Four hours after departing Huahine, we arrived in Raiatea, another day, another beautiful green island! Raiatea is a little different from most of the other Society Islands because it serves as the base for the yacht charter companies that operate in this island group and has more boat services available. For the first time since arriving at Nuku Hiva, we were able to top up on diesel at an actual fuel dock instead of lugging around jerrycans and crossed our fingers that we would be able to fill up our propane tanks as well. Once again, no luck with the cooking gas.
I looked into renting another scooter to see more of Raiatea and found a place nearby that would even drop it off near the dinghy dock. Eitan and I took the scooter to run a few errands but he wasn’t too keen on seeing the rest of the island. Having paid for the full-day rental already, I didn’t want to waste it but I had never actually driven one. I was a bit terrified at first but eventually got the hang of it. Luckily, they drive on the right side of the road in French Polynesia so that wasn’t too different for me.
I took off, with the wind in my face, to begin my circumnavigation of the island, hitting different tourist spots along and way and stopping for photos. I stopped at the botanical gardens and a few archeological sites but mostly just cruised along the main road, checking out the little villages along the way. It was nice to spend some time on my own while off the boat. Towards the opposite end of the island, the engine started to die while idling every time that I stopped for photos. I became increasingly worried that I might get stuck in one of the more rural areas without service. So, instead of stopping to enjoy the views, I kept the throttle up and kept moving along.
I was amazed at the temperature difference between the sun/shade and windward/leeward sides. Occasionally, i would pass behind a mountain and be freezing cold only to make a turn back into the sun and feel hot again. Even though I had started the day not knowing how to drive a scooter, by the end, I was passing slow trucks and becoming more and more confident in my ability to maneuver until I came to a steeper hill and prayed the small engine could get me up. Towards the afternoon, I started to get paranoid I might get stuck because the engine died, or would find a hill I couldn’t get over, or that I had miscalculated how long this trip would take and not be able to return the scooter in time. Naturally, I spent the remainder of the trip worrying until I was finally able to return the scooter and have Eitan pick me up in the dingy.
The following day we headed over to the neighboring island to the north called Tahaa. We dropped anchor near the expensive overwater bungalows that extend out from the motus and enjoy the same view, but from the comfort of our own home. We snorkeled at a nearby area called the Coral Gardens which was filled with all kinds of pudgy fish and tourists. Some fish followed us around like puppies, waiting for a treat. One friend compared the Coral Gardens to what he had experienced at the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. After seeing the site, I sincerely hoped this wasn’t true. It seemed our weeks in the remote Tuamotus had officially turned us into snorkel snobs.
The coral in the Society Islands was nice but not incredible. Although much of the coral and fish species were the same, one key difference was the algae growth on all of the coral. Small, pinecone-like structures grew off of the coral and the detached ones seemed to pollute the leeward shores. Their spiked exteriors were unpleasant to bump into and easily caught in my hair and on my bathing suits. We learned they are called turbinaria ornata, native to the area but clearly out of balance with the ecosystem. We later watched a documentary called Chasing Coral which exposed us to the signs of coral degradation, which I began seeing everywhere. It made me even more thankful to be doing this trip now and not in 20 years. Who knows how much coral will be around by then?
Our last day in Tahaa was our last day with just the two of us onboard. We watched the sun set behind Bora Bora in the distance and spent the evening chatting in the cockpit and stargazing as it grew dark. Tomorrow we would be picking up my friend, Evan, in Bora Bora and checking out of French Polynesia after 90 days.
