Adventures in Paradise

We’ve been enjoying our usual blend of mountain adventures and coral explorations. Moorea, and the Society Islands at large, are great for this: they have dramatic mountains, but each bay is surrounded by a fringing reef, creating a calm, comfortable and still lagoon within. The geography makes for excellent hikes and anchorages, with many snorkeling options in sight.

The reef here isn’t as vibrant as in the Tuamotus. We hear that a large cyclone travelled through the area a few years back, killing much of the coral. There are some areas of regrowth, but more seaweed than anything else. The water is beautiful and clear, but underwater the things are brown. The fish remain abundant, trigger fish, surgeon fish, and angel fish aplenty. We’ve also crossed paths with a turtle, shark, stingray, and the largest moray eel I’ve ever seen.

Today we are taking the dinghy two miles west of our current anchorage in Opunohu Bay to Stingray City—a spot where the stingrays congregate to swim with the snorkelers and fend off the sharks—should be fun!