FATU HIVA


Clear into French Polynesia

Greetings, Two questions;
-Can you clear in to French Polynesia in Pitcairn?
- How do you apply for the permission to enter French Polynesia? Online? How long in advance should you apply for it?

Pitcairn is NOT French Polynesia -

here are the ports of entry for FP

http://pacificposse.com/french-polynesia

Here is the info on Pitcairn http://pacificposse.com/pitcairn


Sunset Ibex

FLEET UPDATE 2022-07-01

South Pacific Posse

>

SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
FLEET UPDATE 

July 1, 2022

1) THE FLEET CONTINUES WESTWARD 

2) KIRIBATI OPENS UP 

 
 
 

South Pacific Posse 13 Particpant Flag States

1) GO WEST 

As French Polynesia's 90 day visas end the fleet is making it's way out of
French Polynesia - Cook Islands, American Samoa, etc etc QUICK FACT -
There are 10,000 more islands beyond Bora Bora in the South Pacific

 

SOUTH PACIFIC FLEET UPDATE LOCATION 2022-07-01

2)  KIRIBATI 🇰🇮 OPENS UP 

Kiribati

The Government of Kiribati announced, that all international travel to and
from Kiribati will return to normal on the 1st of August, 2022.

Kiribati

The official announcement also confirmed that the Government of Kiribati
has reduced the compulsory in-country quarantine days for all travelers
from seven (7) to three (3) days. 

Kiribati border reopening announcement

Kiribati is not another Tahiti, Hawaii, etc. It has very few visitors, and they
have to be prepared to "rough it." That said, there aren't many
countries where the people are more friendly.

Kiribati Location

KIRIBATI is an island group in Micronesia straddling the equator with 33 atolls.
Kiribati saw some of the worst fighting of the Pacific theater during
the Second World War, including the infamous Battle of Tarawa in
November 1943.

KIRIBATI

3) PICTURES OF THE WEEK

Blue Heeler

Blue Heeler's Rainbow

Blue Heeler

SY BLUE HEELER 🇦🇺 Alison & Wayne - Hallberg Rassy 39'

BLUE HEELER WayneBLUE HEELER Alison

4) CROSSING THE DATELINE 180° MERIDIAN 🇫🇯  FIJI 

Boat Yoga

Taveuni is the third-largest island in Fiji. The cigar-shaped island, a massive
shield volcano which rises from the floor of the Pacific Ocean across
the Somosomo Strait

Bula from Paradise Resort on Taveuni! This month I have made new tracks from Denarau to Yadua to Savusavu to Viani to Taveuni. I've just uploaded them to the Dropbox folder for your consumption. In the next few weeks I'll make my way to Fulaga, Kadavu and Beqa and share those tracks when I can. Safe sailing!

Bula from Paradise Resort on Taveuni!  This month I have made new
tracks from Denarau to Yadua to Savusavu to Viani to Taveuni.  In
the next few weeks I'll make my way to Fulaga, Kadavu and Beqa and share
those tracks when I can. 

TAVEUNI IS IN GOOD NAUTCIAL

Yes Anchorages on and near Taveuni, Fiji  are in GOOD  NAUTICAL 

Taveuni Straight

The waters in the Somosomo Strait are subject to powerful currents as a
vast amount of nutrient-rich ocean water that fuels the region's
astonishing coral growth.  

WHite Wall

The Rainbow Reef on the edge of Taveuni is one of the most famous dive
sites in the South Pacific. The Great White Wall is named because of the
white coral inhabiting the area at depths between 49 and 213 ft

Rainbow Reef

This is also a hotspot for bigger species of marine life, with plenty of
schooling fish, sharks and manta rays during the season.

Dive Sites

SY  SEAGLUB 🇺🇸 Chris - Hylas 46′

5) IBEX' LAST WEEKS IN 🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 

IBEX

Gold at the end of the Rainbow

Cooks Bay

Cooks Bay - Mo'orea FP

Moorea

Our current anchorage in MO'OREA Cook's Bay FP named after James Cook, despite that he never sailed into here 

Sunset

Sunset Alert 

Fuel Dock Marina Tahina

Fuel Prices will go up 24 % this weekend in French Polyneisa 

Huahine

Island of HUAHINE - French Polynesia 

Huahine

The important thing: once a year the pastor has to bless the vanilla plants - or so I understood with my non existent French

The important thing: once a year the pastor has to bless the vanilla plants - or so I understood with my non existent French

Vanilla Plants in Huahine

Vanilla

Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus Vanilla. Pollination is
required to make the plants produce the fruit. In 1841, Edmond Albius, a
12-year-old slave child who lived on the French island of Réunion in
the Indian Ocean, discovered that the plant could be
hand-pollinated. 

Vanilla

Three major species of vanilla currently are grown globally, all of which
derive from a species originally found in Mesoamerica.  Hernán
Cortés is credited with introducing both vanilla and chocolate to Europe
in the 1520s. In Europe, vanilla was seen mostly as an additive to
chocolate until the French starting using vanilla to flavor ice cream.

Mont Orohena is a mountain located in the South Pacific, on the island of Tahiti. With an elevation of 2,241 metres (7,352 ft)[2] above sea level, it is the highest point of French Polynesia. Mont Orohena is an extinct volcano

The seed pods are gathered up when mature and exposed to the heat of the
tropical sun, or sometimes steamed in modern production. This damages
the pods' cell walls, and the resulting chemical reactions brown the
pods and create the signature vanilla flavor.

View

View of Mo'orea from Tahiti

Dance

We just watched a Heiva dance presentation 

We just watched a Heiva dance presentation in Bora Bora. If you come this way in July, above is the program.

If you come this way in July, above is the program.

We just watched a Heiva dance presentation in Bora Bora

The Heiva  is an expression of Polynesian culture.  The mythical
stage, the venue for this cultural event, will host song and dance
groups

Bora Bora

During World War II, the United States chose Bora Bora as a South Pacific
military supply base, and constructed an oil depot, an airstrip, a
seaplane base, and defensive fortifications. The base, known as "Operation Bobcat", comprised nine ships, 18,000 t of equipment, and nearly 7,000 soldiers. 

Roast Suckling Pig

Roast Suckling Pig  - traditional fare from Polynesian culture.  

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Vicky- Sunbeam 42′

IBEX VickyIBEX Florian

7) PICTURE OF THE WEEK 

OHANA

SY OHANA at anchor in Bora Bora, French Polynesia  

Picture of Ohana haulout in Raiatea Carenage

Picture of Ohana haulout in Raiatea Carenage French Polynesia

 

SY OHANA 🇺🇸  Aisling & Darryl  - Lagoon 46′

OHANA AislingOHANA Darryl

8) DRIFT DIVE FAKARAVA  🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 
 

Had a amazing dice at the south pass of fakarava for the full moon! Thousands of grouper!

Had a amazing dice at the south pass of Fakarava for the full moon! Thousands of grouper!

We Sail

Wesail's youtube chanel https://www.youtube.com/c/WEsail/videos

Tetamanu Village south pass Fakarava

Tetamanu Village south pass Fakarava

Pass Drive

SY VA / WESAIL  🇵🇦  Erica & Warren - Fountaine Pajot 44′

VA

9) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
AWARDS CATEGORIES 

 

HERE ARE THE  CATEGORIES 

    BIGGEST FISH CAUGHT* ✔ 

    PICTURE OF THE YEAR ✔  

    SPEEDY AWARD – SEVENSTAR AWARD ✔  

    THE CAPTAIN RON AWARD ✔ 

    MOST UNWELCOME VISITOR ONBOARD ✔ 

    HIGHEST WIND RECORDED ✔ 

    SPIRIT OF EXPLORATION ✔ 

    GALLEY GOD(ESS) ✔ 

    GOOD SAMARITAN OF THE YEAR ✔  

    NEWLY ADDED – BOAT YOGA POSE OF THE YEAR ✔

*no bill-fish

Sunsets in Vauatu

Vanuatu awaits

10) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE WEATHER ROUTING   

Weather Routing

For weather routing  through the dangerous middle toward s New Zealand or Australia please visit our sponsors 
https://pacificposse.com/ocean-tactics

Contact John Martin 
 admin@coastalandoffshorecruising.com

WhatsApp / Tel  +64 27 242 1088

John Martin

John Martin principal of Ocean Tactics has been assisting skippers with weather and passage planning in the Pacific  for many years is now an official sponsor  of the South Pacific Posse.

 Sail South Pacific

11) VUDA MARINA 🇫🇯  FIJI
SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

vUDA MArina

With pleasure we are happy to announce the  Sponsorship of the Pacific Posse

Vuda MARINA

Vuda Marina Savusavu Fiji 

Vuda Marina Fiji’s Favourite Yacht Haven

This  season the South Pacific Posse will have:

20% discount on docks.

Welcome national beer

And access to all facilities.

Regards,

Adam Wade GM

Adam

Adam Wade

Skype i.d: vudamarina

Tel: +679 666 8214  +679 666 8215  info@vudamarina.com.fj

Vitu Levu

12)  MARINA SPONSORS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC  POSSE 

🇺🇸  Safe Harbor South Bay – Chula Vista - USA

🇲🇽  Marina Chiapas – Mexico   

🇨🇷  Marina Papagayo – Costa Rica   

🇵🇦  Shelter Bay Marina – Panama  

🇪🇨  Marina Puerto Amistad – Ecuador  

🇫🇯   Vuda Point Marina - Fiji 

🇻🇺  Yachting World Marina - Port Vila - Vanuatu

🇳🇿  Marsden Cove Marina - New Zealand 

🇦🇺  Rivergate Marina  - Brisbane  - Australia 

🇫🇯  Denarau Marina - Fiji 

🇫🇯  Royal Suva Yacht Club  - Fiji 

🇫🇯  Savu Savu Marina  - Fiji 

Shelter Bay Marina

Shelter Bay Marina Panama a natural  jump off point for the South Pacific Posse 

13) TRACKING THE 22' PACIFIC POSSE  FLEET 
BROUGHT TO YOU BY PREDICT WIND

Tracking

Visit https://pacificposse.com/tracking to view the progress of the 22 South Pacific Posse Fleet. 
To be added visit https://pacificposse.com/add-to-tracking

Gargolye

SY Gargoyle captured a  sunset with the tip of Bora Bora barely visible on the horizon

SY GARGOYLE 🇨🇦  Kevin & Carla -  Beneteau 50′

GARGOYLE KevinGARGOYL Carla

14) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE SPONSORS 

  • PREDICT WIND
  • SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT
  • CENTENARIO PANAMA CANAL AGENTS
  • YACHT AGENTS GALAPAGOS 
  • YACHT SERVICES NUKU HIVA 
  • NOUMEA YACHT SERVICES
  • SAFE HARBOR SOUTH BAY MARINA EVENT CENTER
  • WESTMARINE PRO
  • SAILMAIL 
  • OCEAN TACTICS WEATHER ROUTING
  • CLOUD 9  FIJI
MARE

15) SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT

 SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

More info on Sevenstar™s services can be found on https://www.sevenstar-yacht-transport.com/

Sevenstar

SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT | JULY 01 2022

🛥️ ⛵ SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC  POSSE

Sevenstar Yacht Transport is proud to continue as a sponsor of the Panama Posse.
True sailing communities with real world cruising experience, such as
the Panama Posse, always inspire us and drives us to provide regular
sailings on established routes as well as expanding into new markets and
ports. Providing professional logistics solutions for sailors and
cruisers all over the world is our core business and the Posse sailing
communities are a true example of what can be possible this day in age
when it comes to flexibility and connectivity. We thank you for the
privilege to be your logistics supplier.

Seven Star

16) PANAMA 🇵🇦 CANAL AGENT 
CENTENARIO CONSULTING ERICK GALVEZ

To arrange for transit with the Panama Canal Authority please contact Eric
Galvez our dedicated Panama Canal agent and sponsor of the Panama Posse
and the Pacific Posse

Erick Gálvez

info@centenarioconsulting.com

www.centenarioconsulting.com

Cellphone +507 6676-1376

WhatsApp +507 6676-1376

Erick
https://panamaposse.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/new-panama-canal-graphic.jpg

17) STRATEGIC PARTNERS
 

SEVEN SEAS CRUISING ASSOCIATION

Abernathy – Chandlery – Panama

Panama Posse 

Atlantic Posse

Advertising Partners – Las Vegas

Safe-Esteem.com – Delaware

SIGN UP FOR 
THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE  
New Caledonia

WE OPERATE UNDER INTERNATIONAL MARITIME LAW

YOUR VESSEL · YOUR CREW · YOUR RESPONSIBILITY 

Port Fitzroy, Great Barrier Island, NZ
 

South Pacific Posse

south pacific posse communications 
 @ 9811 w charleston blvd 2262 89117 Summerlin USA

© 2022 South Pacific Posse / Ocean Posse LLC

 


Dreamer at anchor

FLEET UPDATE 2022-06-13

 

 

South Pacific Posse

 

 

SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
FLEET UPDATE 

June 13, 2022

TOP NEWS THIS WEEK

1) VANUATU OPENS UP JULY 1 

2) AMERICAN SAMOA OPENS UP 

3) SOLOMON ISLANDS  OPENING 

 
 
 

 

South Pacific Posse 13 Particpant Flag States

 

1) YACHTING WORLD - PORT VILA  🇻🇺  VANUATU    
SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

The
Vanuatu Tourism Office  is excited to announce that Vanuatu will
open its borders to fully-vaccinated international travelers from 1
July, 2022 with no quarantine or arrival caps.

