Huahine

Hi there! We had a good sail from Tahiti to Huahine two nights ago although, once again, the seas where not going in the same direction we were so it was a bit rocky n rolly. We entered Avamoa pass and are anchored off of the little village of Fare with Savannah and quite a few other yachts, wondering today whether or not this is a good anchorage for the weather coming up. The prediction is for winds between 25-35 knots from the east and it is quite gusty here, but supposedly safe. 


We celebrated our 10th anniversary yesterday; we first explored the little town with Mike and Jodie, and then went surfing just out along the pass here, and David and Mike both caught a few great waves; the wave I should have caught was a bit scarey for me, so I bailed at the last minute, but Jodie caught it, had a great ride and then got squashed by the even bigger next wave. We ended our day with a continuation of the cribbage tournament on Savannah, which started in West Panama, and found ourselves feeling very thankful to be with good friends we will always hold dear. We are going out for another surf session today after the squalls stop, and we hope the sun comes out to warm us all up again. We look forward to exploring the south end of this island which we can reach from this lagoon, but we must wait a few days for the weather to pass. -Suzi


Hi Kris- Thought his should be added to the blog as it explains a huge part of our existence while out here doing what we are doing. It deals with the Single Side Band radio nets that we listen to most every day that give us weather info. as well as a means to stay in touch with some of our new found friends. These "nets," as they are called, are controlled by one person who guides everyone listening through the weather reports and general check-ins of vessels on the way as well as ones at anchor. The "net controller" as this one person is called, changes from day to day to lessen the burden and spread the duties around to other boats. I played net control almost everyday during our crossing from the Galapagos to the Marquesas, and it's funny how different people run the net differently. I tended to run a "loose" net, but our net was a small one with only 10 or so members. Most nets are much larger, and the controllers are more rigid in their procedures, and the more people that check in, the more this control is needed. Someone has to direct each boat to talk at a certain time or chaos would prevail over the radio waves with people "stepping on" each other all the time. The weather reports that are given are created from a number of sources and then combined to give us an accurate overview of what's happening and, more importantly, what's going to happen in our different areas. You see, these nets reach out to boats that sometimes are a 1000 miles apart, so not everyone's weather will be the same. But it is assumed and agreed upon that everyone's interpretation of the info. given is her/his responsibility, so the buck stops with the captain of each boat. These radio nets are our long distance telephones that are like the old party lines that everyone can hear at the same time and that enable us to stay in touch with each other as well as receive helpful information concerning boat repairs or recipes for that special salsa. The radio has become a large part of our daily life and has replaced the cell phone as our main means of contacting that someone special. We wish all of you back home had one so we could talk to you because if you change the frequency, it's possible to talk to someone 1000's of miles away. But that would mean a special antenna mounted on your roof that neighbors might object to as well as the static that is created during transmissions that can screw up other radio and TV signals. The day might not be far away when SSB radios become a thing of the past when new technology in the phone industry replaces them. But for now, they definitely fill a huge niche in our lives; in fact they are letting me send this message to you right now, but that's another story for another time.  -David