Location 16° 32S, 151° 45W
Monday, 09.24.2007

The Schooner Maggie B is still in Bora Bora at 16° 32S, 151° 45W. No, we haven’t “swallowed the anchor,” though it is getting a bit of marine growth on it. We are still waiting to get a new computer and camera which have made it to Tahiti, but are caught in Customs. Each day they say “tomorrow” and then ask for more documentation. Mañana, mañana.

Planning our next lap

After Bora Bora we are headed over to Taha’a and Raiatea, then off to Rangiroa in the Tuamotus. We have spent a lot of time looking at the charts of the South Pacific the last few days and now it seems as if we will have to skip the Marquesas “this lap.” The general plan is to be in Montevideo, Uruguay, about the second week of December, which would mean passing the Horn about the first of December, which would mean hitting Puerto Montt, Chile about the first of November.

It is about 4200 nm from Rangiroa to Puerto Montt, or perhaps a month, allowing for a stop at Easter Island. So than means leaving Rangiroa about the First of October. Not that far away.

An historic occasion in Maupiti

We had a lovely trip last week. Our friend Richard Postma Captain of the Taravana (see www.taravana.com) took us over to Maupiti in his little game fishing boat, the LunaSea (his daughter is named Luna). We went over in the LunaSea because the pass at Maupiti is infamous for its danger and difficulty. Even with LunaSea, it took two little boats coming out the Pass to guide us in. The swell breaks full across the pass, and the outflow is about eight knots, with a 90 degree turn right in the middle. You have to wait for a break in the wave sets to rush in. Fortunately Richard is a surfer and good at reading waves. Even so we would have gone back to Bora Bora if it hadn’t been for the locals helping us to time the sets.

We went for a marvelous historic occasion. The people of Maupiti were choosing a new “king.” They had delegations from Hawaii, New Zealand, Tonga and Easter Island to support the occasion, which was held on Monday the 10th, the new moon at their restored marai. On the following day they were to have a “Peche de Cailloux” — literally “pebble fishing.” The pebbles are stones about as big around as two fists together, tied to a 2-3 meter rope.

The whole community comes out, including every boat. Men only in the boats, one to steer and one to scare the fish by smashing the water with the stone. The goal was a strip of beach perhaps 200 meters wide. At either side of the target were wings of people with palm fronds tied together, extending out into the lagoon perhaps 200 meters. At a signal, a smoky fire lit on a spot of beach visible to all, the two wings of boats close in from left and right, smashing the water and creating maximum fuss. Perhaps 30 boats to a side. Behind the boats are little speedy boats with tall flags, zipping up and down like samurai warriors on horseback with their signal flags, keeping the lines straight.

The boat wings meet those standing in the water (including your Captain) and more palm fronds are rushed out to close gaps. Much shouting and thrashing. The trap is closed with the usual confusion of too many Chiefs giving too many orders, but all good humored with singing and insults and encouragement shouted up and down the line. Everyone is dressed in pareus and flowers, some combinations being amazing. The biggest, baddest guy has his tiny granddaughter on his shoulders, teenage boys tease teenage girls, Westerners shoulder the line and learn the latest variation of handslap greetings. Brave fish jump the line, occasionally hitting people in the head, to great amusement. Once the circle is pushed all the way in, dignitaries are given fish spears to get the first fish. The Hawaiia representative (a State Senator from Maui) went first, looking very uncomfortable, but handily spearing a nice three foot Jack. The rest of the fish are speared or grabbed, making for a reasonable catch, though not worth all the effort in a narrow cost/benefit analysis. But for community building, invaluable.

Jack London, in his The Cruise of the Snark reports on a Peche de Cailloux done in his honor in 1907 in Bora Bora, where they got zero fish. He reports that one out of five were then complete failures, and that they did it about monthly. In Maupiti, this was the first Peche de Cailloux in seven years. It isn’t done any more in Bora Bora. We will have photos soon, including of the Pass. We hope to be out of Bora Bora by this weekend, and over to the Tuamotus by next week. We’ll see. Island Time.

All is well.