 

Yachting World

 

Yachting
World’s staff is happy to assist you with the same warm friendliness
that we have been offering cruising yachts for more than 25 years.

 

Port VIla

 

Port Vila - Efate -Vanuatu

Yachting World Marina will - hopefully - open

on August 1st -

 

Best regards - Elsie - YW

Phone + 678 23273

(if a phone call, ask for Lemara, the office manager)

VHF Ch. 16

email: welcome@yachtingworld-vanuatu.com

 

Vanuatu Chart 82571

 

2)  AMERICAN SAMOA 🇦🇸 OPENS UP 

American Samoa - Pago Pago

American Samoa - Pago Pago Harbor

Talofa lava South Pacific Posse,

 

Please,
note that American Samoa is currently under a Declaration of Public
Health Emergency for COVID-19 and strict travel restrictions have been
implemented. You can find more information on this website:
www.legalaffairs.as.gov, under "Travel Restrictions" for further
information.

 

In
addition, we will need detailed information regarding the vessel and
crew, and the nature of the vessel's request to enter American Samoa.
Please provide the following information:

 

    ETA:

    Vessel Registration Number

    Vessel Type/Specifications/Color

    Vessel Flag

    Vessel Home Port

    Vessel contact information: email, radio call sign, satellite phone/Inmarsat

    Crew List

    Copies of Crew Passports

    Copies of COVID19 Test results

    Clearance documents from the last port

    Where was the vessel scheduled to go upon departing the last port?

    Cargo Manifest

 

Kindly
submit this information for review.  Understand that this request
for additional information IS NOT an authorization to enter American
Samoa.  The vessel is to remain outside of Territorial waters until
further instructions are given.  As soon as I receive this
information, I will send the request up to the proper authorities for
approval.

 

Let me know if you should have further questions in regard to this matter.

 

Respectfully,

Chester Manaea

chester.manaea@pa.as.gov

Pago Pago Harbor

3) SOLOMON ISLANDS 🇸🇧 OPENING 

Honoria Harbour

Honoria Harbour - Solomon Islands 

The information on this page is applicable to people who are fully vaccinated and traveling from Fiji to Solomon Islands.

 Travel is allowed with restrictions for vaccinated travelers

 Fully
vaccinated travelers aged 18 years and older are allowed to enter the
Solomon Islands under the tourism bubble. Travelers must contact
jremobatu@pmc.gov.sb or Cornelius.Walegerea@mfaet.gov.sb to get approval
from Oversight Committee to enter the country.

Please check the documentation, quarantine, and/or testing requirements before traveling.

Unvaccinated
travelers under the age of 18 who are eligible to take their
vaccination can enter Solomon Island; however, they will need to take
vaccination after arrival.

Honoria Chart

4) ENTRY INTO BOAT YOGA AWARD

 

Boat Yoga

 

More boat chores in exotic places. Cleaning the barnacles off the dinghy at 7 knots.

SY  RHAPSODY  🇦🇺  Sarah & Bob
- Jeanneau 49′

RHAPSODY BobRHAPSODY Sarah

5) SUPPLY CHAIN 102 & ROAD TRIP
PAPEETE MARKET 🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 

After the Tuamotus, Papeete market is a fruit & vegetable paradise 😃

Market

Marché Papeete ("municipal market") or Papeete Market is an extensive market place in Papeete, the capital of Tahiti.

Market

The market sells fruit, vegetables, fish, oils, handicrafts and various souvenir items. 

Market 2

We took the cross island 4WD track today

y, it runs N to S through the center of the islands, can be done by 4WD rental or joining a tour, we enjoyed standing on the benches on the back of a pick up and taking in the amazing views (rather than driving ourselves, as it is steep, windy, pumpy, muddy…) lots of stops incl one up in the mountains at a lunch place.

It
runs N to S through the center of the islands, can be done by 4WD
rental or joining a tour, we enjoyed standing on the benches on the back
of a pick up and taking in the amazing views (rather than driving
ourselves, as it is steep, windy, pumpy, muddy…) lots of stops incl one
up in the mountains at a lunch place.

(rather than driving ourselves, as it is steep, windy, pumpy, muddy…) lots of stops incl one up in the mountains at a lunch place.

Lake Vaihiria

Rather
than driving ourselves, as it is steep, windy, pumpy, muddy…  lots
of stops incl one up in the mountains at a lunch place.

Waterfalls along the road from Mont Orohen.

Waterfalls along the road from Mont Orohen.

Mont Orohena is a mountain located in the South Pacific, on the island of Tahiti. With an elevation of 2,241 metres (7,352 ft)[2] above sea level, it is the highest point of French Polynesia. Mont Orohena is an extinct volcano

Mont
Orohena, an extinct volcano, with  an elevation of 2,241 metres
(7,352 ft) it is the highest point of French Polynesia. 

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Vicky- Sunbeam 42′

IBEX VickyIBEX Florian

6) FUEL DOCK & HAUL OUT ADVENTURES 

NUKU HIVA 🇵🇫  FRENCH POLYNESIA 

We successfully filled up with diesel in Nuku Hiva 😊 Interesting arrangement not made for cruisers. No drama for us though. We were lucky with calm seas.

We
successfully filled up with diesel in Nuku Hiva 😊 Interesting
arrangement not made for cruisers. No drama for us though. We were lucky
with calm seas.

Horizon is now on the hard in Hiva Oa.

Horizon is now on the hard in Hiva Oa.tight fit, but they are very professional here

Horizon is now on the hard in Hiva Oa.tight fit, but they are very professional here

Tight fit, but they are very professional here

tight fit, but they are very professional here

SY HORIZON 🇺🇸 Anders & Anette - Outbound 46′

HORIZON MichelleHORIZON Christopher

7) PICTURE OF THE WEEK 

Dreamer Picture of the week !

Dreamer at anchor in Huahine with double rainbow

 SY DREAMER 🇺🇸 David & Gerne - Caliber 40lrv’

DREAMER CrewDREAMER Crew

8) SY ACUSHNET ARRIVES IN 🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 
 

We named our boat after the whaling ship that Herman Melville sailed around the world on. 

 named our boat after the whaling ship that Herman Melville sailed around the world on. He set sail in 1839 and in the summer of 1842, Melville and his shipmate Richard Tobias Greene (

He
set sail in 1839 and in the summer of 1842, Melville and his shipmate
Richard Tobias Greene ("Toby") jumped ship at Nuku Hiva Bay… the very
bay we are now anchored in! 

Acushnet

Nuku Hiva:  mission accomplished - South Pacific Posse Burgee 

They're only around three days away from their destination. Since the rules for checking into French Polynesia have changed while they've been at sea, they are now going to check into Hiva-Oa – an island that’s a little closer than Nuku Hiva so they’ve changed course and are heading there. Watch this space!

Since
the rules for checking into French Polynesia have changed while they've
been at sea, they are now going to check into Hiva-Oa – an island
that’s a little closer than Nuku Hiva so they’ve changed course and are
heading there. Watch this space!

LAND HO ACUSHNET

We love how we can simply haul anchor and move whenever we feel like it, and am so excited to explore this new spot.

Last
night we intended to go to a completely different island but diverted
as we heard the main anchorage was full. Going with the flow is what
sailing is all about I guess. Anyone else like this approach to
traveling?

The bay here in Nuku Hiva is large so we have lots of room 

Nuku HIva

Taiohae Bay, Nuku Hiva, Marquesas, French Polynesia  as seen from the Tehaatiki viewpoint

SY ACUSHNET 🇺🇸  Ross & Saskia  - Lagoon 46 

AKUSHNET SaskiaAKUSHNET Ross
BRAVO ZULU

9) UNEXPECTED EXPENSE ALERT  

Two Bags of Laundry Washed and Dried at the Laverie in Papeete

motivation for locals to work on your laundry comes at a  cost 

After two weeks in Fakarava, Gargoyle is making her way 240nm west to the poster-child for paradise, Tahiti. Timing the tides to allow us to slip through Fakarava’s narrow southern pass, we departed at 8:00 AM yesterday. The exit proved easier than anticipated though the appearance of a free diver suddenly surfacing five feet off our bow added a touch of excitement. I didn’t have the heart to yell over and startle them as they only had eyes for the mass of sharks hovering below them however a visible float would perhaps be a good idea when diving a navigational channel. Sharks or gargoyles though, pick your fate. Then we were out and a turn to starboard put us on course for Tahiti’s main port, Papeete. Wondering how to pronounce that? Just sing the line from Southern Cross “on the downhill run to Papeete “. Unfortunately we had zero wind and we motored under a clear blue sky and over a glassy calm sea with just the eternal swell for company. Last night continued calm and we motored slowly towards our destination, hoping for the gods to show us favor and deliver a bit of wind. Finally, as dawn lit the eastern sky the winds settled in enough to allow us to set a sail and make our way, slowly, in the right direction. So as I write this we sail towards towering clouds lit cotton candy pink by another beautiful French Polynesia sunrise. We still have 24 hours to go on our downhill run but journey and destination are in such perfect harmony that we could this run forever.

After two weeks in Fakarava, Gargoyle is making her way 240nm west to the poster-child for paradise, Tahiti.

Timing
the tides to allow us to slip through Fakarava’s narrow southern pass,
we departed at 8:00 AM yesterday. The exit proved easier than
anticipated though the appearance of a free diver suddenly surfacing
five feet off our bow added a touch of excitement. I didn’t have the
heart to yell over and startle them as they only had eyes for the mass
of sharks hovering below them however a visible float would perhaps be a
good idea when diving a navigational channel. Sharks or gargoyles
though, pick your fate.

Then
we were out and a turn to starboard put us on course for Tahiti’s main
port, Papeete. Wondering how to pronounce that? Just sing the line from
Southern Cross “on the downhill run to Papeete “. Unfortunately we had
zero wind and we motored under a clear blue sky and over a glassy calm
sea with just the eternal swell for company.

Last
night continued calm and we motored slowly towards our destination,
hoping for the gods to show us favor and deliver a bit of wind. Finally,
as dawn lit the eastern sky the winds settled in enough to allow us to
set a sail and make our way, slowly, in the right direction.

So
as I write this we sail towards towering clouds lit cotton candy pink
by another beautiful French Polynesia sunrise. We still have 24 hours to
go on our downhill run but journey and destination are in such perfect
harmony that we could this run forever.

When was the last time you had so much fun shopping for groceries that you took a picture? We had a great time stocking up on fresh produce and fish at the local market, which is literally across the street from our marina. As with all of Papeete, it's also filled with amazing people. What a great location!

When
was the last time you had so much fun shopping for groceries that you
took a picture? We had a great time stocking up on fresh produce and
fish at the local market, which is literally across the street from our
marina. As with all of Papeete, it's also filled with amazing people.
What a great location!

Beautiful day for a sail from Tahiti to Mo'orea.

Beautiful day for a sail from Tahiti to Mo'orea.

SY GARGOLYE 🇨🇦 Kevin & Carla  - C.M.P.F. –Beneteau 50′

GARGOYLE KevinGARGOYL Carla

10) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
AWARDS CATEGORIES 

 

HERE ARE THE  CATEGORIES 

    BIGGEST FISH CAUGHT* ✔ 

    PICTURE OF THE YEAR ✔  

    SPEEDY AWARD – SEVENSTAR AWARD ✔  

    THE CAPTAIN RON AWARD ✔ 

    MOST UNWELCOME VISITOR ONBOARD ✔ 

    HIGHEST WIND RECORDED ✔ 

    SPIRIT OF EXPLORATION ✔ 

    GALLEY GOD(ESS) ✔ 

    GOOD SAMARITAN OF THE YEAR ✔  

    NEWLY ADDED – BOAT YOGA POSE OF THE YEAR ✔

*no bill-fish

Bora Bora awaits

Bora Bora awaits 

11) THE DANGEROUS MIDDLE 
🇨🇰 COOK ISLANDS

The Cook Islands
are in the South Pacific Ocean, north-east of New Zealand, between
French Polynesia and Fiji. There are fifteen major islands, spread over
2.2 million square kilometers of ocean, divided into two distinct
groups: the Southern Cook Islands, and the Northern Cook Islands of coral atolls.

The
islands were formed by volcanic activity; the northern group is older
and consists of six atolls (sunken volcanoes topped by coral growth).

Dangerous Middle

Three options for travelling through the Cook Islands:

Northern Cook Islands only,
approaching from (for example) Bora Bora. Possible stops in order along
the route would be Penrhyn, Manihiki, Suwarrow and then perhaps
Pukapuka.

Southern Cook Islands only, possible stops would be Rarotonga and perhaps either or both of Aitutaki and Palmerston.

Both northern and southern Cooks, starting in Rarotonga, and continuing to Palmerston, Suwarrow and perhaps Pukapuka.

Rarotonga
is a useful first stop because it is the main center for the Cook
Islands, and provisions can be hard to find in the outer islands.
Whether you stop at the outer islands, in particular Palmerston and
Aitutaki can depend on wind direction and draft -- see the notes on the
pages for those islands.

Rarotonga
is a useful first stop because it is the main centre for the Cook
Islands, and provisions can be hard to find in the outer islands.
Whether you stop at the outer islands, in particular Palmerston and
Aitutaki can depend on wind direction and draft -- see the notes on the
pages for those islands.

