Nuku-Hiva is the final stop before getting off the boat and flying back to Seattle via Tahiti. Total distance sailed from Panama City to here was 4,200 miles. Total time spent on the boat was 42 days. We visited 6 islands, and caught just 2 fish. Highlights for me were transiting the Panama Canal, seeing the wildlife in the Galapagos, and revisiting some favorite places in the Marquesas Islands. The sailing was fast, the stargazing on night-watches magical, the food aboard fantastic, and the old adage ‘fair winds and following seas’ was upheld.

We spent 1-1/2 days at anchorage in Hakatea Bay, also known as Daniel’s Bay. A few families live along the stream that flows through the valley. Vertical cliffs of hundreds of feet run along both sides. The valley floor narrows until reaching a dead-end with a waterfall. We hiked the 3 miles to the end and cooled off in an 8′ deep pool of refreshing clear water. After the 3 mile hike back to the bay, we ate a delicious meal of fish, breadfruit, mango/guava salad, and fried bananas prepared by a family that has lived there for over 15 years. We first met Teiki and Kua 9 years ago during our last trip to Nuku-Hiva and they enjoyed seeing the photo on my phone from back then. They are very friendly and Teiki is especially animated with his expressions and the way he talks very loudly. Mike gifted them with some mosquito netting and they sent us off with a dozen pamplemousse, plucked freshly from their many trees.

The final port, just 4 miles east of Hakatea Bay, was TaioHa’E, the main village on Nuku-Hiva. A huge Tiki guards the port from a hillside on the north-east side. It was built recently in 2016 to commemorate the village recovering its original and ancestral name of Tuhiva. The woman tiki is 40 feet high and represents ancestral strength. The warrior Tuhiva tiki is 26 feet tall and is depicted stepping forward to master his future. The iron rebar structure is covered with shotcrete and coated with a reddish volcanic tuff used by the Marquesan stone carvers.

The 47 mile sail to the Island of Tahuata took 6.5 hours. We brought in a tuna just before arriving. The west side of the island has several well-protected sandy beaches so we stopped for the day and went ashore at Baie Hanamoenoa. The anchorage was full of mostly catamarans. We will up-anchor and continue on to Hiva-Oa in the morning.

We anchored on the south west side of Fatu-Hiva under bright moonlight 17 days after departing the Galapagos. The tiny village of Omoa appeared when we awoke in the morning. It felt great to get off the boat and stretch our legs on land. We spent 2 full days on the island, which is one of the least populated of the 6 main islands that make up the Marquesas. Total population is 600 people grouped evenly in 2 villages–Omoa and Hanavave.

In Omoa we walked around taking in all the sites and fragrances of a tropical paradise. We hiked to a Petroglyph and ate at 2 of the local restaurants. We met a family that invited us to their house and organized a delicious meal, drove us around the island, and showed us their amazing artwork that included tapestry and carvings of wood and stone. Upon parting, they gave us bananas, pamplemousse (gigantic grapefruit), avocados, limes, coconut, breadfruit, and papaya.

The drive to Hanavave took us over a scenic volcanic mountain. Half paved concrete and half dirt, we moved slowly around hairpin turns with sheer cliffs. It rained quite a bit so the locals didn’t recommend the hike to a waterfall due to falling rocks. Upon returning to Omao, we had a fabulous meal that included tuna, steak, and frites (french fries).

The Pacific Ocean is by far the largest (and deepest) of Earth’s 5 oceans. The water volume is 170 million cubic miles. The typical globe view is centered around America (left pic) or Europe. The Pacific’s size can be better appreciated when viewed centered around it (right pic). It covers more than 30 percent of the Earth’s surface.

Today is day 16 since departing the Galapagos. We are currently only 50 miles from Fatu Hiva. The wind has lightened the past few days so we motored some. We also gybed for the first time, putting us on a starboard tack. We’re all looking forward to landfall, predicted to take place near sunset tonight.

We crossed the 1,500 mile mark from the Galapagos to the Marquesas passage on day 8. One of the highlights was watching the Superbowl using the StarLink connection. The routine stuff includes sail changes, stargazing, playing games, watching movies, reading, exercising, and listening to music. I always look forward to a morning coffee while relaxing in the cockpit and keeping in touch with family, friends, and the outside world. Mealtime is something to look forward to and there are 3 excellent and creative cooks aboard (disclaimer: I’m not one). We’ve had Coconut Chicken Curry, Focaccia Pizza, Seared Mahi Mahi, Tuna Wraps, and Moroccan Tagine. Our fresh produce is winding down but we’ve got plenty of pasta, canned goods, and some frozen meat.

