Sailaway Sarantium

Yay, I heard back from the dry storage here in the Archipelago De Taumotus and Sarantium will be pulled out of the water beginning of August! I contacted a couple of people, who have kept their boat stored there before, to see what their experience was like. You got to love ”noforeignland” for the ease of connecting with fellow sailors! They gave raving reviews and offered to take some shots of my boat for me in September when they haul their boat out for their second year! I’m amazed how the sailing community looks out for one another!

Until the haul-out, we spend a month between here and Fakarava, exploring and playing ….

This time, semi private…

We are tucked in close to shore to hide from the upcoming wind that’s predicted for today and tomorrow… in three days we go to Fakarava for midsommar celebrations…

We pulled anchor at 09 and sailed towards the passage, with the outgoing tide. We needed to be there for the slack at 13.00. Our next Atoll is Kauehi! This should take us 20 hours!

So, Goodmorning beautiful wind! And goodbye Makemo! But first let’s climb the mast!

One person on the helm and one on the bow to watch out for coral heads!

We had a gentle wind as soon as we pulled the anchor up! We sailed out together with our new friends from Sweden on SV Angelina, who were on the same sail plan as us!

The tide was just approaching slack as we turned on the engine to motor-sail out of the Makemo pass! Unfortunately as soon as we reached the outside the wind died so having the engine off was short-lived! The water was glassy and we crossed our fingers for wind!

For three hours we motor-sailed. As soon as the sun set, wind picked up and we could turn the engine off and raise the Genoa! Should be a good night! Goodnight and …

Out.😉

Yes, the wind held for the next 6 hours, however took us ”the wrong” direction. Normally, this is not a problems, however we had to make the 14.00 tide slack at our next atoll. So around 05.00 I turned the key on the engine ignition and we set the auto pilot for the entrance to Kauehi Atoll! It was forecasted that wind wound kick in at 07.00! And it did!

After 4 amazing days, a prestine anchor with undisturbed coral reef, few boats, calm and unbelievably clear water, beach to myself and loads of coconut trees, I’m planning the next passage.

At the moment I’m unsure where I’ll leave the boat while I fly to Europe, as marinas here in French Polynesia are full. And they do not take reservations rather they want you to be on location. I’ve sent emails to most of them and all except for one in Apataki Atoll do not have space in their yard. I’m waiting for their response. If they confirm then Sarantium will remain the the Tuamotu Archipelago until cyclone season is over in April. And from there I’ll make my way to New Zealand or Australia via the Society Islands, Cook Islands and Fiji in 2026. If I can’t find a Marina or yard to store my boat this year, I will continue towards NZ or Aus, and hope for storage along the way! Who knows, we may find ourselves in NZ or AUS this October!!! ….plans forever changing, whatever happens happens!!!

Today, I woke up with the agenda of finding the ”Swedish Reef” that was mentioned in ”NoForeignLand”. A young sailor decided on the name as the reef is full of yellow and blue coral. The reef was 1.5 NMiles from our anchorage so a bit far to swim. I jumped in the zodiac… that btw, seems to be working now (after I took carburetor apart and cleaned it of crud). The corals began looking purple and light yellow, so I knew I was on the right track!

When we got there, I was shocked how beautiful the reef was. It was very shallow with purple and yellow corral and full of colorful reef fish!

Another day in paradise! Mind blowing on a daily base…

We got up and headed into town to pick up fresh baguettes and some Roquefort cheese! I dove into the water released some chain that was wrapped around coral and started the engine! We raised the sails quickly and weaved inbetween the coral heads for 10 NMiles until we saw the anchorage! One person on the bowsprit and one person on the helm and sailing at 5.5 knots for two hours! What a blast!

East anchorage does not disappoint!! We anchored in 5 m off water and tied some fenders to the chain so we don’t get caught up in coral!

Our friends from Karlshamn, Sweden, on SVAngelina arrived a couple of days ago, to Makemo. We met up in town and wandered the streets while sharing sailing and life stories before finally ending up at the pizzaria. There we met a Dutch couple, who has been sailing since 2022 and is on a five year plan! Lots of stories and laughs from cockroaches to holding tanks! We will all meet up again in the next anchorage! Faces are becoming very familiar as we are all on similar circuit! Pizza was delicious!

This island has the friendliest people I’ve ever met. Everyone seems so happy here and they go out of their way to say hello while biking past you!

A quick visit to the bakery this morning to pick up baguettes that I ordered yesterday, and then we’re off to the East Anchorage! Apparently it’s a MUST!

My next read!

This anchorage has been pretty cool! It’s a quick row into the dinghy tie up, the village has a ”grill” and PIZZARIA”!!! We are going to check out a mechanic today to see if they can figure out the outboard motor. I believe the carborator needs some TLC!

Sarantium sits right beside a reef and this reef is the home to an amazing variety of fish and a beautiful Moray Eel! The boat also is directly above a bunch of small coral which is the home to a gorgeous octopus. It keeps walking inbetween three corals. It’s starting to warm up to me when I swim down to hang out with her.

There seems to be a slight disturbance in wind just south of us so it’s calm here and will be for this week. A good time to stay put! Life is amazing💕