 

July Pilot Charts Cook Islands

 

July Pilot Charts Cook Islands

 

currents

 

Currents Cook Islands

https://metvuw.com/forecast/forecast1.php?type=rain&region=swp&tim=204

Weather systems moving west to east through the dangerous middle 

SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE WEATHER ROUTING DEAL 

For weather routing thought the dangerous middle visit  https://pacificposse.com/ocean-tactics

Contact John Martin 
 admin@coastalandoffshorecruising.com

WhatsApp / Tel  +64 27 242 1088

John Martin

John Martin principal
of Ocean Tactics has been assisting skippers with weather and passage
planning in the Pacific  for many years is now an official sponsor
of the South Pacific Posse.

12) FIJI DISCOVERIES  🇫🇯  ANCHORAGES

Superyacht arriving in Port Denarau

Superyachts in Port Denarau

Chris

Yadua Anchorage photo

Yadua Anchorage
 Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji Anchorage

 Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji Anchorage

 Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji
 Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji

 Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort Fiji 

SY SEAGLUB 🇺🇸 Chris - Hylas 46′

Chris

13) COPRA SHED MARINA 🇫🇯  FIJI
SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

Copra Shed MArina

15% Discount South Pacific Posse

 

COPRA SHED MARINA

 

Copra Shed Marina Savusavu Fiji 

 

Copra Shed Marina

 

BULA !!!

We are excited to welcome the South Pacific Posse to the Copra Shed Marina in Savusavu

As a special recognition we offer a % discount to all participants of the  South Pacific Posse vessels

Geoff  GM 
and Dolly

Savusavu

14)  MARINA SPONSORS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC  POSSE 

🇺🇸  Safe Harbor South Bay – Chula Vista - USA

🇲🇽  Marina Chiapas – Mexico   

🇨🇷  Marina Papagayo – Costa Rica   

🇵🇦  Shelter Bay Marina – Panama  

🇪🇨  Marina Puerto Amistad – Ecuador  

🇫🇯   Vuda Point Marina - Fiji 

🇻🇺  Yachting World Marina - Port Vila - Vanuatu

🇳🇿  Marsden Cove Marina - New Zealand 

🇦🇺  Rivergate Marina  - Brisbane  - Australia 

🇫🇯  Denarau Marina - Fiji 

🇫🇯  Royal Suva Yacht Club  - Fiji 

🇫🇯  Savu Savu Marina  - Fiji 

15) TRACKING THE 22' PACIFIC POSSE  FLEET 
BROUGHT TO YOU BY PREDICT WIND

 

Tracking

 

Visit https://pacificposse.com/tracking to view the progress of the 22 South Pacific Posse Fleet. 
To be added visit https://pacificposse.com/add-to-tracking

16) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE SPONSORS 

  • PREDICT WIND
  • SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT
  • CENTENARIO PANAMA CANAL AGENTS
  • YACHT AGENTS GALAPAGOS 
  • YACHT SERVICES NUKU HIVA 
  • NOUMEA YACHT SERVICES
  • SAFE HARBOR SOUTH BAY MARINA EVENT CENTER
  • WESTMARINE PRO
  • SAILMAIL 
  • OCEAN TACTICS WEATHER ROUTING
  • CLOUD 9  FIJI

17) SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT

 SPONSORS THE SOUTH POSSE

More info on Sevenstar™s services can be found on https://www.sevenstar-yacht-transport.com/

 

Sevenstar

 

Who is Sevenstar Yacht Transport?

Sevenstar
is the world’s leading provider of yacht shipping services on a
lift-on, lift-off basis. Sevenstar has access to the Spliethoff fleet of
over 120 company owned vessels. With an impressive 1,500+ transports
per year, they are calling over 100 ports in more than 40 countries
worldwide.

For a quote with the Panama Posse discount please contact 
Kris Caren

email: kris@sevenstar-usa.com

web: sevenstar-usa.com

18) PANAMA 🇵🇦 CANAL AGENT 
CENTENARIO CONSULTING ERICK GALVEZ

To
arrange for transit with the Panama Canal Authority please contact Eric
Galvez our dedicated Panama Canal agent and sponsor of the Panama Posse
and the Pacific Posse

Erick Gálvez

info@centenarioconsulting.com

www.centenarioconsulting.com

Cellphone +507 6676-1376

WhatsApp +507 6676-1376

Erick
https://panamaposse.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/new-panama-canal-graphic.jpg

19) STRATEGIC PARTNERS
 

SEVEN SEAS CRUISING ASSOCIATION

Abernathy – Chandlery – Panama

Panama Posse 

Atlantic Posse

Advertising Partners – Las Vegas

Safe-Esteem.com – Delaware


SIGN UP FOR 
THE '22 SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE  

WE OPERATE UNDER INTERNATIONAL MARITIME LAW

YOUR VESSEL · YOUR CREW · YOUR RESPONSIBILITY 

 

Green Flash

 

Green Flash and Sunset Picture 
Bora Bora from Huahine French Polynesia 

 

South Pacific Posse

 

south pacific posse communications 
 @ 9811 w charleston blvd 2262 89117 Summerlin USA

 

© 2022 South Pacific Posse / Ocean Posse LLC


Sunsets

FLEET UPDATE 2022-05-28

South Pacific Posse

REFER A FRIEND 
TO RECEIVE  FLEET UPDATES

SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
FLEET UPDATE 

May 28, 2022

TOP NEWS THIS WEEK

1) ROYAL SUVA YACHT CLUB 🇫🇯   FIJI 
2) SY LEEANNE RUDDER FAILURE 
 
 

South Pacific Posse 13 Particpant Flag States

1) ROYAL SUVA YACHT CLUB 🇫🇯 FIJI    
SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

RSYC ROYAL SUVA YACHT CLUB 🇫🇯 SPONSORS THE SPP

 FREE 1 MONTH Honorary Membership for South  Pacific Posse 

If
any members of the Pacific Posse arrive at Suva I am happy to inform
you that the RSYC will recognize them as a bonafide member of a club and
grant them the privileges as if they were members of a Yacht/Marine
Club!

Royal Suva Yacht Club

Patrick Todd  

R•S•Y•C

 http://www.rsyc.org.fj/

+679 992 2921

gm@rsyc.org.fj

https://pacificposse.com/royal-suva-yacht-club-fiji

Suva Harbor, Fiji  on the other side of the Dateline 

Royal Suva Yacht Club

2)  SY LEEANN RUDDER FAILURE 

SY Leeanne Rudder Jury Rig Video

The Story:

You
may have noticed we are back in Mexico and not in our original
destination, French Polynesia. As it is a bummer we didn’t make it, we
are so happy to be back with ourselves and the boat in one piece! Long
story short, we were about 500 miles out and found our rudder tube was
cracked and leaking seawater. The fiberglass tube was delaminating from
the hull of the boat. Not good. Trip over. Luckily we noticed the
problem right before we made it to Clarion island which is the last
possible place to stop for another 2000 miles so we pulled over to get a
good look. It was determined by our shoreside support network of expert
sailors that our only course of action was to drop our rudder, epoxy
the leaks, fiberglass some wood gussets around the tube for support, and
sail 550 nautical miles home with no rudder. And that’s what we did.
Luckily we have a @hydrovane that has its own little rudder that we
could use to help get us home. We could not get it to self steer without
the input of a main rudder so Carson and I had to hand steer the little
windvane rudder two hours on, and two hours off, for 5 days and 550
miles under constant threat of the tube breaking and sinking us the
whole way. This is the very very short version of the story, we will
eventually do a full write up of the whole thing soon. We have a lot of
people to tag and thank for helping us through this which will come with
a full write up. We just wanted to get a short explanation out to all
our friends on here who are wondering what’s going on with us! We are
safe, the boat is safe, and most importantly we are happy as ever! 

 Yes, we did have issues with our rudder. We started to hear “knocking” from our rudder post near the top bearing about a day and a half from clarion island so we stopped there to wait for better wind and do some inspections. When we took a look down at our rudder post we found that the fiberglass tube was delaminating and was seeping seawater. So, with our team of experts we all agreed that the rudder had to come out. With the help of the Mexican navy, we were able to successfully drop the rudder in the water at clarion island. Then we built gussets to stabilize the tube and fiberglassed all around the tube. Once that was set and the tube was more stable, we got towed out to sea, set the sails, and sails back to PV using only our Hydrovane rudder. We had to had steer 2 hours on 2 hours off for 5 days. The seas were big and we fought the boat rounding up every few minutes. We used dragging devices and had the sails reefed the entire time. We are now resting in a hotel in PV getting some much needed sleep!

 We
have spent the last few days doing repairs so that we can safely sail
back the 550 nautical miles.it will take us roughly 5-6 days and we will
continue to update daily. We thank you all for your support through
this journey.

Back in Mexico

We are docked! After 17 days we have arrived safely back in La Cruz, MX .

Yes,
we did have issues with our rudder. We started to hear “knocking” from
our rudder post near the top bearing about a day and a half from clarion
island so we stopped there to wait for better wind and do some
inspections. When we took a look down at our rudder post we found that
the fiberglass tube was delaminating and was seeping seawater. So, with
our team of experts we all agreed that the rudder had to come out. With
the help of the Mexican navy, we were able to successfully drop the
rudder in the water at clarion island. Then we built gussets to
stabilize the tube and fiberglassed all around the tube. Once that was
set and the tube was more stable, we got towed out to sea, set the
sails, and sails back to PV using only our Hydrovane rudder. We had to
had steer 2 hours on 2 hours off for 5 days. The seas were big and we
fought the boat rounding up every few minutes. We used dragging devices
and had the sails reefed the entire time. We are now resting in a hotel
in PV getting some much needed sleep!

Rudder jury Rig

We
are now headed to London!! A big pivot from our South Pacific plans but
we are determined to make the best of it! Getting in a lil belated
honeymoon trip exploring Europe over the next few weeks 🥳 SV LeeAnn
will be hauled out next week, repairs done, put back in the water and we
will return to her whole again! 

We can’t wait to explore a new place! 

With love, 

LEEANNE

With love, 

SY LEEANN 🇺🇸  Jamie & Carson - Beneteau Oceanis 46′

Carson
Jamie

3) ENTRY INTO GALLEY GOD(DESS ) AWARD

Galley Godess

Thought I’d send through some pics for Galley Goddess Award.

Below is Pizza cooked on the Cobb at Punaruku, Makemo, and above Fried Chicken on the Cobb, Fakarava.

BLue Heeler

Cheers!

Blue Heeler update on our time at Fakarava. 

Useful info if you’re heading that way. 

http://blueheelerhr39.com/2022/05/26/fakarava-tuamotos/

WALL OF SHARKS!! Fakarava Tuamotos by Sailing Blue Heeler
Vessel leaving Passe Tiputa at Rangiroa one hour before high tide. Increased swell in region causing strong outflow. The guy on the bow is having fun!

Vessel
leaving Passe Tiputa at Rangiroa one hour before high tide. Increased
swell in region causing strong outflow.  The guy on the bow is
having fun!

Passe Hiria de Tiputa - Rangiroa

Passe Hiria de Tiputa - Rangiroa 

SY  BLUE HEELER 🇦🇺  Ally & Wayne - Hallberg Rassy 39‘

BLuee Heeler
Alison

4) SUPPLY CHAIN 101
 FAKARAVA, TUAMOTUS 🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 

Fakarava Magasin

This
is the Tumoana magasin in Fakarava on Wednesday morning when the supply
ship arrives.  Thirty three boats are in the anchorage are vying
for the limited fruits and veggies at this small table as each box of
items is set out.  Nearly all the fruit/veggies were gone in two
hours.   Same thing happened at the boulangerie south of town at
15:00.  Plan your arrival the evening prior to get into town early.

Magasin

Inside
the atoll is a lagoon.  The atoll is comprised of coral reefs
called motus.  Between these motus are small channels that are
created by seawater coming through the atoll from the ocean.  Carl
and I spend hours snorkeling and floating from the edge of the atoll
into the lagoon.  The channels can be shallow or very deep. This
one was about 200 meters long and 30 feet deep.  Loaded with bright
coral (purple, pink, yellow) and school of brightly colored fish.
Floating with the inbound tide current over these wonders is like
flying in your dreams.  After painting from my paddle board, I dove
in.

ROxy

SY SKY POND  🇨🇰   Carl & Roxy - Seawind 1160 38′

Roxy
Carl
Fakarava

Fakarava, Tuamotus, French Polynesia is in Good Nautical

5) PICTURES OF THE WEEK 

 

The Ibex  Sunset Series

Ibex

Tuamotus  Sunset  1 

Tuamotus Sunset

Tuamotus  Sunset  2 

Tuamotus Sunset

Tuamotus  Sunset 3 

Ibex and the Coconut Oil Factory

Ibex and the Coconut Oil Factory 

rotosieve

Classic Rotosieve add coconut meat on top oil comes out of the front 

End product once packaged

End product once packaged

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Waltraud - Sunbeam 42′

FLorian
Vicky

6) SY RHAPSODY ARRIVES IN 🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 
 

 About
3:00 am. Morning of day 20, graveyard watch as usual. Sarah mentioned
seeing skimming birds feeding at dusk last night when we were just under
100 nm. from land. Birds are always our last send off and first
greeters on passage. Also, as is usual since leaving Panama, a red
footed booby has chosen our bow rail to rest for the night. We marvel at
the flexibility and unwavering tenacity their webbed feet display in
gripping slimy, salted 1” stainless steel pipe bouncing about for hour
upon hour.