The wind speed and direction varied the first few days of the passage. We averaged 172 miles/day over the first 5 days. That’s a 7.2 knot average. As we settled into the more consistent and stronger trade winds starting on day 6, the average speed went to 9.1 knots and we averaged 219 miles/day. The advantage of performance Catamarans in terms of speed and comfort is remarkable.

Sunset Green Flash

Every day brings fabulous sunrises and sunsets. One particular evening I was on deck watching the sun disappear over the horizon and witnessed the Green Flash. This phenomenon is a prismatic affect produced by atmospheric refraction of light. It causes objects near the horizon to appear slightly higher in the sky than they really are. Refraction is stronger for green light than it is for yellow and red light (RoyGBiv) and results in a brief flash of green fringe on the upper edge of the sun. I’ve seen many sunsets at sea and this was the first time I saw the green flash.

Comparison to a previous passage on Apropos

When I did a similar passage 10 years ago (Mexico to the Marquesas), we had 4 aboard a Hans Christian 43. As you can see, there’s a big difference when it comes to space and comfort. A monohull heels and rolls a lot more than a catamaran, so doing anything below deck is difficult offshore. We averaged 126 miles/day over a 23-day passage. Right now we’re sailing comfortably at 9-10 knots and making up to 228 miles/day. I love the traditional look and seaworthiness of my HC43 and am glad we did that trip, but this passage has definitely opened my eyes to Catamarans.

Most people go to the Galapagos Islands to see the wildlife found nowhere else. Animals stare back at you instead of running away. A lot of conservation, research, and sustainable tourism are in place to protect the fragile ecosystem. Our permit only allowed us 3 days so we made the best of our time seeing wildlife and eating out.

Giant Tortoises

Giant Tortoises are found only on the Galapagos and in smaller numbers, on a few islands in the Indian Ocean. The word Galapago is an old Spanish word for a saddle, similar in shape to the tortoise shell. San Cristobal island has a semi-natural environment used as a breeding center and reserve for giant tortoises. It was well worth the visit.

Sea Lions

Sea Lions are everywhere. They’re fun to watch but they sometimes make a nuisance of themselves. One morning we awoke at 4am to find 2 seal lions on the swim platform (no big deal), and 2 more that had made themselves comfortable in the cockpit, with one of them lounging on a cushioned seat! Around town they also go wherever they want.

Iguanas

Land and marine Iguanas can be seen everywhere walking around Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, the capital of the Galapagos Islands.

Birds

The Galapagos Islands are know for a wide variety of birds. One of the prettiest is the Blue Footed Boobie. There are many species of finches, known collectively as Darwin Finches. They have a wide variety of beak shapes and were the most important inspiration for Charles Darwin’s evolution theory.

Scuba Diving and Snorkeling

We went scuba diving in a bay just north of where we anchored. Visibility was not great but we saw a shark and lots of reef fish. We also snorkeled on a popular beach and saw playful Sea Lions. Underwater photography is difficult without high end dive cameras but here are a few shots using an iPhone in an underwater case.

Misc.

Light winds are often the norm when sailing away from Panama City. We were fortunate to have 20-25 knot winds from the start, making for a very fast 2-1/2 days of perfect sailing conditions. The first 12 hours was spent keeping an eye out in the busy shipping lanes and strategizing our gybes. With 20 knots of true wind, Rioleon averaged 240 miles per day (10 knot average). On some big rollers from astern, we surfed down waves at 15 knots and recorded 21.4 knots max! Day 4 the winds lightened so we motor-sailed to charge the batteries, run the watermaker, do laundry, and keep moving along at 6-8 knots. Eventually the winds died to 5 knots and we motored overnight, then sailed again in the morning.

Most of the time at sea is spent relaxing, reading, playing games, cooking, fishing, and changing sails. At nighttime, we had 3 watches of 3-hours each. With Starlink internet access, we keep in touch with the outside world happenings. That’s a huge difference from our South Pacific trip 10 years ago where we only had SSB to pull up daily GRIB files for weather.

