Bora Bora - What a surprise!

Sunday, August 7 - After a 3 day journey we managed to sail all the way to
Bora Bora from Fakarava without using the engine. We approached the
island from the north east and as the sun rose we could see Bora Bora at a
distance of 10 miles away with a cloud enveloping the summit. We reached
the northwest corner of the atoll and sailed with the main sail out at 4
knots down to the entrance taking time to absorb the beauty of the atoll.
The pass entry was very easy as there is only an 8 inch tidal range. We
headed to the Bora Bora yacht club and picked up a mooring ball.
Unfortunately the yacht club is closed for renovation due to the damage
sustained from Cyclone Ole in 2010. It didn't take us long to get the
dinghy down and go ashore as we were desperate for a walk. We strolled
into the village of Viatape and were surprised at how underdeveloped and
quiet it was. It was pleasing to see that the locals still lived along
the water front and had not being bought out by the Developers. In fact
there was no evidence of development and everything was surprisingly basic
and low key. We bought a couple of hands of bananas from a lady with a
stall on the beach and ate some to go as we walked down the road. We
hadn't had any fresh fruit for 10 days! There is an abundance of fresh
fruit growing in the sidewalk gardens so we hope to stock up before we
leave. I booked 2 dives for Monday which were advertised as Giant Manta
Ray dives and Lemon Shark dives. Ian warned me it would be 'mass tourism'
diving and he was correct. The dive boat was full, the mooring lines were
full of divers and snorkellers from other boats and the manta rays were
swimming fast in the opposite direction to us! The Lemon shark dive was a
degree better with huge sharks grazing the seabed around us but it was
difficult to concentrate with a yellow submarine whizzing backwards and
forwards and loudly buzzing overhead with groups of tourist gawking
through the bulbous windows down at us.This was a variation on diving that
I haven't experienced before. The photos are coming don't worry. I got
back to Faraway after lunch and the mooring area was full of yachts so Ian
and I decided to slip the mooring ball and move to a more peaceful
anchorage. We found a beautiful Motu and dropped anchor next to the reef.
We jumped in the dinghy and motored around the island in the vain hope of
spotting a movie star or omebody rich and famous. Well somebody did come
over to our yacht - a gentleman and his 2 children visited us to tell us
about their adventures on the Sunsail yacht they had rented for the week.
It reminded us of how far we had come since renting our first yacht in the
Whitsundays. This morning, Tuesday August 9 we woke up early, packed a
dry bag with some food items and headed over in the dinghy to a quiet
uninhabited Motu for breakfast. We sat on the beach and ate cereal, bread
and more of those yummy bananas. After that we returned to Faraway and
motored for 2 hours to the other side of Bora Bora lagoon dodging our way
between narrow reef channels. The last one mile to the anchorage was in a
deep part of the lagoon so we put out the genoa, turned off the engine and
quiety sailed along at 2.5 knots taking in the breathtaking views of the
mountain on one side and the exclusive water bungalow/beach resorts on the
reef side. We anchored in 4 metres of sand surrounded by coral and had a
quick lunch and a snooze. We then put our snorkelling gear on and headed
to the reef. It was quiet when we arrived but within 30 mintues we were
surrounded by dive boats and snorkellers. It was amazing snorkelling with
crystal clear blue water and plenty of fish to liven up the show. It was
like being in an overpopulated aquarium and the fish were very friendly.
We returned to Faraway before sunset to enjoy some gin and tonics. Ian
cooked 5 dinasour sized pork chops for dinner that were taking up freezer
space. Unfortunately the BBQ caught on fire and he had to spray a lot of
water on it to douse the flames. We ended up having very chewy charcoal
grilled chops for dinner but the salad I made was really nice. Tomorrow
we head back to civilisation early to clear customs, pick up fuel and
water, buy fresh fruit and vegetables and try and finally get internet.
We have also booked a table for 2 at 'Bloody Marys' restaurant which
caters to yachties. It will be our last quality meal for some weeks to
come as we will set off on Thursday to Tonga with a brief stop at a small
remote atoll called Suwarow in the Northern Cook Islands. The island has
a total population of 2 people who are government caretakers. It will be
interesting to meet them and have a rest for a few days before continuing
on our next leg of the journey to Tonga.