–by Alma
After leaving Tahiti, we went to the beautiful atolls of Apataki and Toau, and now we are in Fakarava.
We arrived in South Fakarava on Halloween where some friends – a British boat and a Canadian boat – were already there. South Pacific Halloween is tons of fun. It was the first time and probably the only time we will trick-or-treat by dingy.
That afternoon, we went over to one of the boats and made Halloween decorations. Then we all got into our last minute homemade costumes. Arlo was a mahi mahi fish and I was the Greek goddess Artemis. The kids trick or treated among our three boats, plus a French boat that was in the harbor. When we told them it was Halloween they gave us candy too. The anchorage was full of sharks, and when we accidentally hit one with an oar, it splashed us. Once we were done, we went back to one of the boats and had a potluck dinner.
While we were in South Fakarava, the parents on the Canadian boat taught Arlo and I how to SCUBA dive. I just went with their daughter Zoe in ten feet of water, but the rest of my family dove the length of the famous South Pass of Fakarava where they saw hundreds of five to ten foot sharks.
We also snorkeled the pass twice and saw a good number of six foot sharks as well as some cool fish like the humphead wrasse (often up to five and a half feet long), the Achilles Tang (one of my favorites), and many, many more.
When we first swam with sharks in the Tuamotu, I was somewhat scared. Now if a shark isn’t looking at us, or if it is less than two feet long, then I am Okay with it. But I have to admit that if it is looking at us and is more than two feet long, then I will get an uneasy feeling. After multiple dives, my dad said that he wasn’t scared of the sharks when he was diving because they seemed so uninterested in him
I have loved what we have seen in Fakarava. Next we will be heading back to the Marquesas and then to Hawai’i. I have included some additional photos from the last week or so, but first, here is a note from Arlo . . .
Hello, Arlo here, and I have a couple of updates. First, if you can recall the “Off the Grid on the Water” blog post, you will remember that we had no functional solar panels. After a visit from an electrician, we now have solar power, and I must tell you, the ice is nice.
But more to the point, I got the chance to go scuba diving thanks to our good friends on ALONDRA, and it was incredible. My second dive ever was in the south pass in Fakarava, and we were 73 feet down while we watched the hundreds of sharks swim by as we got swept along with the current. It blew my mind. Although it was hard to keep track of fish and shark species, while I was still figuring out my equipment, I know we saw at least five species of sharks: blacktip reef shark, blacktip shark, gray reef shark, silvertip sharks, white tip reef sharks. I’m totally hooked on it and I hope to get certified when we return to the States.
Love the family picture! 💕
Wow great post! I don’t know about sharks, though, Alma… I am impressed!
Glad to see you’ve broken your dryspell, Arlo.
My big accomplishment these days is that I’m teaching myself to touch type. I am horrible at it! But persevering through the pain.
Sending lots of slowly typed hugs!
Whoa! Brilliant scuba diving.
Sharks -yikes.
I tried it once with my son and he recounts a very hilarious account of the(my) experience.
Currently I am waiting for my laundry to dry-aaah such a fun life!
Halloween tricking/treating by dinghy is most definately the way to go,better keep it up on your return.
Well go easy and please don’t forget to at least try to have some fun!! Ha!
Love these notices what an experience for all of you! and I LOVE the new “cover” banner
This update actually gave me the chills. Just thinking about swimming with the sharks made me get goosebumps. I’ve done some snorkeling where there were barracuda and stingrays and such. I didn’t like that part at all and can remember trying to get my feet up as close under me as possible while swimming over the top of the biggest stingray I ever saw… no sharks for this little Kansas girl!
Keep up the awesome work on your updates. I loved the part about trick or treating by dinghy. Your adventures are absolutely amazing. Arlo – you and Alma should write a book when you get back and you’re both good enough artists that you could illustrate it as well.
Looking forward to the next one!
With love from Kansas,
Lou Anne
P.S. I loved the family photo… Love that beautiful family!
How exciting for all of you to scuba. When I about Alma’s age I did my first dives with my father up in the San Juan’s & Puget Sound. I recall feeling very uneasy when I would lose sight of my dad for brief moments swimming through the darkness of kelp. When I was older I got certified in the Caribbean which was wonderfully clear & bright. I’ll never forget seeing my first fish that was larger than me (tarpon), or the giant clams undulating in Australia. I can’t imagine feeling comfortable with all those huge sharks! What a fantastic experience.
Great to read your stories and -especially- see the pictures of your lovely faces and surrounds. xoxo
Great stories from the far Pacific. I snorkeled with sharks when I sailed with Beth and Gary, but it always gave me the creeps. They seemed so much faster in the water than I was and seemed like I looked like food.
Your photos continue to amaze us with the beauty of the islands. We are glad to see photos of you 4, too. Otherwise we might not recognized you upon return.
Such amazing adventures.
Love to all. SF and Priscilla