Here are some passage photos.

This is a Red-Footed Boobie hitching a ride. The Galapagos Islands is home to the largest population of Red-Footed Boobies in the world.

Equator Crossing

If you’ve never crossed the equator on a boat, you’re a Pollywog. We had 2 Pollywogs aboard–David and Heidi. A ceremony and celebration took place after we anchored in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno on Isla San Cristobal. Now we have 4 Shellbacks aboard Rioleon.

We got our canal transit date a few days ahead of time. After departing the marina, we went to the holding area a few miles away and anchored overnight for a 5am start. Pleasure yachts are required to have 4 line handlers, a captain, and a hired canal pilot. The job of the canal pilot is to advise only, they don’t touch lines or the wheel. Boats are also required to have proper lines and fenders, which were rented ahead of time.

Jaime, the canal pilot, boarded Rioleon promptly at 5am, gave us some quick instructions, and off we were. A 5am start meant that the canal transit would be done in 1 day. Start times later than noon makes it a 2-day transit, and you have to anchor overnight on Gatun Lake. Jaime was extremely knowledgeable and was glad to answer any questions we had. Here are some of the facts he told us:

• it takes 26 million gallons of water for each locking. Locks are gravity fed, so water from a down-going lock feeds the up-going lock.
• an average of 24 boats per day transit (40 max).
• a neo-Panamax ship pays about $500 million per transit normally. During drought conditions, such as now, a bidding can fetch $1-4 million.
• typical revenue from the Panama Canal is $10-12 million per day.
• there are 3 uplocks and 3 downlocks–it’s 28 vertical feet per locking. Gatun Lake is in the middle and used to be jungle. The channel through the freshwater lake is the original river basin.
• it’s 50 miles through the canal from ocean to ocean.

It took us 12 hours to transit the canal. For a line handler (like me), it was a lot of inactivity while motoring between locks, followed by flurries of more intense activity at each lock. Rioleon was rafted up with 2 other catamarans (shown in picture below) for most of the lockings and we were on the outside, so we really only needed 2 line handlers for each locking. Three bridges cross the canal–one at each end and another one somewhere in between. They’re spectacular especially at night when lit up.

After getting through the canal, we tied up to a mooring buoy overnight and had a good dinner at Balboa Yacht Club. (l to r: Heidi, Clement, Mike, Jim, David)

A final provisioning in the morning, clearing out of customs, and refueling took a bit longer than expected so it was good to finally get underway.

I arrived in Panama a few days before we transit the canal. We drove from Panama City (Pacific side) to Colon (Atlantic side) and moved aboard Rioleon, a beautiful Outremer 45. Mike and his family sailed her all the way from France. The route back to Oregon is through the canal, French Polynesia, and Hawaii. I’m joining for the leg from Panama to French Polynesia.

I’ve always owned and sailed on monohulls. I’ve been on a few catamarans during our Pacific loop–that’s usually where cruisers gather at anchorages for potlucks and socializing. It’s much easier hosting a dozen people on the big covered aft deck of a cat. Moving aboard Rioleon 4 days before departure allowed me to become familiar with the boat and get acclimatized to the heat. Besides provisioning and some minor boat work, we visited a nearby old fort.

The fort, called Castillo de San Lorenzo has a rich history of war and pirates! It was built in 1595 to protect cargo that was sent overland from Panama City to Colon, destroyed by pirate Henry Morgan in 1671, rebuilt six years later and again in 1740. Then it was destroyed again by the British and rebuilt in 1768. In the 19th century after Panama’s independence from Spain, the fort was used as a barracks and a prison. What remains today is a combination of preserving parts of the 1768 version and reconstructing some of the original. It’s well-worth a visit.

Outremer 45–Rioleon

The Outremer 45 is a 48′ performance catamaran (it was originally 45′ until they added 3′ onto the transom) capable of sailing 95% of the wind speed. Rioleon was completed in early 2023. Here are some pictures of Rioleon.

Colon Jungle

The Shelter Bay Marina is surrounded by jungle, so we took short walks to see the monkeys. We saw lots of Panamanian white-faced capuchins mostly in the high treetops. We also heard howler monkeys from the marina but didn’t see any. Their deep howls can be heard from up to 3 miles away in dense jungles.