To a Motu, Tuamotus

Hello from Raroia Atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia! We’ve been here, anchored in the exact same spot, for two weeks now, after a 3.5 day passage from the Marquesas. We have been really soaking in the slower pace of life and not having to move–after the really hard part, we are enjoying the easier part (I won’t call it easy, but it sure is easier than passage-making). We are in the water every day, free diving and snorkeling, seeing all of the wonders of the underground reef and coral castles and fishies and octopuses and remora and sharks. The reef here is remarkable and unspoiled and is really a dream to be able to be here and feel awe and wonder every day.

There are only 440 atolls in the world (!) — they are low-lying islands made of coral that surround a lagoon, and most are concentrated in the Pacific Ocean. So we are protected from the waves of the entire Pacific by the low motus (islands) that surround the lagoon where we are anchored. And the small, shallow passes into the ocean between the motus provide awesome snorkeling, and the motus themselves are great places to watch the sunset, have beach BBQs with other boats, and feel solid ground once in awhile.

I will also say that the community of sailors is a fast-friends kind of community. We were the only boat here in this anchorage for about four days, then some other boats come in, you have them over or they have you over for sundowners (drinks), they leave and pass along information about next stops, and you don’t know whether you’ll see them on down the watery road or not but it does make for lots of fun and it’s fascinating to meet people from all over.

I’ll let the photos tell the story of what we’ve been getting up to for the past few weeks!