Still in Fakarava

At the Pink Sands beach, South Fakarava

From the aptly named Wall of Sharks, South Fakarava

We can't seem to leave Fakarava. The lagoon and oceanic wildlife here are just making it hard to go, easy to stay. We've been sailing in the lagoon in perfect conditions: flat seas, full sail, 15-20 kts of wind and great visibility, hard to beat. The dinghy engine didn't like being towed behind the boat for 20+ miles and thus staged a brief walk-out, but Martin was able to coax it back to life. I'm lucky because my boat comes with a handyman- Martin's does not!

Conditions permitting, we're looking at heading north-east to the Marquesas in the next week. It will be a 4 day, 500 nm upwind sail. We'll be there about a month getting ready for the crossing to Hawaii in November.