4:00
am. The chart plotter shows we are nearing our first possible glimpse
of terra firma since leaving views of San Cristobal, the western most
volcanic landscape of the Galápagos Islands, in our wake almost 3 weeks
ago. UO-HUKA, at the eastern edge of French Polynesia, is for now just a
lurking, dark, blurry shape resting nebulous on the southern horizon
under overcast and moody skies. The waxing half moon set 2 hours ago.
We’ve been getting scattered spit, drizzle, and mini squalls since
sunset causing the need to put away cushions and pillows to dry corners
only to return them minutes later.After 20 days at sea,

Over 3000 nautical miles,

5 trips by Bob into the back lazerette to fix the autopilot

One broken halyard

One Code Zero sail retrieved from the water

3 days of on and off hand steering  Land Ho! 

LAND HO RHAPSODY

Exerts from their blog https://www.rhapsodyontheblue.com  

In
finishing up our passage from the Galapagos Islands to French Polynesia
I asked my family if they had any questions for us. They came up with
some great ones. My answers are in blue, and Bob's are italicized

 

What
was something that you loved that you didn’t foresee and what was
something you were worried about that you didn’t need to be? 

Although
it was not technically on this section of the passage, I loved the
Doldrums. Admittedly we had a motor and so we were not relying on the
wind to get us through, but I loved the stillness of the ocean. The
absolute glassiness of it. The things that I worried about I am not sure
that I didn’t need to concerned about. We worried about them so that we
would do everything we could to stop them from happening. 

Better
than I thought was how fast the time passed, with special thanks to
reading.  I worried that sleep loss could become a cumulative
problem, but that wasn't really the case.

 

How
was your experience extending a strange alternating sleep schedule over
the long time period? Did you ever fall asleep on watch? 

Our
watch schedule is a natural extension of our typical habits. Bob tends
to fall asleep earlier than I do, and thus wake up earlier. We just push
this schedule to its limits and it works well. Bob falls asleep as
early as he can, sometimes as early as 7, then wakes up at 1 or 2 and
takes over from me. I like to stay up reading, so I just push that to
staying up later and later, then I get to sleep in the morning. There
were certainly days that our rhythms were interrupted by weather or
equipment breakage, but then we just take turns napping during the day.

My
experiences on previous passages prepared me well mentally, however on
this passage the motion of the boat was a greater challenge to both
getting and staying asleep.

What would you do differently if you did it again?

I
would download more podcasts, they are great company on nightwatch. I
thought I had done so, but most of them were gone by the time I wanted
to listen to them.

I agree with more podcasts, but if we could find the right person, another crew member would be worthwhile.

What food that you provisioned did you wish you had more of and which food did you never actually eat?

We
would have liked to have more non dairy ice cream but the freezer just
couldn't hold any more. Also more lettuce would have been nice, but it
is difficult to get it to last.

I
agree with the lettuce and ice cream, and would add more hummus. We did
not use many canned goods, but those are really provisioned for our
remaining months before large groceries in Papeete.

Did
you think about people who had made this crossing before access to
technologies you have? Anyone in particular? Did you feel connected to
past explorers and sailors in some way out in the vast open blue? 

Thank
goodness for technology! To do this without GPS, our chartplotter and
our Sat phone would have been a totally different experience,  and
not something that I believe it would have enjoyed. I did think about
those who came before us and how their experiences differed from ours.

Certainly
one cannot discount the advantages of GPS and the security that
knowledge feeds you every day you are out of sight of land. When I think
of the Polynesians, that for thousands of years, explored these same
waters by reading the waves, the wind, and determining their location by
holding their hand up to the stars, I am humbled. 

All
who have gone to sea before us, and all our fellow cruisers today
readily share information. Technology and information properly applied
keeps us safe, and allows us to continue following in the path of the
real explorers.

 

At what point in your crossing did you feel most isolated?

For
a while our text messaging app was not working.  When I wasn't
getting any messages from the outside world I definitely felt isolated.

When
the autopilot had troubles twice in one day, along with battery
charging issues, I felt we could be out there days longer with constant
handsteering and maybe a loss of refrigeration. But isolation is
relative when you know you just have to fix things the best you can and
keep going.

 

What was the most: Fun? Rewarding? Emotionally moving? Boring? Challenging? Unexpected?

Wow,
that's a lot! Boring is easy - the lack of being able to do many things
I love to do, go for a walk, make art, make music. There was just too
much motion of the boat to feel comfortable enough to do the last two.

Unexpected
would be the number of small (4-5 inches) squid that would be found on
deck in the morning at the beginning of the passage. At night I could
shine a bright light into the water and see the light reflecting in the
red eyes of the squid. They disappeared about halfway through the
passage, but on our list of things yet to do is to clean up the squid
ink on deck.

Most
fun was ten minutes with dolphins swimming along in our bow wake. Most
rewarding was finally getting to prove we could do it. Getting the
battery charger and autopilot to work again, thus avoiding minor
calamities was a real emotional lift. Most boring was the first third of
a book by William F. Buckley I gave up on. Most challenging was
remaining able bodied and more or less upright for 20 days straight on a
broken carnival ride. Unexpected, was how quickly the time passed.

Were there times when you were nervous or scared? 

We
have made enough smaller passages that I wasn't really nervous or
scared, but as is often the case, the most nerve-wracking is usually at
the end. In this case in the last 24 hours we had winds up to 25 knots
and 3 meter seas. We have had continuing issues with our bio growth in
our fuel and clogging the filters. We (and by we, I mean Bob) changed
the filters for safety reasons for the last hour before entering the
harbor at Nuku Hiva. The winds we gusting up to 22 knots and the waves
were 3 meters and coming at us from the side. We were motoring at this
point to get into the harbor. At the mouth of the harbor are two very
large rocks they call sentinels that we had to pass between. We were
making plans as to what to do if the engine failed at that point (pull
out the sails and turn back out to sea). For me this was definitely the
hairiest part of the passage. All ended well, the engine didn't die, we
made it past the sentinels, into the harbor and safely set anchor. 

Sometimes the way Sarah looks at me when she's handing me the hammer is pretty scary.

Favorite constellations as viewed mid-ocean? 

Transit of Venus and Jupiter every morning just before first light.

I
loved watching the Milky Way and seeing the Southern Cross, but I have
to admit that for all the hype that the Southern Cross gets, it is
pretty small in comparison to Northern Hemisphere constellations like
the Big Dipper or Orion. I think that the Souuthern Cross must have a
pretty good agent promoting it.

How did the food provisioning work out?

Our freezer is not big enough for everything that we would like to bring, otherwise excellent.

Our
chocolate stash of artesian chocolate from Chocolopagos lasted until
the very last days, then we knew it was time for landfall. We still had
some carrots, cabbage and potatoes left at the end, we did not have to
resort to a totally canned meal.

How do you navigate? Do you shoot the sun just for fun?

We
have no sextant aboard. We rely on satellite GPS, either through our
chartplotter or our handheld radios. GPS is worldwide accurate. Besides,
too many billion cell phone users, militaries, and Uber drivers need it
for it to fail. If by the strangest twist of fate GPS failed we would
fall back to our compass, paper charts, the position of stars and
planets if visible, and dead reckoning. You adapt.

We
plot a course on the chartplotter before we depart and then over the
length of this long passage we attempted to stay on course, often
correcting for the wind and the currents which seemed to want to take us
further south than we wanted to go.

What is the deepest part of the Pacific that you have crossed?

I think about 19,000 ft.

When
we are sailing over the top we can't really tell if the water is
several hundred feet deep or several thousand,  it all looks the
same. And once the numbers go over several hundred feet our depth
monitor just says: depth - - -

 

RHAPSODY ARRIVES

SY RHAPSODY 🇺🇸 Sarah & Bob  - Jeanneau 49′

Bob
Sarah
BRAVO ZULU

7) MEET THE FLEET 

MEET THE FLEET

Retired medical doctor sailing  with my wife Guylène from Marseille to New Zealand with our  42' aluminum sloop.

SY KAWAINE II  🇨🇭 Guylène & Jean-Dominique - C.M.P.F. – Fecamp 42′

8) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
AWARDS CATEGORIES 

 

HERE ARE THE  CATEGORIES 

    BIGGEST FISH CAUGHT* ✔ 

    PICTURE OF THE YEAR ✔  

    SPEEDY AWARD – SEVENSTAR AWARD ✔  

    THE CAPTAIN RON AWARD ✔ 

    MOST UNWELCOME VISITOR ONBOARD ✔ 

    HIGHEST WIND RECORDED ✔ 

    SPIRIT OF EXPLORATION ✔ 

    GALLEY GOD(ESS) ✔ 

    GOOD SAMARITAN OF THE YEAR ✔  

    NEWLY ADDED – BOAT YOGA POSE OF THE YEAR ✔

*no bill-fish

Clarity of Kandavu Waters

50 feet visibility at anchor in Kandavu 🇫🇯  Fiji 

9) OHANA 🇵🇫 THE OTOGI PASS 
TOAU, TUAMOTUS FRENCH POLYNESIA 

 passe otugi slack Toau - Otugi Pass, Tuamotu Archipel by SY OHANA

Video of  Passe Otugi slack tide Toau  Tuamotus, French Polynesia

Bays

Anchored at Anse Amyot Toau, French Polynesia 15°48'10.5"S 146°09'07.7"W  TOAU

Tuamotu 2

SY OHANA 🇮🇲  Aisling & Darryl - Lagoon 46′

Aisling
Darryl
Anse Amyot Toau in Good Nautical

10) CHRIS  SCOUTN SYDNEY 🇦🇺  AUSTRALIA

Seaglub

Meet
Chris on SeaGlub - Lead Vessel of this season's South Pacific Posse
currently scouting the Australia Routes at select whiskey bars in
Sydney 

The Baxter Inn - Sydney

11) MO'OREA  🇵🇫 WINDWARD ISLANDS 
FRENCH POLYNESIA

Gargoyle

Cooks Bay,  Moorea, Society Islands, French Polynesia 

Mo'orea

Mo'orea history

According to recent archaeological evidence, the Society Islands were settled from Samoa and Tonga around 200 AD. 

Nine
tribal principalities emerged in the enclosed valleys, which in turn
were subdivided into individual clans. The stratified society was
characterized by a hierarchical leadership whose elite combined both
political and religious power. The leading families of Mo'orea remained
linked by marriage and kinship for centuries with those of the
neighboring island of Tahiti. These connections led to important
alliances, but at other times were also the source of bloody
conflicts. 

The
marae, a stone platform, was where the gods communicated with the
Polynesians and political, social and religious decisions were made. The
marae was tapu—sacrosanct. To violate it was to call down the gods’
wrath.

On
Mo‘orea  the largest collection of maraes is in the Opunohu
Valley. More than 550 structures have been uncovered, including more
than 100 maraes. 

On Mo‘orea, 10 minutes from Tahiti by plane (30-45 minutes by ferry), the largest collection of maraes is in the Opunohu Valley. More than 550 structures have been uncovered, including more than 100 maraes.

SY  GARGOLYE 🇨🇦  Kevin & Carla  - Beneteau 50′

Kevin
Carla

12)  MARINA SPONSORS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC  POSSE 

🇺🇸  Safe Harbor South Bay – Chula Vista - USA

🇲🇽  Marina Chiapas – Mexico   

🇨🇷  Marina Papagayo – Costa Rica   

🇵🇦  Shelter Bay Marina – Panama  

🇪🇨  Marina Puerto Amistad – Ecuador  

🇫🇯  Vuda Point Marina - Fiji 

🇻🇺  Yachting World Marina - Port Vila - Vanuatu

🇳🇿  Marsden Cove Marina - New Zealand 

🇦🇺  Rivergate Marina  - Brisbane  - Australia 

🇫🇯  Denarau Marina - Fiji 

🇫🇯  Royal Suva Yacht Club  - Fiji 

13) SAMOA 🇼🇸  

Samoan Dancer

Polynesian Samoan dances in Apia 🇼🇸 Samoa

Aggie Grey's

The ancient art of fire (sword) dancing originated  in Polynesia
Taking
his inspiration from the Samoan warrior, a  fire knife dancer
takes center stage twirling, tossing, catching and throwing a flaming
machete at high speeds. 

Fire

Taking
his inspiration from the Samoan warrior, a  fire knife dancer
takes center stage twirling, tossing, catching and throwing a flaming
machete at high speeds.

The
fire knife itself, called “nifo oti," is an ancient Samoan weapon that
features a 14-inch blade with a hook on the end.  Before the
addition of fire, the traditional Samoan knife dancer portrayed the
movements of the warrior at battle. The custom eventually evolved into
performance art, with the dancer slicing objects in mid-air.

nifo oti samoa

Human migration  from Indonesia into Micronesia, Melanesia and  Polynesia 

Cultures

During
Colonial times Samoa consisting of the islands of Upolu, Savai'i,
Apolima and Manono  was a German protectorate from 1900 until the
takeover by New Zealand forces during World War 1

German Colony

The
takeover of Samoa was New Zealand's first military action in World War
I. In late August 1914 with landings by the Samoa Expeditionary Force
from New Zealand on behalf of King George V. The Samoa Expeditionary
Force remained in the country until 1915. 

