Taiohae Bay, Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Archipelago, French Polynesia – Yes, we are still here

YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BELIEVE IT! Or maybe you will?

We are still in Taiohae Bay, Nuku Hiva.

I think these guys have forgotten they are on a sail boat and not a ‘work in progress’. Not that they are the best workers. Still guilty of sneaking off fishing, hiking, music and dance festivals, BBQ and dinner parties.

There is an old sailing adage. Cruising is just fixing your boat in exotic locations. These guys have taken this to the extreme! Oh, but they seem to be having fun. The island, the friends they have met and the boat all seem to keep them busy. As long as I have fun on the beach running and swimming with them and get fed tuna, mango, banana, or all of the above, I am happy camper.

It is a good lifestyle!

Sticking around in one place has other advantages you usually do not get when just ‘passing through’. You start to get a deeper understanding of what it is like to live here/

Part of the reason the humans decided to go off travelling was to experience and learn new things. See new places and learn about new cultures. The trouble with being a traveler is you are often and outsider looking in. The superficial is all you get to see as you ‘pass on through’. Everyone smiling and on their best behavour.

It is only when you stay somewhere a little longer you start to see ‘a hint’ of the depth of a different culture and the contrasts with your own belief systems.

I hope you all get a chance to do this, at least once, in your lifetime.

What about you? Would you consider stopping at a small island in the South Pacific so long?

What does Nuku Hiva have to offer you?

ARCHAEOLOGY

There are lots of Archaeological sites on the island. A quick google search will list them all for you. They are open and free to visit with or without a guide. Get to know the locals and they will introduce you to additional sacred sights and petroglyphs they keep secreted away.

CULTURAL PRACTICES

For a long time many traditonal Marquesan cultural practices were ‘frowned upon’ and dissuaded by church and state. Without a written language much was lost. A resurgence in interest has led to an abundance of teaching opportunities and festivals. Marquesan’s are very proud to share their language and culture with visitors.

In the village of Taiohae they have established a dance school for all ages and levels that visitors are welcome to attend with the locals.

There are many music instructors actively teaching groups and individual sessions.

A few months ago a tattoo school opened and they had their first big ‘tattoo festival’ with an international film crew in attendance.

There is even a centre here that focuses on preserving the Marquesan language. Instead of adopting French or English words for new inventions they try to designate combinations of traditional Marquesan words to describe it. Like ‘dragon fly’ to denote a helicopter.

Every ‘self respecting’ place of employment has a va’a (outrigger canoe) club. The big round bay affords a great competition track with protected waters on the inside and rougher water at the mouth. There are even races to neighbouring bays and islands. Every morning and evening the waters here are filled with individuals and groups training. You can join an existing group or borrow an individual canoe for a day, a week or a year.

HIKING AND HORSE RIDING

Nuku Hiva is a relatively young volcanic island. Everywhere is up once you leave the sea front. Many of the valleys are still only accessible by boat or by horse. So, after the 4×4, Marquesan’s love their horses.

Nuku Hiva is also a unique island as a majority of the land is government owned and open to the public. Pigs, goats and chickens, left behind by passing ships for the return journey, prosper on these lands and are hunted on horse back by the locals.

The result is Nuku Hiva is a hikers paradise. Dirt tracks and horse trails warren through every corner of the island. With no fences you can ascend to great heights and walk the great spines of the island or descend into hidden coves and snorkel virgin reefs. Get to know some locals and you can do it by horse. Want to do a circuit and you organise a drop off by boat, pick up by car or camp for the night.

FISHING

Whether it is for food or fun, Nuku Hiva’s rich waters produce substantial game fish. You can not eat a majority of the reef fish in the bays, but outside the bays Tuna, Mahi Mahi (Dorado), Wahoo and Marlin are all good eating. The huge colonies of sea birds attest to the bounty here. The islands cliffs, mountains and dramatic bays are stunning by sea as you drag a line hoping dinner will bite.

If you are already out along the coast, why now stop by the many pinnacles and rocky points to enjoy some clear water snorkeling with rays, sharks and huge schools of fish.
Even if you are not a fisherman, Taiohae Bay is the place to stock your freezer as they have a fisherman[s co operative that sells fish most days by the kilo at the lowest prices in the country. So plentiful is the Yellowfin Tuna here a canning company wanted to open in the village. They decided against it to protect the resource for future generations….and us sailors.

SNORKELING AND DIVING

A local friend here gave me advice I have learned to head. He said: ‘If the weather is good, do things you need good weather for, because the weather will always change.’

You need to do the same with diving and snorkeling in Nuku Hiva. When the water is clear go get wet!
Diving and snorkeling in the Marquesas is very variable. One day the sea is really clear and the next day there is a plankton bloom and the waters are cloudy with miniature life. So when the water is clear you go diving, when it is cloudy, the Manta Ray will come to feed, so perhaps jump in a kayak and watch them from the surface or go for a hike instead.

It is pretty easy to snorkel and dive yourself, but there are outfits here that will take you and will also fill your tanks (If they are in date). On any given day one area might have bad visibility while another has good visibility. The dive operations here are pretty knowledgeable if you are on a tight schedule. Something my humans have not experienced here!

SUPPLIES

When you are going to visit someplace for a while, you want to know you can get ‘stuff’ you might need. In Nuku Hiva you can get ANYTHING as long as you have the time or the money. Preferably both.

Daily flights to and from Tahiti, biweekly supply ships and a post office means you can get anything sent here. A new Ships Chandlery opened that is remarkably well stocked, two hardware stores and most of the little grocery markets carry a few hardware bits.

The farmer’s co operative and the fisherman’s co operative will keep you well fed even if imported delicacies are delayed by supply ship miss-scheduling. There is no licensed butcher on the island, so officially locals can not sell their live stock or the animals they hunt, but there are always ways around that.

Nuku Hiva is the Administrative centre of the North. For a tiny population of 3000 souls they have a complete hospital with an MRI and emergency medical helicopter. Well stocked pharmacy that can get anything else you need flown in the next day. French Polynesia was one of the first nations to roll out the Covid vaccine to its general population. At the time of writing this they are offering the 4th 6 month boaster free to anyone who wants it.

The hospital, schools and administration means a lot of foreign nationals here in the village. Their desire for ‘the taste of home’ means many of the shops here carry imported goods we have rarely seen anywhere else. It is surprising the variety of spices, sauces and condiments available, along with vegetarian, vegan and even gluton free products.

WANT TO LEARN MORE?

If you want to learn more about what Nuku Hiva has to offer sailors you can download, for free, sv Soggy Paws Compendium on the Marquesas. This is regularly updated by sailors for sailors.

Click to access Marquesas%20Compendium.pdf

HERE ARE SOME ADITIONAL PICTURES