After a very long day we finally arrived at Hiva Oa, in the Marquesas Islands! Because we had not be turning our clocks back at all during our trip we needed to turn them back 2.5 hours today. It means we had a long day and dinner was much later than normal. What really dragged the day along however was the fact that although there was a strong wind, because it was coming from directly behind us, we drifted along rather slowly. Perhaps it seemed slower than normal because although we averaged 5 knots which is a descent speed, we spotted land around 10am and did not reach our anchorage location until almost 5pm. When one drifts along in the open ocean for days on end at 5 knots you know you are moving but don’t have any landmarks to gauge your speed. When there is an island, slowly approaching and then you slowly follow the coastline until you reach your anchorage 15 miles up the coast it seems to take forever. Finally with 2 miles to go, we got so impatient and fired up the engines to motor the last little bit. We wanted to have plenty of time to set our anchor before the sun set. If we did not anchor before sunset we would have to stay out on the open water until the morning as it is not a good idea to pull into any harbour at nighttime. When we arrived we were a bit nervous with the number of vessels already anchored. Until now we tend to give ourselves lots of swinging room on our anchor and the boats looked like they were very tight together. But there was no turning back. Night was coming on and this is one of only 3 places to clear customs in the Marquesas Islands.
After a quick dinner the kids were all anxious to put their feet on solid ground again and so we took the dingy to shore for a walk around. We are supposed to check in with the local police to finalize our paperwork to stay in French Polynesia but they are not open late and so we postponed that to tomorrow. Once on shore however we started walking towards the main city which is about a 50 minute walk along the coast. As we were walking someone was passing by and I asked them a few questions including where the church was that we wanted to attend on Sunday. He told me that his sister was part of the same congregation and made a call on his cell phone right then. He then told me that they were having a meeting at the church and that if we wanted someone could pick us up. We accepted the offer and spent the next 15 minutes waiting for someone to pick us up. Sure enough someone arrived with their truck. In true Marquesian style the kids hopped into the bench seats in the back of the covered truck, slid the board closed that acted as a tailgate. I on the other hand slid into the passenger seat after Robert untied the rope that was strung from the door to the stick shift that was holding the door closed.
The drive was only about 5 minutes and it was rather dark outside so we could not see much but when we arrived at the small meetinghouse there were 15 other local residents of the church gathered around at the end of their meeting. They set up some chairs at the front of the room and for the next 45 minutes we introduced ourselves and heard about life on the islands. It was a great feeling to come to a new island and instantly make some new acquaintances and learn about and from them. The old ladies in the group took a liking to Teyauna and were ready to adopt our little 5 year old.
We received a ride back to our boat, found our dingy right where we left it and motored back to our boat for the night. It was a simple little evening but just the first of many little glimpses that we hope to have of life in the South Pacific Islands.
8:30 pm Marquesas Time (11 pm PST), Lat: 09° 48.264′ S, Long: 139° 01.963′ W … Current Location
Wow, you actually hit land, just where you were supposed to. That always seemed like a miracle to me – that after weeks of seeing nothing but ocean, and never knowing FOR SURE where you were, suddenly you’ve arrived and your reckoning was right and you’re where you intended to be. I remember the feeling of amazement and gratitude.
Do any of your kids speak French or are you doing all the translating, Norm? Now the fun shall begin so don’t forget to share with us. And keep those covetous hands off our little girl. She’s spoken for.
Mom it took us almost 10 longer to reach land so I can understand your increduality!! Just think how much more they would have appreciated landfall if they had another 10 days at sea!
Congratulations. A true adventure, and now the real fun begins. Enjoy the culture differences. I can barely wait to hear specifics about the trip. Someone needs to write a book….
always excited to read and follow your adventures btw Happy Mothers day Kirsten
I don’t recall ever being jealous of anyone or their adventures, however, after reading about your landing the emotions from my own landing so many years ago came back with a flood and created a little feeling of jealousy. I am happy you all made it there safely and that even with all the fun breakdowns and storms that you are still able to sail on!!
Contrats on a safe passage and landing. Seems you are in an awesome place now.
enjoy the excursion of a lifetime!
Way to go Scaher’s!!!!!
Way to go Schafer’s!!!
So happy you are safe and can now enjoy a good night sleep without doing night watch. Spent many hours online today looking at scenery and the culture of those islands. This makes me feel closer to you You are living the dream we all wish we could have, but for whatever reason never get to do.
So glad you are all safe and look forward to being with you soon in Tahiti
Love Mom/Omi oxo
Congratulations. Nice you could catch up with locals so quickly!
Did you catch any of the partial solar eclipse last week? I just saw some postings today, and realized you would have been in the band that showed a little.
We are so haappy, but not surprised, that you are now safely in the Marquesas, and can begin enjoying the pleasure of getting to know and appreciate the people and customs of French Polynesia. We thoroughly enjoy each of your postings of the memorable events of your journey.
Congratulations on the event! Happy Mothers day, I don’t think it is tomorrow yet (Internation date line). We are happy that you have made it with safety. We will continue watching your blogs. RH
You made me cry!! I remember that frantic moment when I woke up from my hour watch (that started at 2:00 in the morning and accidentally ended at 5:00 in the morning) to see land in the distance. What a flood of joyous memories. Tyson, I am jealous too, I want to be there with the winds blowing and the rocking of the boats. I want to smell the thick tropical air and experience those torental rain storms once again. . .
Yay you made it to land! How awesome, you are having such wonderful adventures 🙂
Good on you guys. You made it safely to land and from the estimates of a week or so ago it would seem that you are what, 412 days ahead of the projected schedule? Boy what great sailors you are with a little help from the maker of the winds. I know you won’t be staying long there but it would be nice for the islanders if you stayed a few weeks. I imagine they really do love new company. Send some pics with Teyanna and the natives. It will be amusing to see the contrast in skin color. Dad
WOW!!! SO happy for you guys! you better all have a wonderful time, and keep us updated. And as much as you blog, you’d better still have many adventures to tell us all when you get back! Love you all, have a blast!! <3
Greetings from Quesnel!!!! What a wondeful feeling to arrive at one of your many destinations. Great team work Schafer family!!!! Stay safe!
So glad you all made it safely and sounds like an incredible adventure so far.
All my best to you all. Love the pictures and wonderful commentaries.
Laurie
So pleased to hear you have made landfall.
Congratulations – I remember those first days landing in Tonga, and what a flood of memories it brings back as you describe going into the church and your ride to the church. What an amazing time this is for you guys.
What did it feel like to walk on land? Was it hard to go back to the boat after finally reaching solid ground? Happy Mothers Day Kirsten! We love you guys! Give Teyauna a big squeeze for me!
This is so great! What an amazing passage to have under your belts as a family. And what a cool welcome to the islands. Thanks for sharing.
We’ve been reading of your adventures to Ivy and Ian, but have been a few days behind. What fun to hear you made it, through all of the storms and calms and miracles in between. We look forward to seeing and reading about what happens next, and next, and next after that, as you continue your journey. I’m so glad our paths crossed at the beginning of this year.