokehouse. We have rowed to shore, wearing rash guards and board shorts, on our way to snorkeling, and ended up sitting down for a BBQ (in our ridiculously inappropriate outfits, which of course no one minded). Just a few days ago, we paddled to shore to say hello, ended up with a tour of the property, an invite to go spear fishing the next day and came back with our hats full of fruits and vegetables.

The same vibe applies to asking permission. In French Polynesia, we ask someone for permission to do almost everything if there is someone there to ask. We didn’t start out by doing this, but have gradually come to feel over time that it is our best chance both making friends and of avoiding making a social mistake in a new culture.

Usually, in French Polynesia, the person we ask seems surprised we are asking, says it is no problem, and goes out of their way to help us do whatever it is. For example, if we see someone on the dock, we ask if it is OK to put our trash in the public bin. They usually look confused, smile at us, and say “of course”. Then we ask if they know where we can get a propane tank and they end up driving us to their house, selling us one of theirs (at the same price as the store that is out) and driving us back to the dinghy so we don’t have to carry the tank.

However, *occasionally* we ask something similarly innocuous and learn that if we had done what we intended we would have been making a mild mistake. For example, we have also been told (about trash) “yes, of course…but maybe instead of that small can it is better if you use the big bin over at the town hall” ..and then been given a ride (with our several bags of trash) to the town hall, and back to the dinghy, chatting and learning about the island all of the way.

So, I will continue to be brave, and say “hello” and with sign language or words, ask permission.

Yep, wine made in French Polynesia (see below).

We don’t eat out very often in French Polynesia because of the expense. We have found some cheap eats (e.g., the casse croute) but otherwise we save our going out budget for ice cold beers (also expensive) somewhere where we can enjoy a different view than from our cockpit. Funny enough, one of our favorite things is to have the beers at a bar that overlooks the anchorage. Something about seeing your home floating in paradise makes the beer tastier.

A very VERY big thank you to Ronald C. who sent us a Paypal donation and funded not only a much needed and appreciated feast onshore at a great “snack” (small outdoor cafe in French Polynesia) called Chez Lili but also enabled us to sample some locally wine which had been previously out of the range of our cruising budget. We were so excited to be eating out at Chez Lili that we split in half and inhaled the curried mahi mahi burger and ate half of the tuna carpacccio before I remembered to snap a picture! If you visit Rangiroa, Chez Lili is delicious, the fish perfectly prepared and the owner Lili is a riot and worth the visit herself.

After the snack we picked up a bottle of Vin de Tahiti, Blanc Sec (2008) made right here in Rangiroa, the Tuamotus, French Polynesia. Even though we were slightly afraid (I mean come on, atoll wine??) we very much wanted to taste and to support the local vintage. With the last of Ronald C’s donation supplemented with one from my Mom (Love you Mom!) we bought and chilled a bottle, broke out the fancy glasses and the contraption we’ve been calling a cockpit table and watched the sunset.

We were extremely surprised to love the wine. The tasting notes talk about the influence of the minerals from the coral rubble on the terroir. I tasted flowers and honey (without the corresponding sweetness). An unexpected find, unfortunately a little out of our normal price range. Of course, when we were still DINKs (dual income, no kids) we had been known to sleep in our car on a road trip to save money but buy a case of expensive-for-us wine on the same trip. Priorities!

It’s been way too long since we’ve had fishing photos on this blog.

Carol speared a fish with a simple pole spear last year but this year we have a borrowed spear gun aboard and he has become a fish slaying machine.

We only kill what we can eat (of course) and we have a wee freezer (remember the freezer in a dorm room fridge? not far off.) so we are careful about what we take. There is a type of fish poisoning in this area and so you have to check carefully with locals to find out island-by-island what is safe to eat. Sometimes one fish is safe on the North side of an island but bad on the South side and sometimes the locals make their own mistakes as previously safe fish becomes poisonous over time.

With that in mind, we’ve been happily hunting. And I say we, because I have recently joined the ranks of women who spear fish. Woohoo!!

Having had more free diving practice this year I was excited to try loading and shooting the spear gun and even more excited when my first shot garnered a perfect eating-sized marbled grouper just off of our boat. We cooked it immediately on the beach over a coconut husk fire and the thrill of the kill made it more delicious.

I’m interested in trying more hunting although only in areas where the sharks are less frisky. Our friends spear even in the sharky areas and I’m definitely not ready for that.