MAP

Vailima,
a German-style lager brewed in Samoa here are two versions to choose
from, the normal 4.9% strength and the the export-only 6.7%.

Vailima, a German-style lager, has been brewed in Samoa since 1978. There are two versions to choose from, the normal 4.9% strength and the the export-only 6.7%.

14) HOW WE FLOAT OUR ANCHOR CHAIN 

Picture of the Week

Where and why we float the chain: 
At
anchorages with (lots of) coral heads to avoid the chain tangling on
those coral heads. If the chain would tangle on the coral heads it would
have a couple of adverse effects: the catenary effect of the chain is
reduced (or even eliminated if tangled very close to the bow of the
yacht), lifting the anchor might be difficult or even impossible without
diving, the galvanization of the anchor chain chafes off faster, more
coral gets destroyed. The adverse effect of floating the chain is
obviously to loose the friction of the part of the chain which is
floating. The way we position / deploy the buoys we end up with some 10m
chain on the seabed. There is obviously a residual risk of even that
chain tangling, but less likely given of the length of the chain
thereafter and rather stable wind direction of the trade winds.

Floating your anchor chain over coral explained

Which buoyancy devices we use: 
When
we arrived in the Tuamotus we started off with fenders as we did not
carry anything else. The disadvantage of fenders is that they compress
if they submerse, one gets growth on them, etc. Those hard plastique
pearl farm buoys are much better. Some people say, they are washed
ashore everywhere in the Tuamotus. Well that was not our experience.
Kauehi was our first atoll and in any reasonable distance from the
village the shore line was cleaned by the locals. Nevertheless, many
villagers have their stash of pearl farm buoys in their gardens. So we
simply walked to one obviously very friendly fellow and asked whether we
could have four of them. He actually picked the four nicest he had, of
the same color, including lines attached to them and did not even want
to have anything in return. We put on clips/little carabines to the ends
of the lines for fast attachment / detachment to/from the anchor chain
and were ready to go.

 

What kind of clips we use: 
We
use little stainless steel carabiners, the size is basically driven by
the diameter to fit through a chain link, i.e. it needs to be
sufficiently thin (we have a 10mm DIN chain, so carabiners end up being
like 4-5cm in length), we use different sorts, i.e. whatever we found in
our related spare part bag

 

Where we position the buoys: 
Our
approach is to put the first buoy typically / normal conditions at 10m
plus water depth from the anchor, then a buoy every 5m of chain, after
the fourth we let out another 7-8m of chain and then hook the bridle.
There are other recommendations which take a multiplier to water depth
(like 1.5x or 2x water depth), but we just find that not suitable to
accommodate for all ranges of water depths. The 10m basically decides
how much chain ends up on the seabed, one could do less if the sandy
patch is really small or more if there is a larger sandy patch to anchor
(in case one sees that at all).

With
this approach we end up with a few meters more chain out than based on
our non-floating chain length rule under normal conditions (we apply
waterdepth plus 30m) – in bad conditions we obviously deploy more in
both cases (non-floating and floating).

 

How we deploy the buoys: 
First
we explore to find the spot we want to anchor as usual. If possible we
would look for a sandy patch for the anchor itself, but despite the
clear water, when anchoring in deeper water we are not able to see for
good and/or be able to drop the anchor that accurately. We put out as
much chain as we feel comfortable to “drive in” the anchor. Then we pull
up the chain again to the first spot for the first buoy (the 10m +
water depth), then put out 5m chain, attach a buoy, etc. (lifting the
anchor is as usual, just stopping at every buoy and unclipping it, it
does not really delay the process once one gets the hang of it).

 

How we clip on the clips: 
For
us it is exactly the same as putting the chain hook / bridle on. So in
our case we have to bend over the pull pit and downward to clip them on,
but as said, that’s the same as we do with the bridle as well and
“normal procedure” for us. If we had a set-up where the chain hook would
come through the bow roller, the clips could go through as well as they
are way smaller than our chain hook and in our case it would be easy to
get a clip and line from the front through the bowroller back on deck.
Difficulties I could only see arising if it was – due to bow design /
set-up – tricky to get to the chain outside of the bow or the clip from
the front through the bowroller back on deck or into the chain locker,
but that’s set-up specific, hard to comment in general (in the worst
case I would deploy by dinghy).

 

General experience:
 In
general, the boat swings easier than with a non-floating chain, due to
the missing friction of the chain length towards the yacht. In places
where the wind is dominant anyways and is stable trade wind from the
same sector all the time, that’s no issue at all. In places, where
swinging is dominated rather by current or tide, one obviously has to
check for the space.

In
our case only the buoy closest to the yacht is floating on water level
in a low wind situation, the others are submersed. We actually measured
in one instance the depths of the clips on the anchor chain on an
anchorage where the anchor was at 11.5m depths: the clips of the buoys
were at 7m, 4m, 2m and 0m water depth respectively (starting from the
anchor) at low wind.

Floats

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Waltraud - Sunbeam 42′

FLorian
Vicky

15) TRACKING THE 22' PACIFIC POSSE  FLEET 
BROUGHT TO YOU BY PREDICT WIND

Tracking

Visit https://pacificposse.com/tracking to view the progress of the 22 South Pacific Posse Fleet. 
To be added visit https://pacificposse.com/add-to-tracking

16) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE SPONSORS 

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17) SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT

 SPONSORS THE SOUTH POSSE

More info on Sevenstar™s services can be found on https://www.sevenstar-yacht-transport.com/

Sevenstar

Who is Sevenstar Yacht Transport?

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is the world’s leading provider of yacht shipping services on a
lift-on, lift-off basis. Sevenstar has access to the Spliethoff fleet of
over 120 company owned vessels. With an impressive 1,500+ transports
per year, they are calling over 100 ports in more than 40 countries
worldwide.

For a quote with the Panama Posse discount please contact 
Kris Caren

email: kris@sevenstar-usa.com

web: sevenstar-usa.com

18) PANAMA 🇵🇦 CANAL AGENT 
CENTENARIO CONSULTING ERICK GALVEZ

To
arrange for transit with the Panama Canal Authority please contact Eric
Galvez our dedicated Panama Canal agent and sponsor of the Panama Posse
and the Pacific Posse

Erick Gálvez

info@centenarioconsulting.com

www.centenarioconsulting.com

Cellphone +507 6676-1376

WhatsApp +507 6676-1376

Erick
https://panamaposse.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/new-panama-canal-graphic.jpg

19) STRATEGIC PARTNERS
 

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© 2022 South Pacific Posse / Ocean Posse LLC


Floatin Chain

FLOATING THE ANCHOR CHAIN

Where and why we float the chain: At anchorages with (lots of) coral heads to avoid the chain tangling on those coral heads. If the chain would tangle on the coral heads it would have a couple of adverse effects: the catenary effect of the chain is reduced (or even eliminated if tangled very close to the bow of the yacht), lifting the anchor might be difficult or even impossible without diving, the galvanization of the anchor chain chafes off faster, more coral gets destroyed. The adverse effect of floating the chain is obviously to loose the friction of the part of the chain which is floating. The way we position / deploy the buoys we end up with some 10m chain on the seabed. There is obviously a residual risk of even that chain tangling, but less likely given of the length of the chain thereafter and rather stable wind direction of the trade winds.

Which buoyance devices we use: When we arrived in the Tuamotus we started off with fenders as we did not carry anything else. The disadvantage of fenders is that they compress if they submerse, one gets growth on them, etc. Those hard plastique pearl farm buoys are much better. Some people say, they are washed ashore everywhere in the Tuamotus. Well that was not our experience. Kauehi was our first atoll and in any reasonable distance from the village the shore line was cleaned by the locals. Nevertheless, many villagers have their stash of pearl farm buoys in their gardens. So we simply walked to one obviously very friendly fellow and asked whether we could have four of them. He actually picked the four nicest he had, of the same color, including lines attached to them and did not even want to have anything in return. We put on clips/little carabines to the ends of the lines for fast attachment / detachment to/from the anchor chain and were ready to go.

 

What kind of clips we use: We use little stainless steel carabiners, the size is basically driven by the diameter to fit through a chain link, i.e. it needs to be sufficiently thin (we have a 10mm DIN chain, so carabiners end up being like 4-5cm in length), we use different sorts, i.e. whatever we found in our related spare part bag

 

Where we position the buoys: Our approach is to put the first buoy typically / normal conditions at 10m plus water depth from the anchor, then a buoy every 5m of chain, after the fourth we let out another 7-8m of chain and then hook the bridle. There are other recommendations which take a multiplier to water depth (like 1.5x or 2x water depth), but we just find that not suitable to accommodate for all ranges of water depths. The 10m basically decides how much chain ends up on the seabed, one could do less if the sandy patch is really small or more if there is a larger sandy patch to anchor (in case one sees that at all).

With this approach we end up with a few meters more chain out than based on our non-floating chain length rule under normal conditions (we apply waterdepth plus 30m) – in bad conditions we obviously deploy more in both cases (non-floating and floating).

 

How we deploy the buoys: First we explore to find the spot we want to anchor as usual. If possible we would look for a sandy patch for the anchor itself, but despite the clear water, when anchoring in deeper water we are not able to see for good and/or be able to drop the anchor that accurately. We put out as much chain as we feel comfortable to “drive in” the anchor. Then we pull up the chain again to the first spot for the first buoy (the 10m + water depth), then put out 5m chain, attach a buoy, etc. (lifting the anchor is as usual, just stopping at every buoy and unclipping it, it does not really delay the process once one gets the hang of it).

 

How we clip on the clips: For us it is exactly the same as putting the chain hook / bridle on. So in our case we have to bend over the pull pit and downward to clip them on, but as said, that’s the same as we do with the bridle as well and “normal procedure” for us. If we had a set-up where the chain hook would come through the bow roller, the clips could go through as well as they are way smaller than our chain hook and in our case it would be easy to get a clip and line from the front through the bowroller back on deck. Difficulties I could only see arising if it was – due to bow design / set-up - tricky to get to the chain outside of the bow or the clip from the front through the bowroller back on deck or into the chain locker, but that’s set-up specific, hard to comment in general (in the worst case I would deploy by dinghy).

 

General experience: In general, the boat swings easier than with a non-floating chain, due to the missing friction of the chain length towards the yacht. In places where the wind is dominant anyways and is stable trade wind from the same sector all the time, that’s no issue at all. In places, where swinging is dominated rather by current or tide, one obviously has to check for the space.

In our case only the buoy closest to the yacht is floating on water level in a low wind situation, the others are submersed. We actually measured in one instance the depths of the clips on the anchor chain on an anchorage where the anchor was at 11.5m depths: the clips of the buoys were at 7m, 4m, 2m and 0m water depth respectively (starting from the anchor) at low wind.

Floatin Chain

BY IBEX FLorian and Vick SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE '22


Picture of the Week

FLEET UPDATE 2022-05-13

South Pacific Posse

blovck

May 13, 2022

SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
FLEET UPDATE 

TOP NEWS THIS WEEK

1) FRENCH POLYNESIA 🇵🇫  FULL RESET

2) NEW ZEALAND 🇳🇿 OPENS JULY 31

3) FIJI  🇫🇯  FREE WELCOME DRINKS AT CLOUD 9

4) COOK ISLANDS 🇨🇰  OPENING 

South Pacific Posse 13 Particpant Flag States

1) FRENCH POLYNESIA 🇵🇫  FULL RESET 
  

🇵🇫

UPDATE ON PORTS OF ENTRY FRENCH POLYNESIA 

Bonjour,

I
have just recveid an email from the DPAM showing that the requirement
to request permission to enter has been lifted according an order from
the High commissioner’s office.

The
DPAM no longer requires nor will they treat any requests to enter
French Polynesia.  Below is the translated text from the DPAM.

This
also means and I have a confirmation that the restriction on entry
ports has been lifted.  It will take a week or more for the other
islands to be aware of this change.

 

I hope you all are as happy about this news as we are.

 

Cheers, Kevin.

 

Kevin

Yacht Services Nuku Hiva  Taiohae Bay, Nuku Hiva, French Polynesia

YSNukuHiva@hotmail.com +689 87 22 68 72 

Bay

Hello,
You will find attached the order HC 917 CAB of May 9, 2022 amending the
order HC 7934 CAB of November 15, 2021. This order deletes IV of
article 36 relating to reporting obligations and authorizations prior to
the arrival of pleasure boats. As a result, entry clearance requests
put in place for the COVID crisis are no longer required and will no
longer be processed. Cordially,

Hello, You will find attached the order HC 917 CAB of May 9, 2022 amending the order HC 7934 CAB of November 15, 2021. This order deletes IV of article 36 relating to reporting obligations and authorizations prior to the arrival of pleasure boats. As a result, entry clearance requests put in place for the COVID crisis are no longer required and will no longer be processed. Cordially,
French Polynesia

2)  NEW ZEALAND 🇳🇿 OPENS JULY 31

New Zealand

From
31 July 2022, New Zealand’s maritime border will reopen to currently
prohibited foreign flagged vessels including cruise ships, recreational
craft, and specialist vessels.

Further information about arriving in New Zealand via sea from 31 July will become available on the Ministry of Health website.

