24 September - Feels Like Home

0600 position 16-38S 151-29W. At anchor in 16', mud bottom, Haamene Bay

Monday wasn't the day. No fish on the sail from Huahine to Tahaa. The
lures were proven winners, but the water was too flat. What a great
spinnaker run from Huahine though. As the day wore on the wind lightened,
but it also came forward which allowed us to ease the pole forward and
keep sailing at full speed. A larger cruising yacht left Fare on Huahine
just as we passed and motor sailed behind us all the way across the
channel. He tried to catch us all day, but failed and entered Tahaa's
Toahotu Pass just behind us.

We had planned to head in to Haamene Bay, our favorite anchorage in the
South Pacific, but in the dying breeze we figured it would be hot and
humid there so we headed instead for Motu Moute on Huahine's eastern
barrier reef. When the wind is light it is the perfect South Pacific
anchorage in fifteen feet, sand bottom, about three miles offshore of
Tahaa and protected by the barrier reef. We made the right choice and had
a cool evening in the light breeze. The following morning we dinghied out
to the edge of the barrier reef, which is always dry, and explored seeing
black tipped sharks, exotic corals, reef fish, and giant clams.

Lori had planned to spend part of the morning cooking the breadfruit that
Paul had given us on Huahine, and I had to pick our way through the coral
heads back to Haamene Bay on Tahaa. Our destination was five miles away
dead downwind in about 3 knots of wind, so I pulled up the anchor and
drifted with the breeze back to Tahaa while Lori cooked below. I had just
enough way on to maneuver through the shallow spots, and when Lori was
finished we unrolled the jib and had a leisurely sail down the coast and
two miles into Haamene Bay to the anchorage at its extreme end.

Haamene feels like home to us. We liked it so much we came here three
times during our 2011 cruise. The cruising guides describe it as a
"hurricane hole", so you know it is protected. We love the Tahaa Maitai
Restaurant, which you can dinghy right up to from our anchorage 100 yards
away, the Mac China cafe that has the best poisson cru I've ever tasted,
great hiking, great biking, a good store, post office, and dinghy dock.
It doesn't seem to be on other cruisers' radars because there are rarely
other boats here. There was one other boat at anchor when we arrived
this time though, a Spray replica from Long Beach. We met the owners
ashore and arranged to take them hiking tomorrow.