We enjoyed our time in Taipivai and Hooumi, two anchorages to the East of Taiohae, and we lucked out that there weren’t many other boats there and the weather was awesome. Now it was time to head back over to the big town of Taiohae and get ready to pick up our cousins, Nicole, Sean and Quinn. Nicole is Greg’s cousin, or 2nd cousin… they share a Great Grandmother, so whatever that means. That Great Grandmother and her husband, Sofus, lived in Ballard not far from where we live now and their house still stands. Sofus was a fisherman, we have this awesome photo of him on a fishing schooner, check it out:
We motored the short trip over to Taiohae past the impressive cliffs and back to the bay where we first made landfall, so many months ago now. We anchored and spent the next few days getting the boat cleaned up, running a few errands, and visiting with friends along with all the normal stuff. One boat we had met earlier, Seal, has a pretty amazing history and family. They had recently taken on a new crew member- a tiny kitten! They needed to get some meds for it in town as it was losing weight, I hope it’s doing well now! We gave them some extra cat supplies and got a tour of their custom aluminum boat that was built when the girls were babes in arms, they’re now in their 20s. It’s so cool to see other hard core sailor’s set ups. I appreciated their rowing dinghy with a sliding seat, workroom with a vice, and how the Tank Tender stickers are supposed to be used.
We found a small generator that was being sold second hand and decided to try it. It was in Tahiti and we figured out it could be shipped on the freight ship for a reasonable fee and we will pick it up here. It will give us an alternative for running our main engine fairly frequently to keep the batteries charged. In my excitement for buying it, I first sent money to the wrong person on Venmo, then the right person but to an account that he hadn’t accessed in years and doesn’t think he has access to now! My mistake then his for not specifying the account. Weeks later, we’re still trying to make sure he gets his money and that we get the other payment back. Lesson learned, pay the fee for not being friends and family or send a small payment first.
Finally, the day for Sean, Nicole, and Quinn’s arrival came! They flew into the airport on Nuku Hiva which is as far away from our anchorage as can be. They transited the island by car and we picked them up at the dinghy tie up area. How strange for people all the way from home to be able to just show up here! It really feels like magic. They got moved on board, stuff stowed, and Griffin and Quinn were goofy as ever. We swam and enjoyed some cocktails with the booze they brought from duty free. We’ve been rationing our supplies which were pretty much gone so it was a treat to have something other than the rum here.
The next morning we got going early, had breakfast at the snack shop on the peir, and walked up to the viewpoint overlooking the bay. Griffin and Quinn kept each other entertained and the adults enjoyed the views. I know it’s the dry season but it’s amazing how brown the surrounding hills are compared to when we were here earlier. In the afternoon we took the dinghy and paddle board over to a beach we hadn’t visited before. We anchored the dinghy and set up the beach gear to sit, swim, snorkel , and the boys happily goofed off together. Unbeknownst to us, a large group of french sailors with kids had a planned gathering there and soon the corner of the beach we were hanging out in was packed with kids in the water and adults on shore. Griffin and Quinn climbed around on the shoreline and entertained themselves while the French kids who were much younger played in the waves. We later learned that a few of the kids were actually Griffins age- he’s 6 feet tall now so it’s hard to remember that a kid more than a foot shorter than him could be the same age.
The next day we signed up for a tour of the island from a woman who’d grown up here, left for a great education, and then ended up back here teaching others about the island and culture. She took the 6 of us and one other single guy in her truck all over the island, it was great! She shared so much history and culture information that I took notes and go back to them often when I want to remember something about a plant or structure she taught us about. A few cool tidbits are the first Polynesians arrived here around 500BC from SE Asia. Population went from 200,000 to 4000 people in the 19th century, primarily from disease spread by explorers and then missionaries who condemned their rich culture. A bishop in the mid last century made efforts to integrate some Marquesan and Catholic traditions even though many elders were reluctant to bring back the traditions they had been taught were “bad”. Much of their history has been lost because it wasn’t passed down in the traditional oral ways for so long. It was a fascinating tour and our guide was so passionate for her culture it was quite inspiring. Now we’ve been around the island on the water and on many of the roads.
Christmas in the tropics was fun though it certainly didn’t feel normal. We played Christmas carols and had a nice morning with a few presents and coffee sipping. Griffin was surprised he got as many presents as he did, mostly thanks to Sean and Nicole bring a few items here with them. Highlights were a carving set, matching t-shirts for G and Q, and treats from my sister and Greg’s family. We managed to make our traditional cheese fondue for dinner, that was nice! The emmentaler cheese that’s so prevalent here works well and we dipped bread and veggies in the melted goodness until it was gone.
The rest of the McCormick’s visit we hung out in the two bays to the East, Controllers and Houumi. We swam with mantas, looked for hammerhead sharks in the dark, asked a local for fruit which was delivered to the beach via a tiny scooter, walked around the beaches and roads, went up to have hamburgers with a “Belle Vue”, jumped in to cool off frequently, and did lots of relaxing and hanging out. In the driving department, Quinn learned to drive the dinghy and the adults managed not to be driven nuts by how much goofy fun the boys have together. It was a wonderful visit and I am so glad they made it all the way here!
Bring on 2026!
Thank you for your detailed updates. I love imagining your advemtures!