COVID-19 update for Private Yachts on C4G/Temporary Import entry (TIE)

In
January 2022 Customs sent out a reminder notice that the COVID-19
extension for vessels in New Zealand on C4G/Temporary Import Entry
concludes on 30 June 2022.  Customs accepts that under the current
environment there have been some that are unable to comply.
Customs has taken this into consideration and the date has now
been extended for a further 12 months.

OPUA

OPUA PORT OF ENTRY NEW ZEALAND

RESTRICTIONS  
WHAT YOU CAN NOT BRING INTO NEW ZEALAND

MAF

New
Zealand Customs Immigration and Biosecurity Officers are very friendly
but will remove all prohibited items and destroy them 

3) FIJI  🇫🇯  FREE DRINKS AT CLOUD 9 
AND NO MORE QUARANTINE 
FOR PEOPLE OR YACHTS

CLOUD 9 🇫🇯 FIJI · SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

CLOUD 9 🇫🇯 FIJI · SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

BULA BULA   

JUST FOR VISITING US FOR THE FIRST TIME YOU RECEIVE 2 FREE WELCOME DRINKS PER SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE YACHT 

Cloud 9

The
Iconic barrier reef location of Cloud 9 is a great spot to view,
mingle, play and relax and watch the sunset from - bring your yacht !

 CLOUD 9 🇫🇯 FIJI · SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

JOIN US ON THE REEF FOR AN AMAZING TIME ON THIS ICONIC FIJI BARRIER REEF

http://www.cloud9.com.fj/

+679 869 7947

Drinks on Cloud 9

Sometimes it's nice to get off the boat and drink out of proper glass especially if the drinks are FREE

Cloud 9 Video

Download your Fji Resources 

4) COOK ISLANDS OPENING 🇨🇰  

LAgoon anchorage

COOK ISLANDS ARE OPEN VIA RAROTONGA AVIATU  

must be vaccinated 

meet normal requirements for maritime entry

meet normal immigration requirements

https://goodnautical.com/cook-islands/port-of-entry/avatiu

"Our
extremely high vaccination rate has given us a very high level of
protection against Covid, with an incredible 98% of our eligible
population aged 12 and over having had at least two vaccine doses as of
this week, along with 80% of our 5-11 year-old population." 

Kia orana tatou katoatoa, e kia manuia.

Hon Mark Brown Prime Minister, Cook Islands

Prime Minisiter

5) PICTURES OF THE WEEK 

Ibex

A beautiful sunset on our light-wind and no-waves sail to the Tuamotus ibex

MArquesas

The Spires of Ua Pou

In
1791, American Joseph Ingraham passed through the northwest group of
the Marquesas on his way to China,[  but without setting foot
there. He gave the island of Ua Pou, visible in the distance, the name
"Adam" or "Adams Island" after Vice President John Adams.

It
was also formerly known as Trevenen Island. The name Ua Pou means "two
pillars" and perfectly reflects its orography. It has also been written
as Ua Pu, Hua Pu and Ropo.

It
is considered that the real European explorer was the French
circumnavigator Étienne Marchand (1755-1793), who arrived shortly after,
on June 20, 1791, anchored with his ship Solide first in Vaiehu Bay, on
the west coast, and then off Hakahau. He remained off the island for a
total of three days, but contacts with the inhabitants during the brief
excursions ashore were limited. Marchand named the island "Île
Marchand," after his own surname.

The
arrival of the U.S. whaling ship Tuscan from Nantucket on March 4,
1835, was a prelude to other encounters with whalers, adventurers, and
someewhat shady traders in the following years, who brought firearms and
alcohol to the tribes. 

The
year of Ua Pou's final submission to French rule is considered to be
1880, when Rear Admiral Abel Bergasse Dupetit-Thouars  forcibly
removed the last resistance. The Marquesas then became a French colony.

 

It
is located about 28nm  south of Nuku Hiva, Marquesas. The island
is characterized by four high basalt pillars  the tallest Mount
Oave rises 1,230 m (4,040 ft) above sea level and is the highest
elevation in the Marquesas. 

Ua Pou
When you are the only tourists in a 100 people village, everyone knows you after 1-2 days 😀 (Kauehi Atoll / Tuamotus)

When you are the only tourists in a 100 people village, everyone knows you after 1-2 days 😀

When you are the only tourists in a 100 people village, everyone knows you after 1-2 days 😀 (Kauehi Atoll / Tuamotus)

(Kauehi Atoll / Tuamotus)

(Kauehi Atoll / Tuamotus)

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Waltraud - Sunbeam 42′

Vicky
FLorian

6) SY VA ARRIVES IN 🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 
 

As many times as we have probably wanted to kill each other while living on a boat we have also become a little better and a little stronger because of it. Okay maybe A LOT stronger, even if there are a few more grey hairs amongst us LOL! But despite the obvious challenges created by living on a small, isolated, susceptible, floating home that is always trying to sink, break, or kill us, we wouldn’t trade this life for anything. Reality check: Life on a boat is hard, life on a boat with your significant other, well yeah it’s fucking harder. 24/7 togetherness isn’t always rainbows and rum punches. We argue, we yell, we fight just like any other couple would on land. We have been married 4 years, and on the boat it feels more like 10. Many people who choose this life, generally speaking, have been married already for a lifetime, and have had time to figure each other out before putting themselves in a situation like living on a boat, but for us we sorta just packed it all in for our first 4 years of marriage. But it’s worked, and it’s working, and we are figuring it out together. At the end of the day we are partners and we just have each other!

WE
officially made it! After 34 days, 2400 miles, 80 eggs, 30 avocado, 50
tomatoes, 10 banana breads, 4 soaking squalls, 8 rolls of toilet paper,
and 2 bags of rice. We caught 11 fish and successfully brought on board
3.5 and possibly had the shortest record setting doldrums crossing (that
we know of)

WE have made it to The Marquesas.

Our
Pacific Ocean passage was unlike anything else. We had a solid crew and
spirits were high every step of the way. We hope you were able to
follow along on our tracker with daily blogs of our time at sea.

We have so much to catch up but for now we are eager to get our feet on some terra firma.

WE SAIL ARRIVES

WE SAIL aka "SY VA" with their South Pacific Burgee

Largest Ocean

There
is very little that could compare with the feeling of sailing across
the worlds largest OCEAN under your own skills and canvas, being at sea
and then having these islands be the first place you see. 

We Sail

Arrival in the Marquesas

LOG ENTRY  Day 36 Tue Apr 19 2022  04:30 GMT 10º 30.721 S  138º 41.362 W Course: 243° true, 0.0 kts 

LAND HO

Today
I complete something that I have worked towards for several years, and
dreamed about for many, many more. I have had the pleasure of sailing
across the worlds largest expanse of open ocean, aboard a sound and
solid vessel with able crew that took on each day and every obstacle
with grace and courage, not a complaint or doubt among us. The lessons
have been numerous, only outnumbered by the moments of wonder and awe,
with mother nature and the gods of the ocean coming together to grant us
pass, and to shine on us with not just good fortune, but the best of
fortunes during this, the largest of undertakings… I won’t be the first
to write this and it’s no secret to explorers, but its clear that the
more that one is willing to put on the line and risk in his endeavors,
the more he stands to gain, and looking back I suppose we definitely put
a lot on the line and went out on a few branches, but it’s equally true
that we’ve always been paid back in spades and this experience has been
no different. It’s been WAY more than I could have ever asked for, and
I’m honored to have followed in the footsteps of the great explorers who
risked way more than we ever did. My final parting thought is this: now
that we don’t risk jinxing things by mentioning them I can say this -
OK first the doldrums: it’s unbelievable that we got through them in the
lightning speed that we did, thanks Aelous & Neptune/Possidon, much
appreciated and we won’t forget it. Secondly, the boat and her hardware
weathered every and all storms with only a few small items to address
and no major failures or losses, thanks VA and the Universal magic that
clearly watches over us all! Lastly thanks to the sea for sharing a few
of her ancient secrets, the ones that cannot be told, sold, or traded,
but must be claimed in person, I will keep them close to heart for the
rest of my life.

VA's Track

SY VA 🇵🇦 Erica Thomas   - Fountaine Pajot 44′

Erika
Thomas
BRAVO ZULU

7) GOOD NAUTICAL NEEDS YOU  

Over the last 12 years we have added over 7,000
anchorages into Good Nautical - and   are looking to enhance this
information with first hand accounts from you - please add pictures,
details and updates as you see them.
 

Minerva Reef

The iconic Minerva Reef Yacht Club Anchorage

MINERVA
REEF -  Please email us your anchorages and tracks to safeguard
them for those who will attempt them after you please email your tracks (
any format )   to
registration@pacificposse.com 

North MInerva Reef Entrance

 The
Minerva Reefs (Tongan: Ongo Teleki) are a group of two submerged atolls
located in the Pacific Ocean south of Fiji and Tonga. The islands are
the subject of a territorial dispute between both nations, and in
addition were briefly claimed by American Libertarians as the centre of a
micronation, the Republic of Minerva. 

MInerva Reef

The
reefs were named after the whaleship Minerva, wrecked on what became
known as South Minerva after setting out from Sydney in 1829. Many other
ships would follow, for example Strathcona, which was sailing north
soon after completion in Auckland in 1914. In both cases most of the
crew saved themselves in whaleboats or rafts and reached the Lau Islands
in Fiji. 

Sailing Nikau's blog about Minerva Reef

The
reefs were first known to Europeans by the crew of the brig Rosalia,
commanded by Lieutenant John Garland, which was shipwrecked there in
1807. The Oriental Navigator for 1816 recorded Garland’s discovery under
the name Rosaretta Shoal, warning that it was “a dangerous shoal, on
which the Rosaretta, a prize belonging to his Majesty's ship Cornwallis,
was wrecked on her passage from Pisco, in Peru, to Port Jackson, in
1807”. It noted that it was “composed of hard coarse sand and coral”, a
description that must have come from Garland’s report. It also said that
“from the distressed situation of the prize-master, Mr. Garland”, the
shoal’s extent could not be ascertained, and concluded: “The situation
is not to be considered as finally determined”. It cited different
coordinates from those given by Garland: 30°10 South, longitude 173°45'
East.  The reefs were put on the charts by Captain John Nicholson
of LMS Haweis in December 1818 as reported in The Sydney Gazette 30
January 1819.[3] Captain H. M. Denham of HMS Herald surveyed the reefs
in 1854 and renamed them after the Australian whaler Minerva which ran
aground on South Minerva Reef on 9 September 1829. 

MInerva Reef Wrecks

A wreck inside the Minerva Reefs

8) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
AWARDS CATEGORIES 

 

HERE ARE THE  CATEGORIES 

    BIGGEST FISH CAUGHT* ✔ 

    PICTURE OF THE YEAR ✔  

    SPEEDY AWARD – SEVENSTAR AWARD ✔  

    THE CAPTAIN RON AWARD ✔ 

    MOST UNWELCOME VISITOR ONBOARD ✔ 

    HIGHEST WIND RECORDED ✔ 

    SPIRIT OF EXPLORATION ✔ 

    GALLEY GOD(ESS) ✔ 

    GOOD SAMARITAN OF THE YEAR ✔  

    NEWLY ADDED – BOAT YOGA POSE OF THE YEAR ✔

*no bill-fish

9) MEET THE FLEET 
SEA PEARL

MEET THE FLEET

Hello South Pacific-Posse, 

We are Luisa and Matthias sailing on our 2008 Dufour 455 GL. 

We
started our present journey in August 2021. Since then we traveled the
Mediterranean westwards and hopped over Madeira, some of the Canarian
Islands and Cape Verde to the southern Caribbean Islands. Since then our
course was northwards with a touring point in Eleuthera/Bahamas. We are
now on our way back south to Panama and are planning the canal crossing
mid of June to sail on-wards into the big Pacific. 

Bays

We are looking forward to meet you guys and share our experiences along the way. 

Personal
facts: we are 28 (Luisa) and 34 (Matthias) and have been dinghy-sailing
since our childhood on Bavarian inshore lakes. We are both German and
our journey shall last a total of two years, so we are planning to
return to our normal lives by end of August 2023.

Tracking

10) CHRIS ON SEAGLUB GOT THE BURGEE

Seaglub

Meet
Chris on SeaGlub - Lead Vessel of this season's South Pacific Posse
currently scouting the Fiji - New Caledonia - Australia Route 

11) LANDFALL IN 🇵🇳 PITCAIRN  

Pitcairn

Pitcairn
is the least populous national jurisdiction in the world. The Pitcairn
Islanders are a biracial ethnic group descended mostly from nine Bounty
mutineers and a handful of Tahitian consorts – as is still apparent from
the surnames of many of the islanders. The mutiny and its aftermath
have been the subject of many books and films. As of January 2020, the
territory had only 47 permanent inhabitants. 

The Landing

Horizon landed in Pitcairn today. 2700nm in 17 days from the Galapagos. We felt
like we were on the  "Cream Run". Beam Reach all the way. We were a
little worried that the engine would not start after 14 days (but it
did :-) . Life is good and Pitcairn and the people here are amazing.

SY  HORIZON 🇺🇸  Anders & Anette - Outbound 46′

Annette
Christopher
BRAVO ZULU

12)  MARINA SPONSORS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC  POSSE 

🇺🇸  Safe Harbor South Bay – Chula Vista - USA

🇲🇽  Marina Chiapas – Mexico   

🇨🇷  Marina Papagayo – Costa Rica   

🇵🇦  Shelter Bay Marina – Panama  

🇪🇨  Marina Puerto Amistad – Ecuador  

🇫🇯  Vuda Point Marina - Fiji 

🇻🇺  Yachting World Marina - Port Vila - Vanuatu

🇳🇿  Marsden Cove Marina - New Zealand 

🇦🇺  Rivergate Marina  - Brisbane  - Australia 

🇫🇯  Denarau Marina - Fiji 

Wallis and Futuna

Roasted pigs of Wallis and Futuna on St. Chanel Day

Festivals and dance Wallis and Futuna

Numerous
festivals are celebrated in Wallis and Futuna throughout the year; on
St Chanel Day, pigs are roasted and placed in the sun, and dancing
performances are held. The Wallis and Futuna Festival is put on in
Noumea annually. Flae fones are community feasting and meeting
structures. 

There
are at least 16 types of dances (faive), their differences based upon
location, occasion, number of dancers, gender, accompanying instruments,
and other modifiers. Most dances are accompanied by singing and some
type of percussion instruments as dancing without drumming is considered
unusual. The kailao (paddle-club dance), however, has no song and only
includes percussion.  Wallis and Futuna dancers perform across the
Oceania region at festivals. 

 There
is not much tourism in the two islands. The natural heritage of the
territory is largely preserved; there are not many recreational sites in
Wallis and Futuna. 

Souht Pacific Posse

13) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE SPONSORS 

  • PREDICT WIND
  • SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT
  • CENTENARIO PANAMA CANAL AGENTS
  • YACHT AGENTS GALAPAGOS 
  • YACHT SERVICES NUKU HIVA 
  • NOUMEA YACHT SERVICES
  • SAFE HARBOR SOUTH BAY MARINA EVENT CENTER
  • WESTMARINE PRO
  • SAILMAIL 
  • OCEAN TACTICS WEATHER ROUTING
  • CLOUD 9  FIJI

14) PICTURE OF THE WEEK

Picture of the Week

view from Makemo dinghy dock

SY KISMET 🇺🇸 Kevin - Passport 41′

Kevin

15) ARANUI 5 SUPPLY & CRUISE SHIP 
🇵🇫  FRENCH POLYNESIA

Our „intimate“ Aranui 5 experience in Kauehi 😀

M/V
Aranui 5 is a dual passenger/cargo vessel that entered service 12
December 2015 between Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands. With a homeport
of Papeete, French Polynesia, the Aranui 5 replaced the Aranui 3 which
entered service in 2003.

Our „intimate“ Aranui 5 experience in Kauehi 😀

Like
its predecessor, is registered as a passenger ship under the
International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), for
international operation.

Apart
from supplying cargo to the six ports in the Marquesas Islands, Aranui 5
also operates a passenger service and tourist cruise as part of its
14-day itinerary. It also stops at the islands of Rangiroa and Fakarava
in the Tuamotu Islands before returning on its 13th day to Bora Bora in
the Society Islands. 

Supply landing craft
Arnui 5

Vessel particulars:

    Flag: France

    Length: 126 m. Breadth: 22 m. Draught: 5.2 m. 

    Cruising speed: 15 knots

    Propellers: 2

    Freight: 3000 tons

    Capacity: 230 passengers – 103 cabins

Aranui 5 in Tahuata

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Waltraud - Sunbeam 42′

Vicky
Floria

16) TRACKING THE 22' PACIFIC POSSE  FLEET 
BROUGHT TO YOU BY PREDICT WIND

Tracking

Visit https://pacificposse.com/tracking to view the progress of the 22 South Pacific Posse Fleet. 
To be added visit https://pacificposse.com/add-to-tracking

17) SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT

 SPONSORS THE SOUTH POSSE

More info on Sevenstar™s services can be found on https://www.sevenstar-yacht-transport.com/

Sevenstar

Who is Sevenstar Yacht Transport?

Sevenstar
is the world’s leading provider of yacht shipping services on a
lift-on, lift-off basis. Sevenstar has access to the Spliethoff fleet of
over 120 company owned vessels. With an impressive 1,500+ transports
per year, they are calling over 100 ports in more than 40 countries
worldwide.

For a quote with the Panama Posse discount please contact 
Kris Caren

email: kris@sevenstar-usa.com

web: sevenstar-usa.com

18) PANAMA CANAL AGENT 
CENTENARIO CONSULTING ERICK GALVEZ

To
arrange for transit with the Panama Canal Authority please contact Eric
Galvez our dedicated Panama Canal agent and sponsor of the Panama Posse
and the Pacific Posse

Erick Gálvez

info@centenarioconsulting.com

www.centenarioconsulting.com

Cellphone +507 6676-1376

WhatsApp +507 6676-1376

Erick
https://panamaposse.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/new-panama-canal-graphic.jpg

19) STRATEGIC PARTNERS
 

SEVEN SEAS CRUISING ASSOCIATION

Abernathy – Chandlery – Panama

Panama Posse 

Atlantic Posse

Advertising Partners – Las Vegas

Safe-Esteem.com – Delaware

SIGN UP FOR THE '22 SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE  

WE OPERATE UNDER INTERNATIONAL MARITIME LAW

YOUR VESSEL YOUR CREW YOUR RESPONSIBILITY 

MArquesas

UA
HUKA is one of the smallest islands of the Marquesas French Polynesia.
Home of the “great house” of gods overlooking the ocean, this wild and
deep universe offers a preserved nature with steep slopes and desert
plateaus.

The
population lives mainly horse breeding in the highlands, because there
are more horses on the island than people, fishing and coprahculture.

They live around Vaipaee, capital of the island which has an archaeological museum located in the local authority.

Ua
Huka is also the place whre the Marquesas’ most ancient archeological
sites can be found. The preservation of cultural heritage and
environmental protection are very important for the local population.
You can visit the site Meiaute with red stone tikis, the cave “Pas”, the
bird’s island, petroglyphs of vaikiki and many others.

Traditional
arts, seen in “tapa” factories or monoi fabrication places “Kumu Hei”
are also preponderent in wood or stone carving.

Horses
South Pacific Posse

south pacific posse communications 
 @ 9811 w charleston blvd 2262 89117 Summerlin USA

© 2022 South Pacific Posse / Ocean Posse LLC


Tjibaou Cultural Centre New Caledonia

FLEET UPDATE 2022-03-17

 

 

South Pacific Posse

 

Mar 17, 2022

SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
FLEET UPDATE 

TOP NEWS THIS WEEK

1) NEW CALEDONIA OPENS UP 
2) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE GROW TO 
31 YACHTS FROM 13 FLAG STATES
3) RIVERGATE MARINA 🇦🇺 AUSTRALIA
 SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

 

South Pacific Posse 13 Particpant Flag States

 

1) NEW CALEDONIA  🇦🇺  OPENS UP 

 

Tjibaou Cultural Centre

 

Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre Noumea designe by Renzo Piana 

 Our maritime borders to New Caledonia which boasts 
 the worlds largest continuous barrier reef are finally open!

Forms needed for entry:

-Medical Health declaration

-Border control temperatures to be sent back to us 48 hrs and 1 hr prior to arrival

-Every person should send us their vaccination certificate prior to arrival.

A test will have to be done 2 days after arrival (48hrs)

Tests can be done in a pharmacie (drug store)

Download the forms here: https://pacificposse.com/new-caledonia#documents

 

Noumea Light House

 

Amedee Lighthouse 

Audrey

+687 70 90 09

Nouméa Yacht Services

40 ter Rue Austerlitz

B.P 1263

98 845 Nouméa Cedex

Contacts: +687 24 01 23      Gsm: (+687) 79 56 01

Email: nys22s@hotmail.com

Website: www.noumeayachtservices.nc

The beauty of the New Caledonia lagoon islands from the sky

The beauty of the New Caledonia lagoon islands from the sky 

2)  SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE WELCOMES 
THESE  MEMBERS TO THE FLEET

30    SY MARIA   🇳🇿 David, Nicolas, Naomi & Aisha - Bavaria 46′

31    SY ALOA TOA   🇬🇧  Tim  - Wharram 30′

 

South Pacific Posse '22

 

3) RIVERGATE MARINA 🇦🇺  AUSTRALIA
SPONSORS THE SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE

 

Marina

 

We are exited to welcome the Pacific Posse to Australia and offer a 10 %  discount off marina fees and no live-aboard fee.

Andrew

GM Andrew
 
Office             +61 7 3907 1600
Dockmaster  +61 421 585 027

Email              info@rivergate.com.au

7 Rivergate Place, Murarrie QLD 4172 Australia

 

Rivergate Marina

 

Brisbane is striking distance of the renowned  Tangalooma Ship Wreck Bay l and Moreton Island

Tangalooma

4) ENTRY INTO BIGGEST FISH CAUGHT  

Seaglub's FIsh

To put the catch in perspective Chris lies next to the fish head

SV SEAGLUB 🇺🇸 Chris - Hylas 46′

Chris on Seaglub
Seaglub

Captain Chris this season's lead vessel SY SEAGLUB currently sailing in Fiji 

5) PUERTO VILLAMIL 🇪🇨 GALAPAGOS

Puerto Villamil is a small port village sion the southeastern edge of Isla Isabela in the Galapagos Islands.

Trafficjam in Villamil

Traffic jam in Villamil Galapapgos.
On
the southwestern edge of town a boardwalk was created by the park with
assistance of US Aid. At the end of the walkway is the Tortoise Breeding
Center  which was built in order to help preserve the many species
of Isabela Tortoises. 

Puerto Villamil is a small port village located on the southeastern edge of Isla Isabela in the Galapagos Islands.

 It leads through mangrove environments passing along saltwater lagoons
filled with flamingo, black-winged stilts, Hudsonian whimbrels, Bahama
pintails, and  gallinules that search the lagoons for shrimp. 

Villamil Flamingos

 Poza de los Flamingos is a lake in the western part of the town where flamingos can be observed. 

 

Puerto Villamil is a small port village located on the southeastern edge of Isla Isabela in the Galapagos Islands.

 

The untouched shore of  Isla Isabela

White Tipped sharks

To
the southeast of town are a series of small islets including one known
as Las Tintoreras where a colony of white tip sharks can often be seen
resting in the lava channel

 Las Tintoreras

SY IBEX 🇦🇹  Florian & Vicky - Sunbeam 42′

Vicky
Florian

6) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE 
AWARDS CATEGORIES 

 

HERE ARE THE  CATEGORIES 

    BIGGEST FISH CAUGHT* ✔ 

    PICTURE OF THE YEAR ✔  

    SPEEDY AWARD – SEVENSTAR AWARD ✔  

    THE CAPTAIN RON AWARD ✔ 

    MOST UNWELCOME VISITOR ONBOARD ✔ 

    HIGHEST WIND RECORDED ✔ 

    SPIRIT OF EXPLORATION ✔ 

    GALLEY GOD(ESS) ✔ 

    GOOD SAMARITAN OF THE YEAR ✔  

    NEWLY ADDED – BOAT YOGA POSE OF THE YEAR ✔

*no bill-fish

 Bora Bora Yacht Club 16°29'20.6

The Bora Bora Yacht Club 🇵🇫

 16° 29'.3433' S    151° 45.5783' W 

A suitable setting for a South Pacific Posse Sunset Rum Party  

Sunset in Bora Bora

Sunset in Bora Bora, French Polynesia

7)  MARINA SPONSORS OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC  POSSE 

🇺🇸  Safe Harbor South Bay – Chula Vista, USA

🇲🇽  Marina Chiapas – Mexico   

🇨🇷  Marina Papagayo – Costa Rica   

🇵🇦  Shelter Bay Marina – Panama  

🇪🇨  Marina Puerto Amistad – Ecuador  

🇫🇯  Vuda Point Marina - Lauotka - Fiji 

🇻🇺 Yachting World Marina - Port Vila - Vanuatu

🇳🇿 Marsden Cove Marina - Northland - New Zealand 

🇦🇺 Rivergate Marina and Boatyard - Brisbane - Australia

 

 Rivergate successfully managed a six month refit of the vessel, which included a complete exterior refinish, teak deck refurbishment and overhaul of stabilisers.

 

Advanced yacht services available in Australia.
Rivergate’s
shipyard carries out more than 500 haul-outs per year, making it one of
the busiest shipyards in the Southern Hemisphere

8) SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE SPONSORS 

  • PREDICT WIND
  • SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT
  • CENTENARIO PANAMA CANAL AGENTS
  • YACHT AGENTS GALAPAGOS 
  • YACHT SERVICES NUKU HIVA 
  • NOUMEA YACHT SERVICES
  • SAFE HARBOR SOUTH BAY MARINA EVENT CENTER
  • WESTMARINE PRO
  • SAILMAIL 
  • OCEAN TACTICS WEATHER ROUTING 

9) MEET THE FLEET 

Meet the Fleet Kevin

SY KISMET 🇺🇸 Kevin - Passport 41′
currently at 02º  28.261 N  124º 07.788 W 

Kevin
 

Kismet

 

10) TRACKING THE 22' PACIFIC POSSE  FLEET 

 

Tracking

 

Visit https://pacificposse.com/tracking to view the progress of the 22 South Pacific Posse Fleet. 
To be added visit https://pacificposse.com/add-to-tracking

11) THE BEAUTY OF SOUTH PACIFIC CURRENCY 

Cook Islands 3 Dollar Bill

Cook Islands 3 dollar bill 

Although
the Cook Islands operates on the New Zealand dollar, there is still
some Cook Islands dolalrs in circulation that is equal in value to NZD.

The
$3 note which is more of a collectors or novelty item. These can be
picked up from the Rarotonga Philatelic Bureau or given as change when
paying departure tax.  

The official Cook Islands currency is the New Zealand dollar.  

 In
terms of cost of living in the Cook Islands, its price point is fairly
middle range in that it is a little more expensive than Fiji but a lot
less than French Polynesia and Tahiti. Part of the Cook Islands economy
is the VAT or Value Added Tax. Charged at 12.5% of the price, the tax is
added at the point of sale to almost everything however refunds are
available for tourists upon exiting the country.

Old Cook Island Dollars

12) SEVENSTAR YACHT TRANSPORT

 SPONSORS THE PANAMA POSSE

More info on Sevenstar™s services can be found on https://www.sevenstar-yacht-transport.com/

 

Sevenstar

 

Who is Sevenstar Yacht Transport?

Sevenstar
is the world’s leading provider of yacht shipping services on a
lift-on, lift-off basis. Sevenstar has access to the Spliethoff fleet of
over 120 company owned vessels. With an impressive 1,500+ transports
per year, they are calling over 100 ports in more than 40 countries
worldwide.

For a quote with the Panama Posse discount please contact 
Kris Caren

email: kris@sevenstar-usa.com

web: sevenstar-usa.com

13) QUINTESSENTIAL ANCHORAGE #13 🇹🇴TONGA

Hunga

Hunga / Valetoakakau  Vava'u Tonga aka Anchorage # 13

The Pass

During World War II many lagoons and closed harbors where blasted open to allow vessels to enter 

Valetoakakau

The
tight Pass into Hunga Valetoakakau ( # 13)  is 30 foot wide - 12.5
feet deep cut at high tide. Located at 18° 41.7216' S  174°
08.1816' W 

Wayward Wind

Wayward Wind a 11' draft schooner made it in with help from Captain Kurt.

Anchor inside a dormant volcanic caldera in the large depression formed after a volcano erupts and collapses.

The Moorings map of vava'u

The
archipelago of Vava'u - a hand drawn Moorings map which uses numbers to
make identifying locations  easier for Palangi's . Ta
pan-Polynesian term for a white person or Caucasian. The term has gained
widespread use throughout much of western Polynesia including Tonga,
Tokelau, Tuvalu, 'Uvea and Futuna.

Vava'u

Aerial view of a portion of the Vava'u Archipelago   in northern Tonga 

Don
Francisco Mourelle de la Rúa, commanding the Spanish frigate Princesa,
was the first European to come to Vavaʻu, which he did on 4 March 1781.
He charted Vavaʻu as Martín de Mayorga, naming it after the man who was
the Viceroy of New Spain at that time.  Captain James Cook had
known about the islands a decade earlier, but the people in Haʻapai had
told him it would be no good for him to go there. they told him there
was no harbour. ( THIS WAS A LIE ) They may have told him this to
dissuade him from going there; but Cook heeded their advice.

As
it turned out, Mourelle found excellent anchoring, in Vavaʻu, which he
desperately needed, because he had failed to find a harbour at the last
two places he had tried to land, Fonualei (Bitterness island) and Late.
He gave the harbour at Vavaʻu the name Port of Refuge, although his original port of refuge had been the bay on the west coast of the main island, near Longomapu.

Twelve
years later, in 1793, Alessandro Malaspina visited the area for a
month, following up on Mourelle’s investigations, and formally claiming
the islands for Spain. 

Captain Cook and the 'Friendly Islands

Captain Cook and the 'Friendly Islands

13) PANAMA CANAL AGENT 
CENTENARIO CONSULTING ERICK GALVEZ

To
arrange for transit with the Panama Canal Authority please contact Eric
Galvez our dedicated Panama Canal agent and sponsor of the Panama Posse
and the Pacific Posse

Erick Gálvez

info@centenarioconsulting.com

www.centenarioconsulting.com

Cellphone +507 6676-1376

WhatsApp +507 6676-1376

Erick

15) STRATEGIC PARTNERS
 

SEVEN SEAS CRUISING ASSOCIATION

Abernathy – Chandlery – Panama

Panama Posse 

Advertising Partners – Las Vegas

Safe-Esteem.com – Delaware


SIGN UP FOR THE '22 SOUTH PACIFIC POSSE  

WE OPERATE UNDER INTERNATIONAL MARITIME LAW

YOUR VESSEL YOUR CREW YOUR RESPONSIBILITY 

 

Notice of a rally

 

 

Hello

 

SY Reflections on approach in Lamen Bay  Vanuatu

With few cruisers in far flung places friendly rendezvous' on each other's yachts are the norm - prepare to be boarded ;-)  SY Reflections on approach in Lamen Bay  Vanuatu 

south pacific posse communications 
 @ 9811 w charleston blvd 2262 89117 Summerlin USA

© 2022 South Pacific Posse / Good Nautical Inc


French Polynesia

🇵🇫 FRENCH POLYNESIA 🏝 118+

CHILE PICAIRN ISLANDS ECUADOR GALAPAGOS FRENCH POLYNESIA COOK ISLANDS AMERICAN SAMOA HAWAII KIRIBATI NIUE SAMOA TONGA WALLIS AND FUTUNA FIJI VANUATU NEW CALEDONIA SOLOMON ISLANDS NEW ZEALAND NORFOLK ISLAND AUSTRALIA

French Polynesia









PORTS OF ENTRY

MARQUESAS

POE Hiva Oa
POE Nuku Hiva
POE Hakahau (Ua Pou)

TUAMOTUS
POE Rangiroa

GAMBIERS
POE Mangareva

AUSTRALS
POE Mata’ura, Tubuai
POE Moerai, Rurutu
POE Raivavae

SOCIETY ISLANDS
POE Papeete
POE Bora Bora
POEHuahine
POERaiatea

 

 

ENTRY EXIT REQUIREMENTS

Yachts are cleared for 36 months without subject to Custom Duties –
Immigration however has 3 different categories .
US, UK, NZ, AUSTRALIANS and Canadians will get 90-day visas on arrival at their first landfall.
These CANNOT be extended in the islands. If you want to stay longer you need to file for a long stay visa ( and have it issued ) before you arrive .

French Polynesia is not part of the EU (via France) or Schengen Area, but facilitated regulations are applied to these countries’ citizens.
EU and Schengen countries’ nationals can travel to French Polynesia for an unlimited time period.

Yachts clear in or out of FP with the “gendarmes” offices at the ports of entry. Immigration formalities will be processed by these Gendarmes. Registration can be done by e-mail. Document F09.01 Avis d’Opération Nautique Petite Plaisance sent to:

trafficmaritime@portppt.pf cc sp@portppt.pf cc marinadepapeete@portppt.pf

Customs declaration is legally binding and the customs boat monitors and inspects boats throughout the islands
checking for infringements on arms, drugs, alcohol, prescription medicines and pearls

Upon clearing you are allowed to cruise all of FP except for Tahiti where you must check in with the Harbormaster.

MONEY

American Dollar to 🇵🇫 CFP Franc XPF

COST OF LIVING

Per Person estimated monthly living costs are $ 1,200
Cost of living is 40+ % higher than in United States
more >>

CPF XPF Currency Images

WEATHER

MAIN LOCAL WEATHER WEBSITE https://meteo.pf/fr

FRENCH POLYNESIA WEATHER FORECAST >>>

SEVERE WEATHER

SEVERE WEATHER FRENCH POLYNESIA

TIDE STATIONS FRENCH POLYNESIA

 











TIDAL TIME DIFFERENCES EAST TO WEST

PILOT CHARTS FRENCH POLYNESIA CLIMATOLOGY

 


CHARTS

  1. 606 Tonga to Archipel des Tuamotu ↴
  2. 607 French Polynesia ↴
  3. 6033 Archipel de la Société – Îles sous-le-Vent ↴
  4. 6280 Partie Nord de Raiatea – Port dUturoa ↴
  5. 6281 Partie Sud de Tahaa ↴
  6. 6282 Passes entre les Iles Raiatea et Tahaa ↴
  7. 6283 Ile Tahaa ↴
  8. 6284 Partie Sud de Raiatea ↴
  9. 6320 Makatea ↴
  10. 6418 Ile Mangareva – Rade de Rikitea ↴
  11. 6420 De Mataiva à Rangiroa et Makatea ↴
  12. 6434 Huahine ↴
  13. 6461 Îles Gambier ↴
  14. 6462 Îles Gambier – Partie Sud ↴
  15. 6463 Île Mangareva – Passe de lOuest ↴
  16. 6464 Îles Mangareva – Rikitea – Totegegie ↴
  17. 6525 Abords de Port Phaeton ↴
  18. 6604 De Mururoa à Fangataufa ↴
  19. 6605 Pointe Vénus à Mahaena ↴
  20. 6657 Baies de Cook et d’Opunohu ↴
  21. 6658 Île de Moorea – Côte Nord-Ouest de Tahiti ↴
  22. 6688 Îles de la Société – De Manuae à Tahiti ↴
  23. 6689 Îles Tuamotu (Partie Ouest) – De Tahiti à Rangiroa et Makemo ↴
  24. 6690 Îles Tuamotu (partie centrale) – De Makemo à Tatakoto ↴
  25. 6691 Îles Tuamotu (partie Est) – De Hao à Fangataufa ↴
  26. 6692 Des Îles Tuamotu aux Îles Gambier ↴
  27. 6717 Port Phaeton (Teauaa) – Tapuaeraha ↴
  28. 6740 De Maraa à Faaa ↴
  29. 6828 Atehiti à Maraa ↴
  30. 6955 Approches des Îles de Tahiti et de Moorea – Îles de Maiao et de Tetiaroa ↴
  31. 6956 De la Passe de Mahaena à la Baie de Taravao ↴
  32. 6957 De la Baie de Taravao à la Passe dAiurua ↴
  33. 7213 Maupiti ↴
  34. 7248 Apataki ↴
  35. 7260 Apataki à Fakarava ↴
  36. 7261 De Fakarava à Makemo ↴
  37. 7262 De Makemo à Marutea Nord ↴
  38. 7281 Hao ↴
  39. 7293 Manihi ↴
  40. 7305 De la Passe dAiurua à la Passe Havae ↴
  41. 7314 Ahe ↴
  42. 7329 Kauehi ↴
  43. 7346 Takaroa et Takapoto ↴
  44. 7353 Ua-Pou et Ua-Huka ↴
  45. 7354 Fatu-Hiva, Baies de Hiva-Oa et de Tahuata ↴
  46. 7355 Hiva-Oa, Tahuata et Mohotani – Hiva Oa, Tahuata, Mohotani, FatuHuku ↴
  47. 7356 Eiao, Hatutaa, Motu One ↴
  48. 7357 Îles Marquises (Fenua Enata) ↴
  49. 7368 De lÎle Malden aux Îles de la Société ↴
  50. 7369 Des Southern Cook Islands aux Îes de la Société et Australes ↴
  51. 7370 De Mururoa à Ducie Island ↴
  52. 7371 De Tahiti aux Îles Marquises ↴
  53. 7372 Fakarava ↴
  54. 7373 Rangiroa ↴
  55. 7453 Makemo ↴
  56. 7454 Faaite ↴
  57. 7456 Toau – De Niau à Fakarava ↴
  58. 7457 Raroia et Takume ↴
  59. 7458 Aratika ↴
  60. 7459 Tikehau ↴
  61. 7460 De la Passe de Taapuna à la Passe d’Arue ↴
  62. 7461 De Taapuna à la Pointe Vénus ↴
  63. 7466 Bora-Bora ↴
  64. 83020 Iles Marquises Islands ↴

BORA BORA ANCHORING RESTRICTIONS>>

 

AGENTS

MARQUESAS

Mr. Kevin Ellis

Yacht Services Nuku Hiva

BP 301 Taiohae, 98742 Nuku Hiva, French Polynesia

+689 87 22 68 72, YSNukuHiva@hotmail.com

VHF 72, Monday – Friday 0800-1400

GUIDES AND RESOURCES

FRENCH POLYNESIA PORTGUIDE .pdf

US CONSULATE

The Tahiti Cruisers Guide

download TAHITI CRUISERS GIUDE >>

brought to you by Julien Desmont from Xperimental and Chuck Houlihan from Jacaranda. Starting as an idea based on the very successful Panama City Cruisers guide, it has evolved into 200+ pages of information on vendors and services throughout French Polynesia.

EMERGENCY

Emergency numbers

SMUR (service médical d’urgence): 15
Fire fighters : 18
Police : 17
Sea rescue : +689 40 42 12 12
Private physicians (SOS Médecin 24/7) : +689 40 42 34 56
Central hospital of French Polynesia :+689 40 48 62 62

 

SAR (SEARCH AND RESCUE)

JRCC Tahiti

Tel: +689 40 54 16 16
contact@jrcc.pf
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Telephone+689 40 54 16 16 info: 689 40 54 16 15

Email contact@jrcc.pf

Fax+689 40 42 39 15

JRCC TahitiWebsite http://www.jrcc.pf

INMARSAT582-422799192